Gallery Wall Roundup

Many of our interior design clients request the highly coveted gallery wall. And we get it - they’re beautiful. They bring so much character and interest into a room. The flip of that design power is that they’re quite time consuming to create. First, and probably most time consuming, is to find the right art. Then, the perfect frames. Last, the magical configuration. Oh, and then hanging it up without making too many extra/accident holes. The sheer amount of time is one of the key reasons we only offer gallery wall creations to our Full Service package clients.

So, while we can’t offer you an actual gallery wall plan (unless you want to inquire about our Full Service Interior Design package in which case we would love to!), we can offer you lots of inspiration to make it happen on your own. Today we have a round-up of gallery walls we’ve created. We’ve designed and installed all different styles of galleries and all different styles of art. We love that you can get a feel for the Client just by scanning through the gallery.

Gray Oak Gives Back Project

This 15 frame grid gallery is from our Gray Oak Gives Back Project. A simple grid of matching frames filled with stock black and white photos. These photos can be easily replaced by family photos or more curated landscape photos or a series of abstracts. But they’re beautiful as is. (For sources on all things Gray Oak Gives Back head to the project reveal post)

Gray Oak Gives Back Project - Design by Gray Oak Studio

Prospect Project

This gallery is from our Prospect Project. If you guessed that the occupant of this room is under 10 years old, you guessed correctly. We love how the 3-dimensional elements of this gallery add to the whimsy.

Prospect Project - Design by Gray Oak Studio

Pearl Project

In both our Pearl Project and our Hutchins Project, we used a simple grid of 4 identical frames to create a gallery moment. This is a really great starter gallery if the big guys seem intimidating. For the Pearl Street Project, we simply clustered a series of pieces our Client already owned. Bringing them into a small gallery made them more of a focal point - the same effect as one large scale piece of art (but way less expensive!).

Pearl Project - Design by Gray Oak Studio

Hutchins Project

For our Hutchins Project, we created a gallery wall of frames ready for our Client to fill with family photos. Incorporating family photos in a modern, clean way was the goal.

Hutchins Project - Design by Gray Oak Studio

Homestead Project

This next gallery was from one of our very first projects, which was the second phase of a project for our very first Client. Needless to say, it holds a special place for us. Our Client had these beautiful, vintage, professionally framed family heirlooms that she wanted to display but always felt that they looked out of place in her more transitional (modern) home. By mixing in a series of round brass frames (very current and clean), we were able to bridge the feeling between vintage and modern and make it feel like a cohesive thought.

Homestead Project - Design by Gray Oak Studio

Lovell Project

Our last mini gallery is one of our favorite and probably our most shared/coveted/revered. It’s from our Lovell Project and it’s a good one. The key here was choosing one large anchoring piece and two complimentary, smaller pieces. When creating an eclectic gallery, it’s important to mix and match the size of the frames, the material of frames and the size of the mats (some frames with mats, some without, some with oversized mats).

Lovel Project - Design by Gray Oak Studio

Hope you’re feeling inspired to get started on the gallery wall you’ve been imagining.

Have a wonderful rest of your week.

- Leah

Gray Oak Gives Back - Fireplace Transformation

A big, juicy post with all the details of our Gray Oak Gives Back transformation is coming soon. But first we want to dive into the fireplace transformation because this transformation was in and of itself MAJOR. And because so many fellow New Englanders with 1940s/1950s houses have this exact fireplace and have reached out to us asking for the play-by-play.

Below is where we started.

Red brick surround (not the beautiful, vintage kind of brick). Red tile hearth to match. Brass and black bi-fold doors. Decorative molding that looks like an afterthought. Awkwardly close, shiny brass sconces.

Here’s another look for good measure,. You can see the true colors at play.

Our first update was to remove the rectangle and diamond molding on the front top panel of the wood surround. They weren’t quality details and they were dating the entire feel of the surround. Willow Carpentry (who donated their time!) carefully popped them off, then Big Dog Painting (who also donated their time) cleaned up the area by smoothing the ridges where the molding came off, priming and repainting the whole surround.

Next we relocated the sconces - they were just way too close. By separating them we were able to capture the actual width of the mantel and take advantage of the wall space above to create a true focal point in the room. Big thanks to Hanson Electric, who…also donated his time.

So much better already, right?

Next up, we removed the original door. Well, technically, we didn’t do the removing - our client handled that. They need a shoutout for being a very handy duo. From what we heard, it was pretty straight forward. Just taking out a few screws, a push here, a pull there, all set.

