The newest trend in bedrooms is to create a spa retreat.  Clients are asking to design havens, not only for themselves, but for guests and children, as well.  When creating a spa retreat a few of my “must-haves” are:

Lush bedding.  My definition of lush is ample.  All the linens should compliment one another.  If you like a monochromatic color scheme, just repeat the same color on sheets, blankets, comforters and pillows.  Don’t think, ”no one sees the pillow cases.”  Every detail builds on the other to create a true spa experience.

Matching towels and soaps.  The bathroom is such an integral part of the spa experience.  I have a simple equation for bath towels.  I select two colors of towels and buy 2 of each in body, hand, and washcloth size.  This creates a more dynamic display.  And, don’t forget soaps.  Whether you supply a bar or body wash, it should complement the color story.

A place to sit—other than the bed!  A must in every spa retreat is a chair and ottoman or a chaise lounge.  The bed is for sleeping, but the chair or chaise is for lounging.  This allows the user a place to read or more comfortably put on shoes, etc. when dressing and allows an opportunity to create another “moment” for the user to escape.   If space allows, I try to place a chair in the bathroom.  This is a true luxury for dressing or applying make up.

Don’t forget the closet.  More and more my clients are requesting that I include their closets in their spa retreats.  Even something as simple as painting the walls the same color as the bedroom or bath helps carry the look into the closet.   Another trick–hang a chandelier overhead instead of a fluorescent.  This helps create the illusion that this is a room.  And, if the budget allows, select a beautiful wallcovering or small ottoman to round out the effect.

Want take any bathroom from gloomy to glamorous?  Buy clear glass jars in three sizes and fill with a variety of colored soaps, salts and other toiletries.  The color with make the space more dynamic and if you want to change your color scheme, you simply change out the soaps.  Easy and dramatic!

Bedrooms should be a very personal space.  Nowhere else in the home are you at your most vulnerable.  All your barriers are down and you just want to relax and retreat from the world.  So, when designing a client’s new master retreat I thought flowers would be the perfect backdrop because of the homeowners love for gardening.  Plus, her only request was to make the room “girly.”

To me, nothing says “girly” more than flowers.  I love flowers, and I use them many times in bedrooms because of the feminine quality they bring.  I design many types of bedrooms, put personally I love a feminine bedroom, because they’re soft to the eye and, well, I believe bedrooms should be soft.

My overall theme for this room was Scandinavian country. I discovered the most serene floral fabric a few weeks prior on one of my buying trips as well as an extensive set of antique china that complemented it beautifully.  (I know, china in a bedroom?) The room was large with absolutely no architectural detail to ground it.  So, I selected an amazing large-scale biblioteque made of reclaimed wood and painted a quiet, chalky white on the interior.  This gave a focal point to create a sitting area and provided a beautiful backdrop for china and books.  Directly across sits the recovered headboard and hand-embroidered bedding.  The bed is crowned with an antique painting of a lady in nightclothes.

The bath is covered in a trellis pattern wallcovering with a blue strie ground.  The bath was large enough for a covered table showcasing the floral fabric as a sort of entry table with jars of soaps and stands of towels.  The mirrors were changed to feature milky white and silver carved ones that continue a more elegantly rustic theme.  The window treatments are in the floral with a honeycomb embroidered sheer that subtly plays on the garden theme of bees and flowers.

The quiet combination of pale blue and creamy white makes a soft and soothing haven for the new homeowner where she can enjoy a book, a rest for the night, or prepare for the day ahead.

Isn’t that what a retreat should be?

You can view new photos of this project here.

Not every phone call from the client is the same.  When I spoke with this client for the first time, he wanted to make sure I was comfortable working with dead animals.  Personally, I prefer dead animals to live ones, especially the exotic variety. 

This particular client is an avid game hunter.  After meeting with him I discovered he feels most at home in Africa on safari.  So with this in mind, I decided to create an African game lodge for him in Tennessee.  Of course, this is my romanticized version—complete with velvet sofa and mahogany cabinets.

How do you incorporate amazing Kudu and water buffalo into a sophisticated home?  The starting point was the two-story great room with gothic style windows.  It was a blank slate.  A pair of French doors flanked the fireplace and had clerestory windows above and an empty space between that screamed for mounted trophies.  The client had left and right-facing Kudu.  These would fill the spot perfectly.  I chose the color of the room from the skin of the game trophies.

Without a doubt the best feature of the room is the hand-painted mural depicting Victoria Falls and all the client’s favorite animals from safaris past.  What made this so fun is that the client gave me photos of his favorite trips and we created this along with an artist from South Africa.  The result was extraordinary.

