I know the decorative painting industry is “supposed” to be at odds with the wallcoverings industry but I enjoy seeing the gorgeous work some wallpaper companies produce — they are shaking up the industry. That’s why when I spied the work of Black Crow Studios, I had to find out more. Owner Tracy Hiner does custom-designed large scale wallpaper specifically tailored for her clients. It is made to work exactly in their space with “no lame-o repeating patterns — unless you want that”. Her goal is to make a unique piece for everyone that really fits their personality and style. Her company can also print on wood, plexi, glass and metal. I had a chance to e-talk with her and speak about her artistry and technology.

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Tracy Hiner

“I have no freaking idea how I started this career path, I stumbled into it ass backwards kind of,” she starts. “I started by studying fashion and textile design. I even studied for a year in Paris and I ended up with a short term job in Los Angeles doing textile designs for Jeremy Scott. He would use digitally printed designs so we weren’t always limited to repeating patterns. The amazingness of that didn’t really sink in at the time. I then worked a while in Fashion and soon found myself working for a Decorative Art company as a designer of the digital prints they sold. I worked with the VP of Sales and was given an overall crash course in business and manufacturing. I was given a lot of freedom and a lot of responsibility working with large clients. When that company decided to move out of state, I decided to find another job that gave me that same freedom — I would give it to myself! I took everything I had learned over the years and combined it with my obsession with everything I see and thought it would look a million times better HUGE and on a wall. It all just came together and I launched my company.”

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I looooooooooove horizontal stripes. I think they just work so nicely and are a fresh departure from the vertical kind. So, imagine my gasp when I saw this image:

I found it via a quick profile on Apartment Therapy and the blog post also lists the colors used. The artist, Jen, found her inspiration from a Missoni print. Of course, I do happen to adore the Missoni style so the my love of this should have been no surprise.

Here’s a boy’s room we did years ago using varying horizontal stripes and a few colors. I’ve always liked the result and the walls grow easily with the boys without a need for a change every few years.

I think we’ve done about five of these commissions and I always look forward to more. In one, we just used the color family a teenager loved. We painted the darkest color in the line on the bottom and went all the way up and painted the lightest color on the ceiling. The good news is that now I have this inspired version to offer as well.

Do you like horizontal stripes as much as I do?

P.S. Yes, today marks the day that I’ve posted more than once. I think it’ll happen more frequently, we shall see. There’s so much in this industry to see and share!

I believe I met Eloise on Twitter. It’s not her real name, but I’ve come to adore her as “Eloise”. The story is that she — a student of historical architecture, design and decorative arts — recently came into possession of her childhood dollhouse. She decided to restore it since it was in such a sad state of affairs. Actually, her words were “like it was foreclosed on decades ago, abandoned, taken over by meth addicts, abandoned again, and left to rot in disrepair.” She even developed a complete design plan. So very cool.

A Clean Slate

A view of one of the rooms after demolition and being brought back to the basics.

On her blog, Eloise Moorehead tracks the renovation of her showhouse — she’s painted, wallpapered, tiled, done some decorative painting and so much more. She includes quite a bit of architectural and design history as well as incorporating her love of the decorative arts. When she includes magazine or book images of her design wish list, she works incredibly hard to bring that vision to life. Who knew there was such an array of styles for miniatures? I’ve marveled at the tiny treasures she’s found as well as laughed out loud to her wicked wit. She also has a photo blog extension of the original site. It really has been so much fun tracking the progress of this incredible dollhouse. Can you imagine the wonderful sensibilities she’ll bring to the design world?

Please note that all recommended books will be available through our new Fauxology Library. If you click on the Post or Library links to purchase through Amazon, I’ll receive the credit. In due time, it might be enough for a cup of coffee and a bran muffin but they will taste all the better because you, dear Readers, made it possible. Thank you — now, let’s get on with the show!

I’m a big fan of interior designer Kelly Wearstler. See Exhibit A, Exhibit B and yes, even Exhibit C. So, of course, Ms. Wearstler’s latest book would have a special place in my heart. Hue celebrates the power of color with luscious, sumptuous photographs. See if you agree.

Love the pattern on the ceiling, sans wallpaper seams.

