Tag: Interior design

Looking Forward to the Philadelphia Garden Show!

Philadelphia Flower Show 2008
Every year, the Philadelphia Flower Show is highlighted with a specific theme. In the image above, 2008 was the year to "Jazz it Up!"

With 2012 well underway, here at Marvin Gardens we have been busy getting ready for the year ahead! Though there will be many new products, displays, and projects you’ll find at our shop this year, right now we’re excited to be gearing up for the annual Philadelphia International Flower Show. You might recall that last year, Marvin Gardens was honored as a prestigious Blue Ribbon Winner!

Each year, designers and talented gardeners travel from all over the world come to the show to display their fine items and plants, and with a Hawaiian theme for this year, we can’t wait to see what’s in store.

Marvin Gardens will also be proudly exhibiting some of our interesting and new garden products. We especially look forward to finding new, creative ways to incorporate our unique garden style into a Hawaiin theme – the ideas are already pouring in! This year’s show will begin on March 4 and continue through March 11, so be sure to mark your calendars.

Also remember to keep in mind that this month, Marvin Gardens will be closed until January 18th but we are still gladly accepting private appointments and you might even be able to catch Amabel at the shop if you time it right! In the meantime, stop by our Facebook page to share with us what you are looking forward to during 2012!

 

Image via knightp

Draw Your Interior Inspiration From the Beauty of the Season

Have you already begun dreaming about your holiday décor? When the shops begin stocking their shelves and the temperatures begin to drop (and they certainly have been!) then it’s usually time to start making your plans for holiday decorations that you’d like to use in your home this year. But where will you start? Should you incorporate some kind of theme or just throw it together? Better yet, instead of following a trending theme, consider drawing your interior inspiration from the beauty of the season! 

Throughout the winter months, we want your home to continue looking its best, so at Marvin Gardens we offer winter wonderland styled décor that keeps your home stunning well through February. Rather than decorating solely for the holidays, instead decorate for the entire season. This way, you can enjoy the seasonal look even after the holidays have passed.

To take advantage of our fabulous winter décor, hurry in to Marvin Gardens today!  Visit Marvin Gardens on Facebook to take a look at our newest pieces of décor.

A Home Inspired by French Châteaus

While enduring this extremely hot summer and longing for an escape to the French countryside, we came across a beautiful home inspired by Paris in Veranda Magazine. When the owner of the home wanted to add a Parisian feel to her beach side home, she went to interior designer Betty Burgess, who is known on the West Coast for her classic European style. The California residence features a soft palette of blues, greys and creams with black and chocolate accents gives the home the rustic charm of an old French château while still complementing the home’s West Coast location. We loved that Burgess used many of the homeowner’s antiques and art work to complete the look with a personal touch.

Take a look at some more images from Veranda that we also found inspiring.

We’d love to hear from you, what did you think about the Paris-inspired home?

Photos: Veranda | Photography by Roger Davies

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A Closer Look at a Quaint Townhouse

When it comes to sophisticated traditional design, Marvin Gardens just can’t get enough. We recently took a look at some photos from an installment in the latest edition of Architectural Digest of a townhouse renovation and we absolutely fell in love. According to AD, the residence is Thomas Jayne’s 19th-century home in Philadelphia. Take a look of a few of our favorites below form the spread!

The drawing room is furnished with a custom-made sofa and chairs upholstered in silk and a camelback sofa covered in a Clarence House damask. Rembrandt Peale’s portrait The Odalisque hangs over the mantel. The curtains are made of a silk faille from Claremont.
A custom-made runner stripes the staircase.
An Italian rococo secretary from Foster-Gwin stands in the drawing room.
Fluted columns separate the drawing and dining rooms; the chandelier is Italian Empire.

If you’re n the Wilton, CT area and interested in creating a cozy transformation like this in your own home, contact Marvin Gardens today!

Photo Credit: Pieter Estersohn via Architectural Digest

Bring a Touch of the Outdoors Inside with Beautiful Living MOSStiles

Talk about a fresh idea! Marvin Gardens recently came across this innovative and sustainable wall décor known as MOSStiles from by Benetti Stone Philosophy that basically allows you to decorate any area of your home from the walls to lampshades to tabletops and everything in between. The tiles come in a variety of colors and are almost completely maintenance free. What a neat way to liven up the interior with little to no effort at all!

From Inhabitat:

These modular living tiles come in 12 different shades and are virtually maintenance free needing no watering, fertilizer or even direct sunlight, maintaining their lush appearance relying only ambient humidity alone. Like a living wallpaper or even art, MOSStiles will brighten up your space with living plants.

