Tuesday, June 14, 2011

NEW SERVICE!! E-Design - Interior Design services delievered to your inbox

Lately, I have been receiving a lot of inquiries from people that do not live in the Washington, D.C. area that were wondering if I could assist them with a room in their home.  So.... I thought of this service especially for you :o)  The e-design interior design service is designed to assist the needs of the client that may know what they want, are having trouble pulling it all together, but are confident in their ability to be able to do so if given the right tools.  After a consultation either in person, via Skype, or by phone, I will create a customized design plan for you that will include product selections (including furniture, accessories, art, fabrics, window treatments, flooring options, and lighting solutions), a floor plan, a rendered perspective drawing, and a shopping guide—all of which will all be submitted to you via email, overnight mail, or (if you live in the Washington, D.C. Metro area or in the Richmond, VA area and you prefer) personally delivered to your door.  The design plan serves as your road map because it takes all of the guess work out of the design of the space.  With this service you can shop at your convenience and you will have unlimited access to me to ask questions about your design plan for two weeks at no additional cost to you.

Here is an example of a design plan that would be delivered to you:



E-design services can cover any room in your home and you would receive the same elements.  You tell me what the budget is and I will get to work creating a e-design plan for you based on your criteria and within your stated budget.  In addition to the e-design plan above, the shopping list would tell you where to get each item, and the accompanying floor plan and perspective drawing would tell you exactly where all of these pieces should go in your room, making for a very simple way for me to assist you in a room makeover - no matter how far away you are!

More new services to be announced soon!

La Toya Michelle
~You are only limited by your own imagination!

Monday, June 13, 2011

The Return of White Cabinetry?

It seems that in a lot of the homes I'm entering or designing recently, that white kitchen cabinetry is making a strong comeback.  I really wasn't sure when white cabinetry totally fell out of favor in kitchen design and swung toward darker hues, but I welcome the return of white for its ability make a small kitchen seem more spacious as well as its ability to give a kitchen simple clean lines to work with.  The addition of white cabinetry also creates a cool, clean, and modern look to any kitchen space. 
West HIlls - Kitchen traditional kitchen

Dodd Kitchen contemporary kitchen

Omega Kitchens contemporary kitchen

kitchen traditional kitchen

If you are considering a kitchen update, why not consider white cabinetry to help transform your space?

La Toya Michelle

~You are only limited by your imagination!

Friday, June 10, 2011

The Dizzy Designer

Ok....I admit it.....  I have a huge problem.  INDECISIVENESS!!  I think that most designers find themselves in this same situation from time to time in that it seems nearly impossible to to feel as if you have truly finished a project - be it your room, your event, or in my current case - MY WEBSITE!!  I know my website designer would probably like to wring my neck right about now due to my indecision, but I can't help it!  Maybe I have adult onset ADD, or perhaps it's just a serious case of wanting to make sure that every little detail is perfect before launch.  But ever since I was little, when it came to my own space, I've been notorious for design indecision.  My favorite past time when I was younger was changing the color of a room - and then re-changing it.  My childhood bedroom went from pale green, to hot pink, to pale yellow, to peanut butter - all in the course of one year.  I know my Daddy wanted to wring my neck due to my indecision back then too, especially since he was the one that had to foot the bill for the paint, move all of my furniture, and then paint my bedroom!  But being the Daddy that he is, he allowed me to creatively express myself through my color choices - or more appropriately, my color indecision.

Today, my husband will find me moving heavy furniture around, or unloading heavy bags and goods from my car by myself that I bought on an unexpected (by him, anyway) trip to the "Red Dot Boutique" (aka "Target") or Home Goods to redesign a room in our home.  "Why didn't you ask me to help you?" or "why didn't you wait for me to get home so that I could move the heavy chest instead of you pushing it across the floor with your legs?" he always asks.  My answer is always the same, well, because - sigh - 1) I needed the workout (you'd be amazed at how effective moving furniture around a few times can be as an upper and lower body workout) and 2) because I truly didn't want to have to simultaneously explain to you WHY I'm changing the room......AGAIN.  Although my hubby is a sport, I know it can be quite frustrating at times living with a dizzy designer that never feels any room in our home is totally finished.  Not limited to just our home, even our wedding fell victim to it.  When I planned our wedding, the morning before the event I was still thinking of and looking for additional elements that could be added to our simple October garden wedding until my husband said "enough Babe.  Everything is perfect the way you have it."  And you know, it was :o) 

It's funny how those feelings arise.  You work hard as a designer to pull a space or an event together and on the surface it looks great.  You stand back and mull over each detail and fuss with each throw pillow.  Everyone says that your project is wonderful, the client is pleased, and you feel that your work is done.  But be that as it may, it never completely erases the feeling that just one more decor item for an event, or just one more accessory for a room was all that was needed to fill the void - regardless of if there was truly a void there or not.  Hence the cycle of the dizzy designer begins again.....  Anyone else out there suffering from the same problem?? 
Beach House Bridgehampton modern living room
modern living room design by new york interior designer Amy Lau Design


La Toya Michelle

~You are only limited by your imagination!