Then, we painted the interior of the firebox with a firesafe black paint. Another quick, DIY update.

Up until this point, the changes were relatively simple and budget-friendly, all great DIY updates (minus the electrical work) that created a fantastic update. From here, his transformation is a little less budget-friendly and you definitely want to involve a professional - tile over the brick surround and replace the tile hearth with a stone slab.

But, in order to keep it budget-friendly and within the DIY realm, you could also just paint the brick and tile - we would recommend black. Be sure to ask someone at your local painter for the right paint and the right process. There is likely a special type of paint required that will properly adhere to the brick and tile and maybe a sealant needed to keep it from flaking off.

For this special project, we were incredibly lucky to have have Wayfair give us deeply discounted tile for the surround. We chose a small scale marble tile in a herringbone pattern. The contrast of a small scale tile for the surround and a large scale stone slab for the hearth is great choice - it’s balanced in scale and classic. Speaking of the stone slab, Worcester Marble and Granite not only donated the marble slab, but also donated their time to fabricate it (cut it to size and bevel the edges).

One important tip on the installation of a stone slab hearth: You need to consider the thickness of the existing tile you’re removing and the thickness of the new stone slab you’re installing. The average tile is between 3/8” and 1/2” thick. The average stone slab is 3/4” or 1.5” thick. For this project, we removed a 3/8” tile and installed a 3/4” slab and beveled the small edge that raised above the surround wood floor. When removing tile to replace it with a stone slab, the only way to get the stone slab flush to the floor is to demo the mortar/floor beneath the old tile. This is complicated (and significantly more expensive).

Okay, let’s review:

1) Remove outdated molding, paint entire wood surround (and walls)

2) Relocate sconces

3) Remove original bi-fold brass door and paint firebox black

4) Tile over brick and replace tile hearth with marble slab

Last up: Let the tile dry and finish the job with grout.

And here’s a side-by-side.

BEFORE

after

Add breathtaking sconces (donated by Light New England), a mirror and some decor. The transformation is complete!

Sources: Herringbone Tile Surround / Sconces / Rug / Pouf / Armchair / Similar Mirror

Another thank you to everyone who donated to this part of the project - Hanson Electric, Willow Carpentry, Big Dog Painting, Worcester Marble and Granite (marble hearth slab and fabrication), Light New England (sconces), and Wayfair (herringbone marble tile). Thanks to these donations, this whole shebang was nearly free. In case you’re interested in doing something similar, the actual cost of this transformation would be somewhere around $2,750 (including materials and labor).

We’ll be back soon with all the details on this amazing project.

- Leah

Wednesday Five - 27 (New Year 2020 edition)

Happy New Year everyone! 2020 is here (you’re probably aware) and it feels a bit more momentous than your average new year because it’s a new DECADE. We’ve left the teens and are officially in the twenties. And we all know that our twenties are/were full of big deal transformations.

With that, there feels like a touch more pressure to really layout some goals and resolutions and hopes and dreams. And then, even more pressure to jump right in and make them reality. Anyone else feel this way? We follow Emily Schuman on Instagram and her “Goals and Gratitude” Journal (and her amazing handwriting) is both inspiring and anxiety inducing.

via Emily Schuman Instagram

So, for today’s Wednesday Five, we wanted to share an idea to kick off your new decade in a wonderful way:

Get a Hobby.

No really. We’re not suggesting this in the way that your older sister suggested/yelled it when you were 12 and she was 15 and you were eavesdropping on her phone conversation with her boyfriend. We’re suggesting it as moms of three who run their own business and get caught in the chaos of life easily and often. We love (and need) our hobbies to distract us from our everyday worries and focus our minds on something fun and productive. Plus, there’s legit science that hobbies make people happy. Google it.

So, we’ve rounded up 5 new hobbies for you to consider. We chose them because they’re low cost (in some cases no cost) and don’t require any major commitment. The idea is to add fun and personal wellness to your life. Even if in 5 minute doses every other day.

Indoor Plants

Sonia is a true green thumb. If you’ve been following us for any length of time you know that we both love plants, but Sonia is the only one who successfully and repeatedly keeps them alive. A few of you are now cocking your head to the side and questioning whether “indoor plants” is a hobby. Let me assure you it absolutely is - as is any activity that is done regularly in one’s leisure time for pleasure (thanks for the definition Google). A plant will require regular attention (even the low maintenance guys need water every now and then). And it’s a great starter hobby because the “regular” part of the activity is as little as 30 seconds once a week.

