It's a wrap: Trimmings personalize design style

Colorful trimmings are a beautiful accent in any room and personalize a home. Photo: Brunschwig & Fils.

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press• August 2, 2014

They are pretty and colorful. Beads, tassels, glass, feathers, shells, wood, metallic threads, metal chain, leather, ribbon, jute and almost anything that you would want. Trimmings...they are the bling of design. The finishing details for a decorating project. The embellishments that personalize and make your interior design unique.

And as a Fort Myers interior decorator, I can tell you that trims are a hot home accessory right now. A gorgeous accent for any room, they are like adding a beautiful piece of jewelry to an article of clothing.

Beaded tiebacks add a designer touch to draperies. Photo: Kravet.

When shopping for fabric for my clients, it never fails. I always end up going through the trimmings. They are inspiring and give me great ideas for new projects. And some uses may surprise you. They are easy to do and can add just the perfect, custom-made touch for minimum effort.

Amy Jimenez, manager of the Kravet showroom at Miromar Design Center in Estero, says that embellishing through the use of passementerie, the French word for trimmings, can be a fabulous way to turn your project from ordinary to extraordinary and adds the finishing touch to a skillfully designed interior.

"Trimming comes in a variety of sizes and styles including cording, gimp, brushed fringe, beaded trim, flat tape, tassel fringe, and bullion, just to name a few, and can be used for both decorative and functional purposes. Modern day passementeries are being made with a diverse selection of materials besides fabric and Kravet's trade-only showroom has an extensive collection of the latest, in-vogue trim collections for designers to source for their clients."

Change the look of a sofa and the entire room with multiple applications of fabric.  Photo: Kravet

And that's just the beginning of the many ways to use these beautiful trims. Check out a few of these ideas and the next time you are shopping for fabric, spend some time going through the trimmings for decorating inspiration!

• Trim the edges of store-bought drapery panels with a beaded trim or flat, wide tape to give them a custom look.

• Use flat tape and other trims to accent a cornice.

• Decorative accent for lampshades.

• Select feathers, woods, shells or beads to enhance a throw pillow.

Beaded tapes, cords and fringes and tapes accent pillows and furnishings. Photo: Kravet.

• Use a trim tape to trim a table runner, placemats and napkins.

• One of my favorites for a small powder room: an exotic trim tape for a border.

• Customize bedding with flat trim on the edges of skirts, sheets and pillow cases.

• Add fringe to a comforter or duvet cover.

Lindi fringed duvet cover from Anthropologie. Photo: Anthropologie.com.

• Pom pom trims are so popular right now that we see them on everything from pillows to shower curtains to throws. And for something fun and trendy without spending a fortune...pom pom a scarf!

Tory Burch pom pom trimmed scarf. Photo: Tory Burch.com.

• Select a pretty trim in an accent color and use it around the edge of dining room chairs.

• Use trims to enhance mirrors and photo frames.

• Jazz up a plain shade with an accent border around the edges and for the top valance.

• Embellish a table cloth with trim by wrapping it around the edge of the table.

• Cover a plain bulletin board with your favorite fabric and trim it in something beautiful and it comes a perfect inspiration board for your favorite decorating ideas, photos and fabric/paint swatches.

• Wrap small presents in trims for a memorable gift!

• As an accent in any room, pickup a few of your favorite, colorful trims on sale and fill a large, clear jar or vase.

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator. Home Inspirations appears the first Saturday of each month. Visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 949-1808 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog

Collecting is one thing, hoarding another

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press• July 5, 2014

“Your house is a place to keep your stuff while you go out and buy more stuff.”

-George Carlin

We are all collectors of some sort. And we love our "stuff."

I collect English, Victorian period, magnifying glasses that are displayed on an 18th century pine table.  And ceramic houses that are displayed in an old post office desk...because everyone knows that I am obsessed with houses!

But where is the fine line? The one that crosses from collections to hoarding?

We have all seen the shows on television. These are sad, extreme stories about people who cannot part with anything. It is painful for them and difficult for us to watch.

A collector typically exhibits pride of ownership and puts thought and money into how to display their treasures. A hoarder doesn't care to display anything. Their piles of possessions may give them comfort but not happiness.

Idea: Display your collections on a pretty tray like this one from from Pottery Barn.

