There never was a house so bad that it couldn’t be made over into something worthwhile. – Elsie de Wolfe

The Inspiration.
The fabulous Elsie de Wolfe wrote, “I think it will give you as great a satisfaction to re-arrange your house with what you have. The results may not be so charming, but you can learn by them.”

The Challenge.
Last Saturday my friend, Barry, the miracle worker, came over to help gussy up my home working with what I already had. Even a PRO needs help seeing a room with a fresh perspective, and that person should not be your spouse. Just saying. We completely transformed my space in a day and the only thing I spent money on was $43 at the hardware store for bulbs, light, globe, extension cord, and closet rod. Ah-mazing!

living room before— what a sad, chaotic, space.

The result.
So I was all revved up to share all the photos (before and after) and then when I went to download them on my computer (I decided to use my fancy camera instead of my iphone) and accidentally deleted all the pics. Nuts! Okay so I’ll just list all the projects that I highly recommend tackling because seriously, you can do them in a day. One. Day!

living room after - cozy, bright seating areas in a warm, welcoming space.

One Day.
This is it! It’s time to j’love your home, no matter what. No excuses. Never complain, never explain. I’m pushing the positive so that everyone has a home that they love. Just because you don’t live in your dream home or whatever silly excuse you have, doesn’t mean you have to live in squalor (clutter!). Create beauty with what you have right now.

Here’s a list of things that can be done in ONE day:

1. Go shopping in your house. We “shopped” the other rooms in the house to create 3 areas. #1 “social” seating area with white sofa, coffee table, rug, floor lamp, side table. #2 “lounge” seating area with Eames lounge and ottoman, hung a brass light fixture. #3 kid’s play area with a rug, play table, and just moved all the toys into this space.
2. Park the toys in a “garage.” Toys should not dominate the adult areas of the house. Clear out a utility closet, outfit it with fun posters, hooks to hang toys, and install an inexpensive LED closet light w/a five-minute timer to create a space just for the toys. At the end of the day, simply make sure the toys are all put away and shut the door. Bam. Children love small spaces and will have fun hiding out in their “garage.”
3. Hang a mirror. My favorite places to hang a mirror is in a dark corner to bring in natural light and also make the room feel more expansive. Another great place to hang a large mirror is in the dining room right by the table. It’ll pick up ambient candle light for a romantic feeling whether you’re having a dinner party or dining solo.
4. Re-hang (or hang) all the artwork. Take down all the art and see what you have. You might be surprised and find something you really love and decide to hang it in a new space. Get rid of artwork that you don’t like. Hanging artwork brings character and personality to a room.
5. Go for small. Instead of hanging a large statement piece in the foyer try a series of smaller prints installed as a horizontal line to make the room feel bigger. In this foyer we hung 12 small paintings on 4 walls at the same height.
   

   foyer installation. hang a series of smaller paintings instead of one large statement piece.

365 days with the first lady of decoration, Elsie de Wolfe

New Year, New Project
The House in Good Taste. Published 1913. The first book on interior decoration by Elsie de Wolfe. She was the first lady of interior decoration, a legend, an icon of 20th Century style and glamour. Elsie taught all the  Great Designers — Tony Duquette, Albert Hadley, Cecil Beaton — how to decorate with a fresh fun perspective and most importantly, how to live: “Never complain, never explain” which Elsie embroidered on plump little pillows that punctuated her sofas and chairs. Love.

The challenge
This is the 100 year countdown — which I’m taking on chapter by chapter  (there are 20) and will share inspiration, tips, ideas found in Elsie’s book. The idea is to make it new. But the challenge is, can I do it? Will I do it? I’ll do my best!  Stay tuned…. in the meantime I DO promise to never complain, never explain!

1) Add a cozy throw. With winter fast approaching, everyone wants to snuggle up on a cozy sofa! Investing in a beautiful throw, like the faux-mink one I used from Pottery Barn, is a great way to warm up your couch and your body.

2) Pillows, pillows, pillows! Pillows add instant color to a bland sofa, and they’re so easy to mix and match! For the living room I made over, I used a combination of pillows I found at West Elm- they were both cute and super-comfy.

To see the daykeover segment, click here. I hope you all have a fabulous start to your holiday season!

