Working with Rich Browns

Like shaved chocolate afloat a frothy cappuccino, browns are sumptuous and comforting. Colors of the earth, warm and rich browns are a pleasure to work with and are very versatile. Deep chocolatey browns add a touch of sophistication and elegance to a space. Browns also suggest reliabilty, approachability and groundedness. The currently popular chocolate browns work well with so many colors. Brown with Robins Egg blue is a great pairing and deep browns also look fabulous with greens and green blues such as teal. Above see Benjamins Moore's Chocolate Sundae 2113 paired with Sunlit Coral 2170, a warm and tempting combination.

A new color trend for baby girls is rich brown coupled with pink and for boys brown with apple green. The color combinations are modern and yet still so sweet!

Anthony Marschak

This chair is just amazing and so very clever! This sustainably designed,bamboo chair can be found over at Design Public-one of my favorite online stores!

Green-the new neutral

Green is a popular color right now and I'm so glad! Green is youthful, fresh, energetic and it can be soothing. Sage green has been consistently used in creating the cottage look. Now avocado green is prevalent as is lime green. Hunter green has long been associated with wealth and paired with gold it is indeed very rich.

Green has recently been touted as the "New Neutral" and why not? In nature we see green everywhere and it's glorius. Right now in the San Francisco Bay area the hillsides are lush and sooo very green, it's beautiful and refreshing. Take a look at some of these pictures. We see green paired with black which is strong, dramatic and bold. We see avocado green in a boy's forest themed bedroom which is soothing and natural. Lime green with pink has always been a great and playful pair for girls of all ages. Green with red needn't only be for Christmas.

Before and After; Home Staging Job

I just completed a staging job for a home for sale in Point Reyes, CA.

As you see from the before pictures, the place was all white and not very inviting. I chose a rich mid tone chocolate brown color for the kitchen and lower 1/2 of the loft wall. The milk chocolate color adds richness and sophistication. It also makes the cabinetry pop. The lighter color is called ferncliff from Kelly Moore. The 2 colors add warmth, a touch of class and yet are still very neutral.

The red runner rug in the kitchen goes perfectly with the brown and gold tones on the walls. The dining table with the 4 wrought iron chairs has a rustic, country feel which compliments the style of this cozy summer house. The papasan chair and ottoman were the perfect additions to the casual reading nook. Since the owners wanted to use their existing teal colored sofa, my color scheme included browns, golds, reds and of course more teal.

This was a partial staging so the furnishings and accessories were kept minimal yet I think there is enough to make it feel as though you could just move right in. I certainly wanted to stay!! And that is the goal of staging; to emphasize the positives and create an inviting atmosphere the buyer will fall in love with. This home is small but functional and thanks to some great staging it is now warm and inviting!; )

This house just went onto the MLS today and is listed for $825,000. It includes 4 acres and space to build a larger family home.

Many thanks to my helpers who helped pull this together in under a week- Joe Anne, Peter, Sean and of course my little guy Matthew. He's only 4 1/2 but terrific at running the vac and sweeping. ; )