We Love These Emerald Accessories

(Vase by Moretti)Janet Ramin - When I think of emerald, I envision grassy rolling hills, shamrocks, and endless summer - all things fresh and hopeful. So with maybe hope in their sights, Pantone has declared emerald 2013 Color of the Year and not a moment too soon. Despite winter blues and fiscal cliffs, we're going to have a rich array of greens to enliven our interiors. Here's a couple of ideas to add emerald into your home.

The glass vase above shows off from dark to light a range of emerald hues, courtesy of Italian glass designer, Moretti. Below is a porcelain version of emerald, the Happy Temple Jar, from Global Views.

(Happy Temple Jar from Global Views)Designers Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec took the same emerald and swirled it to a fun and functional storage/coffee table in polycarbonate, called the Panier table. 

(Panier table from Kartell)For quick and easy decorating, add these beautifully patterned Addison and Maya pillows from Joss Gold. The leafy sheets, Magnus Kelly, will add a light touch of nature to the bedroom, available from Dwell Studio.

(pillows from Joss Gold)

(Magnus Kelly sheets from Dwell Studio)For a stroke of true emerald greens, Viva Terra, takes fern and moss to an art form, literally! Designers shaped and preserved fern and moss to a verdant, graphic wall art.

(Fern and Moss Wall Art from Viva Terra) 

Interested in learning more about accessorizing?  Take a look at Sheffield School's Complete Course in Interior Design.  At Sheffield, you will learn how to transform a space, create color schemes, and select furniture, lighting, and accessories. 

These 3 Lighting Resources Will Brighten Any Home

Manhattan Remix chandelier by Barovier & Toso

Jay Johnson - There's no excuse not to embrace contemporary lighting solutions to amp up the wattage in any interior design scheme. Styling has never been more exciting and fashionable, and the number of companies offering startling new designs has never been greater.

Nepher Ceiling Lamp from Barovier & Toso

We've selected three of our favorite lighting resources - each one, new to us - and wanted to showcase some of our favorites from each for you. Click on the links below for more information.

• Barovier & Toso
• Terzani
• Kundalini

 Veronese Table Lamp from Barovier & Toso

Stream Chandelier from Terzani

Mizu Pendant Lights from Terzani

I Lucci Argentati Chandelier from Terzani

La La Lamp by Helen Konturis for Kundalini

Sama Hanging Lamps by Gregorio Spini for Kundalini

ETA sat Suspension Lamp by William Berchicci for Kundalini

Sheffield School began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

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Video: Jack Lenor Larsen, Fabric Designer

Irwin Weiner ASID - Elle Decor magazine recently featured short quotations from fabric design icon Jack Lenor Larsen, and it became immediatley apparent why this creative man became so successful. For those not entrenched in the interior design industry, his signature Larsen Fabrics company is now owned by Colefax and Fowler. Here are a few of his gems of wisdom, which I find very inspiring.

Sparrows build their nests to suit. Homes should be like birdhouses: Build them out as needs arise.

A common problem is that someone will have a blue rug and a blue sofa, and the two shades don't go together. What do you do about it? I would buy five more shades of blue, in pillows and other things. Pretty soon you'll have a color symphony.

If you want a color contrast, do it in small quantities. Take risks, but ones that can be changed.

It's more important to reinforce one's identity than to worry about taste. You won't learn taste until you've made some mistakes. Be courageous. Experiment. It's much more fun.

Click on the Jack Larsen link above to see the Elle Decor article, and enjoy today's featured video, an earlier "Handmade in America" interview, to learn more about his process.

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Whirlpool's Fireplace Tabletop Cooking Concept Makes Perfect Sense

Irwin Weiner ASID - This new futuristic appliance concept is brilliant, and I wholeheartedly support what Whirlpool would like to create around its new Fireplace product. A table that functions as a cooking, warming, and chilling surface in the center is below a smart light-hood combination that controls the air and humidity. You can bring any meal to the table and gather everyone around for conversation. At a party, drinks stay chilled or tea and coffee stays piping hot.

Click here for more information on Fireplace, and enjoy the concept video. This is a product that's been shown around the world for the past two years, and has now been introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show. It would be a gas to have one in our house, if Whirlpool ever decides to move beyond their futuristic concept and hit the production button. This is exactly the way contemporary families eat and entertain.

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