Pleasant Surprises

I continue to be pleasantly surprised with Home Decorators Collection. Many of their recent offerings up the ante on a bevy of looks - from borrowed-from-Regency pieces set with mirrored inlay, to lightly industrial, to unexpected and fun: Hello darling, pink garden chairs!

I give credit where credit is due, and I think they're doing a nice job of bringing a tailored look normally acquired with to-the-trade manufacturers to the masses. Carefully selected, I think many of their pieces could have a place in almost any room going for the perfect high-low pitch.
Here's a few of my top picks, and what I might do with them...

1) Garden Side Chair - I'd use it anywhere I'd want to inject some color - around a banquette, perhaps, to create a casual, family eating scene? I love typical shapes in unexpected hues!
2) Rockford sofa - Nice, clean lines and a decent assortment of fabrics with/without nailhead. A good, starter sofa that looks nicer than ikea.
3) Baxter accent table - I might just crank this up a notch by painting it something fun, and setting it beside a clawfoot tub.
4) Jasper coffee table - I appreciate that the lines on this table are slightly elegant. It brings down the "industrial" feel of it. I'd mix this table up with dressier furniture for balance.
5) Ava table lamp - I'm liking these for bedside tables.
6) Director table lamp - I'd put one of these on a glass-topped sawhorse desk. If the desk was otherwise cluttered, the lamp would still look cool and clean.
7) Reflections Mirrored cabinet - Definitely could use this to dress up a dining room, but if a client had a budget for a large and amazing closet, I'd go all Big's-gift-to-Carrie closet with it.
8) Emma table lamp - I've long been in love with gorgeous venetian art glass lamps, but most of us can't swing $3 Gs for a pair of lamps. Enter the "Emma" - put a pair of them on an interesting piece in an entry, and you could simulate those expensive versions.
9) MS Ingrid sofa - 'ol Martha - she taps into the right partnerships all the time, doesn't she? Her collaborations with HDC seem to coincide with the catalog's glossied-up offerings. Chenille fabric on this sofa is a little "iffy," but the clean lines and nailhead trim make it at least worth considering in many rooms.
10) Slipcover Philips chair - Without a doubt, put these at the head of a dining room table where they'll take command as host chairs.

*If you'd like help putting together ideas for your home - email me about my e-design services!*