Amber B Design Studio

Interior Design & Decoration for the South Florida region

Happy Holidays from Our Home to Yours

by Filed Under: amber b design at home, deck the halls, design, holiday, interior design Leave a Comment

I haven’t written here is a while, so I thought it would be a special time of year to come back and wish everyone a happy holidays! If you follow me on instagram, you may have already seen some of these snippets of our home decked out for Christmas. It’s always fun for me to add new decor ideas each holiday. Gotta love those early clearance sales! More on that in a minute! Here are a few images of our home with all the holiday spirit…

This garland and velvet ribbon were fun Amazon finds and the battery powered warm lights are from Lowe’s. They are on a timer and go on for six hours, then automatically turn off for 18! I love that I don’t even have to think about them. These lights are currently 50% off!

I also wrapped lights around this simple garland from Target. It’s sold out this year, but a similar garland can be found HERE. And the deer is also a Target find from many years ago!

Our tree is a slim, faux tree filled with all of our favorite memory ornaments! I love having the lights on the tree as much as possible, but also don’t want them to burn out before Christmas. This is a pre lit tree and most of the lights don’t work anymore, so I threw in about four new strands this year.

I mentioned at the beginning of this post, that I love early holiday decor sales! Mcgee and Co had an amazing sale on their faux trees, so I ordered this one in the corner of our living room! It came in a gray plastic pot and I wanted to elevate the look. So after seeing an idea over on Emily A Clark and chatting about it with my mom, I went for it! I took an extra lamp shade I had and turned it upside down to use as a tree collar. I loved the look, but my shade was a bit too tall. So I improvised and added a couple books under the tree to better fit the scale.

We have been collecting nutcrackers for years and we switch it up every now and then. This is our first home without a fireplace and mantel, so they all have a spot on our foyer dresser!

And last but not least, my mini wreaths behind my island counter stools! I use the same Amazon velvet ribbon from the stair garland and attach the wreaths by tying a bow. It’s always the first decoration I add each year and it can honestly be kept out all winter! I hope you enjoyed our Holiday tour! Happy Holidays from our home to yours!!

Crate and Barrel’s Beautiful New Collaboration

by Filed Under: design, interior design

I was blown away when I saw the most recent design collaboration at Crate and Barrel. Each furniture piece and accessory can find its way into our home any day of the week! I love the warmth, textures and just all around style that this new collaboration brings. It’s with interior designer and The Expert co founder Jake Arnold. Take a look and let me know what you think!

Image via
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The textures with the woven seating, plush velvet chairs and linen pendants… I just love this collection! The box pleated arm chairs (they even have a sofa like that, too!) is simply stunning! You can shop the entire collection HERE. Well done, Crate and Barrel & Jake Arnold!!

More Project Classic Living Updates

by Filed Under: #projectclassicliving, amber b design, design, design services, interior design

It is always so much fun to see projects wrap up and clients start to enjoy their new space! I originally started working with these Sarasota clients when we both lived in New York. Now both of us are in South Florida and it means the world to me to have return clients and help them make the most of their new home. Yesterday, I showed you the newly styled bookcase in her office. Now, it’s time for two more spaces! The dining room is complete and I can just picture family and friends gathering and enjoying each other’s company!

Dining Room at Project Classic Living

The pendant over the dining table is massive in person and just what this space needed! I like to go oversized with lighting, as a few select larger pieces make a space feel bigger compared to several smaller accessories. The living room is almost complete! We’re just waiting on the finishing touches to call this space done!

Living Room at Project Classic Living

I’m so excited with how this room is shaping up! The oversized coffee table will be perfect for family board game nights. To shop the exact furniture and accessory pieces in this post, you can go to my Like to Know it page (AmberBDesign) and be redirected to the exact product link! See you back here soon. Wow, two posts in two days?!?

Love the Look: Double Islands

by Filed Under: amber b design, design, design services, e-decorating, e-design, kitchen

I hope you all are off to a great week! I am excited to share that for this past year, I have been working remotely on a new home build in New York. I have worked with these amazing clients in the past and they are currently in the process of building their dream home. When we looked at the kitchen layout, the builder suggested an island that had an oblong, non symmetrical shape. While it filled the space well, it made it tricky for pendant placement. I also love a symmetrical design whenever I can, so I knew I wanted to reconfigure the island layout. We had some extra room in the kitchen to work with, so I presented my clients with the idea of either a small sitting area in the kitchen or a double island.

