Better Homes & Garden's Storage Magazine
Spring 2011
The owners of this bathroom have a beautiful house, and this bathroom is no exception. It is peaceful and classic.
I used the homeowner's giant clamshell from their Dining room as a caddy for bath products in their shower.
I had a favourite local monogrammer put the wife's monogram on the yummy Pottery Barn towels and the husband got a matching monogram on his hand-towel.
This is his vanity and a peek into the bedroom. I won't even tell you how many different "whites" this bedroom was painted days before the photo-shoot. In fact, the last coat went on 8 hours before shooting began. And bedding was sent expedited shipping from Italy. Nothing like a deadline to get a project finished!
A drawer filled with my FAVOURITE scent Acqua di Parma Colonia. I used The Container Store's plastic organizers for the inside of all the bathroom drawers.
If you look closer, or look at the image below, you can see a teeny tiny jar filled with cufflinks. These are actually salt cellars, that I often use as containers for small jewelry items, and do so myself. This exact same porcelain container/salt cellar is available at our store here.
This cute vanity stool comes from a local shop Mary Cates & Co. I used a pillow sham and had a local drapery workroom that specializes in slipcovers make it into a slipcover for the stool.
I personally like to keep all my travel toiletries already put into travel sized plastic bottles, labeled and ready to go in the appropriate plastic bag. I did the same for this homeowner, so when they travel all they have to do is literally grab the bag and go. It's all ready and airplane safe.
Instead of putting the cosmetics in just plastic organizers in her vanity drawer, I lined a wicker organizer with the plastic containers to make it look prettier.
BEHIND THE SCENES:
This is the floor plan I sent in to the Magazine so they could visualize the layout. They used it for their illustrated version above.
The magazine editor looks at the scout shots sent in via email and uses them to plan the shoot with specific directions for the photographer. She basically comes up with a story-board first so there is a plan in which to use.
This is what the rest of the bathroom looked like, surrounding the area we were shooting.
One vanity counter while the other one was being photographed. Most of this is the homeowners stuff they actually use, I just had to figure out a better storage solution in which to display them and organize it.
The adjoining bedroom was kind of a holding ground for "stuff".
Since a portion of the bed was in the shot, I ironed and ironed the duvet cover so that there was NOT ONE wrinkle to be found. I guess it's that German heritage that drives me to an insane amount of details and perfection. It makes me crazy though. I am sure I make everyone else crazy too with it!
It was an exhausting 24 hours. The home-owner's dog Mac had the right idea in just sleeping through it.
The photographer for the shoot was Alise O'Brien from St. Louis. She is amazing. The image above and below are two shots that were not included in the publication but I think they are beautiful.
I used the home-owner's grandmothers sterling ladle for their bath salts. I do the same thing in my bath at home. I always try and find a way to repurpose objects, especially family pieces so you can use them on a daily basis. I hate to think of these gorgeous and well loved things sitting locked in a drawer somewhere.
If you want to try this look at home, you can go to any discount store and purchase big glass apothecary jars, and fill them with OUR yummy bath salts available here.
On her vanity, I used a vintage Ironstone platter usually used for coffee as a small tray to hold her jewelry. Demi-tasse cups make perfect containers for Q-tips and little abalone shells are a great spot to place your earrings. The exact shell that I used is available as a pair here in our store, Shop Curio.
The photo process for interiors is a LOT of hard work, and it is a wonderful feeling to have special friends drop in for support and help from everyone, and best of all great homeowners.
My most sincere thank you goes out to Bonnie. You're the best!