There are few jobs that present me with the opportunity to fuse game trophy and silk.  But, the juxtaposition of the rough skin of the animals and the fine texture of the draperies and pillows is a dramatic expression for the client and his family and friends to enjoy.

We at Eric Ross Interiors have been working feverishly this summer on some amazing projects.  Projects that not only have to do with interior design, but also with new media tools for our clients and friends.

We are pleased to announce the newly designed Eric Ross Interiors website.  The address is still the same, EricRossInteriors.com, but the look and functionality has been updated for you.

What makes it new?  A few new features you may enjoy:

1. Video Page.  Many of my clients are intrigued by the process of how a room comes together, so I’ve added some new videos of projects for you to enjoy.  Also, some of my clients so graciously agreed to star in a short video talking about their experiences with Eric Ross Interiors over the years.  By having a page dedicated to videos, it will be easier to access behind the scenes moments at Eric Ross Interiors.
2. Portfolio Page.  Now we have each project sorted by residence rather than rooms.  This way you can see the overall theme that emerges from each project, so you get a more visual experience from each home.
3. Blog Page.  Anyone who knows me will be most surprised by this new feature.  I’ve finally given in to the times and will TRY to post current and relevant information regarding trends in design every month.  So, you’ll get to be at the pulse of design by regularly visiting the blog and accessing new information for your own home.

You, our client, are the most important person at Eric Ross Interiors, and we are always thinking of ways to keep you up-to-date on the most current trends and fashions for your home.  Keep watching for more updates soon.

One of my long-time clients just moved into an amazing home with a master suite some would die for.   However, the Venetian plaster walls with their mirror-like finish cast a plum glow with their existing gold and chocolate bedding.  The room was amazing, but the client wanted the walls to look like chocolate gnoche instead of plum pudding.

Color temperature is key when selecting brown.  There are red browns and blue browns.  When selecting fabrics, rugs and paints, you must consider whether the brown you are working with is a cooler or warmer tone.  In this room, we wanted to use the stunning plaster finish, so I selected a brown that was cooler to complement the tone of the wall.  Since the clients’ existing bedding was a red brown, it exaggerated the blue tone in the wall.  By selecting a warm gray and raisin chenille damask, we were able to make the brown wall look, well, brown.

Since the walls were such a focal point, I used only the large-scale damask on pillows.  All the other fabrics were about soft color and texture.  This allowed the subtle nature of the finish to shine like a star.  I designed swag valances on bronze painted rods to mimic the iron arches of the canopy bed.  The movement of the swag also kept the eye moving around the room and enhanced the architectural features of the room.  To repeat the shimmer of the wall treatment I selected a metallic embossed damask pattern on the sheer.  The subtle pattern and reflectivity look amazing in candlelight and fire-glow, creating a perfect couples retreat.

If you have a room where the color isn’t just quite right, consider the temperature of the colors you’ve placed together.  Getting colors you select to be the same temperature is one ingredient in the recipe for a perfect room.

Some of my clients so graciously agreed to star in a short video talking about their experiences with Eric Ross Interiors over the years. We hope you enjoy this.

Eric Ross Interiors was recently featured in an Associated Press lifestyle article titled “Carpet Makes Bright Comeback with Bold Colors and Textures”.  You can view the article in The Tennessean here.

Here is the full text of the article by Melissa Kossler Dutton:

After years of being ripped out and kicked to the curb, carpet is making a comeback. And not just the neutral-toned carpets of recent years, but ones that are boldly colored or patterned. The softer, cozier feel of wall-to-wall carpet is appealing to homeowners used to treading on tile and wood, said Emily Morrow, director of color, style and design for Shaw Floors, a company in Dalton, Ga., that specializes in carpet, laminate, tile and hard wood flooring. “They’ve experienced those hard surfaces, and they want to surround themselves with the comfort” of carpet, she said. While hardwood or tile can be great for entryways or other high traffic areas, some rooms — bedrooms, play rooms, studies and family rooms — cry out for carpeting, said Eric Ross, an interior designer in Franklin, Tenn. “Carpet is really trending up,” he said. “You’re going to see more and more of it.” Manufacturers have responded by creating carpets with rich colors, patterns and textures designed to be a focal point, rather than just a neutral backdrop. The new choices are available at a variety of price points. “It has gotten exciting again” after years of playing it safe, Morrow said.