Idea: Display your collections on a pretty tray like this one from from Pottery Barn.Honestly, we all hoard something. All of those "bargains" that we hope to use someday. Old partly used paint cans. Free samples. Pretty cosmetic bags filled with "free" bonus giveaways. Too many books. Clothes that we will never wear but hope is still there. Piles of photos that we hope to "someday" file or put in albums. These are inconvenient but they aren't unhealthy. 

A serious hoarder finds it impossible to part with anything. When faced with discarding something,  they feel tremendous stress. And a sure sign of a hoarder is one who has such huge piles of clutter that it make it difficult to navigate through a room or to find a seat that is not filled with "things."

I have a client who has traveled the world and has something to show from every country. Her museum quality pieces are beautiful. But there is not a clear surface in her home to put  a vase of flowers or a bowl of fruit. Not quite a hoarder (she calls it creative clutter), she cannot part with any of her possessions. Emotional attachments.

Thankfully,  few of us are hoarders.  But we all have too much and most of us struggle to keep it  organized.  Things that we hold onto. And too  much of this can create a feeling of stress and confusion in our homes.  And in our lives.

"We shape our dwellings, and afterwards our dwellings shape us."

 - Winston Churchill

The following tips are designed to help you come to terms with clutter and collections that may no longer serve you. For a happier home, say goodbye to these:

•    Things that are broken. Appliances, old computers. Let's be honest. You are unlikely to fix them.

•    Anything that makes you feel guilty. Like that baking, blending, pasta-making contraption that you thought would change your life. Or clothes in your closet that you will never (be able) to wear again. Or organization systems that you have never used. Say goodbye and make them go away.

•    Furniture or accessories that bring up bad memories. Aunt Sadie's antique lamp that you disliked as a child and now it is yours.  It may be someone's happy memory but it's not yours.

•     Items that no longer fit into your life. Old exercise equipment. Large pieces of furniture that worked in your larger home but not since you downsized.  Make them go away and open up some space.

•    Collections that have taken over your home. Put a few of your treasures on a pretty tray or shelf and don't let them become clutter.

Don't let great memories become clutter. Display them on a wall with this wire mesh shelf from Pottery Barn.   

• Old decor. At one time you may have loved your artwork or your antiques. But times change and you may be ready for something different.  Find a consignment store and try a fresh, new look. Don't be afraid. And don't hang on to pieces that you don't love.

•    Multiples of anything. How many sets of dishes, cookware, storage containers, potato mashers do you really need?

•    Anything poisonous or dangerous. Old cans of cleaning solutions, spray bottles...especially if you don't remember what they are. Toss and don't look back.

•    Items that you are saving because maybe "someday" you will use them.  Shopping bags, gift boxes, wrapping paper, ribbons, gifts that you can't use.  It will never happen. And if it does, you can buy somethingnew.  Don't let your home become a storage unit for "maybe somedays."

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator. Her practical and affordable interior decorating helps clients transform a house into a beautiful home.  Home Inspirations appears the first Saturday of each month. Visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 949-1808 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog

The Yoga Sutras: My search for meaning on a Saturday afternoon

It was a beautiful Saturday and the beach was calling me.

It takes a lot to keep me away from the beach on weekends. It is my angst release. My meditation.  My chance to try to get ride of all the stress that I have absorbed during the week.  A way to escape all of the drama.  And even if it’s only for a few minutes, a walk by the water is healthier than anything else I can imagine doing. 

But today the beach would have to wait. I had something else in mind.

Joyful Yoga and Spa in Bonita Springs had scored a major accomplishment and was hosting Dr. Pandit Rajamani Tigunait, the spiritual head of the Himalayan Institute for a two-hour discussion of his book, The Secret of the Yoga Sutra. This location was only one of 71 stops on his tour.  He is a big deal. And I had signed up weeks ago. Hoping for some answers.

It has been a year since I walked into Joyful Yoga and happily made a commitment to a yoga practice. For many years I had been a complete exercise fanatic and it paid off with a healthy, strong body. But after endless boot camp classes, high impact cardio and a yoga class here and there, all I had to show for it at the end of the day was knowing that I had to start over again the next day. It had become a drag. I wanted more.

