Author: Lisa Wolfe

Mimi and Ernie came back home (our house!) for the ‘season’ last night and we surprised them by unvealing their new room!!! both of them had no idea WHAT was in store for them although they knew we were making big changes.

i think Mimi’s favorite things are the ivory shag carpet, new screen door, the sateen sheets, wallpaper and the custom built-in cabinetry with dedicated space for her shoes, purses and designer sunglass collection. although i caught her just sitting on the newly recovered black chair staring at her room with tears in her eyes. she truly was like a kid in a candy store…touching everything…oohing and ahhing.  of course i ate that up b/c i live for the reveal!

as for Ernie, i think his favorite things are the blackout curtains (for his afternoon naps!), the beautiful photos on the wall of him and Mimi, and the fantastic display in the built-in of all his lifetime achievement awards (before they were scattered across a horribly ugly bookcase…now they are showcased properly!!). he finally has a dresser all to himself and no longer has to cram his belongings in the hall closet!

we have created more space than they can possibly use and i just triple dog dare Mimi to fill this up. the new suite is serene and just lovely but as ernie pointed out, extremely functional for everything they need it to do.

below are the after shots as well as some dirty in-progress pics. the original before image is also posted (it was a pretty room then, but not tranquil and vibrant enough for fabulous couple!)

 

After an amazing renovation in the back of the home, our Clients wanted a little refresher in the front half. We brought in violet tones to complement the saturated blue palette that popped up in our existing console tables. The rich hues of purple and gold were offset by the warm walnuts, taupe fireplace stone and gray/blue wood veneer wallpaper that were installed in the earlier renovation. A mosaic pony hide rug helped dimensionalize the dining room. Melinda — my design assistant — finished the spaces with hand selected accessories — most notably that gorgeous Donatella mirror in the foyer! Our Clients are hosting a good ole fashioned Chicago St Patty’s Day party today — have a great time and enjoy the new space!

 

Once again, another band is back together!! Working with 2 old favorite Clients and my husband (architect & GC), we are in planning mode as to how to tackle this new Chicago property — a stunning example of hi-end luxury circa 1988. no expense was spared when this was renovated back then — from the custom curved hi-gloss cabinetry to pin-striped corian countertops, from jungle-meets-victorian-rose murals to dove chandeliers and swan-necked sconces (love!!!). this will not be your typical renovation –i can promise you that!  we can’t wait to dig in!!! i love my job!

She knows we are renovating her room and at the ripe YOUNG age of 63 🙂 i’m not worried about her seeing this post!  My beautiful mother-in-law announced the day before they left to go back to Cali that she ‘didn’t like the vibe in the room anymore’. she wants vibrant but peaceful, sexy and classic…she’s a throwback to the glamorous 1920’s hollywood so whatever we do HAS to be luxe and timeless.  we needed to provide more storage for her 100 pairs of shoes, hats, etc (read: custom builtin) and a proper place for their bar (yes! they need a bar!). new window treatments will provide blackout for afternoon naps and sheer panels for the strong summer sun that streams in. wood floors will let them spill whatever they want! and a luxurious white shag carpet will give her just enough softness between her toes.  we have some glass beading and crystal in store for her across the board. and bless her husband who doesn’t care what we do to their room, as long as she’s happy. they move back in ‘for the season’ on april 2, so its gonna be a whirlwind getting this all to happen.

 

my mother-in-law

before

 

starting to move things out of the room:

 

 

work in progress — bye bye nasty carpet!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

wallpaper behind their headboard and overall wall color:

       

 

used these panels that i  found on ETSY as the inspiration for the new panels! they aren’t large enough for the window so adding a beautiful champagne silk to round it out — glass beading to add to bring in some smoky blues from the new lamp

 

    

gorgeous sheer w/simple texture for the second panel

 

one of my favorite lamps of all-time — just had to give her these!

