February 2018 – MY CHICAGO HOUSE.

Guest bedroom, in process

Painting has begun

The guest bedroom, along with the rest of the house, is getting a fresh coat of paint, starting with the molding. Of course, all of the molding and ceilings will be painted Farrow & Ball Wimborne White. We chose Wimborne White because it is beautifully suited to the warm eastern exposure of the home. All of the painting and wallpaper hanging is the work of Walter from Tapia’s Works, and his team. As you can tell from the photographs, Walter and his team have done an exceptional job prepping the space and protecting all surfaces.

I was a bit skeptical that the Farrow & Ball finish was truly superior to the less expensive paint options, but as many would agree, it is. There is a beautiful texture to the paint and depth of color that was very noticeable to me, particularly after looking at the shiny paint that had been applied so poorly prior. For a historical home like this, I wanted the paint to be perfect and it is looking great so far.

Wimborne White sprayed on the trim in the guest bedroom

The walls of the guest bedroom will be papered in Bird & Thistle.

The floral radiator also got a coat of Farrow & Ball paint

One of the best tips I received while planning out the paint colors and wallpapers was to keep the window boxes consistently painted white, including the empty box below. The molding was a unique challenge that this tip solves nicely for. Each of the windows will be framed out as its own piece, with white trim and box underneath. Wallpaper will flank each side.

The entire window box has been painted white and the walls will be papered Bird & Thistle

The window treatment will likely be a mix of natural grass and custom curtains, made from Bird & Thistle fabric to match the wallpaper. I have been keeping an eye out for fabric on Ebay and Chairish that is discounted and am expecting I will find something over time.

Walter and team from Tapia’s Works have protected the built-ins

The built-ins were not wood, so they will not be painted. Instead, the shelves will be finished with wood moldings on the face of the bookcase and filled with “things”.

The entrance to bathroom and closet have been sealed and the doors have been painted

It is exciting to see the painting come together so quickly and the finishing being done so well by Tapia’s Works, who have been great to work with on this project.

The entryway, in process

Has been stripped

The entryway is circular and was previously wallpapered in Scalamandre, Ming Circus. I am a big fan of wallpaper, but our furniture wasn’t a great match to this yellow paper so we decided to strip it and update. The reaction to the Ming Circus has been very polarizing! Some people have loved it and some have hated it. In either case, we are putting our own mark on this entry and changing the look.

astor entry — Circular entryway with Scalamandre Ming Circus wallpaper

We have stripped the wallpaper and will re-paper in Gucci Herbarium. The Gucci paper is beautiful and not particularly expensive given the cost of other papers, at only $190 per roll, which covers ~115 sq feet. We will add a new light fixture, although I have yet to decide on which piece to move forward with. I’m currently debating many options from First Dibs and from Foundry Lighting – leaning towards the former!

The entryway wallpaper has been stripped

It is always amazing to compare the listing photo with the non-wide lens photograph of the actual space, isn’t it?

The coat closet is a deep cedar lined walk-in, situation next to the front door

These photos were all taken prior to the moldings being painted. The moldings and ceiling in the entryway will be painted Farrow & Ball Wimborne White (surprised!?) my all-time favorite white (thank you Julie!).

The entryway will be papered in Gucci Herbarium

Wallpaper is scheduled to be hung in two weeks following all of the painting. It has been a relief to have chosen all colors and wallpaper so I can start to focus on lighting.

Master bedroom, in process

Wallpaper has been stripped

The Master Bedroom wallpaper has been stripped along with the front entry. Everything looks yellow and pink and smeared today, but soon it will look beautiful! Here is the gap between the bay windows where we will place the dresser, that is currently being constructed in Tennessee.

Master bedroom after wallpaper was stripped

It is always odd to see what lies beneath wallpaper. I would have expected a single color of paint, but that was certainly not the case in this house. We have found everything from pink to green, and nothing that we expected.

Soon to be painted Wimborne White by Farrow & Ball

The baseboards were never properly finished and they don’t look good today, but a coat of paint is all these baseboards need to look fresh and new.

Awaiting a fresh coat of Farrow & Ball paint

The ceiling fixture in this room will be updated with a flush mount Ralph Lauren glass and brass piece.

Ralph Lauren Allen Large Round Flush Mount

The lighting fixture was on sale for 20% off from Circa Lighting, but painfully back-ordered for months, as it was ordered in December and still has not shipped. We are also using a pair of the Ralph Lauren Allan single sconces in the hallway which will help pull the lighting together.

Ann Sacks Kelly Wearstler custom floors

Initial renderings and final decision made

The custom Kelly Wearstler floors are in production and will be delivered in 4-6 weeks. You may remember that we initially planned to incorporate a green stone. We ultimately swapped out the green in favor of a striped Zebrino and it looks great. The best way to make a decision on stone, particularly geometric stone patterns, is to look first at the swatches in the showroom and then have the showroom pull the lot photos from the stone yard. The lot photos often look much different than the smaller swatches available in the showroom so it is important to at least see a photograph of them. The current lot photo of Zebrino is below and it is less warm than the swatch would have led me to believe. However, I like it.

