Where I've been and what's next?

We've been fortunate enough to travel a bit this summer. I've been relishing in the memories which means blogging and projects have taken a backseat for now. It's all about priorities, right?

Care to guess where we've been? Here's a clue...

Bryn was in heaven on the Disney Cruise.

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And, Reed's little slice came via Atlantis. Water slides that take you through shark tanks?! Yes, please.

And, last but not least, keeping with this heavenly theme...If there was any doubt that my husband is Christ-like, he just squashed it. Yes, that's right, here he is walking on water! ;)

So, what's next on the career front? A restaurant! I've been busy questioning my abilities dreaming up designs for a restaurant near Austin.

When I started designing I never really considered venturing into the commercial side of the business but recently it seems this is the path I'm being led. I often pray for God to lead me to the next project HE needs me to complete. So, when random projects pop up out of the blue I look at it as his leading.

I'm not going to lie, I doubt my abilities every.single.time I start a new project. John's probably getting a little tired of hearing me say, "I'm scared! I'm not sure I can do this one." He's really good at saying, "Remember the last time you said that, Dana, and the time before that? Now, let's remember how those turned out." In other words, 'Ya dope...of course you can do it!' 

Here's a little peek at the concept board I threw together to present at our initial meeting. I was super excited when they said they were going for a contemporary/industrial aesthetic. I drafted a crazy, cool wall treatment idea and presented it to the contractor earlier this week. We're waiting on his bid so see if it'll make the finial design or not. I'm crossing my fingers!

The projected completion date is October/November...I'll keep you posted!

Client Loft

I'm excited to share a handful of pictures one of my Austin clients was nice enough to send my way. We tackled the design of their loft long-distance and I think she did a killer job pulling everything together!

We worked on the picture wall before I moved to Dallas but that's the only component we had completed in the space. After picking their brains a little, here's what they said they wanted from the space...comfortable, lounge-like, a place for the kids to do their school work, open space, surface for game playing, a place we can "live" in. I sent a handful of ideas their way and the above mood board was the winner.

These are the only 'before' shots I could dig up. Their loft overlooks the first story living room with a beautiful view of their pool.

I took this shot (way back when) as the spaces were being painted, but apparently never turned around to take a picture of the other side of the room. darn!

And, onto the fun part...

We used lots of "transitional seating," aka stools and the bench. These are light enough to move wherever the action is, yet small enough to keep the floor space open for "lounging" the majority of the time.

 I'm a big fan of these chairs. The color is so rich and really ties in the beautiful hues in the pictures across the room.

Since the desks can be seen from the downstairs living room, we opted to use lucite so they 'disappear.'

A big thanks to my client for taking the time to photograph the loft and allowing me to share your home!