 

recovered her headboard w/a gorgeous gold metallic tapestry-inspired fabric. good bye sunshine yellow gold! bleh!!!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

shag carpet!

 

new built in will have all closed storage — multiple shelves for shoes, hats; tv component; bar area for glasses and bottles! beautiful custom taupe color.

 

  

 

can’t do her bedroom and not touch her bathroom. new wallpaper, lighting and quartzite countertop (had leftover stone from our kitchen island project)

 

 

Just because the Clients are set to move in, doesn’t mean the work is over! Lisa Wolfe Design worked with this beautiful family and Paul Petersen Builders in 2006 when they built their first home in Chicago.  The band got back together on their second home with LWD coming in near the end to do color palette, custom window treatments and wallpaper.  Our Clients broke out of their fleur de lis and pineapple past to venture into a more transitional style.  We were thrilled to see the new direction this family was taking —  from the pixelized oversized damask to the geometric and botanical wallpapers to the blue velvet chairs!  The home was designed inside and out by the team of Morgante-Wilson Architects (Evanston) to stunning results. More pictures to come but attached are some fun work in progress shots!

 

 

  

 

 

 

its always nice to be appreciated — but really nice to get a little badge that says HEY! YOU DID GOOD! thank you to all our clients and vendors that helped Lisa Wolfe Design bring in top honors in both design and service with HOUZZ. we certainly couldn’t do any of this without you!

    

We love being quoted — thrilled to have been included in this article: DESIGN RULES YOU SHOULD BREAK. scroll down to Rule #3 regarding coffee tables — although this element often is a necessity, its function is not universal.  do you need a squishy place for your feet or a flat surface for a tray of soup and glasses of wine? does it need to be emergency seating? and does it need to be that one element that introduces some new shapes or textiles or colors? coffee table is your wild card…go crazy!

Read Article HERE

After 7 months, our gut renovation of this beautiful condo in Lake Forest is rounding third base! Our bachelor’s style was quite different from the previous owner (as you can see from the swagged taffeta curtains, parquet floor and toile wallpaper!). His aesthetic was more modern with a rich, masculine overlay — read: wood tones, neutral colors blended with deep greens, charcoally taupes and burgundy touches. This is still work-in-progress — his furniture isn’t even all moved in yet and his art is still on the floor — but we’re getting there are and we are thrilled at the results.

Southport Corridor — almost there!

Our team along with Martin Van Wassenhove (V&M Development) and our custom furniture/cabinetmakers just wrapped the construction phase of a beautiful modern-minded renovation in the Southport Corridor area of Chicago.

Our goal was to take what was already there and elevate it to the next level aesthetically (while adding much-needed storage along the way).  We designed custom towers and a new banquette in the kitchen to provide additional storage and more comfortable eat-in space — the new custom cabinetry boasts a hidden spot for their little puppies to relax and watch the action (the caged kennel was retired!), a waist-high slide-out tray so our Client can quickly check email as she’s running thru the kitchen, a hidden office space for her work and enormously deep drawers for workout and diaper bags.  The cabinetry looks as if it was there from the beginning as it matches the existing cabinets perfectly (thanks Ovi!).  We also resculpted the family room fireplace w/new walnut builtins to really make that wall a showstopper (and with 10′ ceilings, the scale is quite evident!).  But we didn’t stop there…we resculpted the living room fireplace with a wall of stone, a walnut soffit and hidden art lighting….not to mention the new foyer with its blue/charcoal wood veneer wallpaper and porcelain tile with shiny metal accents.   the Client worked with the GC to add windows to the entire south side of the home (to overlook their side yard) that now floods the home with gorgeous light and lets you appreciate the amazing view. Looking forward to putting the finishing touches on this one!

 

 

You just never know what you’re going to find when you start sniffing around the piles of salvaged goods at places like ARCHITECTURAL ARTIFACTS (one of my favorites!). i have a creepy fascination with dolls and i found a whole pile of them in a back room! halloween is right around the corner….i have some friends who would lOVE these!