A Colorful Pageant with Pillows!

Whether you want a new splash of color for a seasonal change, a touch of cozy comfort, or to elevate a room’s style by adding pattern and texture, updating your throw pillows can be a small change that packs a powerful design punch. Don’t be afraid to switch things up!

Vintage horse blankets were used to cover pillows in the Manhattan living room above. Using unusual materials in an unconventional way can give your home a unique flair.

When a longtime client on Nantucket decided it was time for a new look for her living room, she had only one problem: she loved everything we had previously designed for the room!  We knew there was a simple way she could update the room’s design without starting from scratch:

Pillows!

We replaced the original playful print on the seat cushions with a more modern geometric design.

 

We designed a couple of new pillows for the sofa as well, matching the geometric print to the chair cushions. It was important to keep the clean, crisp color palette with vibrant blue and Hermes orange for the warm and summery glow they bring to the living room.

The new pillows were carefully coordinated with blue trim for a meticulously orchestrated color palette.

Here’s that same cheerful color palette extended to the patio.

In the study, the nearby beach inspired a marine theme with touches of navy blue and white.

Need a few more ideas? Read on!

Old pillows made new again

Here’s an eye-catching pillow design without searching for new pillows: In this elegant room, we sewed decorative tape to the existing pillows for a more contemporary look.

An artful fusion combining four separate pieces of fabric created this dynamic geometric pattern for the pillows shown above.

Playing with pillows  in your design should be fun! You can mix and match stripes, geometrics, plaids and colors as long as you stay within a theme. When you have your perfect pile of pillows, arrange them in a staggered line, or layer them with a focal pillow in the center.

Pillows add comfort, color and pizzazz! Throw a pillow party in any room in your house that needs an instant lift.

Be sure to subscribe  to get all the best design advice and beautiful inspiration through photos of our projects. I want all of us to live in happy, well-designed, healthy homes!

 

 

 

Throw a Pillow Party!

Our homes reflect the seasons of our lives. Seasons change, and a room that sparkled for you a few years ago may, in time, lose a bit of its shine.  Whether it needs a new splash of color or a touch of cozy comfort, you can easily elevate its style. There’s one room accessory that can do all that and more:

pillows!

When clients ask us to revitalize their beautifully designed rooms, without changing the form and function they love, the simplest idea can be the most elegant one. Throw pillows in new fabrics, patterns and colors can add back pizzazz–and  pack a powerful design punch. Want to learn how?

Read more…

Textile Artist Richard Killeaney

Richard Killeaney with the quilt that lauched Ocheltree Design, created from men’s striped dress shirts.

One of the things I love in life is a person who finds the courage to follow their passions, sometimes right into a flourishing business.  Textile designer Richard Killeaney is one of those people.  A love for fabrics led him to an MFA in Textiles at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).  Today, in addition to teaching Textiles to Fashion Design students at The Art Institute of New York City and Interior Design students at Fairfield University, in Fairfield, Conn., he operates his own home accessories company, Ocheltree Design.

 

This coverlet is made from recycled shirts, commercially produced fabrics, and an organic flannel lining.

He says his motivation came from his grandmother.  Richard’s grandmother collected quilts and needlework, and passed her treasures along to him when he learned how to sew. He began quilting at the age of 15, made his first bed quilt at the age of 18, and continued to make fine art quilts and art clothing as an undergrad.  At RISD, after creating a quilt made from recycled men’s blue and white striped dress shirts, his master’s thesis was a collection of five bedcoverings.

 

Missing the Point quilt, inspired by Killeaney’s native California, made from recycled shirts and organic batting and backing.

He began making Harris Tweed wool into pillows, cashmere sweaters into soft-to-the-touch baby blankets, and recycled leather into handsome tote bags.  His motivation is saving beautiful fabrics (he’s crazy for mohair), and keeping unwanted clothing from landfills through creative recycling.

 

This trio of pillows is made from recycled wool tweed and sequined silk.

His pillows are filled with 100% kapok, a natural fiber harvested from trees.  He selects color grown cotton, an organic cotton that is available naturally in earthy browns, greens and unbleached whites.  Although the quilt fronts are not always organic since they are made from recycled clothing, he prefers organic and unbleached fabrics and uses them whenever possible.

 

Baby blanket made from recycled cashmere sweaters.

“There are dangers in putting dyed fabrics into landfills. Even natural fibers, if dyed with certain chemicals or pigments, will leach toxins into the soil,” he explains.  A vegetarian, Richard has taken his love for fabrics and combined it with a reverence for the earth.  It’s a beautiful combination.

 

Tote bag made from recycled leather and cotton chino.

See more of Richard’s work at:

www.ocheltreedesign.com

www.etsy.com/shop/Ocheltree

ocheltreedesign.tumblr.com/

All other photography courtesy of Richard Killeaney.