WELCOME to CAROLINA PANACHE! I believe our homes should be a haven, a place of beauty and peace that reflect who we are and what's important to us. I'm on a journey to add personality and panache to every corner of my house. For me, good design evolves, grows and changes with the needs of one's lifestyle. I want my home to be creative, to be stylish, to be entertaining, to be real. I hope you will join me on my journey. It's always more fun to travel together.
This blog is all about bringing style and elegance to the home. The art of dressing your home goes beyond hanging a few items on the wall and arranging furniture. Much like a fabulous set of earrings or a new stylish handbag may take your little black dress from fine to fabulous, home accesories and key furnishings can take your rooms from ho-hum to singing the Halleluiah Chorus! Join with me as we discover new ways to add panache to every room of the house.

An Apple A Day... A color story

I'm sure you've all heard that "an apple a day, keeps the Doctor away...". Well, one of my goals for 2009 is to eat more natural foods so I decided that after the holidays were over, I would clear out the refined sugars and replace them with delicious fresh fruits. After my trip to the local grocery store's produce department, I had a dilemma - what am I going to do with all of this fruit? A pretty footed glass bowl became home to my Red Delicious Apples! Don't these look yummy? I love the deep saturated color of the apple skins and the touch of gold seen a the top and bottom of the apple. I thought this would be a perfect accent in my living room. All the Christmas decor has come down and things were looking a little bare so my bowl of apples found a home on the coffee table. I'm not sure how long they will last though ; ) I have had a love affair with RED for many years! Once I even purchased a RED sofa, club chair and ottoman! Red as a primary color is HOT, eye-stopping and a little risky. Because its so visually demanding, intense red should be used with care. Subtle variations of primary red works much better in interior spaces. For a traditional color scheme apple red or cherry red works wonders with navy or Cadet blue. For a modern and contemporary space try adding lipstick red to pink or even hot pink tones such as fuchsia.
In my living room I use liberal doses of deep dark red. My living room walls are painted a warm golden hue so the red accent adds an element of depth and authority to the color story. Here is a picture of a table scape in my living room. A table runner from Pottery Barn - Spice Trade - covers the table, a black and gold wrought-iron tray holds two palm tree candle holders, an antique clock and a red pottery vase of deep purple, red and orange blooms.


This is an accent chair that has recently been given a make-over. Before, this chair was a light, bleached wood and covered in a mauve fabric from the early 90's. We rescued it and put it through several makeovers before this one. Last month I decided I wanted to move this chair to the living room. In order to make the chair fit the color scheme, it had to undergo a little "surgery". (I am sorry I don't have a before shot of the chair :( ). As you can see the frame was painted glossy black, the upholstery was updated with a rich mustard yellow silk with a red, rust and teal blue floral pattern woven in a chenille thread. The black frame of the chair pairs well with the black and gold picture frames on the wall art above. I added a punch of color by using the red silk decorative pillow. I love how the black, gold and red come together for a classic trio of colors. True neutrals - black, gray, white - balance the vibrancy of reds and make them safer. Updated neutrals such as khaki, camel, cocoa, ecru, linen, charcoal, coffee bean, and chestnut pick up energy from reds such as cranberry and Bordeaux while calming the shades of ripe tomato and Chile pepper red.
In this shot you see a pair of framed prints with a full-bodied deep RED background.
These two prints were the inspiration for the color scheme in the living room and dinning room - gold, RED and black with just enough touches of white in the trim and woodwork to add balance. Here I've featured a mosaic plate in shades of rust, orange, red, gold and ruby.

Warm colors - and RED is the warmest of all - appear to advance, and pull in the space.
Rooms where red is used in liberal doses seem more intimate and cozy.
My dinning room and living room are open to each other and somewhat large, only separated by two white columns. When choosing a color story for these two rooms, I knew I wanted them to be warm and inviting. Using the framed prints as my guide, I chose a cheery complementary gold color for the walls and let the red accents take center stage.
Do you have a love affair with red too? I'd love to hear about how and where you use RED in your home. No matter what shade of RED you choose, let it warm up the interiors of your home this winter! Even small accents can add warmth and cheer!
Happy Decorating!
~ Alisa






5 comments:

Marty@A Stroll Thru Life said...

All of the red and yellow are just gorgeous in your home. I have always loved red and gold and have predominately used that for years. However I have cocoa colored carpet now and find that I need to stick to orange and rust tones so the carpet doesn't turn pink. I always enjoy your blog, very informative. Marty

Carolina Mama said...

We love red! Part of our living room, the main wall is red, not fire engine. It's lovely. So are all of your pictures, the apples , etc.

Melissa Miller said...

Hi Alisa, :)

I absolutely adore all shades of red! It is my favorite color mixed with warm golds as well. I have the exact same vase of flowers in our family room on a bombe' chest. Neat.

I am really enjoying your blog. Thanks so much for all your inspiration!

Hope you weekend is going wonderfully.
~Melissa :)

Melissa Miller said...

Forgot to tell you the chair is GORGEOUS!

Lynne (lynnesgiftsfromtheheart) said...

I love red and use it each of the rooms in my home. I love it mixed with my toiles and the black pieces of furniture. In the kitchen I have the off white furniture and a French Country theme, so the reds flow in there as well. I adore the chair..thanks for sharing. hugs ~lynne~

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