Houzz on Fire!

I was recently at the "Capture, Communicate, Create" event at the W Hotel in Minneapolis where Liza Hausman from Houzz was the featured guest.  If you have never heard of Houzz you should probably check it out.

Houzz is quickly becoming a leading destination site for home design enthusiasts.  It features over 200,000 high quality interior and exterior photos that have been uploaded by the original designers.  This makes Houzz the Internet's largest database of design and decorating ideas.

Houzz has a number of features for homeowners, but I think the coolest is that you can create your own ideabooks.  It's the modern day version of the old "cut and paste scrapbook" from magazines. Preparing to build a new home or take on a major remodeling?  Create an ideabook and share it with your Architect. In my own practice I love ideabooks because it helps me to understand my clients tastes and preferences. With this information I can design something new and fresh, but in a vein I know my client will love.

So do check it out.  You can view the Ron Brenner Architects Houzz page at http://www.houzz.com/ron-brenner-architects.  

And please don't forget to like us!

A week of installations!

We have a big week lined up here with a few different client installations happening.  I'm so excited!!!!  I love installation days (or in this case, weeks) because your clients finally get to see the design plan fully realized.  And, more importantly, they get to live in and love their new spaces!!  The holidays are great deadline-makers and so we've got a bunch lined up just before Thanksgiving.  As I mentioned a while back in this post, we do our installations pretty much all in 1 day.  We have a team of people who inevitably work together on every project.  Having an amazing team is the key to successful projects and it has taken me a few years to put it together: 

Before we can even get to installation day, Mike Carr and his team from CarrMichael Construction usually get the space in move-in condition.  They handle any painting & electrical that needs to happen along with pretty much anything else. 

On installation day or a day or so before, Tolvin & his people from the Carpet Customizer deliver the rugs when the room is empty:

{Tolvin, on the left & his great guys on the right.  My husband, Dave, often makes an appearance at installations to help with a thing or two...  or fifty.}

I bring over a car full of one-of-a-kind accessories & smaller items that I've been gathering for the project so that I can try different things out:

The whiteglove delivery service comes with all of the furniture:

My {awesome} assistant Meghan -whose picture I don't have because she is so photo-shy..  oh wait, here's here Halloween pic:- runs around "getting it done" and making the day better.  She pretty much just makes things happen.

Paul & Nancy Johnson of Paul David Design come & hang the window treatments they've made and bring all of the pillows & reupholstered pieces they've done.  They help hang art too. I can't dig up a good picture of them right now but suffice it to say we couldn't do it without them.  Our electrician also comes on the day-of to install the fixtures which has such a big impact on the spaces. 

Once everything is in the house, we scramble to get it all into place & make it look perfect before our clients come home for the big reveal.  It's both exciting & a little nerve-wracking because everything needs to be just right & there are so many pieces that need to fall into perfect place to get it all done.  I've noticed that since I've been pregnant, I've been more forgetful with bringing things for installations (part sleepiness, part preggo brain) so I'm really hoping I remember everything today so that we don't need to drive back to the office. :)   We have the most amazing clients who really trust us with everything, and making them happy is honestly the most rewarding part of this job.

Today we're working on this space:

and we're installing a variation of this plan:

..And then we have a few more for the rest of the week.

...SO, wish me luck that all goes smoothly (or ends well...  there are always hiccups ;) this week!

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.

Expired by Food & Stuffed Tomatas

I cooked a lot this weekend.  My college volleyball friends and I started a food club and we had our first official "meeting" Saturday night.  It's called the "Expired Food Club."  (I'll explain...  we don't eat expired food. :)  When my friend Kat (the one who painted the magnolia fabric design) and I were talking about how much we loved eating one night (ah yes, we have such erudite conversations!) and how we should get together to eat, I was so excited and talking so quickly that I tried to say "I'm so excited & inspired" but instead I just burst out with "I'm so expired!!"  She was like whaaaaat???  And then I explained & we now have the "Expired Food Club."  The theme for the first meeting was "Stuffed" and we all brought stuffed foods.. mmm mmm amazing.  I brought stuffed peppers & the other food was all sooooooo good.

But I was so in the "stuffed" mood that I also made tomatoes stuffed with curry chicken salad for my book club the next day.  (It's very weird.. I really don't think of myself as a "club" type of person but I actually had two of these very girly-club things planned for the same weekend.)  Anyway, my book club was cancelled  last-minute, so I am LIVING in stuffed tomatoes and chicken salad.  That's okay with me.  I am crazy for these things.  They fill you up in such a good way.  I feel satisfied but not "stuffed" (there I go again) after having one:

It's really easy. I'm not a measure-it-out type of chef, but here are the ingredients if you're up for it:

For the chicken salad:

- A pre-cooked rotisserie chicken--> dice the chicken into small pieces

-Approx 1/4- 1/2 a red onion

-fresh crushed garlic clove (or 2!)

- a few celery stalks, finely chopped (how "cookbook-like" do I sound?)

- a teensy squirt of lemon juice

-salt & pepper

-Sour cream & mayo --> add both of these in until you like the consistency

-Curry powder--> add to taste but I usually keep adding it until it's a pretty shade of yellow

-walnuts and/or anything else you like to add to your chicken salads

-Stir it all up and add more whatever until it looks & tastes good to you 

Then carve out the tomatoes like you would a little pumpkin & fill them up with the chicken salad.  Top with scallions and add a few lettuce leaves on the side.  It's also yummy served with fresh steamed basmati rice on the side.

If you're in the mood, I promise you, this food will make you so happy.  I can't WAIT for lunchtime already.  mmm mmm mm!

If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.