2014 Fall One Room Challenge || Week Five
Thank you for visiting Week Five of my One Room Challenge! To catch up, go here.
One of the most exciting aspects of my entry is the custom pagoda lantern that Coleen Rider of Coleen & Company has designed for me. I know you're dying to get a glimpse of where this is going, and below you can see Coleen's sketch.
Isn't her design FANTASTIC?!! Do you have any idea how excited I am about this? It's hanging in my house this very minute, and I couldn't possibly love it more. Coleen nailed it. This lantern is spectacular! Not only is the design spot on for my entry, the scale is perfect. I gave her the dimensions of the space, and she created a fixture that fits the room flawlessly. I'm sure that my space constraints weren't the easiest. My ceilings aren't terribly high, and, in addition to the dimensions of the space, Coleen had to consider my husband's height. Avoiding bloodshed is always best, so I gave her the measurement from the top of his head to the ceiling. He can safely walk under the lantern with an inch to spare. Coleen has been a delight to work with, and I'm so grateful that she took this on. Below are her very interesting answers to several questions I asked about her work and her process.
Taking on designing a custom pagoda lantern for my One Room Challenge entrance hall project was quite adventurous. I wish I could claim the idea as my own, but instead I imagined using The Audrey for my space. What gave you this fun, spontaneous idea?
You had written a post about the lantern in your entry being too small and asked for readers' suggestions on what to replace it with. Some of your readers mentioned Coleen & Company as an option. When I read the comments, I just knew I could make you the perfect pagoda lantern in a more impressive size for your beautiful entry. I've always wanted a pagoda lantern in the line and thought who better to design one for than the The Pink Pagoda?
How did you become involved with lighting design?
My lighting business really came from my love of design. I used to have an antique / vintage store and also a design business, and I designed my first piece - The Tole Tent Lantern in 2007. I've always loved vintage lighting, and at that time there really weren't many painted fixtures with personality on the market. I became smitten with the whole process, and have really never looked back. In 2015 we will be introducing some breathtaking new designs.
After our communication, I was so impressed to receive an incredible design sketch from you in what I believe was less than a week. Could you share your design process?
I like to incorporate classic design elements and then add some unexpected flair to a piece. Because I already had a healthy pagoda obsession, I knew the elements I wanted to include. I did think the lantern should have a certain amount of stateliness to it along with the frivolity to be able to hold it's own in your home's traditional entry. It's sketch after sketch until I have what I want.
How did working within the confines of the One Room Challenge time frame effect the process of a completely new design?
As you know, a couple of weeks in I got nervous and thought we might not be able to complete it in your time frame. We always go through a few prototypes for a new design before we decide on the final version. We have many new designs in the works, and I just put this one at the front of the line to make sure we could fulfill our commitment to you. I was very inspired by your lovely scheme, and think the ORC challenge in general is just brilliant. With inspiration anything is possible!
This new pagoda lantern will be a new fixture available at Coleen and Company. Will it be available in custom sizes? In what colors would you like to see it painted?
Yes! I'm so excited to be adding the Pagoda Lantern to the line. All of our pieces are available in any custom size and finish. We're working on a five foot Paloma Lantern right now!
I would love to see it in pale colors - icy blue, lilac, lettuce green with ivory. I would also love to see it with nickel plated hardware. As with all of our designs, my clients are the ones who come up with color combinations I had never thought of.
Thank you, Coleen! I've gotten so many comments, emails, and Instagram messages about this. The anticipation to see photos of your pagoda lantern is extremely high. I can't wait to share them next week!
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This is my 6th ORC (Thank you, Linda, for 6 finished rooms!), and every time I participate, I'm working up until the very last minute and taking photos the day before the reveal. I'm a serial procrastinator, and that's par for the course around here. This time, however, I'm already finished. An unprecedented occurrence worthy of celebration. Instead of believing I've turned a corner, I'm going to credit this happenstance to the fact that the entry's aesthetics are spare. Below is my checklist. I'm so relieved to have everything on the list checked already. I'm also very excited to share my newly designed entrance hall with you next week.
Be sure to visit all of these amazingly talented ladies:
