Hillary Nichols Interiors

How to Fix Paint That Has Bled Through Your Tape

Hillary — Thu, 16 May 2013 15:46:38 +0000

So you spent the whole weekend taping, drop-clothing, and carefully painting your brand new walls. You watched all of the tutorials, followed the directions and were meticulous with the corners. Excited about your great new walls, you remove the blue painters tape to reveal your new look and…..bleeding. EVERYWHERE.

Maybe it even looked a little something like one of my projects recently:

So first things first, yes you are allowed to yell or cry if you need to. Maybe go for a jog. Maybe punch a few things. It is super frustrating! Especially if you live in a place with walls like this one pictured, where they have become highly textured from layers and layers of paint over the the years. Walls like these can be difficult, and even if you follow all of the traditional advice, you might still find yourself with bleeding walls.

So, once you’ve calmed down, come back from your jog (or got yourself a nice big scoop of ice cream), here are some step by step tips to fix this monstrosity of a wall.

For this project you are going to need the following:

Begin by laying the drop cloths all around the carpets and furnitures, making sure that your things are protected from paint splatters or spills (because no matter how careful you are, these are bound to happen).

Next, grab the Frog Tape. I recommend this brand specifically, just because after lots of frustrating paint jobs, this seems to be one of the only tapes that can get me really clean lines – even with textured walls. It does tend to be more expensive, but after re-painting walls more than once, I’m more than happy to spring for the more expensive tape if it means that it comes out right the first time.

Place the Frog Tape in the corner of the wall you want to protect. If you are trying to fix bled paint, that means you want to place it against the wall that you’ve just painted (first making sure the paint is dry of course).

The paint bleeds should show on the opposite wall. In this case, my grey paint bled onto my white walls, so I placed the Frog Tape on the grey walls, and you can see where the grey is showing on the white wall. This is the part I want to fix, and replace with a nice crisp line!

Next, you’re going to use the secret step – CAULK. I got this tip from a painter that had worked with hundreds of textured and difficult walls, and he swore that this would create perfect lines. By placing a thin film of caulk along the tape, it seeps under the tape and fills any holes that may have caused paint leakage. So when the paint does go on, it will stay on the side of tape you want it to!

Place a thin line of caulk along the tape, and use your finger to smooth it along the edge. You don’t want huge amounts, but you do want there to be enough to seal off the edge, so don’t be shy.

Next you’re going to take your paint, and paint right into the corner, over the caulk. I usually caulk the entire wall, so by the time I am done, I can start painting where I’d started, since it’s given the caulk enough time to dry.

Place enough coats of paint here to ensure that you can no longer make out the paint bleeds from the opposite color. For example, I had to use two coats of white paint here to cover the dark grey bleed marks. Continue painting along all of your edges. By the time you are done with a whole wall, the paint at the beginning of the wall might be ready to remove the tape. I usually remove the tape when things are still wet, but had have a little time to set.

And there you have it – you should have a beautiful, clean, sharp line!

Painting can be frustrating, especially when things don’t turn out the way you wanted them to. But with a little patience (ok, a lot of patience) and some practice, you can have beautiful walls!

Happy Decorating!

-Hillary

5 Tips for Creating the Greatest of Gatsby Rooms

Hillary — Thu, 09 May 2013 17:00:03 +0000

Over the past few weeks, you’ve no doubt seen excitement building for this Friday’s release of The Great Gatsby. I first noticed it at the grocery store and catching a glimpse of this month’s Vogue:

Then, shortly thereafter, I stumbled upon this gem that’s been floating about:

Oh, how some things just keep getting better with age. [wink!]

Along with all of this excitement, of course comes the preoccupation with everything 1920s: the fabulous art deco, the mixing of crystals and metal finishes, and the exquisite plush interior look that can only be Gatsby. This is a look that is modern, glamorous, and bold - leaving you feeling pampered and fabulous.

So how do you turn your own living room into a Great-Gatsby-Getaway?

Here are five tips that bring this opulent, upscale look to your home:

1. Art Deco All The Way:

This style first appeared in the 20s as an eclectic look that combined craft motifs with machine age imagery and materials. Rich colors, bold geometric, shapes and lavish ornamentation characterize this look, giving it a unique flavor.

You can bring these bold geometric patterns onto your own walls with some inexpensive wall stenciling, or onto your textiles with bold throw pillows or rugs; there are lots of possibilities, from patterns, to stripes, or chevrons.

For example, this bathroom from Kerry Kelly Design Lab includes a geometric pattern that creates a sophisticated look with some simple wall stenciling:

This art deco rug can warm up a room, while bringing in rich patterns:

Or, although not art deco, finding a faux animal rug will bring a 1920s feel to your floors:

2. An Opulent Color Pallet:

This look is characterized by luxurious fabrics and furnitures, so your room will need a sophisticated color pallet to match. Focus on colors that give a plush feeling to your room.

Here are a few example color pallets that I made based on images I found online:

I made these chip cards with a great tool from Sherman Williams called “Chip It.” This tool analyzes your image and returns paint pallets that you can use in your space. If you have a certain 1920s inspired image that you love, you can use it to derive a rich color pallet, complete with actual paint colors!

3. Some Sparkle

One of my favorite parts of 1920s style is the amazing jewelry that adorned the women during this period. Pearls, crystals, and gold, gold, gold! When you’re putting together your space, don’t forget that room will need a little jewelry too!

Look for ornate gold frames, large crystal chandeliers and lamps, or glamorous mirrored side tables. You can also bring in gold fixtures to add a touch of glam. This is not a time to hold back!

4. Luxurious Furniture

When it comes to arm chairs and couches, be on the lookout for pieces that communicate a regal feel. Look tufted pieces, pieces made with high end textiles, or rich leathers. Also, pieces with nail-head trim can add additional sparkle. Throwing in a chaise can really push your design to fabulous!

5. Decorate with Vintage Bar Accessories

For those of you who read The Great Gatsby (or remember it from your high school reading list!) you’ll recall that the plot of the story hinges highly on great parties. A way to bring this theme into your room will be martini glasses, crystal decanters, and vintage bar details. If you have space in your room for a wine cabinet or a small wet bar, you will be ready to create some Great Gatsby parties of your very own!

Hope these tips help to get your head spinning with ideas for your own glamorous Gatsby inspired space. See you next week and happy designing!

-Hillary

How to Customize Your Furniture (While on a Budget!)

Hillary — Wed, 01 May 2013 19:36:33 +0000

If you love following trends as much as I do, you’ve likely noted something very exciting happening in the furniture scene: painted and customized pieces.

I’ll admit, I have been slightly more addicted to Pinterest than normal, because of some exciting potential news: we might be moving to a new house! It’s been a crazy week or so, filled with lots of emotions, but overall I am IN LOVE with this little beauty right here, and cannot wait to have an entire house to customize, DIY, create and beautify!

In all of this excitement (I can’t help it) I’ve been pinning like a mad woman! As a result of my new-found inspiration (ahem: obsession), I have come across some great blogs about painting dressers, distressing or adding customizations to furniture to give it a look that is truly yours.

The Holy Grail of DYI Furniture Customizations

In my wanderings down “furniture-inspiration” lane, I have found the best thing to ever happen to DYIers on a budget:

O’verlays Decorative Fretwork Panels

The two ladies who own this company, Cheryle Rhuda and Danika Herrick, have come up with a great way to customize your bland IKEA furniture, taking it from “eh” to “Oh-my-god-that’s-so-great!”

Check out these before and after pictures from their website:

Or:

And the best part?

Their beautiful overlays are already cut-to-size, meaning you can shop their showroom by the pieces of furniture you already own:

I dont know if they could have made it any easier to create gorgeous (and inexpensive) custom pieces!

Here are a few of my favorites:

I know I’m going to have them in the back of my mind as I plan out my new bedrooms! And if you’re looking for an inexpensive way to get the perfect look, without spending a lot of money, O’verlays might be the perfect idea for you too!