-Jill

Happy Friday (11-11-11)!!!!

I’m so excited about my living room makeover which airs on NBC this Sunday 11/13/11 at 8:30am on LXTV’s Openhouse. If you’re feeling stuck in your abode, I hope you’ll feel inspired to take action and make your place a little more cozy. Here are a few highlights:

The right arrangement. The key to creating a cozy space is to define the room. When you have a wide open space, you’ll want to break it up and group furniture to create different gathering spots such as a TV area and a lounge area.

Pick a focal point. A fireplace is a natural focal point so if you have one, go for it. The fireplace was red ugly brick. We painted it white! Whitewashing it to opened up the room to give it a fresh clean feel. Note: the TV is not a good focal point for a living room. Pick something else like the views or a favorite item in the room.

The right players. Buying a “living room set” is boring and unimaginative. Instead, find a couple of foundation pieces you really love like a sofa and coffee table. Then layer on accessories such as a sheepskin throw rug, pillows, lamps, rugs, and side tables. Make it work. If you’re having trouble finding that ideal side table, stack books and use that until you find what you’re looking for.

Dress your windows. What do you do when you have 18′ ceilings and the space feels really desolate and cold? Add a layer of white sheer linen window treatments to create drama. Not only will this look amazing it will block glaring sun and insulate against drafts to cut down and save on energy bills. It’ll instantly create a dreamy vibe and warm up the space so it doesn’t feel so institutional. I loved working with Horizon who fabricated and installed gorgeous sheers teetering on a 15′ ladder…. scary!

Beam me up buttercup: a lighting miracle. Lighting was a huge challenge in this space. There was no overhead fixture and the main light source was natural light from the windows. Floor lamps could only do so much to brighten up a big space with wood paneling. I’m so amped about the light installation created without an electrician and in a day. The NBC crew told me it couldn’t be done but I knew it could happen- just wait til you see it on Sunday morning. It’s magical.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Love, Jill

A snippet of the tips I gave on the Daily Thred's Facebook Livechat this past Monday, 10/31.

Happy November! A couple of days ago, I worked with the Daily Thred to do a live chat giving decorating tips to Facebook fans. Here are a couple of tips I gave to those who tuned in:

1) Change up the lighting. An easy fix in any room is to change the light fixture. Whether you pick something elegant, like a chandelier, or simple, like a basic hanging light, it can change the whole mood of a space. Don’t want to spend the money on a new fixture? Just cleaning the fixture you already have can improve the light in a room.

A DIY speed decorating idea from the Daily Thred!

2) Edit, edit, edit. Does a room feel too cramped? Think it through and decide if all of the furniture in a space is really necessary. Even removing something like the footboard on your bed can create precious inches of room.

3) Create a statement piece. To create a statement piece for a room, think about what you really LOVE. Decide where you want the focus to be within a room. For example, in the garage makeover I did recently, I created an accent wall with Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass” to give the room some texture. Remember, less is more!

This is the before and after of the garage- what a miraculous transformation! To see how we did it, click the link at the bottom of the post!

NBC.com recently posted a segment I did on George Oliphant’s LXTV show George to the Rescue. We took a garage space used for a book donation organization’s office and made it over to look sophisticated and beautiful, as well as added some new function. If you’re looking to make over your garage, here are a couple of tips:

1) Go vertical. This garage had so much height- it was two whole stories- but there was no way to access all of that room. George and his crew built in a lofted office, which made for more room all around. The stairs that were put in look great, and there’s room under them, as well!

2) Buff up the floors. You don’t have to tile or carpet the floor in your garage to make it look finished. I decided to polish the original concrete flooring, which gave the space a modern, authentic look.

3) Create an accent wall. My FAVORITE part of this room is the wallpaper I created. I took Walt Whitman’s book, Leaves of Grass, scanned it in and  Duggal (the same company who helped me with the coloring-book decals in the kids’ room I just did), and they blew it up 14 feet. The decoupage look of the wallpaper gives the space texture.

I got to drive a forklift full of supplies to the garage! So much fun, right?! To watch, click the link to the right!

To watch this segment, click here!

BEFORE SHOT: This is what the room looked like before I made it over. To see the after-shot, tune into LXTV's show Openhouse this Sunday at 8:30am or set your DVR!

