Striped Ceilings

I have been patiently awaiting the arrival of the newest issue of Lonny Magazine and today was the day! I just spent the past two hours (while my son was napping) scouring through the third installment of this on-line magazine and there are so many designs that I want to share with you, the only issue is deciding where to start.

So I have decided to start with showing you the painted ceiling at the bar in the Avalon Hotel in Beverly Hills. The hotel has recently been given a facelift by Kelly Wearstler and this bar area is to die for. First of all I love the monochromatic color combination that she chose (the dominant robins egg blue with accents of white, gold and black) and the pairing of the alternating stripes above to activate the low height of the ceiling. The ceiling is what really caught my eye. As I have mentioned before, painting or wallpapering a ceiling is an easy way to create unusual interest in the room. It works wonderfully in smaller spaces such as a nursery, childrens room, playroom, bar or powder room. (stay tuned for an inspiration board for a nursery based on this room next week)

If you don't have the patience to paint it on your own (like Sheridan below) or don't know of a painter who is willing to do it, use wallpaper instead. Farrow & Ball has some wonderful stripes which will get you the looked but with a softer washed-out look. I particularly like the two tone color combo below.

Keeping with the stripes theme, the next two images are of Jenna Lyon's son Beckett's room in Brooklyn. The images were featured in Domino magazine back in November of 2008. I'm still in love with the dark blackboard-esq black accent wall and contrasting white fireplace. One of the benefits of living in NYC I suppose, interesting architectural features in the rooms instead of just your standard square box.

images via Habitually Chic

You might recognize the next group of photos as we posted them back in December under our featured Real Nurseries. Our reader Sheridan painted these stripes in her son West's room all on her own when she was 36 weeks pregnant! I love her personal take on the yellow and white combination with icy blue. Additionally I am happy to announce that Sheridan has started her own blog The Southern Eclectic. She writes about family, food, fashion, travel & beauty. I recommend checking it out. Now back to my friend Lonny...