October | the art of blend
When it come to the home, the art of old meets new is where my heart seems to rest easy. It’s the combination of thrifted finds sprinkled on a sleek modern bookcase. It’s the vintage rug under a MCM table. It’s the modern lighting over the kitchen island with the antique hardware on the cabinets. And it’s even the mesh between peaceful mornings before the rest of the world wakes and the chaos of getting three kiddos out the door and to school on time.
I’m sharing three favorite accounts of those who are nailing the art of old meets new.
Photography: @amandamariebirnie
01. YOND INTERIORS
Yond Interiors is a Minneapolis-based interior design studio with a love for the home, just like the rest of us here. Yond Interiors has a keen knack for balancing out a space with light, color, and weight and combining a variety of styles - the art of the mix.
Photography: @joleevers and @rachaelsmithphotographyltd
02. CLARENCE & GRAVES
Clarence and Graves work makes my eyes do the heart-eye emoji expression every time I graze these spaces. Somehow, the combination of old meets new makes you lose track of what year it might be - in the BEST way. For example, in the photo above, you have the formality and richness of the crisp marble but paired with a heritage style bouchon tile, plaster walls, and pops of deep colors and brassy tones. It’s formal meets comfort - the best art of the mix IMO.
Photography by @joyellewest, Construction by @mpconstruction20
03. SHANNON TATE INTERIORS
Shannon Tate Interiors is an interior design studio with a focus on approachable spaces. Personally, I love the mix of textures throughout her work as a common theme. A key factor in the art of the mix is contrasting surface styles (smooth, textured, shiny, etc.). Shannon does this incredibly well and I’m thrilled I discovered her feed and work.
See More | how I approach “the mix” in my own home
Photographer: @radiferaphotography, Stylist: @stylishproductions, Architect: Studio Camus, Builder: Creighton Construction
04. Choux Designs
Headed up by Anne Marie from Virginia, Choux Design is a full service interior design studio with a love for balancing comfortable approachable spaces in a sophisticated way. As a mother myself, I am consistently attempting to contain the extra kid love around the house in a way that doesn’t fight against the overall energy of each space. Photographed above is one of Choux Design’s game room spaces that showcase a perfect example of sophisticated play.
Photographer: @haris.kenjar, Builder: @francisbryantconstruction
05. Sean Anderson
When it comes to the art of the mix, there usually is (and should be) a dominant source of inspiration. That might look like the use of pattern, a certain color scheme, or a particular style. Sean Anderson’s dominant inspiration is a whole MOOD. His darker blacks and color schemes pull a strong masculine energy while lighter more feminine touches balance out the heavier weights. The mix of the art is all about complimenting and not competing.
ON A MORE SUBJECTIVE NOTE
My heart is happy when I get to talk about the reverie and sanctity that is the home. However, I cannot help but evaluate the parallels of “the mix” in the day to day. So I’m going to take stock in ways I’ve noticed “the art of the mix” applied in my own life. Perhaps you see yourself in between these lines or find your style in the references above.
01. Parenting
For me, I’m co-parenting three different little humans, each with a different set of required skills from me. What a balance it requires. I would imagine every layer of parenting requires the art of the mix. There’s an ebb and flow of empathy, thick skin, protection while also letting them learn the lessons, learning by preparation versus curves that are learned the harder ways. Parenting is 100% my most difficult and most prized art of the mix.
02. Self Care
Self-care comes in many forms and is subjective to its audience. We are inundated with ways to work harder and ways to relax. This app or that program allows you to cut your labor in half so you can get more done. Other apps are for meditation and mindfulness. The great thing about technology is the creation of so many options that, seemingly, will make life more efficient. But here’s the thing. Efficiency must be met with play. Productivity must be met with rest. High energy must be met with boredom. Self-care comes in many forms and requires the art of the mix, now more than ever, in our fast paced social media driven worlds where our attention is consistently demanded.
03. Control
I will forever be learning the art of patience and timing. I overthink. I overthink a lot. There’s a slim difference between letting things fall into place as they should, trust the timing versus trying to create timelines and force change. This “art of the mix” is not an easy one for most people. Does it mean we can’t be proactive? Of course not. But it does, or should, mean that being proactive while trusting that things simply settle into place as intended is the mindset.
As we situate ourselves into what is left of this year, I hope we can rest in finding the art of the mix. That might look like waking up a little earlier for the sunrise yoga class before a day of work. Perhaps it’s marble countertops that resurface a vintage table used as an island. Whether it’s a combination of house goodies or the contrasting nature of life itself, I hope the art of the blend becomes a well-used and well-loved medium of choice.
xx,
Hope