Happy Designing!

-Hillary

Win A Free Box: Rage Against the Minivan’s BOD Giveaway!

Hillary — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:35:00 +0000

I am so excited to share our feature on the Rage Against The Minivan! For those of you who are not subscribers (yet!) RATM is an amazingly honest blog from mother and writer Kirsten Howerton. On her blog she hysterically chronicles her experiences with parenting, adoption, self esteem and women’s issues, politics and social justice, among other relevant topics. Her writing is witty and fresh, and unmistakably honest. If you’re a parent, or a woman, or a human, you should check out her stuff!

We’ve teamed up to put on a Box of Design Giveaway contest, where Kristen will be awarding one of her lucky readers a free Box of Design!

Additionally, I put together a Box of Design for Kristen and her family and it’s been great to see her space already transforming so quickly! Kristen has a great sense of style, so creating her plans was a designer’s dream. Sending a special thank you to Kristen for letting me help transform your room!

To catch more about the progress of her spectacular living room, head on over to her page. And don’t forget to leave her a comment about your biggest design challenges – you might just win your own free Box of Design!

Happy Designing!

-Hillary

Challenge Accepted!

Hillary — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 19:25:55 +0000

This afternoon we have some great news to share!

ASID (American Society of Interior Design) is partnering up with Riviera Magazine and the Stonemill Design Center here in Orange County to throw the first ever Orange County Designer Challenge.

And guess who just got a congratulatory email from ASID about being selected to participate in the competition? Hillary Nichols Interiors!

ASID has taken an inventive twist on their traditional annual banquet, and modeled this new Design Challenge after HDTV’s Design Star. If you watch (read: obsess) about HDTV as much as I do, you already know that the White Box Challenge is a designer’s dream. Contestants are given a “white box,” which is a completely plain 8′x10′ room, and using little materials and a heightened sense of imagination, they transform a space in just 24 hours.

For example, this was from HGTV Design Star All Stars, Season One:

To keep this contest collaborative and fresh, ASID has added a culinary twist. Each designer will be teamed up with leading pastry chefs from Orange County, who will collaborate and create a masterpiece based off of each room design. Honestly, what is better than design and pastry!?

Each designer will also be given an inspiration piece to base their design around, and the inspiration for my space has just been revealed! I’m proud to be partnered with Harsey & Harsey (An amazing showroom that sells wholesale to the trade textiles, furniture, lighting and accessories) as my showroom sponsor, and they’ve provided this gorgeous chair:

To find out more details about the event (and see some great photos of our kick off meeting), check out ASID’s Facebook page. And for those of you who are local to Orange County, mark your calendars:

June 6th
The Stonemill Design Center

This event is going to be fantastic, and it’s free! I would love your support – so plan on coming out to vote and enjoy cocktails and gourmet pastries!

-Hillary

Ways to Decorate A Nursery : A Real Box of Design

Hillary — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 20:28:35 +0000

I am so excited to begin sharing some of the progress my clients are making with their Box of Designs! And in honor of the lovely spring weather we have been having, I have the perfect room to showcase: A Spring-Inspired Nursery.

This client was looking for a fun and functional space for her new baby girl. And like more parents, they needed to be sure that this room could transition as baby girl grew through toddlerhood and beyond.

Jackie had an adorable baby shower invitation, and wanted to use this as an inspiration piece for her new nursery:

Jackie and Jon both specified that they were looking to incorporate themes from the invitation, but really wanted to steer away from “baby everything” in this space (baby animals, baby bees, etc) and instead wanted to give their little girl a fun, but sophisticated look. The room previously had been painted a light grey and they specifically wanted help incorporating pinks and yellows into the space, without making it feel chaotic or crowded.

They also had a few items that they wanted implemented into the final design: a mobile that was made for the baby, a crib, and a few other pieces of furniture.