And at Joyful Yoga I found more. As co-owner and longtime yogi, Emily Chiodo, puts it:

"Here in the west, we are so obsessed with the physical aspect of the yoga system that many people are unaware of the larger scope. The physical and mental benefits experienced with a hatha yoga practice is valuable in and of itself.  While the effects of your first few yoga classes may last a few hours or even days, it is merely a temporary freedom. Then, with continued practice, you begin to short circuit patterns in the brain that create anxiety as you simultaneously strengthen muscles, establish flexibility, refine physiological responses, and stave off disease and deterioration, but there is still more to be derived from a yoga practice."

Imagine being able to short circuit patterns in the brain that create anxiety. Sign me up.

I wanted to learn more. And I wanted to understand the sutras.  I know these more than 2,000 year-old sutras help us to “understand the mind, turn it inward and achieve life’s  purpose.”

Joyful Yoga and Spa in Bonita Springs

So, having given up my day at the beach for some deeper understanding of the Yoga Sutras, I walked into Joyful Yoga and knew that I was in the right place.

The studio looked beautiful with bright sun and blue skies setting the backdrop through the huge wall of windows facing north. The water-filled fountain in the garden area was sparkling. Magical.

As Emily introduced this modern-day master who has touched lives as a teacher and spiritual leader, I made a decision. I would learn what I learned. No stress or angst. No pressure.

And he talked and I listened as he focused on some of the sutras.

Despite the fact that prosperity everywhere in the U.S., what we have is not enough. We are just not completely happy. And he spoke about attachment: We want the world to comply with our whims. We see it revolving around us. And over and over, he spoke of “cleansing the mind.”

We know those moments of stress when we have the power to reverse them or slow them down. But most days, we just let them carry us along. Without trying to stop them.  

And despite all of his beautiful words and calm explanations, the sutras are still difficult for me to understand.

And then it happened...

At the end of his presentation, just before his guided meditation, Dr. Pandit Rajamani Tigunait said that we cannot be effective if we run around like we are crazy and agitated. We must “let the mind exercise its mastery over the body.”  We must get the mind into a state of balance.  We must take a break from our frantic lives. Clear the mind through meditation and breathing. It is the only way. A conscious, cleansing meditation. The key word here is conscious. And balance.

A reboot, as I see it. When you are in the middle of the storm of anxiety. And this, I completely get. Especially on those days when it's impossible to make it to a beach.

Thanks, Joyful Yoga, for guiding me in my yoga practice...on and off the mat.

Vintage meets modern: Pretty, uncomplicated lighting that's made in America!

                                                                      All photos courtesy of Barn Light Electric.

I've been doing some sourcing for a client who is beginning a complete redo of her home and lighting is a huge part of her makeover. She loves the industrial look but I wanted to soften it a little. And then I found it. Lighting that does not take itself too seriously.

Barn Light Electric is American manufactured and the collection of interior/exterior lighting fixtures and accessories reflects a vintage-meets-modern style that includes everything from warehouse shades, gooseneck wall arms and porcelain enamel lighting, to pendant lights and sconces. It's uncomplicated and classic.

So, I headed to Titusville for a look at their new showroom and to see for myself. I was impressed with the quality and I love the yummy colors. These are a great choice for kitchens, sconces, bathroom vanities and outdoor spaces.

Why porcelain? Unlike other painted finishes, porcelain enamel can be restored to its original condition by washing with mild soap and water. After five, ten, or even twenty years, porcelain enamel is the one finish that retains its beautiful original color. Porcelain enamel successfully resists harsh weather and work conditions; extreme humidity, cold, and heat are no match for porcelain enamel. This type of finish does not deteriorate or corrode when in contact with chemicals found in most industries – it retains its original shape, glossy color, and texture, ultimately providing years of extended use compared to other fixtures.

And it is stunning in a simple, classic, industrial with a touch of coastal sort of way. Perfect for my client. And for my next redo of my own home space.

For more details and to see the extensive collection and color samples, call me! 

Want a home that makes you happy?

Time to hire a professional? Read my tips for working with an interior decorator in the Fort Myers News-Press.

Creating design that stands the test of time

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press• April 12, 2014

Photo: Pottery Barn.

Finding the perfect design for your home is a bit like putting together a wardrobe: if you go with all of the latest trends you are likely going to want to redecorate every year. And you are guaranteed to have a few items hanging in your closet that will still have the tags on them because they were never worn.

In other words, you will never feel completely happy with your decor (or your wardrobe).