(above) Walls: Gor. Geous. To quote Rachel Zoe: “I die.”

(above) Love the paint splatters — on the ceiling, too! Jackson Pollock would agree.

The paint detail in the trim makes me so happy. The Porter’s chairs are everywhere, no? If you’d like to read more about them, A Curated Lifestyle obliges you.

(above) Sigh.

The wall pattern almost looks like ModAll129 from Modello. I’m totally into those company presentation folders, btw. Must Have.

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The spaces were photographed by Grey Crawford, Annie Schlecter and François Halard. There are so many more stunning images. In fact, it’s purely a visual book with a fun conversation with Ms. Wearstler at the beginning. She says “When it comes to Color – be confident, go with your heart and follow your emotions”. She also states that she sees a space in three dimensions: History, Location and Architecture — and these elements she honors and then pushes their boundaries. It’s a good, quick read. I hope you enjoy Hue. Have a wonderful weekend, Everyone!

Today, in honor of Election Day, we’re having our first-ever Poll. I like taking polls — usually the fun Which-Celebrity-Wore-It-Better ones more than those with massively serious issues at stake but still, I like seeing the results tallied. (Although I do get a tiny bit pouty when my answer is not the popular choice…) A dilemma came up and I though a poll might be the perfect way for you to settle the matter. Here’s the scoop:

We recently had Elevator Week! on the blog — an entire week dedicated to decorative painting on elevators. I’d love to do something like that again as well as highlight artists with incredible work. What I’m asking is that you help me determine which surface you’d like to see profiled next. Since sometimes it’s annoying to have just one choice, I’ve made it so that you can pick up to three options – plus, you can leave me a comment with your suggestions. The winning surface will be our next week-long subject.

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So, dear Readers, it would be genuinely appreciated if you took a few moments to vote. I’m bringing the big guns to the proceedings, btw.

Hopefully that worked. I’m actually kinda proud of myself that I figured out how to incorporate a poll. OK, that’s a lie. My sister patiently talked me through it, but it still counts, no? BTW, if you’d like to submit your work for consideration during one of our weeks, always feel free to Contact Me. Although if you send me the Puss ‘n Boots image along with your work, I will laugh…and I may not be able to resist…

Today’s post was written by guest Fauxologist, Dana Tucker. Dana graduated from Western Kentucky University with a degree in Liberal Arts. She has worked in advertising for the last 18 years helping clients create awareness of their brands, drive traffic to their websites and increase overall profitability. She has a passion for interior design and helping home and business owners achieve their design vision through paint and plaster. She manages the day to day operations of Bell and Tucker, updates their blog and social media sites, including their Facebook fan page. Thanks, Dana, for your beautiful post — look forward to more!

“Enter and view with astonishment the magnificence that the hand of man has wrought. The more you look, the more you will see.”—The Courier Journal September 1, 1928 written about the opening of the Palace Theatre.

When I lived in Louisville, KY over a decade ago, I worked less than a block away from the crown jewel of revitalized historic theaters and didn’t even appreciate it. To my credit, I had been to several performances at Louisville’s Palace Theatre and was in awe of the craftsmanship. It took marrying a decorative painter and helping run the day to day operations of our business, Bell and Tucker, for me to understand the artistry and creativity that were required to complete the masterpiece. Recently, I had the opportunity to visit again and my husband and I were taken on a guided tour by Operations Manager, Johnny Downs. He was a walking encyclopedia of knowledge on the structure and its history.

Louisville Palace Theatre

The Loew’s United Artist Theatre was built in 1928 by architect John Eberson who pioneered the “atmospheric theatre” design. An atmospheric theatre is a type of theatre that is intended to give the illusion of an open sky. The decorative and architectural elements often convey the feeling of being seated in a fantasy setting, which might be anything from a palace or village square to a garden or an outdoor amphitheater at night.

Eberson's signature midnight blue sky punctuated with twinkling stars. Clouds periodically appear in the horizon and gracefully float the length of the room.

