← Dear Alice | Interior Design
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- [00:00]
Jess
Foreign.
- [00:13]
Suze
Welcome to Dear Alice, a lifestyle approach to interior design.
- [00:23]
Corey
Hello and welcome to Dear Alice. Today's gonna be another fun episode. We've got your listener questions. We're answering today with the help of Corey and Suze and myself. So buckle your seatbelts. Hopefully we'll say your name. Today we have our anniversary going on at Alice Lane, which is so wild.
- [00:43]
Suze
It's kind of endearing. Happy anniversary.
- [00:45]
Corey
Thank you. Yeah, yeah. We opened this time 17 years ago, 2008.
- [00:52]
Jess
That's crazy. Yeah. That was before my time here. I came in 2000, early 2013.
- [00:57]
Corey
So little naive. Jess over here was just so naive. Had no idea what was going on in the housing market of 2008. If you guys want to think back, it's crazy that we're still here. Y feel so blessed to have you.
- [01:10]
Jess
Guys here and just to see, like, where we've come, like how far we've come in it and yeah, it's been awesome. And just. Yeah. This. Our friendship. I mean, first, you know, I'm like, thinking back to the old, like, Orem Design center days. That's. Those were. Yeah, those are the best.
- [01:26]
Suze
The best. The best.
- [01:27]
Corey
Yeah. I don't know what it is about doing something hard with people together, but it really bonds you in a way that I feel like we'll always be in each other's lives.
- [01:36]
Jess
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [01:37]
Corey
It's really fun building something together and fun, honestly, just to be able to sit down and reflect on it all and talk about it around this table. It's like I don't have time to journal, but this feels like my journal.
- [01:47]
Jess
Exactly.
- [01:49]
Corey
So if I'm ever wondering what happened in my life, I'm going to go back and listen to Dear Alice for cues that I was alive back then.
- [01:57]
Suze
Proof of life.
- [01:58]
Corey
Yeah. And feeling things. So thanks for joining us, you guys, and thanks for being a part of our story. It means so much to us. The website is going to be doing an awesome sale for the anniversary. It's up to 25% off all of our exclusives. That's over 700 items. So go to the website, get yourself something really nice. It's a great time to buy it and yeah, hopefully, hopefully you don't miss out.
- [02:20]
Jess
So anyway, should we jump into questions?
- [02:22]
Corey
Let's do it.
- [02:23]
Jess
Okay.
- [02:24]
Suze
We don't know any of these questions. Bs.
- [02:25]
Jess
Yes. Off. Off of the cuff.
- [02:27]
Suze
Off the cuff.
- [02:28]
Jess
Yeah. The first one is from Taylor, who's from Ontario. Yeah. Friends up north.
- [02:34]
Corey
Nice to meet.
- [02:34]
Suze
Ontario.
- [02:35]
Jess
Yeah. I'm assuming that's Canada. I Guess there's a. Yeah, Ontario, California could be that too. Still a cool place. But she wrote in asks, I would love to hear your, your advice on how to mix wood tones in a home flooring, cabinetry and furniture pieces for an intentional and cohesive look. Is there an ideal or maximum number or of different tones to have in one room or throughout whole house? It's a great question.
- [03:02]
Suze
That is a great question.
- [03:03]
Corey
I think so too. Especially where we're starting to see just kind of the return of stain grade furniture instead of everything being paint grade. So. Yeah. How much is too much? How to mix it? I think this is really, really intelligent. I'm excited.
- [03:17]
Suze
It's a very smart question. Yeah.
- [03:19]
Jess
I think also. But like how to like my question in that would be how not to get it too like matchy, you know, because if you're doing like a stain grade cabinet and like you're doing a wood floo, getting those two close together.
- [03:34]
Corey
Like let me take you back to the 80s when everything was oak.
- [03:36]
Jess
It's exactly where my mind went. Yeah.
- [03:39]
Corey
Because that is, I also feel like such a bummer move. It doesn't feel designed. It doesn't feel as interesting. It just feel like a kit of parts, you know?
- [03:48]
Jess
Yeah. It feels like not thought out, just throw together.
- [03:51]
Corey
So I think you probably want like, I think right now, today you do like a midtone. Right. So let's just say you have walnut floors and then I think you're going to get some deeper notes of in your furniture. Right. Or you could also get shades of, of walnut that are a little bit darker. But mixing in some of those interesting burl pieces or antiques that have a bit more depth I think are interesting. We're not seeing a ton of the light tones. That was also the 80s. Remember the pickled oaks?