Skip the theme. The key to having a room that transitions easily and grows with a child is to skip the theme. Instead create a room where imagination can thrive. Forget about the matchy-matchy sets from the store. Invest in art that will inspire. 

Dress your walls. Did you know you can find inspiration in a coloring book? Wait until you see the sassy wall graphic that I had blown up using one of the pages from a coloring book- LOVE IT! Another idea is take a lyric from a favorite song and blow it up to create a wall graphic. Creating your own custom wall graphics are a fun, authentic way to create an accent wall. 

Curtain call. Try hanging a branch instead of a typical curtain rod to bring nature inside; it’s unexpected and super-fun. Hang the curtains as high up to the ceiling as possible and let them drop to the floor. There should be a break, similar to properly hemmed trousers with a break, so the curtains slightly puddle on the floor to create maximum drama.

Storage. For fun and easy storage, search on etsy.com for gorgeous solutions. Things like felted wool bowls are perfect for stashing wooden blocks now, and later, coins or marble collections. Keep the storage low and easy-to-open to help the child develop a sense of order. 

Lighten up. Light up the room with a magical, unique ceiling fixture. Another idea is to invest in a nightlight that creates an evening sky with the stars and moon. Make sure it has a timer that automatically shuts off and is cute to look at in the daytime.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Shooting with Sara Gore on NBC's Home Design: Get the Modern Chic Look For Less

So the big news here is that we’re moving the end of this month. Where are we going? Well. That’s the challenge. We. Don’t. Know. Wha????

As a mom, I wonder why on earth am I in this hobo situation? My instinct is to really settle and stay where we are but with the massive rent increases my hubby and I have decided to try something new. I thought it would have panned out by now, but it hasn’t. So the backup plan is to sublet a small apartment until the right apartment pops up.

First there was shock: the rent went up… 20%? Are you kidding me!? And then there was anger: those jerks! How could they do that?! Then there was acceptance: Oh okay I get it. It’s an owner’s market and massive rent increases, low occupancy is the reality all around town. But I LOVE where I live. I really, really love it. I knew it was time to give it up. I had to let it go.

It was time to follow the advice I give my clients. It’s a 3 step letting go exercise. My husband and I did it and here’s what happened.

Step 1: Thank you, thank you, thank you. Start at the front door and walk around through each room in your home and thank your home. Thank your home for all the memories and good things (or bad or frustrating or whatever pops up) – allow it to be and notice it. Acknowledge all the feelings that arise. It’s amazing how many feelings are aroused in a home. We both walked around holding hands with a small candle in the early evening and went through each room. Thank you living room where we enjoyed so many fun evening together hanging out, thank you dining room table for amazing meals and beautiful sunsets…

Step 2: Saying Goodbye is the hardest part. Go back to the front door and say goodbye to each room. We said, goodbye kitchen, goodbye fridge, goodbye dishwasher, goodbye living room, etc.

Step 3: So let go… it’s alright. Imagine giving your home over to the next person who’ll be living there and imagine all the good things that will happen to them. SEe it as a generous gift. In our situation we’re renting, not selling so we just imagined how blessed the new family will be in this gorgeous home. Whether you own or rent your home, this is a powerful exercise. Both my hubby and I felt completely free and ready for the next phase of our life….

However, I imagined by now we’d have firmed up an apartment! But we haven’t. So I have to surrender to the journey. We’ve seen a lot of potential but it hasn’t been the one. I know what I do want. And I’m ready for a housing miracle!

In the midst of all this, work is going great and I’m so grateful. I’ve been playing a game of noticing miracles each day. The big and the small. Here are some miracles:

• NBC featured me in a TV segment Home Design: Get the Modern Chic Look for Less
• I designed an amazing rec room for a family who really needed a boost. It was featured here on NBC A New Family Room for the Paniccias 
• One Day Kitchen Makeover. My client hired me to makeover her kitchen in a day and NBC featured it.
• The Speed Decorating book club is rocking on! 
• I got a new warehouse to house my expanding collection of furniture and art!

I’m not sure where I’ll end up this summer but I do feel incredibly grateful for the love of my family, the fun work I’m doing and even though it’s scary. I love the thrill of this new adventure.