In a 1926 interview with the Tampa Tribune, Eberson explains how he came up with the idea. “I have been wintering in Florida for the past several years and it is from this state that I got the atmospheric idea. I was impressed with the colorful scenes that greeted me at Miami, Palm Beach and Tampa. Visions of Italian gardens, Spanish patios, Persian shrines and French formal gardens flashed through my mind and at once I directed my energies to carrying out these ideas.” Eberson went on to design some 500 theaters before his death in 1954 including the Orpheum Theatre in Wichita, Kansas, the Majestic Theatre in Houston, Texas and the Tampa Theatre in Tampa, Florida.

Click Here for a Closeup Image

The Spanish Baroque style interior is filled with elaborate sculptural elements, gilded mirrors and plaster ornamentation. The three story lobby features a plaster retablo complete with a replica of David by Donatello. There is something breath taking to see everywhere you look including medieval- styled tapestries, terrazzo tile floors and sculptures tucked into balconies. Incredibly, all the walls are hand troweled textured plaster.

The most hauntingly beautiful room of this structure is the Hall of Faces. Expertly crafted into a massive barrel ceiling are 139 plaster sculptures of eternal guests such as Socrates, Beethoven, Dante, DaVinci and even Eberson himself.

The original theatre was built for $2 million dollars in 1928. It was fully restored in 1994 by investors who raised $4 million dollars to completely “reset the clock” on the historic structure. Volunteer art students from the University of Louisville did a majority of the painting. Every surface was taken down to white and painstakingly re-painted to replicate the original colors and finishes. Today the Louisville Palace is managed by Live Nation and hosts many events each year. Its cozy 2,700 seat auditorium and amazing acoustics make it highly sought by artists who desire a more intimate connection with the audience. Allison Krauss and Union Station recorded a live DVD from the Palace in 2002 and it introduces the viewer to the atmospheric experience.

If you are planning a trip to Louisville make sure you also check out the historic Seelbach Hotel and the stunning basement level Rathskeller room.

Rumor has it that there is a secret passage way under the hotel that was used by Al Capone during prohibition to help him conduct his business. They are within easy walking distance of each other. I hope you enjoy the visit!

Today, we introduce a new “series” called What’s Hot? In it, we travel around the country (virtually, of course) and ask different artists, studios and manufacturers what are the three hottest things they have going. It could be new products, techniques no one has seen before or popular finishes that they teach. I love to learn what’s new in the industry since I’ve found some great products, tools and workshops this way. And we always want to be a step ahead, right? Right.

Our series kicks off from Chicago with Sheri Zeman of Faux Design Studio, a Faux Effects distributor. I first saw Sheri when she was on HGTV’S New Spaces and then saw her work in Faux Effects magazine. A hotel client then fell in love with her Calliope stencil which I believe we’ll be using in a suite or two next year — can’t wait for that! Here are Sheri’s picks:

1) Stencils – We have three new stencil designs called Matrix, Sunburst, and Braided Swirl added to our LOFT 101 stencil line. (below, clockwise from top left) Sunburst has a unique center piece that can be customized to look like hammered metal and the Braided Swirl is popular as a random element in powder rooms. The geometry of Matrix lends itself to accent walls, furniture and ceilings.

Please click on any pic to enlarge.

2) Glass - We are selling the glass like crazy! The glass is actually recycled glass fragments. It comes in several colors and if using the clear, it picks up on the color behind it. I love to design finishes that are full of textural contrasts, while keeping the color contrasts to a minimum…rich! If an entire room of glass might seem much, adding an element to the ceiling is the perfect exclamation point! (LOFT 101 Stencils: Left – Unbroken, Right – Fandango)

3) StoneDecor- A fantastic product for renewing cultured marble sinks and tops; easy to use, durable and beautiful. Since it holds vertically, unsightly tile in shower stalls can be revamped using this amazing product. Once it is applied to the surface, other Faux Effects mediums can be used to create unlimited designs.

As to that Calliope stencil we have on tap? Sheri created a cool video showcasing the Calliope design and a nice technique to go along with it. Check it out:

Hope you enjoyed this! A big thanks to Sheri Zeman for sharing her studio picks. Please be sure to check out the wonderful Faux Design Studio for more information on their products and workshops. Have a great Halloween weekend everyone — see you soon!