A matter of personality

Clients are using carpet to make a statement, agreed Linda Merrill, an interior designer in Duxbury, Mass. “If carpet is the right choice for a specific space, they feel freer to pick something a little more exciting,” she said. “There are a lot of different colors and different options.” More vibrant carpets often create a more customized feel, Merrill said. With the slumping real estate market, homeowners are indulging their personal tastes and worrying less about how their choices will affect the resale value of their home, she said. Some of the over-the-top ideas from television shows also have freed people to experiment more with decorating, she said. And the pervasiveness of patterns and bright colors in house wares and home furnishings in recent years has made people more open to color. “We see so much pattern in so many things,” she says. “We’re just bombarded with it.”

Brighten things up

The bold choices signal a shift away from the neutral palette that dominated earlier in the decade, says Annie Elliott, an interior designer in Washington, D.C. “In the past several years, we’ve been moving away from subtle muddy tones to brighter colors and bright patterns,” Elliott said. She has found that homeowners sometimes make bold flooring choices because they are less confident decorating their walls. “People don’t trust themselves” to buy art, she said. “People are realizing an easier way is using a patterned carpet to enliven a space without putting pressure on the walls.” Those who are hesitant to choose a patterned carpet often create an impact with a textured one, said Jennifer Bardsley, an interior designer in Hingham, Mass. Those carpets, created by using yarns of different lengths or densities, can spice up a space and add more interest to a room. Carpets in general make rooms feel warmer, and reduce noise, the designer said. “It makes it feel comfortable and cozy and inviting,” Bardsley said.

Decks are not my favorite.  Many times, they look like an afterthought simply stuck on the back of a house.  So when a friend and client asked me to help her design a new deck, I wasn’t thrilled, but took the challenge to make the deck appear like a natural style progression from the main house.

When designing one’s outside, you must take cues form the architecture of the home.  This client’s home was a colonial red brick structure, so I decided to create a colonial look, which called for a more formal feel.  So the materials we selected were red brick and painted cedar.  With a colonial home, it was essential to paint the wood so it looked more formal and maintained than a stained wood.

In order to achieve a more pleasing and proportioned look I designed the deck on piers constructed partly of brick with limestone caps and painted cedar posts.  We matched the brick on the piers as closely to the house as we could find.  Instead of attaching screening to hide the underside of the deck, I left it opened and planted hedges of boxwood filled with hydrangeas.  By breaking up the mass of a traditional deck structure and softening with shrubs, I gave the deck a lightness that helps it integrate into the garden.

Another trick I used to create this outdoor room was to add a pergola.  This open roof gives a transition point from the tall back wall of the house to the deck, creating a more pleasing effect.  It also gave me the opportunity to hang a gorgeous lantern.  This was the perfect spot for a painted cypress dining table and outdoor chairs.

The lower level of the deck was designed for lounging.  I was able to accommodate two casual areas with outdoor furniture and fabrics that look as if we moved them from the inside.  Even with outdoor fabrics you can use contrasting fabrics and trims to make them feel more custom and “indoor.”

The end result was so beautiful and natural it looks as if the deck has always been there.  Even better, it doesn’t look like a deck, but an outdoor room.

Pink is my favorite color. I know it’s not everyone’s first choice, but I like the carefree spirit it creates.

A pink room says, “Don’t take me so seriously. I know how to have fun.” So, for close, personal friends who wanted me to design their new master bedroom suite I thought it would be the perfect color to match their personalities. Of course, I asked them if they liked pink and both husband and wife said, “yes!”

So, how do we fashion a dramatic yet restful environment for two busy doctors and parents using such a playful color? I started with a deep shade of raspberry. This tone has a more blue base tone, so it’s more relaxing than a yellow or orangey shade of pink. In order to keep it less “girly,” I chose to ground the bright color with a chocolate brown and brown sugar, and included tailored details like goblet pleats with covered buttons on the window treatments. These subtle notes made the room feel more mature and sophisticated. Leaving the walls the existing shade of beige meant more in the budget for later splurges.

It’s so important when designing master suites to carry a connecting thread into the bathroom. So I selected a metallic cherry blossom wallcovering with the softest touches of pink. I repeated a chocolate and raspberry lattice pattern from the bed ensemble at the window of the tub to create continuity. By using sepia toned art, we kept the perfect balance between pink and chocolate.

Knowing this client so well, I knew she would love a designer closet. So I selected a graphic lattice patterned wallcovering in pink and white and styled a fussy window treatment resplendent with 3 rows of rhinestones…resembling a diamond bracelet. We capped the room with a petite empire style chandelier—in pearls! This closet is her new haven when winding down after a busy day and when getting ready to face the world in her designer shoes.

So, who says pink is just for girls. By not allowing old clichés to stand in the way, this power couple freed me to create a bold and dynamic space both he and she can enjoy.