Based on their comments, preferences and inspirations, this was the design concept that we created:

And we were so excited to give them this sketch of the space to give a visualization of their finished nursery:

Jackie absolutely loved the design, as well as the detailed plans we put together for her and her husband:

“I love that Hillary includes every aspect of the design in the box. Every detail is thought through and the provided, including links to websites where you can purchase the exact items that Hillary used in her design concept. I also loved the paint swatches that Hillary provided. It was great to be able to take the colors with me while I shopped.”

Some things that I made sure to include in Jackie’s plans to ensure that the room was both fun and functional:

You can double your storage by making better use of furniture as storage as well as decor. This will help your baby nursery be organized, clean and make your room feel larger. Bookcases are a great way to make double use of space. In Jackie’s design, we used a bookcase with pre-designed cubbies. We used a few of the cubbies for books, and then added soem fabric bins in the unused areas so they could organize clothes, toys, or other items.

Especially in smaller nurseries, consider storing your diaper pail elsewhere. Even the sleekest “odor-lock technology” can overwhelm a small space.

You can get the most of your drawer spaces by using them for baby’s clothes and blankets, but storing diaper supplies and other must-haves in a shoe organizer on the back of a door. With this hanging flat space, diapers, creams, powders, lotions, nasal aspirators, pacis, and thermometers – each item can have it’s own space in a a see-through pocket. This will make the space feel organized and clean, while still maintaining an easy-to-use feel.

Also, when designing any nursery for my clients, I try to keep in mind these key pieces:

A great foundation for a fun nursery is a fun color pallet and an inspiration piece for the space. In Jackie’s nursery, she had an adorable invitation, and we were able to pull together a clean color pallet based on that inspiration. You can avoid having a “themed look” but have a great piece of art, an area rug, or a bedding as an inspiration for the space. Starting with these pieces will give you a definite direction.

Remember that colors impact emotions, and they impact how your baby will feel as well. That means decorating your nursery is about more than cute wall decals and coordinating bedding – it’s also about creating a peaceful, relaxing space that will help your baby sleep.

Have fun! Sometimes my clients are afraid to take risks. But a nursery should be a room where you can be inspired by fantasy and whimsy.

And finally, because having a baby can be a use expense, my clients are often budget conscious when creating a design for their baby’s room. Here are some tips that I try to include to ensure that my clients are getting a beautiful space without paying high-end prices:

Re-purpose older pieces, like a vintage dresser found at the flea market or a thrift store. Getting creative with paint colors and adding new hardware will save you a lot of money!

Search for larget items such as dressers, chairs, and storage that will not only make for great nursery pieces, but also will transition well into toddlerhood and childhood so you don’t have to purchase new items down the line.

You can find some great deals on 24-hour flash sale sites, which offer up to 70% off retail prices. Sites like FAB, Rednook, and the Foundry can be a real money saver – you just have to be ready purchase quickly !

I am so excited that Jackie and Jon have shared some of their progress with me. Of course, one of the things my clients love most about Box of Design is that they can move along at their own pace – and with a new infant in the mix, you know that can take time! When sending over her progress images, Jackie and her husband said:

“We love that we don’t feel rushed to get this all done at once! We can incorporate the items on our schedule, and that’s been really helpful!”

Here’s where Jackie and Jon are with their nursery now:

They’ve incorporated the shelf and images that we’d recommended from Etsy, as well as the hanging hooks which are a perfect way to organize baby’s diaper bag, bath towel, etc.

Here you can see Jackie has hung some pink window coverings, and an inventive light fixture that makes the room feel fun and whimsical.

Painting the mirror frame pink has added a cute touch to this space. Also, with the fabric storage bins, this room has plenty of storage.

I’m happy to see that Jacke and Jon (and Olivia!) love their space! We’ll keep you updated as we get more inspiration from my Box of Design clients!

Happy Designing,

-Hillary

Box of Design has launched and is featured on WOB Media!

Hillary — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 22:35:56 +0000

We have officially launched Box of Design and have had an amazing response!

