shoppingsmycardio interviews: design*sponge, part 2

as promised, here is part two of the interview we did with the lovely and talented grace bonney, of design*sponge. she has loads more wonderful tips, tricks and words of wisdom to help us all demystify the world of home design.

(photo of grace's lovely home, courtesy of d*s)

shoppingsmycardio: with all of the time you spend scoping out new designers, pieces, and artists, how do you restrain yourself from buying one of everything? i guess what i’m asking is, budget aside, what keeps your style consistent?

design*sponge: The nice thing about running the site is that it feels like the things I’ve covered are actually in my home. I know that sounds totally cheesy, but I set up the site to feel, for me at least, like my own personal inspiration board. I even wanted the background of the site to feel like a neutral backdrop on which I could post new colors, fabrics and pieces that I could enjoy for a day or two and then let go. It’s like window shopping without having to actually go anywhere.

In terms of consistency, my style actually isn’t all that consistent - it’s always changing and morphing as seasons change and trends come and go. I tend to always go for something classic and feminine but the details are always different. I think that’s pretty true of a lot of my readers though - we all have a base style we feel comfortable with and add and subtract details on top of that style to fit our moods.

(mixed media, by amy ruppel)

SMC: it can be so daunting to start an art collection – and especially now, with sites like etsy and 20x200, affordable art is everywhere. it’s a good problem to have, but i think a lot of people have a hard time narrowing the field, and being selective. do you have any words of wisdom for younger people that are interested in starting to collect art?

DS: I’m definitely starting to focus on artwork more and more these days. I used to care more about furniture but with the economy being what it is, I can’t really afford to buy big pieces of furniture anymore - so I find myself focusing on prints, small collages and paintings. But when it comes to editing a personal collection I think that it’s something only the collector can decide. Artwork grabs people for different reasons so it’s tough to suggest ways to be selective.

That said, I always suggest that, rather than buying up multiple $25 prints from a popular artist (that everyone else on Etsy can buy), people save up that $25 for a few months and try commissioning a small, custom piece from that artist. It’s a great way to have something one-of-a-kind without totally breaking your budget. Those are the pieces that mean most to me in my home.

(oil on canvas, by zoe pawlak)

SMC: i’m particularly impressed by your ability to pick out artists early on in their careers that are destined for success – jen garrido is an example that comes to mind. who would you say are some of your “artists to watch” right now?

DS: Oh man, there are always so many artists I’m enjoying and trying to soak up before they become so popular I can’t afford them any more. I guess in terms of fine art I’m really loving Zoe Pawlak and Chelsea James right now. And even though Julia Rothman is totally a design star now I still think she hasn’t even begun to have the sort of visibility she’ll have in the next few years. I have my eyes firmly planted on her. She’s wildly talented, incredibly sweet and I think she’s going to be huge. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see big, national companies wooing her in the coming months/years.

(image courtesy of jonathan adler)

SMC: home design can feel really overwhelming for most people – i think it’s hard for most of us to translate the fabulous ideas we see into something concrete and workable, but still our own. individual pieces, or even entire rooms designed by other people might sing to us, but how do you translate those inspiration items into an overall aesthetic, so that you don’t just end up with clutter?

DS: Man, if I had a short answer to that question I’d be a genius. But sadly I’m pretty ‘green’ when it comes to creating an overall aesthetic. Because my style is always changing I’m in a constant struggle to keep things less jumbled, but ultimately I think that’s okay for now - I’m young, I’m sort of all over the place when it comes to life and projects and style, so right now my home reflects that. But I’m sure as I settle down and mature a bit more my style will become more refined.

In more general terms though, I think it’s always great to stick to simple, classic pieces when it comes to big furniture and let smaller decorative accessories like pillows, lampshades, etc. do the talking when you want something fun and different in a room. Those can easily be sold or gifted when you’re ready to try something new and they won’t leave you with a heavy, expensive piece of furniture that feels dated.

(image courtesy of d*s)

SMC: if you weren’t writing design*sponge, what would you be doing for a living? do you have a “back-up” dream job?

DS: I’ve got a few, but they all involve food. I’d love to go to culinary school just to learn and then go work at a specialty food shop. There’s no way I could handle the heat of a professional kitchen (literally and figuratively) but I love food too much to ignore that side of me forever.

SMC: what one design tip do you wish you could teach everyone out there?

DS: Right now it would be to focus on quality pieces and let accessories do the trend-talking. When it comes down to it, we’re all on some sort of budget so it makes sense to stick to classic pieces that won’t go in and out of style quickly and leave the fun, trendy purchases to small things like lighting and pillows. Those smaller, less-expensive pieces will let you play with color and pattern without maxing out your credit card.

i'd like to extend a really huge thank you to grace for taking the time to talk with us. she's a busy, busy lady these days, between the incredible success of design*sponge, her new gig as a contributing editor at domino magazine (my all-time favorite mag, by the way), and the zillions of other projects she's always working on. if d*s isn't already in your top blog reads, i hope you'll change that soon - it's really a fab and inspirational site!