Would you decorate your interior with these lush little tiles or are the out of the question for your digs? We want to hear your thoughts! Check back with Marvin Gardens regularly for all things gardens and design-related form around the web!

French Farmhouse Luxury: Oui, s’il vous plaît!

It’s officially summertime which means many folks all over the continental U.S. are hustling and bustling with sunny holiday plans. But if you’re like the growing number of Americans who will choose to stay close to the home front for the summer this year, you’ll have to enjoy the globe’s offerings vicariously through photos and illustrations. Marvin Gardens would like to spoil you with a few of our favorite pretty pictures from a quint and cozy 18th-century farmhouse in Province, France known as Le Mas de Baraquet. Recently featured over at Habitually Chic, these pictures are originally from UK House & Garden Magazine and depict tranquil gardens designed by Dominque Lafourcade and her husband Bruno Lafourcade. Aaah, the site of these lush gardens just screams, “Won’t you visit us in France, please?!” What are your summer vacation plans?




Photo Credit: UK House & Garden Magazine

The Characteristics of Colors

How does this shade of green make you feel?

Earlier, we briefly touched on the use of color schemes in interior design. There is actually a science behind which colors work best in certain rooms or design styles and it’s based on psychology. Most decorators know that how we perceive color can be very personal and emotionally charging. They can make us feel a whole range of emotions, from calm to edgy, happy to sad.

It’s important to use colors and shades that are right for you and those that you live with. Here’s a quick guide of which characteristics a few different colors represent:

Gray: classic. Those who gravitate to it are intelligent and disciplined. It’s elegant and works well with most colors. Warm gray paired with other warm colors create a lively and inviting space.

Black: elegance, mystery and power (although too much can be depressing). Consider using black as an accent color to add drama to your room.

Green: calm and relaxing. Those who like green are said to believe in balance, stability and persistence. Bring energy to a room by painting it a shade of lime green.

Yellow: happiness, optimism, inspiration and summer. Pale yellow brings a sunny feel to a space without being overwhelming.

Red: among the most psychologically stimulating of colors. It is the color of confidence and creates excitement and energy. It brings to mind passion, energy and courage.

The Coziness of Aqua and Brown

We’ve been blogging a lot recently about landscape and garden design, as well as the different types of flowers and greenery that you may want to include in your own outdoor paradise. Well, I’d like to spend a little bit of focus on interior design elements this week. One important aspect of which is color schemes.

A good color scheme will bring your home’s interior together. How one goes about choosing a color scheme usually reflects their personality and tastes. If only it could be as easy as just picking your favorite colors and then painting.

Better Homes and Gardens just published a really nice article on the popular “in-style” color schemes that really work well together. Here is one of my favorites…

Aqua & Brown

“Warm and soothing doesn’t have to be boring. An aqua coverlet and crisp white sheets keep the room on the fresh side of cozy.”

Garden-Related Motifs Show Up Throughout NYIGF

After the new florals in home design came out of Maison & Objet, we were happy to see even more garden-related interior design accessories show up at another recent and exciting design event, the New York International Gift Fair. As nice preludes to spring, birds, butterflies and even bugs were spotted as common motifs at NYIGF. Habitually Chic’s Heather Clawson did a great job covering the trends (not only for her blog, but also for national interior design magazine Elle Decor), with a myriad of examples depicting the whimsical and springy new patterns.

These butterfly paperweights from Two’s Company could keep us smiling thinking of lovely spring weather and dreaming of the gardens.

And these elegant pillows from Dransfield & Ross go to show that garden-related motifs like birds and flowers are here to stay.

If you’re planning your spring interior design and garden, contact or visit Marvin Gardens in Wilton, Connecticut, to find the perfect sophisticated accessories.

Images: 1 via Elle Decor; 2 Heather Clawson for Habitually Chic

Gardens Enhance Interior Design

Most people approach their gardens separately from their home’s interior, but thinking of them in conjunction can make for some postcard-worthy views. Think about it: some of your outdoor space can be seen easily from the windows inside, so marrying the interior and exterior will be well worth it.

Design site Freshome did a great piece about maximizing indoor views with landscaping. Here’s some food for thought:

  • From inside, look out the windows to determine which views you’d hate to hide and which ones could use some sprucing up.
  • If your home has large windows, the view outside becomes a part of the interior’s wall. Don’t be matchy-matchy, but use complementary colors inside for a well-thought-out look.
  • Bring some of the outdoors in with potted plants to unify the two spaces.
  • If you want to see even more of the outdoors from your home than you can now, think about adding a sunroom.

Visit Marvin Gardens for all the garden accessories you’ll need to create beautiful indoor views with your landscaping.

Image via Freshome