The Ann Sacks showroom mocked up two variations to decide between based on the swatches we looked at in the showroom and the lot photos that were ultimately pulled.

The Emperador Dark was an afterthought at the drawing board, but we looped in this brown-striped option and decided to have it mocked-up by the Ann Sacks team.

emperador dark-3 — Emperador Dark lot photo

The brown stone was beautiful and has so much variation!

Rubicon (black) stone stripes

The black stone is a classic match to the Calacatta Oro, Zebrino and Travertino Red.

img_7665-1 — Final stone colors for the Kelly Wearstler design from Ann Sacks – samples from the stone yard

We ultimately decided on the Rubicon stripes, my original instinct and a classic choice that will pair nicely with the brass finishes. The stone samples above are all current from the current lot. When comparing to the showroom stone boards, the difference between the Zebrino current lot and the Zebrino swatch above is particularly noticeable to me. Overall, contrast is what makes these geometric floors awesome and you almost cannot go wrong in mixing and matching stones, so pick the stones that you gravitate to and go with it! I never planned to have orange stripes but I loved the color and feel of this stone in person which is why we leaned into it and made it a material part of the project.

Master bedroom, before

Wallpaper to be stripped

I love this master bedroom because it is tucked away in the back of the house, so it is quiet, but it also has great street views thanks to the space afforded by the side alley and the angle of the bay windows. Today it is wallpapered in this lovely floral print. This wallpaper will be stripped and Farrow & Ball Wimborne White will take its place. Here is the bedroom in the listing photos:

astor bedroom 2 — The master in the listing photo

Here is the bedroom today:

Wallpaper to be stripped and room to painted Farrow & Ball Wimborne White

The closets are cedar lined and afford plenty of space, although one of the uppers is HVAC…

A custom set of mahogany drawers are being made in TN. The drawers will look similar to this piece from Primitive. I’m still searching for the perfect hardware.

Custom mahogany dresser in process, similar to this one from Primitive

The wallpaper stripping will happen this week, followed by the painting of the entire apartment including ceilings.

The reason why we selected Wimborne White for the master is because a large colorful piece of art will be hung on the bedroom wall, away from direct sunlight, and white is the best suited backdrop. The art will be hung where the TV is placed in the listing photo. The stacked drawers will be placed between the bay windows that are unfortunately not captured well in the pictures above but are located next to each other with a gap between.

Gucci wallpaper is just as good in person

The Gucci wallpaper came today and I’m impressed. The paper came in this gorgeous gift box tied with a bow! I took a risk on this paper without seeing it in person first, but was drawn to the pattern which was inspired by vintage fabric and think that the cream backdrop with red flowers pairs nicely with the white paint throughout the adjoining rooms and the red stone that I am considering for the kitchen.

The paper inside was just as beautiful and was carefully wrapped and labeled. The texture is woven and has a nice feel and the print is fine and clear. My only complaint would be that the cream is a slightly more yellow tone than the online photograph led me to expect, but I did compare it to the white paint swatch and it does work, which made me less worried.

Gucci Herbarium wallpaper is beautiful and has 115+ sq ft. / roll of coverage

The coverage of this roll is not insignificant – it is 33 feet long and 3.5 feet wide, or, 115.5 square feet of coverage. It is $190 per roll and can be found here.

Gucci wallpaper

The front console and overall floor plan has been evolving as I decide on the paint, wallpaper and stone for each room. The Bird and Thistle wallpaper from Brunschwig & Fils was one of the first wallpaper decisions that was made, and in addition to the paint colors, this pattern has been influencing the choices made throughout the house.

The back console will be papered in a beautiful grasscloth from Brunschwig & Fils that has a nice dark backdrop to the woven pattern.

Walnut grasscloth in back console, Brunschwig & Fils

What remained until this week was the circular entryway console and the color of high gloss paint in the dining room. Papers that were in consideration for the front console included everything from an array of Farrow & Ball papers to Kelly Wearstler geometric patterns to Phillip Jeffries Coffered Wood.

Ultimately, the geometric patterns too harshly contrasted the toile in the guest bedroom and I couldn’t get excited for more than a week about a pattern until, .. behold.. Gucci.

Gucci Light-Herbarium-print-wallpaper — Gucci makes wallpaper (and it is fabulous)

As you may know, Gucci makes wallpaper now, and it is fabulous. It is also surprisingly inexpensive compared to other makers with similar square foot coverage. Less than $200 will get you over 110 sq feet of coverage. I am anxious to check on the quality but the design is perfect and the texture is even better.

Close-up texture of the Gucci Herbarium print wallpaper

The wallpaper design is inspired by a vintage fabric and will be a beautiful in the entryway. I’m looking forward for it to arrive and will do a last check then to make sure it works with our paint colors in person.