Today we continue with our Blog Beat series, wherein we profile bloggers around the World Wide Web. I’m very excited about our special guest today: Ann McGuire of the Color Buzz blog. Actually, Ann founded her company, Beehive Studios, in 1994 and she has since been joined by three other artisans, Michele Coppin, Megan Leblond and Veronique Habermann. Together they have worked with some of the best interior designers, traveled the world and had their work appear in Architectural Digest, Vogue, House Beautiful and Elle Decor, among others. On top of these amazing and deserved accomplishments, Beehive Studios is also color consultant for Valspar and its through their sponsorship that I found their blog, Color Buzz. I thoroughly enjoy Color Buzz since all four designers give amazing color guidance, beautifully researched design subjects plus a unique take on the decorative painting world.? Another great feature is their expert color advice available to anyone with a design dilemma via their Ask the Experts.? What’s not to love? Ann was gracious enough to answer a few questions for us — so sit back with a nice cup of coffee and let’s visit for a bit…

Q: Tell us a little about you and your blog.
A: Color is a huge part of our work.?Sometimes the right color just falls into place; other times it takes hours of study and focus to get them right.?But in the end, they have to harmonize.?Color is important to so many aspects of life and it makes a huge difference when you get it right.? Color Buzz explores various color palettes, color inspiration and painting techniques, and anything else we might be interested in when it comes to home d?cor and color! Personally, I have two amazing children and a great husband.?We live in an old farmhouse in northeast Pennsylvania.?I’ve painted since I was very young. I love what I do and having the opportunity to share this with others is absolutely wonderful.

Q: Who are some of your inspirations?
A: We work with some amazing designers like Victoria Hagan and William Sofield.? They each bring both elegance and depth to all they do. I also really admire the work of Marietta Gomez because of the way she finds beauty in pairing things together, and also Rose Tarlow who reveals the essential beauty of a space by letting it be. I also really love the work of Dorothy Draper who’s daring imagination brought us iconoclastic designs from the thrilling dining room at the Metropolitan Museum to the sets of Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire movies.

Q: What sound would you miss if suddenly unable to hear it?
A: My children’s laughter.

Q: What photo or picture really moves you?
A: Vermeer’s painting “Girl with a Pearl Earring”. It’s beautiful, elegant and a great use of color. I could paint a whole house in the colors from that painting.

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I thought I’d start off the week showing you interior photographs featuring decorative painting and great color combinations — or as I call it, The Great Indoors.? Off we go!

Words cannot express the love I have for these two rooms: the striking yet happy mix of white and tangerine (left, possibly from Elle Decor) and the unexpected-ness of the stencilwork on the right.? These were in my morgue file and the sources are unknown.

The picture (below, left) shows a bit of the Giuletta e Romeo hotel in Venice, Italy.? I love the elements of the right picture: ceilings, walls, chair rail and flooring.? (Source Unknown)

I have always enjoyed seeing one color in one room leading into another color in another room.? (Below) This is the harmonious mix of colors found in the main lobby of the Greenbrier Hotel in West Virginia.? It was designed by Dorothy Draper.

(Below) This home was featured in Elle Decor and photographed by Pieter Estersohn.? It is a 15th century mansion near Florence, Italy belonging to Maria Beatrice and Leonardo Ferragamo.? To see another room, click here.

(Below) Last but certainly not least, is this extraordinary bedroom photographed by Giorgio Majno.? It is within a state apartment in the Castello di Masino (The Masimo Castle).? Apparently, there is decorative painting and trompe l’oeil artworks throughout the entire castle.? The structure was built in the 11th century and the chinoiserie panels on these walls were created in 1781.? It is now owned by the FAI, the Italian Environmental Fund.

Hope you’ve enjoyed these pics — have a wonderful day!

So, in all the excitement of the newly updated blog, I forgot that Fauxology’s two-year anniversary just passed in mid-June. Time really does fly. In honor of one of my fave colors and the new blog look, this month I’m going to focus on interiors with the color purple (or plum, lavender, lilac…) as the inspiration. Enjoy the eye candy!