The trick is to purchase wisely. Build a foundation of timeless design that you will love for years to come. A style that is relaxed, uncomplicated, uncluttered. That's timeless design.

As a Fort Myers Interior decorator, I work with my clients to make sure their decor is a reflection of who they are and not the latest trends.  Few of us have a budget that allows us major changes every few years and the best news of all, timeless design will save hours of work, dollars and you will have a calmer home that you love.

When purchasing new furnishings, the goal is to make everything work no matter where you live now or where you may move in the future. Timeless design fits and flows smoothly in a beach house or a condo or an estate home.   And what fits in your southwest Florida home will also work in any home that you may move to in any part of the country. Because it is timeless.  Like a Chanel purse. 

                                                                                                   Photo: Ballard Designs

Lauri Ward, author of Use What You Have Decorating, says that like fashion, a well designed interior relies on having classic pieces at its foundation.

"Take a look back at rooms designed decades ago: you’ll find a pair of armless slipper chairs, a tufted Chesterfield sofa and a couple of brass pharmacy lamps that can still be found in the best rooms today. All still look stylish and will be, eternally, no matter where they are placed.”

Chesterfield sofa from Pottery Barn. Photo: Pottery Barn.

Building a design scheme that will stand the test of time takes some thought and planning.  These tips will help you to think about your design style and keep you from wasting money on trendy items that will soon be tossed aside:

Color. Forget the color of the year as a palette. Go with muted colors as a backdrop and it will lend itself to different styles and accent colors. Pops of color come from artwork, pillows, accent pieces.

Add texture. Fabric. Wall hangings. Metal. Glass. Stone. Wood. These all give our homes a feeling of permanence. And timelessness. 

Lighten up. Eliminate heavy window treatments and bring in as much natural light as possible. Layer your lighting with an overhead fixture and multiple lamps with soft wattages, placed properly in each room.

Blend antiques. When done properly, this works beautifully.

Warm it up. Add rugs to your design plan. They tie a room together and give warmth to tile or hardwood floors.

Photo: Ballard Designs.

Splurge on quality. Not quantity. Invest in that chandelier that you have always wanted. Or the heavenly bed that you know you will have forever and it will guarantee sweet dreams. Or the classic sofa that you love and will recover many times because you will never find one that you love as much.

Less is always more. Don't over accessorize. Instead, select carefully and only use what means something to you.

Establish a focal point. This is what designers do. It may be a piece of furniture, an architectural detail, a beautiful view or a painting.  Once this is determined, everything else flows from the focal point.

Make mindful choices.  Before making impulse purchases(we have all done it)  to fill space,  take a breath. Decide what you really want. What you love.  Whether your style is modern, contemporary, traditional or eclectic, some honest, thoughtful planning will result in a timeless design.

And save the trendy purchases and the color of the year for a pillow or candle or other accessory that you will not mind saying to next year when there is a new trend!

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator. Her practical and affordable interior decorating helps clients transform a house into a beautiful home.Home Inspirations appears the first Saturday of each month. Visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 949-1808 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog

Read more about timeless design:

• Will you love it in five years? 
• As timeless as the deep blue sea

Simple pleasures: flea market treasure finds new home

The last Renningers antique extravaganza of the season is always bittersweet for me...it will be a long stretch from February until the next season begins in November. It's a lot like waiting for Downton Abbey to return and we all know how that feels.

But I found a great little treasure in this beautiful field shaded with a canopy of old oak trees. After tromping through acres and acres of vintages finds, there it was. I knew the minute I saw this turquoise terrarium that it would likely go home with me. But I walked away and kept coming back.

It is old, a little rusty and the pretty turquoise paint is peeling just enough to give it character. The stall owner had filled it with dishes. I knew I could give it a better life. So, we made a (good) deal.

I knew just what to with it.

I coated the bottom with some of my favorite shells that I have collected from Upper Captiva Island and some of my treasures from New Zealand beaches. Now they are all mingled together and sitting in the middle is a small piece of driftwood that I found that is just perfect. And my prized white nautical shell is the focal point.

Now it sits in my entry on an early 1800's, English sideboard that is from a kitchen. Coincidently, this piece was also discovered at Rennigers in Mt. Dora. I like to think that it came from a manor house kitchen but will never know for sure.

Want a home that makes you happy?

Call me. I can help!

Time to hire a professional? Read my tips for working with an interior decorator in the Fort Myers News-Press.