Fantasy Decorating from the pages of Martha Stewart Weddings Magazine

I continue my 'Fantasy Decorating' series with Images from

Martha Stewart Weddings Magazine 

Beautiful table scapes- don't these sculptures make perfect pairings?  Which one is your favorite?  I would love to do commissions of wedding dresses. 

'Miss Whitney'
Available from Carson Art Gallery
Dallas, TX

'Pretty in Pink'
In the Collection of the Joan Katz Breast Center
Bailor All Saints Hospital
Ft. Worth, TX

'Saturday in May'
NFS

Veranda Magazine Inspiration- Take Two!

I return to one of my favorite decorators, John Saladino, featured here in Veranda Magazine.  John has a way with making any room look fresh and yet 'lived in'.  I never feel as though his designs are stuffy and I always feel like I could walk right in and sit down.  He has a painterly way with decorating and the lighting is  dramatic, as if in a film.  Veranda Magazine often features John Saladino designs and I truly treasure each issue.  Here are three room designs paired with my sculptures.  Scrumptious!

Veranda Magazine, Design by John Saladino

'Miss Enchantment', 22H x 12W
Artwork by Shelly Hamill
Available from Embler Gallery

Veranda Magazine, Design by John Saladino

'Life of the Party', 22H x 10W
Artwork by Shelly Hamill
Available from Visions West Gallery, Denver
Photography by Brooke Casillas

Veranda Magazine, Design by John Saladino

'Miss Avalon', 22H x 14W
Artwork by Shelly Hamill
Available from Visions West Gallery, Denver

As I continue with my Fantasy Decorating Series, I look to Country Living Magazine.  I am in love with Modern Country.  I sometimes pretend when I am sleuthing at a flea market that the person next to me is a secret editor from Country Living!  I wish I had more rooms to decorate in my own home with all the finds and inspiration from this magazine.  Check out which sculptures I would place in each of these rooms....

Country Living Magazine

'Miss Congeniality'  17 H x 12 W

Country Living Magazine

'Inauguration' 26 H x 12 W
In the Collection of Clive and Lyndy Thatcher, Bermuda
Photography by Sacha Blackburn

Country Living Magazine

'Miss Ginny' 22 H x 10 W
Private Collection
Photography by Amanda Temple

Country Living Magazine

'Miss Soleil' 22 H x 12 W
In the Collection of Joe Gibbons, Bermuda
Photography by Amanda Temple

Fantasy Decorating - In the Pink!

I'm feeling a little 'In the Pink' today.  Here are some wonderful photographs from House Beautiful Magazine continuing my Fantasy Decorating Series, I think HB agrees with me today!

House Beautiful

'Midnight Rose' 17 H x 12 W
Available from BlueStone Gallery, Philadelphia

House Beautiful

Commission for Donna Mastran

House Beautiful

'Miss Victoria'  22 H x 12 W
Photography by Amanda Temple
Available from Rosewood Tuckers Point Hotel & Spa
Bermuda

Fantasy Decorating Continued!

John Saladino is one of my favorite decorators.  I am truly in love with this apartment in NY featured in Veranda Magazine.  I have poured over these photographs so many times that the pages are starting to show wear.  I've considered pinning the images up on my inspiration board in my studio, but don’t want to tear the pages!  Now that I have them saved on my computer, I can print them and enlarge them!  I thought it would be fun to put together these photos and some of the pieces they have inspired.  Enjoy! 

Veranda Magazine, Design by John Saladino

'Miss Lila', Artwork by Shelly Hamill
Embler Gallery, Laguardia Admiral's Club, NY

Veranda Magazine, Design by John Saladino

'Miss Nantucket', by Shelly Hamill
BlueStone Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

Veranda Magazine, Design by John Saladino

'Miss Anne', by Shelly Hamill
BlueStone Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

Fantasy Decorating with Art

I love, love decorating and decorating magazines.   At the end of a long day, I enjoy flipping through a decorating magazine; I don’t read the articles per se, I just love looking at the pretty pictures, visual candy.  Oftentimes, I imagine what my artwork would look like in the homes that are featured.  Here are a few ‘pairings’.  What do you think?

House Beautiful
Decoration by David Lawrence

Wouldn't 'Blue Belle' look great on the table behind this sofa, to help 'fill' the space between the curtains?

'Blue Belle'  by Shelly Hamill
E.S. Lawrence Gallery, Aspen, CO

The Tiffany Suite at the St. Regis in NY

I think the mirror on 'Miss Washington' would be smashing- no pun intended- to reflect all the crystal on the table and the decadent beads hanging from the chandelier. 

'Miss Washington' by Shelly Hamill
In Private Collection

Architectural Digest, August 2011

The circles on the linens and the circles on 'Roxy' would be really fun together.

'Roxy' by Shelly Hamill
Embler Gallery, Laguardia Adimiral's Club NY

Veranda Magazine

It would be great to see 'Miss Nantucket' reflected in that beautiful mirror and to play off the blue and white ginger jars.

'Miss Nantucket' by Shelly Hamill
BlueStone Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

Artwork and the Hotel Guest

A recent article in the NYTimes, ‘Hospitality Boutiques’, by Terry Trucco, August 8, 2011; points to how hotels are recognizing the opportunities they have for revenue in enlarging their hotel gift shop offerings to include high end merchandise and art.  “With occupancy rates and the number of travelers on the rise, industry experts predict growth in high-concept hotel shops.  Shops are one of the remaining opportunities hotels have for people to say ‘This place is different, better, cleverer and more exciting than I expected,’ ” said Bjorn Hanson, New York University. 

When a guest stays at a hotel for a few days, think of the numerous opportunities for retail.  “If it’s done right, retailing is another layer that makes the overall experience more engaging,” said Alex Calderwood, of the Ace Hotel in New York.  Hotels have long been selling their bathrobes and linens and guests have long been stealing toiletries.  The same applies for artwork in the Boutique Hotel setting.  Rather than taking home a robe, guests are opting for the artwork in the lobby for their own homes.  Alex continues, “You want guests to find things they may not see everywhere else.” 

Artwork by Shelly Hamill
Photography by Amanda Temple
Rosewood Tuckers Point Hotel & Spa
Bermuda

Guests in the leisure hotel market must pass the lobby artwork on their way to breakfast, lunch and dinner; on their way to the pool, beach, golf and tennis- for several days in a row.  The image of the artwork is repeated and reinforced multiple times in any given day.  An emotional connection is made with the artwork and in the experience of a hotel, the convenience and ease of charging that artwork to their account makes it all the more compelling.   

Artwork by Shelly Hamill
Photography by Amanda Temple
Rosewood Tuckers Point Hotel & Spa
Bermuda

Good interior design also plays an important role.  Good design allows guests to actually see what a particular piece of artwork will look like in their own home setting.  Decorating a hotel lobby with beautiful artwork and interiors makes it easy on the collector.  The collector does not have to guess what a piece will look like with a sofa and a lamp, the concept already exists. 

Artwork by Shelly Hamill
Photography by Amanda Temple
Rosewood Tuckers Point Hotel & Spa
Bermuda

Honestly, what it really comes down to is we want that vacation feeling to continue once we get home.  We can think fondly of our time in XYZ every time we see the piece of artwork and we can share our love of XYZ every time a guest in our home expresses interest in the piece- no need to pull out the slide projector.