Customers are loving the affordable product, which brings interior design into the digital age. We are also getting great buzz in the media as well. Today Box of Design was featured on WOB Media (Women Owned Business Media) which describes this new innovative virtual interior design service.

You can check out the video here:

www.wobmedia.com

Interior Designer Hillary Nichols believes everyone deserves a beautifully designed space. With over 10 years of experience, Hillary understands how our surroundings profoundly affect how we live and work. She was inspired to create Box of Design to provide professional interior design at a fraction of the typical cost of her design services of her design firm HN Interiors to those who want to create their dream room. Your custom Box of Design has everything that you need to make your perfect space a reality. From floor plans, handpicked furniture and accents, paint colors, fabric swatches, and resources all included in your box, you’ll have a custom tailored design created just for you.

This beautiful box is delivered right to your doorstep:

Inside is a custom tailored design for your space…

You also receive in addition to your project binder, your design in digital format which includes a budget spreadsheet that gives you the cost breakdown. It also provides active links you can click to purchase the items suggested.

“The idea that I could create a product that provides a custom design at an affordable price, AND give back to my favorite charity every time we work on a new project was my dream! The dream came true, and I am so happy to share this product with you.”

In addition to her passion for creating beautiful spaces, Hillary remains dedicated to International Princess Project, a non-profit organization empowering women to regain their freedom, dignity and hope. In the spirit of giving back, Box of Design will be donating $20 to International Princess Project for each box sold.

A beautiful mother and daughter whose lives have been transformed by IPP

Box Of Design: www.boxofdesign.com

IPP Website: www.intlprincess.org

Box of Design sneak Peek Video…

Hillary — Sat, 07 Jul 2012 01:06:45 +0000

Get a sneak peek of our upcoming Box of Design virtual interior design service on our new You Tube Channel! We will continually update this channel with great design “how-to” videos. Learn tips and find resources from design diva Hillary Nichols.

Box of Design- Virtual Interior Design Product Launching Soon!

Hillary — Sat, 07 Jul 2012 00:42:05 +0000

Did you ever dream of hiring an interior designer but you just don’t think you could ever afford one? Well, you are in luck. Hillary Nichols Interiors is launching a brand new product in August that is about to to solve that problem!

Box of design is a professional interior design service custom created for you online for a fraction of the typical cost, which is then sent to you in a beautiful box!

Your custom Box of Design has everything that you need to make your dream room a reality. Through modern technology and our thoughtfully created online experience, there is a new and revolutionary option for custom luxury interior design for those on a budget. From floor plans, to handpicked furniture and accents, paint colors, to fabric swatches, all the shopping resources you will need are included in your box. You’ll have a custom tailored design created just for you, delivered right to your doorstep in a beautiful box!

Announcing HN Interiors Contest!

Hillary — Fri, 27 May 2011 21:35:46 +0000

Do you want to redesign a space in your home or office? Hillary Nichols Interiors is having a contest that will allow you to do just that during the month of June!

What is the contest?
We will be blogging about a recent residential remodel that has just been completed. This project included remodeling the entire home. We will post two blogs per week for the month of June. You will see how the design process works from start to finish, including conceptual planning, architectural drawings, material selections, construction, custom window treatment design and installation, and finally accessorizing to complete the design.

What is the prize for the lucky winner?

The winner will receive 5 hours of design time, and will receive designer discounts which are typically 30% below retail on all furniture, lighting, and accessories. You can use the design time any way you wish from design concept, to space planning, to paint or wallpaper selections, design of furniture and accents! Maybe you want a new living room, a romantic and restful master bedroom, or a snazzy new office? You decide!

How do I enter the contest?

Entering is so easy! We are posting two blogs per week during the month of June for a total of 10 blog entry opportunities. As we blog, all you need to do is leave us one comment per blog entry and let us know your thoughts or questions and you receive an automatic entry for EACH comment! That’s right, you could have up to 10 entries for a chance to win! The more comments you leave, the better you chances of winning the prize.

Stay tuned, and good luck to everyone!

HN Interiors