Thursday, August 5, 2010

HOME SWEET HOME

Well, it's finally time. I am finally letting you into my own home in hopes that everyone will want my unique style sense and will flock to Christa Pirl Interiors in droves. Well, maybe one or two of you?
Designing one's own place is always a challenge. Many would think it would be completely liberating for a designer...to have complete control....to create a space that embodies your every design philosophy. Well, in fact that is pretty damn intimidating and daunting. No matter how much we complain about our client's restrictions, restrictions can be quite helpful.
There are so many things I love, so many colors, periods, styles...it's SO hard to pick something that will be your calling card as a designer. Your own home is your signature, it is to be your ideal. Just a little pressure. Just a little.
Anyway, despite the budget constraints, I feel pretty good about my first fully designed home which will hopefully be the first in a long line of fabulous homes. Hopefully including ones in New York, London, Paris, Hawaii...
So for the full effect, here is the before:
A pretty typical and dull condo. At least there is molding in the living areas and decent baseboards. That is a big plus. However, everything - moldings, baseboards, window frames, ceiling, and all walls - are all painted a lovely beige. The beige that seems to exist pretty much everywhere in Utah. Well. That was just not going to do. Not at all. So I painted.
Left = old, Right = new.  While it might not look like much here, it is a whole lot. Revere Pewter, I LOVE YOU!
The dark brown corporate carpet also needed to go...at least in the living and dining areas. So I installed wood flooring. Sigh. Much better.
The bedroom was also painted...new drapes on all the windows...and new furniture throughout. That is the GREAT luxury of moving so much for so long; you have nothing worth keeping when you are finally settled. Temporarily settled. The below photos, as noted last week, were taken by the highly talented Michael Tallman http://michael-tallman.com/. The Living Room:
 
 
THE (in my opinion) sofa to die for:
 
The sofa before (little bit of an improvement, don't you think?):
     
The cocktail center:
         
The bar counter where we drink the cocktails:
The bedroom:
 
And yes, of course my desk is always this clean...
   
The bathroom eye candy...artwork picked up on the Trans Siberian in Moscow and Beijing:

The dining room:
And just for another comparison, here is the sales show apartment for the condo development...
 
Certainly pleasant, but, well, just a bit dull.  At least I hope most of you find my renovation more appealing!
I, of course, would love any comments or thoughts...preferably kind ones...but I will take them all! And I will go into more detail about sources and, of course since it's me, the history of all the antiques in separate blogs in the near future...so stay tuned!

TO ANY VISITORS FROM ISLY...THANKS SO MUCH FOR COMING!  PLEASE VISIT EVERY THURSDAY FOR MORE INSIGHTS INTO THIS AND OTHER DESIGN PROJECTS!

20 comments:

  1. Christa - Your home is stunning. I love all of the candles, and the mix of old and modern. Now I'll just have to visit you to see it in person! Thanks for sharing your home with us.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Christa, your home is beautiful. I love the mix of old and modern, and all of the candles lit throughout the place. Now I just have to visit to see it in person.

    Thank you for sharing your home with us.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks Lisa, hope you can make it for a visit before we move again!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Christa, your space looks gorgeous and the photos turned out fabulous!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Beautiful! You really turned the place from drab to fab. Good job!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Absolutely gorgeous Christa!! I'm so happy you finally blogged about you're home that I've been dying to see!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Lovely space you've created for yourself; a little palace! Fantastic inserts of distressed details. The photos are perfect for achieving what they aimed to; crisp and airy.

    ReplyDelete
  8. you home is very fabulous! love the dining area and the sofa, so glam!!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow! Your house looks a thousand times better than their 'model'. I agree with you about the beige walls. It's completely over used. I must ask where did you get that fabulous wall paper in your dining room? I've been looking for something like that to use in my house. Once more, wonderful job on your home.

    ReplyDelete
  10. exciting to see the candleabra from abode!! LOVE YOUR STYLE

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thanks for all the great comments...and thanks to Melissa over at ISLY for the nod!

    ReplyDelete
  12. As for wallpaper, it is by Kravet and I purchased it through the wonderful store 'Walls' in Salt Lake City run by Brittney Wallman (do you think that's a stage name? :) Check them out at: www.wallsthecolourstore.com. Those of you not in SLC, can find Kravet through many dealers & designers- and the pattern is called Louis (love it). Check it out on the Kravet website: http://search.kravet.com/CoverInformation.aspx?SKU=W3020.8&Catalog=400. Hope that helps, Sheryl and Ben, thanks for the question!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Beautiful photographs! You know I love your home... so not much to say here. Except, I'd love to see a photo posted of the whole dining table at an angle that also includes the stunning wallpaper and "throne" in one shot. Definitely a huge focal point!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Christa - I love the wall hanging above your desk and especially your COUCH - it is spectacular ! Also , your desk is very nice. Wall colors are very soothing - you have done a beautiful job designing your home . Judi P.S. thanks for all the help on mine !

    ReplyDelete
  15. What kind of sofa is that?! I've never seen anything like it... Im totally in love! You are so talented. I'm always so amazed by how little changes like the fabric can totally update the look of something like this. Your taste and eye for design are FABULOUS!

    ReplyDelete
  16. It is an American Empire sofa...from about 1840- pretty much my favorite design period ever. The Empire style comes from Napoleon and is a grand version of the Neoclassical that came before it. Thanks so much for the complement, Anonymous!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Thank you Christa! That definitely helps!

    ReplyDelete
  18. That sofa IS to die for! Did you already have it or was it a lovely KSL find?

    ReplyDelete
  19. Thanks! The sofa was purchased at City Creek Antiques, a wonderful place on 300S in Salt Lake. Of course it needed quite a facelift as you can see from the before photo.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Christa- I am blown away by the transformation I absolutely love the sofa (as you know) and yes it is a bit of a improvement on the apholstery. The way that whole condo flows together is brilliant amazing job. Your home is fabulous and I love the terminology througout like "the dark brown corporate carpet" which is totally true that and the utah beige are everywhere.

    ReplyDelete