Desert Chic Color Bomb

This project is particularly special to us because of how it started. My client and I met in Prague! I was living and working there as a tour guide, and she was on one of my tours. We stayed in touch, she bought a house, got married, then called in Hey Now!

We started the vision for this remodel in the kitchen. It was dark, small, and cluttered. But it didn't stay that way! The bright, Caribbean-blue cabinets were inspired by the color of the sea on our clients' honeymoon in Curaçao. We enlarged the kitchen by taking out the laundry room wall, and stacking the washer/dryer behind recessing cabinet doors next to a floor-to-ceiling pantry.

We created an easier, airier flow from front-to-back of house by anchoring the dining nook against the wall with a banquette and hutch that is more than meets the eye: a custom dog crate is hidden in plain sight in the bottom of the hutch that also houses the bar. On the stairs, we replaced a half wall with an open railing for better light, and added a show-stopping colorful carpet runner. We played with planes of color in rugs, ceilings, and walls throughout the home, and bounced light wherever we could with brighter colors and glass-paned front and back doors.

The mural over the sofa was inspiration for the color palette. One of our client’s grandparents opened an Italian restaurant in Syracuse, NY, in 1936. When it closed in 1986, each grandchild got one of the original murals of agrarian Italians. We found it tucked away behind some furniture and knew it need to be the star of the living room. We distracted from the TV with Terrazzo wallpaper, and played up the half bath with aqua walls and art by Austin artist, Emily Eisenhart.

Kind of funky, kind of zen, the primary suite started with our client's favorite color via a velvet lavender headboard. The goldenrod ceiling, amber armchair, and robin's egg blue vanity/nightstand are anchored with a dark, southwestern rug so the room didn't lean too feminine. The en-suite bathroom got a complete makeover with Moroccan-inspired tile and a walk-in shower.

Now this is a home fit for two amazing, successful women to start their lives together!