Our best recommendation for a starter plant: pothos ivy.

via urban outfitters

Crochet/Knit/Cross Stitch/Embroidery

I come from a long line of crocheters and I love to crochet. That’s what my personalized mug would say if someone chose to make one for me. Crocheting, along with knitting, cross stitching and embroidery, is a hobby you can work for 5 minutes or an hour. You don’t have to commit to any certain amount of time a day and you can skip days without any consequence. On the other hand, when you have a chunk of time, you can get into a rhythm and it’s truly meditative. And when you’ve completed a project you have something to show for it, which leads to the enthusiasm to try something new or more challenging. I found a bunch of amazing “starter kits” for you to try.

This is one of dozens and dozens of embroidery kits from Cozy Blue Handmade. So many cute and funny options.

VIA Cozy Blue Handmade

This Wool and the Gang embroidery kit from Madewell is currently on sale!

VIA Madewell

We found a fantastic blog post from Stitched Modern (A Beginner’s Guide to Cross Stitch) and below is a starter kit. Who doesn’t love La Croix?! This might be my first “new hobby” purchase.

via the Stranded Stitch

This is the sweetest little “How To Knit” guide and scroll down for a couple adorable start kit options.

VIA albertini designs

This is a kit for a scarf from Knifty Knittings.

VIA Knifty Knittings

And here is a kit for chunky knit hat. Looks so soft and maybe a quicker road to the finish line because the yarn is so big.

via Knit Design Studio

Lots of awesome crochet kits to test. Love that everything is included in the one below - no guesswork.

via Little Conkers

And these winter headbands are from All About Ami (Stephanie Lau) who is my personal favorite for modern crochet patterns. You’ll need to pick up the yarn and the crochet hook on your own - it’s easy, just a trip to JoAnn Fabric, Michaels or Amazon and you’ll be off - but picking your own color yarn is nice.

via All About Ami

Reading

Yes, reading is also a hobby! And, like the hobbies above, it doesn’t require a set amount of each day, which is wonderful for members of a chaotic household (like us). You can pick up and leave off as you’re able. Though, the whole idea of a hobby is something you do regularly…so…once a month shouldn’t be your goal.

I finished The Witch Elm by Tana French over the holiday break and am currently reading Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond. I like to alternate between something fun and something serious/educational-ish. Tana French is one of my favorite mystery writers, her stories take place in Ireland. There is a new series on ShowTime based on her novels (however, like they say - not as good as the book!). And Jared Diamond has a way of teaching history (NOT my favorite subject) in a digestible way that makes you think. Meanwhile, Sonia is currently reading The Dutch House by Ann Patchett. And, so far so good!

Stretching

That’s right. Stretching. We’re not preaching jogging or hot yoga or HIIT or Orange Theory or the newest, greatest exercise regime. While exercising is certainly a wonderful hobby, we don’t want to recommend a certain exercise that may be all wrong for you based on your personal medical/physical history. Plus, the truth is that you must be consistent to achieve any results with exercise - physical or mental. Stretching is just the opposite, it’s good for everyone (as far as we know) and you can achieve results each and every time you do it. A morning stretching routine can take just 5 minutes and start off your day with a little flexibility, something we can all use.

VIA AMAZON

Writing

And so we end where we began - trendy journals like Emily Schuman uses. Nowadays there is literally a perfect journal for every type person out there. You might be someone who could use a blank page to write or draw or doodle for 10 minutes when you’re waiting at the doctor’s office. Or maybe you’re the type who wants to start your day off by writing your plan, goals and reminders on neat lines. Maybe you just have time to scratch down a single line/phrase/word the sums up the day before bed. All these journals exist. And, there are a host of benefits (physical and mental) accomplished by journaling.

The Dailygreatness Journal is literally all of the above and more.

vIa Daily Greatness

This Five-Minute Journal is a guided journal, which is great if you want/need a little direction. Sometimes just looking at a blank piece of paper can be more anxiety inducing than the anxiety reducing.

via Urban Outfitters

These journals (below) are a little less guided than the one above, but still have some prompts.

via Anthropologie

And this one is just beautiful and blank.

via Anthropologie

We hope you’ve been inspired by something in this post. It’s a new decade, a new year, a new day to try something that will make you a bit happier and more fulfilled.

- Leah

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