(ps...if you missed the first half of the interview, catch it here!)

shoppingsmycardio interviews: design*sponge

for those who aren't familiar, grace bonney is the editor and founder of design*sponge, the ultimate resource for all things new, stylish and fabulous in the world of home design and accessories. she's also a contributing editor for domino magazine. so, in a nutshell, she's amazing.

i am positively addicted to her site - it's the first place i check for inspiration whenever i'm ready for some changes to the home decor at casa SMC, whether it's a fabulous new serving piece for my upcoming soiree, a new piece of art, or a complete room remodel.

grace is such a sweetheart that she very kindly offered to share some of her expertise and advice with all of us. i loved her answers so much that i'm actually splitting the interview across two days - it's just too much good information for one post. so, look for the second half later this week. and now, without further adieu...

SMC: I think it’s pretty safe to call you the queen of design blogging – design*sponge is such an amazing resource for so many people! Can you give us an idea of how design*sponge came to be? Did it begin through your work with one of the many magazines you’ve written for, or was it more of a personal outlet?

design*sponge: Well, I wouldn’t call myself the queen of anything - except maybe queen of ‘America’s Next Top Model marathon watching’. Design*Sponge has always been such a fun project to call my “job” and I’m just happy that people are still reading and enjoying it.

When I started things in 2004 I was just trying to find a personal outlet for my endless design chatter (my boyfriend could really only handle so much). I tested out a lot of formats and styles and ended up settling on a product-focused blog with occasional personal mentions, because that represented me at the time. But as I’ve changed changed and grown up a bit more I’ve tried to move away from that format and focus on evergreen content- pieces that will be pertinent months or even years down the line (like city guides, product guides, diy projects and home tours). The magazine work was just a really lucky offshoot of the site- it started with a few newspaper pieces and lead to a 2-year stint at House & Garden Magazine. Now I’m a contributing editor at Domino and enjoying having a place to write outside of Design*Sponge.

SMC: Your email inbox must just be a treasure trove of great ideas. What is the most fantastic piece you’ve seen this week?

DS: Oh man, right now I’m so far behind on my email I don’t even know. The good and bad thing about being a one-woman-show (in terms of email and day-to-day operations) is that I have to answer several hundred detailed emails a day. 75-100 of those will be emails with a zip file full of home photos asking for a personalized list of suggestions, a few hundred will be small product requests (great sofa under $500? Dining table in hot pink?), a few dozen will be assignments and correspondence regarding projects we’re working on at the site and then 150-200 of those will be submissions. I love answering everyone’s emails personally but I can fall behind pretty quickly so this week I’ve barely dipped into the submission folder. I did see a few great additions to the ShopSCAD online shop, some new cards from Blue Ribbon Letterpress and some great new furniture makeovers from Knack Design.

SMC: How would you describe your personal design style? And can you translate that into a few key pieces that you have in your house now?

DS: Right now? Chaos. My home is in flux right now and always represents where my head is at the moment. With site projects and wedding planning coming up I’m a big mess of ideas so my house is a big mess of ideas. But right now I think I’m starting to embrace a bit more traditional style with an emphasis on strong wooden furniture and feminine patterns. I’d love to go for a modern-day Dorothy Draper look if I could but I don’t think I could pull it off. I think I’m perpetually the girl who wants to be classy and cool but always ends up a little frazzled.

SMC: One of my biggest design challenges is budget, and another is time. If I had my way, I’d just gut my house and do things exactly the way I want them, from top to bottom. But, of course, that’s not reality for most of us. What sort of baby steps do you start with when you want to start making changes? Say, for example, that you had $100 to spend – what would you do? What about $500?

DS: I guess it really depends on your needs - but I know that’s not a fun answer. If I had $100, honestly I’d save it up and get that to around $500 or $1,000 and then tackle a room makeover. I’m trying to focus on encouraging people to invest in nicer pieces so they end up throwing away fewer pieces each year.

That said, if you have $100, I’d suggest hitting the flea market or thrift shop where you could find a chair, chandelier or maybe even a great dining room table that just needs a little paint/fabric love to give it a facelift. Re-habbing old furniture is a great way to stretch a tight budget.

SMC: If you had to design an entire house, from furniture to knick-knacks, using just 3 online sources, what would you choose? (I know, it’s torture...)

DS: Off the top of my head: Shop SCAD, Orange (a vintage store in LA) and Heath Ceramics. I’m trying to combine crafty with vintage but keep things simple.

SMC: What are your favorite, no-fail home decor tricks to employ when you’re really stuck for ideas?

DS: That’s an easy one - I turn to my trusty staplegun. I have a huge collection of fabric I keep in my utility closet and when I’m bored I redo the seat cushions on my desk chair or any small seats/stools that are easy to swap out. I also love to use gift wrap as impromptu wallpaper in unexpected places like door molding and inside cabinets or drawers.

a huge thank you to the fabulous design*sponge for all of this fabulous advice, and stay tuned for the rest of this interview later this week - grace gave loads of wonderful advice for buying art and restyling your own home.

(ps...i just want to point out that that last tip is a truly fabulous one...i never realized how easy it was to reupholster a chair until i just stopped being scared and tried it. now i'm addicted!)