Here’s a few that feature stenciling. (First Row, Left) Pic from The Complete Book of Paint, (First Row, Right) Unknown Source. (Second Row, Center) This is the women’s locker room at the David Barton Gym in Gansevoort South. The wonderfully unique stenciling was done by Minium Design and commissioned by the designers, Studio Sofield. It was featured in June’s Interior Design magazine.

Below we have a few examples of using lavender as a base paint and surrounding it with decorative painting and faux finishes. (First Row, Left & Second Row, Center) Unknown Source (First Row, Right) Pic from Paint Style

This is a pic of a restored Rufus Porter mural in the Moses Mason house. It’s from the pages of Paint Style…

Finally, two areas using this strong color as a focal point. Sources Unknown.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this month’s color installment. BTW, if you do know the sources of some of the pics above, by all means please let me know. Have a wonderful day!

So, I’ve been going to the library a lot. In one of my jaunts, I found the Fauxology Book-of-the-Month: Paint Alchemy by Annie Sloan. As much as I love how easily we can find paint materials nowadays, I do like the idea of traditional artisans creating their own materials in their studios. They would use the pigments and secret ingredients available to them to make durable paints and gorgeous colors. This book helps artists understand how paints are made — and provides 30 recipes (with visuals) for creating some of the materials we easily take for granted today.

The simplest of recipes: Pigment + Binder = Paint

Annie Sloan, the author, has over 20 books to her credit. She lives and works in Oxford, England. She trained as a painter and headed her own design firm. She also taught decorative painting for a time at London’s Inchbald School of Design. She now works with Chalk Paint, a handmade artisan paint. In this particular book, she goes into the history of pigments, binders (the glue that sticks the pigment to the surface), mixing your own colors and choosing the best materials for your purposes. The recipe section is divided into two sections: small quantities and large quantities. They include interesting formulas for coloured waxes and concrete, textured paint, distemper, limewashes, egg yolk & egg white paint (very interesting), fabric paints and gesso. There’s even more to discover.

The book was published in 2001 and although some of the finished surfaces have become more sophisticated, it seems like the recipes themselves would stand the test of time. I can’t wait to get around to putting some together! I hope you get a chance to view the book — whether by purchase or through your local library. Until tomorrow!

Thought I’d showcase the color Pink this month — some?have problems visualizing this color in their home but done well, it can add a warm?and vivacious?feel.? We have a lot of pics to go through so make sure you have on your seatbelt before we take off….here we go!

Wallpaper & Base Paint: (Top Right) The?fabric wallpaper?is part of Brussel’s?Royal Park Theatre, photographed by Hans Fonk and is featured in the magazine, Objekt.? (Top Left & Bottom Center)?Both base paint pics?are both from?Elle Decor.

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Ahhh, Green.? The color of youthful budding Spring.? I bet we’re all kinda over this looong Winter, no?? For that reason alone, I’d thought I’d do our monthly color profile on the beauty of Green.? (No disrespect to Kermit the Frog intended in the title — although he is kind of a whiner.)

So without further ado, let’s dig in!? (See what I did just there?? “Dig” in?? As in gardening?? I’m all about the puns today, peeps.)

I have olive greens going on in my home but, since I love that last pic, I’m thinking maybe I should have gone bolder and brighter.? Hmmm…or perhaps I’m seeing the grass greener on the other side?

When most people hear the word “mural”, they may think of a brightly painted wall or possibly even a child’s room or nursery. A lot of artworks can have a muted palette and still be oh-so-striking. Examples include grisaille or sepia-toned works of art. Intrigued? Let’s take a look:

The room on the left showcases a series of Piranesi etchings while the dining room on the right features a full mural.

I love how in these two rooms there are some nice shots of color against the relative neutrality of the art.

This is a guest room which features gorgeous trompe l’oeil panels along both the top and bottom of the wall and a gold-leafed canopy framing a fresco. Lucky, lucky guest.

I hope you’ve seen the benefits of remaining neutral. Until next time!