Blue and White Monday with Kathleen DiPaolo

A couple of weeks ago, Kathleen DiPaolo was here providing insight into Purposeful Design.  One of the projects she mentioned was perfect for Blue and White Monday, so I asked her to come right back and share it.  Kathleen designed these interiors with what she calls an "East Coast sensibility," and I can see that. However, I grew up in Texas, and my house, and many of the houses I visited, looked very similar. English and American antiques, botanicals, and blue and white is a well-loved, charming combination. I'm happy Kathleen was able to share this lovely house with us.

Thank you so much for featuring one of my projects on Blue and White Monday! This client lives in Newport Beach, California, but has an East Coast sensibility.  Mrs. Client grew up surrounded by blue and white.  Her mother collected several blue and white patterns of Royal Copenhagen and her father always said, “I love any color, as long as it is blue!”   Mr. and Mrs. Client started collecting Chinese export and added other blue and white as they traveled.  A trip to Turkey opened their eyes to gorgeous Turkish platters.  Trips to England motivated my clients to buy English Transferware.

Their living room is one of my favorite places.  It opens to a gorgeous brick courtyard and it makes the space feel bigger.  The Chinese garden stools are constantly moved for extra seating during the holidays.  The big bowl on the sofa table is always filled with something- a white orchid, a mini Christmas Tree or a topiary. 

The dining room also has some of their blue and white.  It opens to the living room so the blue and white help tie the rooms together!

As you peek through the open double doors you look through the Butler’s Pantry to the kitchen.  The kitchen had no doors on the back wall, so we added beautiful beveled glass so that even more blue and white could be displayed.

This is a little vignette from the kitchen.  I selected this contemporary landscape painting to be paired with the antique and blue and white so it didn’t feel too stuffy.  I also placed a blue finial on the lamp to add some fun!  While I rummaged through the boxes that had been in storage, I found a collection of stone eggs that they had found on their travels to China and Africa.  I made many finials from the eggs so that the clients can have a memory of their travels every time they turn on a lampJ

Another little vignette.

This is the den where all of the football games are watched.  I was so happy to find this Cowtan and Tout pillow fabric to ties everything together.

I even managed to sneak a little blue and white into the master bathroom!  Do you see the little soap dish?

 

Lastly, is an Instagram shot of the master bedroom.  Who cares if the tulips block a little TV, right?!

Thanks again, Jennifer!!  I love all of your blue and white posts!

xoxo, Kathleen

A huge thank you to Kathleen for sharing her gorgeous work here -- TWICE!  A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that Kathleen was a very busy lady with exciting things in the works.  She's recently developed an incredible system called Return on Interiors which guides homeowners through remodeling and design projects.  Oh my goodness, to have had this resource for past projects would have been a game changer.  I would have been the one in control instead of the contractor. Even after all of my One Room Challenge projects, I still have things to do around here, and I will definitely be implementing Kathleen's system.

If you're an interior designer, you may also want to take a look at Return on Interiors. Comprehensive project management templates that you can use with all of your clients are available with your branding.  It's an incredibly thorough organizational system that would take years to develop all ready to go.  

And, while Kathleen's been developing Return on Interiors, she's stayed very busy creating beautiful interiors for her clients.  You can see more of her work at kathleendipaolodesigns.com.