- [04:21]
Suze
They were almost pink.
- [04:22]
Corey
They look like a skinless cat.
- [04:24]
Jess
Yeah.
- [04:26]
Corey
We're not seeing those as many. I don't know the light, light tones in wood that we're going to be seeing going. So I think you're mostly going to get some of your natural walnut type tones and then some darker ones. Maybe even some exotics like your Macassar ebony's.
- [04:38]
Jess
Yeah.
- [04:39]
Corey
Would be really pretty in the mix. Depending on how dressy you are and sophisticated or casual. You can picture in your mind those mid century homes that had a lot of the, the walnut notes and some of them are more natural and then a lot of darker furnishings or darker finishes on the furniture.
- [04:58]
Suze
Yeah.
- [04:58]
Corey
So I don't know. How are you guys, what are you Seeing right now in the projects you're working on, I know a lot of it's client driven. So I don't know how much wood with wood with wood that you're doing, but how's it, what's a good way that you're mixing it?
- [05:10]
Suze
Actually quite a quite a bit. Everybody's like cute and obviously like we're leading them that way too, that just like we're not seeing as many of like the light white oaks and the light blonde oaks for your flooring. We are getting warmer. You know, if we can be in that kind of like is the darkest that we're going is, is more of the medium walnut, just so it's still livable, it's not getting too dark where you're like putting your dirty feet and puppies are running around and kids are being kids. So like medium on the floor is usually what we're at. And even if we're, if we're not walnut, we're going oak stained walnut, medium walnut. So again, you're getting the highest lows, which is really great for you if you can have a wood on your floor that does have like darks and lights because then that allows you to kind of like extrude some of those onto the furniture, the cabinetry, those things. And so usually what we're doing, like we have one home here down in the Berkshires here in Utah and we have like this kind of more that medium walnutty floor. And then we're going a little bit darker on like the cabinetry in the kitchen. Like specifically their island, they want to have some wood grain. So we have some painted, like the perimeter cabinets are painted. And then like the islands are a darker wood because they're a little bit more formal. So also depending on how formal you are, depends on like how deep you go and how shiny you go. So again, kind of think about it that way. Are you, are you relaxed? Are you formal? And that. And he really loves the contrast of wood. And so like we're seeing at several different layers now with that you need to make sure that you're giving some other things for the wood to pop off against. So if like already your cabinetry is wood, your flooring's wood, you're not going to be doing wood paneling, you're going to be up against a neutral ground so that these things can be highlighted. So, um, I would just say that like he has a really large home. So we're doing a lot of wood stained things, exotics, burls, you know, things in Furniture, beautiful antique chest, things like that. Um, but we also have a lot of other things to offset it. So depending on your size of home, depends on how much wood you incorporate into a room, and I would say, like, no more than probably three at different levels of variance from the floor.
- [07:12]
Corey
Here's what I just picked up on what you were saying. Tell me if this is right. But as a really easy rule for Taylor, it sounds like the floor might be the lightest of the wood. So if that's your mid tone, and then you're going to go darker on top for cabinetry or your kitchen island, or your furnishings will be darker than the floor, they're not usually going to be the same and they're not going to be lighter than the floor. And also by keeping your floor the lightest of the woods, it's also going to be the lowest maintenance, because that's where, I mean, you think about it. The darker the thing gets, like your black car, how hard it is to keep clean. Nothing's prettier than a dark car when it's clean, but it shows every little thing. You want to keep your floors. I think having those be more of that mid tone walnut range, like you're saying, and not seeing them in dark walnut, otherwise you really are going to need to have somebody mopping that a couple times a day. Yep. Yeah. So I would say your lightest tone is on the floor. And then you start to go deeper and darker through furnishings and cabinetry on top of that.
- [08:10]
Suze
Yeah. And some of your lights also come, like, as far as contrasting that you're not necessarily doing light woods, but you're incorporating like stones, lighter stones, like on the darker wood that has some dark veins that's kind of tying everything together. Like the rug, say in a kitchen, or the rug is like a lighter feel there has lightness to it. So again, it can like juxtapose with the wood floor and the things you're putting on top of it. So it's a balance.
- [08:32]
Corey
Yeah, yeah. Love.
- [08:33]
Jess
Awesome.
- [08:34]
Suze
Hopefully that helps.
- [08:36]
Jess
The next question is from Christy Krimski. She wrote in and asked. We just remodeled our kitchen and primary bathroom. And I dare say I think you all would be proud. Our funds are not unlimited though, so we are saving the other bathrooms and the basement for phase two. My question is around the timing and pacing of decorating a new home. How long do you think it should take to complete? I'm setting an internal deadline of a year and a half. That's when we're thinking about having kids. Because I imagine I would lose steam with other things to focus on also. How would you approach doing things over time? One room at a time, one layer at a time. People are already coming over and I hate to show off an unfinished product, but homes take time.
- [09:22]
Suze
You know what, Christy, you're normal. I was about to say, you're so normal.
- [09:26]
Corey
Yeah.
- [09:29]
Suze
Well, do you want to go?
- [09:30]
Corey
Yeah, yeah, I would love to. I mean, I think, sue, you've been living in this world for a little bit when she talked about doing her bathrooms. Right. But there's different phases to this, so she also asks how long should it take to complete something? I know, just coming off of your install, right?
- [09:46]
Suze
Yeah.
- [09:46]
Corey
Even though all of the big pieces were thought of and even all the art layers, there are still things that take time. And one of the things we've learned from publishing agents is they aren't even that interested in seeing the home or getting it shot for at least a year till after you've lived in it. Because things evolve. Even landscape grows in and looks more beautiful as the home matures and you start to just. The lifestyle really comes together and it feels more honest, which is what people are wanting. They're done with these glam, perfect looks. They want these more just true to life moments. And so giving your house a little. A little time to work the newness out and have it really start to feel real, I think feels good. I also think the deadline of a year feels good because then you can stay focused on it. Because you do stop seeing your project after a while. You just get used to living with it. And you stop. You stop seeing that you don't have draperies. You stop seeing that you haven't fixed that one thing or you don't have a knob on that cabinet or whatnot. So keeping the project open and alive for a year, I think seems doable. But if you go beyond that, you're going to lose steam on it. Other things are going to get your attention. You're going to have other emergency remodels that you need to tend to. So I think that's a really nice time frame of the year and just really completing things if you can. There's certain things that you're going to get to know. Let's just say your drapery workroom, that maybe you want to hand off all your drapes at once to them, right. So you don't have to babysit each room with the drapery workroom, that the efficiencies of scale will really start to come into play. So Maybe those things you kind of stockpile to the end of your project, but I don't know what. What insights do you have? Sue, you just went through two emergency remodels last year. I'm sure you have another project, you know, on the horizon for you. Do you have any advice for Christy?
- [11:34]
Suze
Yeah. Again, just like Jess said, you're very, very normal. I like, from start to end, from, like, flood to finish. This is my autobiography.
- [11:43]
Jess
Yeah.
- [11:44]
Suze
Finish. It was about a year for those emergency bathrooms. Just like. And you think that you're going to go faster, and you think that people are going to respond quicker, and no matter who you are, like, it just takes time, and you kind of just give yourself permission to, like, live within that. And even when people come over, it's okay. I think everybody sits in an unfinished project. They. Yeah. And if they don't understand you, they're not your friends. So I think that that's very normal. But it is nice to have, you know, just some, like you said, deadlines on the horizon. Have people scheduled. Have people, like, at whatever pace you can afford to go, that you can have those people coming in, you know, just like you would, you know, get your windows washed after a certain, you know, season. You. You have them scheduled to come in at that deadline, because that feels good. Same thing with, like, you know, plan a party. Plan a party, you know, and then that's. There's nothing like some urgency of, like, knowing that you're going to have a big gathering to celebrate your new kitchen or, you know, whatever, and it's okay. The other, like, places aren't finished because, again, life will happen. You'll get them done when you can. And a home's never done. A home is never, ever done. And if it is, you're stale. You're not going to evolve. You're not going to change. It means you're going to keep the same outfit, you know, for the next decade. It's never going to be done. You're going to continue collect. You're going to continue to be inspired. And, like, we're always changing things in our houses.
- [13:03]
Corey
Yeah.
- [13:04]
Suze
You know, it. It's never done. I know that feels like a little hopeless when you're about to start your venture with kids and things, but that will take. That will take the. I don't know. That'll take the priority and the projects will. Will come. I don't know. I've given myself a lot of flexibility as life has, you know, handed me a flood here and there, but it's good and when it's complete, like spaces of it are complete, I can close that chapter and think about the next project. So, yeah, give yourself some grace.
- [13:32]
Corey
What's your thought on one room at a time, one layer at a time? Like she asks. I did two rooms at the same time. You did two rooms at the same time? Just barely. Do you feel like, I mean, you're kind of in the same thing. You're doing two bathrooms. So it's, it's tile. You're at that, you're at that tile showroom anyway, you might as well pick it up. So it does lessen the work.
- [13:53]
Suze
Yeah.
- [13:53]
Corey
Even though you're doing them in tandem. Yeah, I, I think like I had the same contractors there to paint both my rooms, to float both my ceilings smooth. So it just sort of, I think, was also more affordable to be able to, to add on just one more room or if I had to come have them come out again a few years later, floating one ceiling smooth would be probably twice as expensive.
- [14:15]
Jess
Yeah, I was going to say that like just while you have the subs there, like doing that layer that's probably the, the most efficient as far as cost and time goes. And you're probably more likely to find a subcontractor to do that because if you have a guy who like, you know, does texture on walls and ceilings, he prob to do a whole home and stay busy for a few months or as much as he can, rather than come and doing a, a powder bath, you know, accept your job versus.
- [14:42]
Suze
The guy that has two or three rooms faster.
- [14:44]
Corey
Just like cabinetry. Right. They're more excited about your job because you have more cabinets to give. So Chrissy, I, I can tell that you're probably an organized person that's really on top of things by all of the questions that you're asking. So you're probably hating this answer because we're like, you know what? But with the economies of scale at play, you might as well bang out these things.
- [15:03]
Suze
Right?
- [15:04]
Corey
Well, you've got that one sub in there. I'm sure that it will feel good to have one room done at a time and have the one year deadline. But there are things that if you're willing to be flexible, that you can accomplish, you know, bigger parts of the whole rather than just taking one bite at a time. Totally agree. So, but you do need to give yourself grace. It never goes according to plan as much as you want to. It's, you know, for people that are wound more tightly, I would say just buy an existing home Right. And maybe change some top layers. You also know exactly what the price of that home is. When you're getting into remodels and when you're getting into new construction, there's this huge, like, you have to stay really flexible.
- [15:45]
Suze
Yeah.
- [15:45]
Corey
Things change.
- [15:46]
Jess
Yes.
- [15:46]
Corey
And it's not the contractor's fault. It is the economy's fault. It is. You know, there's all of these.
- [15:52]
Jess
The previous homeowner.
- [15:54]
Corey
Yeah. However it was done. I don't know. There's. There's a lot in play when it comes into the remodeling. So I don't know. The one room at a time thing seems really nice and focused. And if it is just decor and furnishings, for sure you can do it. If it's remodeling, then you might want to ask yourself what else is in that same realm that might need to be touched and bang it all out so that it's a good job for that contractor.
- [16:16]
Jess
Yeah.
- [16:17]
Suze
If it's your flooring, you're tearing everything up. Anything that has that wood flooring, you're going to tear all those things up, which then snowball. So you just have to prep yourself. It's like emergency. It's like preppers episode right now.
- [16:27]
Jess
Yeah.
- [16:27]
Suze
You have to, like, really, like, wind yourself up because they're going to open wounds in a remodel.
- [16:31]
Corey
Yeah.
- [16:31]
Suze
And they're going to need to touch it. So just. Yeah. Brace yourself. I'm so excited for you.
- [16:37]
Corey
Hope that helps.
- [16:37]
Suze
Yes.
- [16:38]
Jess
Okay. The next question comes from Jesse from Phoenix, Arizona. They wrote. Hi. Love your show. It has helped me so much to pull my historic home together. Well, still working on that.
- [16:49]
Suze
Haha.
- [16:50]
Jess
But you guys have steered me straight through a major remodel. My question is about hanging curtains for my French doors. We need some privacy at night. Should I hang them all the way to the ceiling or somewhere between the case and the ceiling? The gap is fairly large to the ceiling and not sure if it will look off balance if I hang. If I hang high, as you guys always recommend. Also, is it okay to have the curtains stacked to one side? And then she gave us a picture.
- [17:20]
Suze
Girl, yeah, you're gonna go all the way to that crown. I think. Yeah, I just did. We just like installed a house and like, they had really tall ceilings and installing all the window treatments and things. Even with tall ceilings. Even, like, obviously these doors aren't as high as the ceiling. Like, it's still so grand. It'll make your doors seem taller. Makes everything seem taller. Instead of like just cutting it like short Sheets like in center of the casing, in the crown, you're going to go all the way up. And I love a stack. I love a thick stack.
- [17:51]
Corey
I do too. I justifying the drapes to right or the left rather than having them flank the door I think is very chic. I actually just did this in my living room. I was kind of playing around with it because I wanted to see how it would look. You're still going to run that rod just as if you were flanking the doors because that's what your eye wants to see. It wants to see. It's believable. And you know, maybe in five years you want to change things up and you know, and have them be centered on the doors. But I do love a justified look. I think it's very chic.
- [18:20]
Suze
Yeah. And it'll amplify your fullness too, which will look very expensive.
- [18:23]
Corey
We do love fullness around here. Yeah. Very good.
- [18:27]
Jess
Jess, you have an expert tip on how to sleep cool during these hot summer nights. Let's share it with the people.
- [18:32]
Corey
I really do. Guys, it's the cozy Earth sheets. I have to tell you, they regulate temperature. And by regulate temperature, I mean between me and my husband, we sleep very different. He's a much bigger person than I am and he sleeps so hot. Even just touching his body is hot. So I got the sheets and I have to tell you, he's sleeping through the night and we're both comfortable. Also, they have this really pretty sheen to them, which I appreciate. Beautiful things as you know. So I think they're gorgeous. The hand is amazing and they just naturally wick away heat and moisture from your body, helping you sleep several degrees cooler. And sleeping in a cooler environment helps offer scientifically supported benefits that enhance your sleep quality and your overall health. So I feel great about that.
- [19:18]
Jess
Guys, this is a risk free purchase. Cozy earth offers a 100 night sleep trial, so try them during the hottest nights of the year. If you're not in love, return them hassle free. But trust me, you won't want to upgrade your summer. Go to cozyearth.com and use code Dear Alice for up to 40% off. Best selling temperature regulating sheets, apparel and more. Trust me, you'll feel the difference at the very first night. Sleep cooler, Lounge lighter. Stay cozy. The next question is from Kara Federico. She asks, how do you suggest decorating the walls of a two story foyer? Finish work or trim? Large scale art, a tapestry or just leaving the two story wall blank?
- [20:00]
Corey
I think all of the above, except for the last one.
- [20:02]
Suze
Yeah.
- [20:03]
Corey
Yes. Yes to finish work and trim, yes to large scale art and yes to tapestry. We'll have to throw a picture up of the tapestry we just hung. Stone wall, definitely. I think finish work is going to make a lot of that space. Really addressing the whole thing is really, really stunning. I think traditional is something that's really hot right now. I think it's also a sign of a well built home. It's like we paid attention to every detail and we put the icing on top, you know, So I love when this is done and when it's done really, really well. And whether it be stain grade or paint grade, this is a great idea. Cara.
- [20:40]
Suze
Yeah.
- [20:40]
Corey
Large scale art for sure. You're going to need really large pieces with a two story and your tapestry that you guys just installed. Sue, do you want to tell them where you installed the tapestry? Yeah.
- [20:51]
Suze
We had this like round rotunda, all stone clad, stair hall, stairwell at our home in Desert Oaks is what it's going to be called. And again, it's round. So we're like. And it's so tall. We're like, what are we going to put on these walls? And you know, that would make sense with how, you know, obviously the radius and we're like, tapestry, duh. Like, and it's so good. It's so good. When they were hanging, I was just like, it was like angels singing. It was exactly what it needed. And the scale of it was awesome. The history of it was awesome. And it just like drew your eye like to that, I don't know, to the windows of the light. When you can like again, pull your eye up and notice some of the other architectural things happening. Like it's, it's beautiful. I would definitely suggest, um, the cool thing about finish work too. I was just going to say, depending on your style, whether you're modern, traditional, historic, you know, whatever it is, like, you can make sure that your finished work matches that style. Don't just like let your finish worker start because he'll just do like a flat panel shaker, blocked panel, super boring. And there's so many cool things that you can do with finish work. So really study it out. Study it like with the, you know, the year that your home is built or if you're more modern than that, like you can do something funky too. So I'd play with that. I'd play with the finished work and all the large art.
- [22:03]
Corey
Love that answer.
- [22:04]
Jess
Yep. The next question is from. Let's see. It is from Rob Milton. He wrote in and said, love the show. Thanks for all the useful advice. My question is from the point, from the point of view of a house. Oh, sorry. Probably meant point of view of a house owner hiring a designer. What are some of your red and green flags when looking around for an interior designer? Great question, you guys.
- [22:34]
Suze
Okay.
- [22:34]
Corey
Yeah. I would ask them about their process. I'd also ask to see their portfolio. Hopefully they have examples of their work so you can get a good feel for their style. This is so easy today with Instagram. I'd also ask friends for recommendations or people at the tile shop or wherever you're looking around. Cabinetry mills. If you have friends in the business, even if they're just finished workers, whatever, they'll just say, have you worked with these people? They're a big red flag for me is somebody that doesn't get back to you. We are dealing with creatives in this space and one of the number one things that we see when we go to a home to get hired is they'll say, oh, yeah, I've worked with a designer before. They just never finished the job. And we continue to hear this. And so you really want somebody with a good process, a good punch list, somebody that's really accountable. Um, and they even surrounds themselves with left brained, organized people so that that way their creativity can be there. But they also have people around them doing the administrative parts of the job because the creative alone might not have that superpower. And once we learn to really surround ourselves with a really good team of people that have both sides of the brain and some creatives do have the ability to manage a project, but I think that's going to be, to me, the number one thing at getting the job done is you need to be able to have a good team and you want to understand their process and that they've. That you're not their first rodeo. Because it is a complicated situation that involves a lot of psychology. Right.
- [24:07]
Suze
A lot of math.
- [24:08]
Corey
Yeah. Personal style. Right. Taste. This is a reflection of you. It's going to, you know, take, take financial, a lot of finances for this to make sense. Their literacy in the field is really important. Um, so I think it's really fair to ask those questions. I think there should be definitely an interview just to really understand the process. Like, how often are we going to meet? Is a fantastic question. Um, we just started working with a gal who said there was never even a meeting schedule with some of the past designers that she worked with. And I know in our firm we meet every other week. It gives us time to make revisions to the past space and still do a new space and then show them both in the next meeting. And every other week seems like a good frequency so that you don't forget about the job. You stay. You stay in cadence with the whole project, that they're good with, communicating with your subs and with the builder and that they're accountable because you don't ever want to blame why your house isn't getting done by the designer who won't get back to them. That will be so frustrating and expensive. Right. You have construction loans and, you know, all of these things that are due. And so you really need accountability besides being really, really good at design. So it's a unicorn you're looking for?
- [25:25]
Jess
Yeah.
- [25:25]
Corey
I don't know, sue, what else do you have? Anything else? Red flags, Green flag? Any green flags?
- [25:29]
Suze
Green flags. Is that they. That you like them?
- [25:32]
Corey
Yeah.
- [25:32]
Suze
I think honestly, like, you're. You're locking horns with, like, your designer for a long time, sometimes, like, hopefully for life. If you find a really great designer that can, like, be your, you know, phone a friend when you ever embark on a new project or just need advice on anything, like dealing with the home, that you can call them and you can trust them, that they will get back to you. I think, you know that, like, get on the nail with, like, all the things that you said. Um, I think alignment is just so important as far as aesthetically, because it's just such a bummer when you do hear that somebody hired a designer, but they just feel like it doesn't look like them. I'm like, dang it something. You guys weren't transparent enough with each other, so make sure that you're really transparent. You can, like, we always tell our clients, like, you can't offend us. Like, this isn't my house. This is your house we're designing for you. So if you don't like it, please tell me. I don't want to go down that. That's not efficient for me either. It doesn't help anybody to, like, flatter, you know, the other by not saying something soon enough. Like, say, like, be honest and find someone that you feel like you can be honest with. So, yeah.
- [26:32]
Corey
Yeah.
- [26:33]
Suze
And then did after everything just hate.
- [26:34]
Corey
It when I hear about somebody saying, we'll show you the design, and then you get one round of revisions or two round of revisions. That's a red flag to me.
- [26:42]
Jess
Yeah.
- [26:42]
Corey
You should be able to work at this until it feels right. Nothing should stop you from that. Obviously, you're paying for their time.
- [26:49]
Suze
So you're going to pay for it.
- [26:51]
Corey
Yeah. You want to understand their process, but there needs to be room for edits and for changes in there and that they're not going to put the brakes on you if it doesn't feel right. You shouldn't have to move forward with this half baked design in your mind where you would like to continue to massage it a little bit.
- [27:06]
Suze
Yeah. But all the more reason for you to be clear or really understand what you like from the get go or do the research and sometimes that happens during the process. You discover more about yourself and that's okay. Be honest when something changes.
- [27:18]
Corey
So yeah, yeah, love that. I have a brother in business, a very different business than mine, but he often says clarity is kindness and so getting really, really clear is so helpful to both parties. So making sure that you as the person hiring a designer, you're able to get as clear clear as you can and hopefully they can get really clear with you too.
- [27:38]
Jess
Yeah, yeah. Great advice. The next question is from Jocelyn. She wrote in and asked, when you are helping clients choose a paint color, do you have a step by step guide on how to determine it or do you just look through a catalog until you find something they like? I am planning on painting my living room. It's white right now, but I am not feeling very inspired with what I want. Hoping your method helps me realize what I want.
- [28:08]
Suze
I, I will say, I don't know. Jocelyn, if you have anything in the room to help inspire what the color could be, a piece of art, a rug, those are some like really great jumping off points because when we are designing most rooms, we start with the rug, you know, and understand kind of what that is. It dictates, you know, the personality, the energy, if it's organized and still or if it's wild and floral or those things. And then we start to understand what this needs to be and how pungent it needs to be or how calm it needs to be. So ask yourself those questions, like, are you like drawn to more like earth tones, like more neutral stuff? Because then if you're like, I love blues but I want it to feel earthy, you're going to find like a little bit muddier blue or like you're consistently drawn to this color. Like look, you know, look at what's around you in the room that you're going to paint. If there's nothing, I would like really like lean on what your eyeballs. Like, what are you drawn to when you dress yourself? What's the continual palette that you or anybody living with you loves to see. And then I would, like, go. I think Benjamin Moore is a really great. They do a good job at, as far as, like, historical colors of stuff that's, like, it's color, but it's a little bit more neutral. I think one of the biggest mistakes that I see people make is they, like blue. So they go to Home Depot, they find a blue chip, and they throw it up on the wall. And I was like, oh, my God, it looks like a. Looks like a nursery, you know, or a baby boy's room. And they just weren't thoughtful with the tone of it. So I think, first of all, feeling like, what is inspiring the color, what do you love? Is it a piece, existing piece, or is it just something that's in your heart and then you're gonna. It's okay to sample. Paint's really hard. I would say definitely sample colors. When you find out what that tone is that you want to be in, do several samples on several different walls or get a piece of foam core, paint those, and then travel that around the house and look at it in different lights and look at it with, you know, with. When Jess was painting her living room, like, she had her cushion for her sofa and was traveling around with it and just, like, looking like, what's happening here? Is it like, oh, it's looking great. Oh, you know, like, divert.
- [30:10]
Corey
You got to look at it different times a day, too. Yeah. And also think about, I didn't do this at my house, so this is why I'm really keyed out. I think failure is the best teacher. Right?
- [30:19]
Jess
Yeah.
- [30:20]
Corey
Yeah. So I think if you think about when you're going to be in those rooms. For instance, I just painted my living room, and I'm here in the day. I'm recording podcasts, I'm working in the design firm. I'm, you know, so I'm not actually home till night when I would actually invite somebody over to hang out in my living room. So you want to consider, what does this room look like at night? And is this night color, like, with just lights on, is this going to be beautiful? Right. So consider the time of day that you'll use it, too. I'll also say, once you've drilled down to that color, like sue said, maybe it's blue. Then I would even go on Pinterest. Or maybe you love Instagram and look at all the blue rooms that you can and see how you feel in your stomach, in your heart when you look at these. And if you're like, oh, this does something to me. Right? And then you're just going to start saving these images to a new folder that you call living room. Right? New living room, remodel, living room or whatever you want to call it, and just put those colors in there, and then go to that folder and just stare at them. And you'll look at the varying shades of blue, and you'll see what you react to that. You're like, you know what? I can't believe it. But I don't want this baby blue. I really want a really dark, sophisticated navy blue or whatever it is. But I just start pinning and then contrasting them against each other till your gut really has a feeling. And then I'd go to the paint deck after that once. I really know. But having something physical is really nice. I know. At one point, I hung a skirt from the hanger over my picture frame in my room, because I was like, this. This color of silk I love. But then it wasn't until I had this fortuny book that I put on my mantle, and I'm like, that's the exact shade. And I just had this book cover sitting on my mantle. And then I would start putting paint decks up against that book, and I'd stand way back in the room. I look at it different times a day. And then I started ordering paint samples after that. So, yeah, yeah, it's. It's a lot. And you'll be in your head. And I would definitely say, call somebody that knows you to come over once you drill down and say, who am I? Like, I had to call sue to come over a couple times. We. And we do this for a living, but it's 400 harder when it's your own and they're not. The people that are coming over, it's fun for them. They're just coming into it. They know who you are, they know what you love. And they'll be like, of course you're this one. You'll be like, thank you for knowing me. That's it. Right. But I think you definitely need a friend in it.
- [32:36]
Suze
Yep.
- [32:37]
Corey
Yeah.
- [32:39]
Jess
The. Our last question comes from Cherie from California. She asked, is there a particular home decor trend this year that has stood out to you that you want to add to your home on the side to put you on the spot? That's.
- [32:56]
Suze
Yeah, I know. This is exciting. I would say just, like, even more color. Like, just the whole color drenching. Having been in that wood panel, I don't know what room I would do it in. But, like, it is tempting. It. It makes me just want to explore.
- [33:10]
Corey
Hello. Your basement.
- [33:12]
Suze
Oh, I know, right? Yeah.
- [33:14]
Corey
Yeah.
- [33:14]
Jess
Already there.
- [33:15]
Corey
I think you'd go for it.
- [33:16]
Suze
Oh, I would totally go for it.
- [33:17]
Corey
It would smell so good. That's where you guys, like, watch tv, right?
- [33:21]
Suze
It would be like, I smoke cigars. That's where it'd be.
- [33:24]
Corey
You know, that's how you do the wood.
- [33:27]
Suze
Yeah.
- [33:28]
Corey
Yeah.
- [33:28]
Suze
I just. I just think something.
- [33:30]
Corey
You have four boys.
- [33:31]
Suze
So dramatic. Yeah, it'd be so dramatic. So, yeah, wood drenching. Even more color drenching. Just being even. Even more bold. I just. I love it. Yeah.
- [33:40]
Corey
Yeah, that's. I mean, for me too. Right. I just took this challenge. I painted two rooms at the same time. I still haven't even put together my home office yet, because I need to start over, even on the window treatments. Because when I moved into my house a decade ago, right. In 20. 2014 or 2015, the world was gray. Right. I have this gray shake home, and my window treatments even, were, like, a sheer gray mesh with these little white louvers in them, these silhouettes. And that color looks terrible with the blue. It's too cold. So I'm like, I gotta start over on so many things, and I'm. I'm like, I'm gonna put all my energy into decorating the living room now that that's done, and I'm still working through that. But the office, I'm like, I need to. I need to just go so much bolder. Like, I need to bring red into this icy blue room, and I don't have anything red, so I'm really just. I'm really needing to embrace it. And it's. It's all color. It's colored furniture, upholstery. Corey and I have a pair of sconces in development that are red that I want to bring in.
- [34:39]
Jess
So they're.
- [34:40]
Corey
So those get done at the end of the year. So.
- [34:42]
Suze
New artwork.
- [34:43]
Corey
I need a new original artwork for the mantle. So, yeah, I have. I have, like, my feelers out there, but the way I want to go about getting them, I feel. I don't know, I'm just really wanting to go with a feeling and go with my gut on it. I don't want my head to choose it so much, which takes a. React to it.
- [35:01]
Jess
Yeah. Which takes time to just kind of, like, figure out what feels right. I think if you're. If you have the objective, like, I just need to hurry and get it done. You're going to make decisions that you wouldn't have made if you just slowed down and like, had taken your time.
- [35:12]
Suze
Totally.
- [35:13]
Corey
So, yeah, I don't want to be rushed either. We, we rush and we complete things for our job. But this feels more like a discovery.
- [35:22]
Jess
Yeah.
- [35:22]
Corey
For me.
- [35:23]
Suze
Slow dance.
- [35:23]
Corey
It is a slow dance. I'm slow dancing with the living room and. Yeah.
- [35:28]
Jess
And you'll get it right because of it. Yeah.
- [35:29]
Suze
Yeah.
- [35:30]
Corey
And I want it to be fun. I don't want it to feel like a job. Yeah.
- [35:33]
Suze
I love that.
- [35:34]
Jess
Yeah.
- [35:34]
Suze
So good.
- [35:35]
Jess
Oh, well, thanks everyone that wrote in. Yeah. If you have questions of your own, please send them in. We'll either put them in an episode like this or dedicate an entire episode to it. You can send those to Dear Alice alicelanehome.com yeah.
- [35:49]
Corey
And rate and review if you don't mind. That helps us grow. Appreciate you guys so much for listening and thank you so much for joining us on this really fun 17 year episode. And lastly, don't miss our special bonus episode which we'll be releasing tomorrow. We've never done a bonus episode, but we had to for our anniversary. So we'll be answering all of your personal questions over there. So check us out. It's going to be on Apple and Spotify.
- [36:15]
Jess
Yep, Apple and Spotify.
- [36:16]
Corey
Yeah. So tune in for those. Thanks again for watching and listening and tuning in for all the years. We appreciate you guys. Hey, thanks for listening. If you like our show, please leave a five star rating.