I’m confident it’ll all work out!

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is doing awesome!.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 3,300 times in 2010. That’s about 8 full 747s.

In 2010, there were 14 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 20 posts. There were 29 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 23mb. That’s about 2 pictures per month.

The busiest day of the year was May 23rd with 71 views. The most popular post that day was Shooting a firehouse makeover with NBC .

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were jillvegas.com, facebook.com, apps.facebook.com, twitter.com, and networkedblogs.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for jill vegas, pink closet, speed decorating jill vegas, painted closet, and living room.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

Shooting a firehouse makeover with NBC April 2010
2 comments

Announcing the School of Speed Decorating July 2010
1 comment

1 bedroom staged on the Upper Westside = sold! June 2010

Living Room in the Hamptons June 2010

$100 pillow (and a confession) February 2010
1 comment

Martha Stewart Living tips for fall Speed Decorating live on Sirius radio.

Wanted to share some of the tips that I recently gave on Martha Stewart Living which was on Sirius radio. See below for some of the highlights. Excited about the buzz …thank you thank you thank you. It’s bizarre to think that last year at this time Speed Decorating had just launched and my son was still a newborn. I’m amazed at how my two “babies” have developed: My son is walking around and babbling nonstop with his goofy sense of humor. Speed Decorating is in its second printing, hit #1 on amazon.com, and has developed into the School of Speed Decorating which launched this month as an exclusive series with Gilt City. Wowzer.

The most popular class was the Speed Decorating: Living Room, held at Knoll Furniture in NYC. The thing that moved me the most was the excitement each student shared —the fierce motivation and inspiration was contagious. Here is a favorite exercise from the class.

Step 1: The first step to having a living room that you love is to figure out what you love and don’t love. Once the challenges are identified then you can figure out the solution. Some of the challenges I see in the living room include:
• The room feels chaotic and cluttered vs. calm and inviting
• The style is outdated thanks to hand-me-down sofas, and other inherited pieces
• Newlyweds “merging” styles — how to keep it a nice blend of masculine and feminine but the all leather sofa and Miss Pacman arcade game in the living room has to go
• Furniture arrangement is heavy and awkward and doesn’t facilitate changing needs of the room
• An intangible feeling that keeps the room from being as functional as it should be. This could be from improper lighting, blah color scheme, or lack of texture and softness.

Step 2: Make a list of 3-5 things that “bug” you about your living room and pick a project.  For example, a client had rag-painted the wall and kinda ran out of steam at the top so the edges weren’t crisp and sharp, it looked sloppy.The challenge was how to make the room feel warm and inviting and yet showcase the loft feeling of high ceilings. With a tiny budget. The living room felt spacious but the furniture arrangement wasn’t inviting, it felt cold and a little bit tired due to limp throw pillows and worn upholstery. The solution: we painted the room white to give a clean fresh feeling and brought in color with art, accessories (pillows, vases). We kept the chairs but repositioned them so the back of the chair wasn’t facing you when you walked in. It’s like walking into a room and everyone is giving you the cold shoulder. You want the room to feel open when you walk in and so the furniture should be feeling like it wants to hug you. We repurposed furniture the client had in storage and at a country home to create a chic look. We washed the windows to let the light flow in and removed filthy roller blinds.

Inside the School of Speed Decorating Classroom at Knoll Furniture NYC. Students discussing the exercise: pick a project and a timeline.

Step 3:Commit to a timeline. Now that the challenges are identified, figure out how much time you want to invest to get this project done. Notice that I said: Pick a timeline. Not pick a BUDGET. Because the point is when you’re committed to making a difference in your living room there are solutions in every price bracket. There are things that cost nothing but effort (washing windows, cleaning) or a little (replacing bulbs, new accent pillows, vases, flowers) or more (sofa, light fixture). The idea here is to get creative and have the confidence to get it done. Pick a project and tackle it. This is the clincher. This boils down to: are you in this to get it done or not? Speed Decorating is about learning not only to tackle a project, it’s about having personal integrity with committing to a timeline. If you say you’re going to do, then do it. And what I encourage you to do is set a date and invite all your friends over for a party so no matter what, you’ll have a deadline and get it done.