Small sitting area in kitchen: Inspiration

Image via Better Homes and Gardens

Double Island: Inspiration

Image via House of Jade Interiors

I honestly loved the look of both approaches, but they decided they did not need an additional lounging area in their kitchen. So a double island it is and I couldn’t be happier! This option will function so well for their family and how they will use their new home. The island closest to the range will be the work island and main prep space. The island after that will serve as the eating and hang out spot, with pretty counter stools for sitting. The functioning layout will be similar to the inspiration image above, but we will do pendants above the work island and recessed above the sitting island. I couldn’t be happier with the way the kitchen will look. We have selected most of the finishes and cabinet design and I can’t wait to see it all come together. The main cabinetry will be a creamy white shaker and the island will be a deep walnut stain. The marble like quartz will go on all of the counters, tying the spaces together. Except the bar area… that will be its own gem and I can’t wait to share more about that niche of the kitchen soon.

If you also live outside of Florida, my e-design option works best and can be such a cohesive, stream lined process! So much can still be achieved remotely, even an entire new build! Stop by my design services page to get started. I look forward to hearing from you!

It’s Been a While…

by Filed Under: #ProjectClassicCoastal, amber b design, amber b design at home, design, personal

I’m still here, even though it’s been such a long time since hitting submit on a blog post! There have been so many times I wanted to start writing and then you know… life gets busy, this past year was crazy, that I kept procrastinating on the first post back. I have been keeping up every now and then on Instagram (AmberBDesign), but have always loved writing in this creative outlet. So where to begin?!? A few posts back, you can scroll down and see that I show pictures of our “new home.” Well, that was a new home for just a little while, lol! We had an amazing opportunity to move and relocate from NY to South Florida and we jumped at the opportunity. It’s funny how we didn’t move for almost 15 years and then we move twice in less than one year! But, we saw it as an amazing adventure for our family and now we want everyone we know to come to the sunshine state! Little did we realize that a few months after moving, Covid would hit. Moving here allowed us to spend so much time outside. I also had waaaaay much more time than I thought at home organizing and getting our house to feel like a home. So without further adieu, if you haven’t seen it on Instagram, here is a little tour…

Our Home

I love this home for all of the natural light that pours in! It’s also a fun experiment to see how our furniture fits into a totally different space. We were able to keep most of it and it’s like it was meant for these rooms. I have future plans for some of these spaces and it will be great to document that progress here on the blog.

And below is one of the reasons why I love living in South Florida…

I have continued with Amber B Design both locally and with E-Design. A local project that is almost complete and almost ready for the final install, #ProjectClassicCoastal …

Rendering by the amazingly talented Jane Gianarelli

If you have made it this far in this lengthy post, thank you!! 🙂 I hope to be back on this platform more often, sharing design tips, home projects and client design work. It’s been a little over a year since moving here and it’s definitely been a fun adventure! Basically living in flip flops year round is a dream. I do miss our out of town family so much and hope we are all able to reconnect and visit soon!! If this year has taught us anything, it’s definitely to take time for the things that matter most. I’ll be back to share more and thanks for checking in!!

Why This Works

by Filed Under: design, interior design, why works series

Happy Wednesday! Welcome back to another installment of Why This Works… where I show a designed space and discuss why I think it works and is great design. Today’s home is gorgeous all the way around… it’s the 2019 Southern Living Idea Home. The site for this year’s home is Crane Island, in Amelia Island, Florida. The home was designed by the super talented Heather Chadduck. Every corner of this home exudes that coastal, laid back charm.

The living room in this home makes you want to linger and spend time for hours! The textures used in the first layer woven area rug and plant basket contrasts nicely with the colorful patterns and fabrics used on the furniture and striped rug. I love when different metal finishes are used in a space, because it gives that collected over time look to a room. The aged brass mirror and coffee table mix with the hurricane sconces and lantern pendants. Different wood tones are also brought in through the console table and ceiling beams, adding more character to this new build. There are subtle coastal touches, which I love in an island home. That is seen through the bird art, coral accessory and palm leaves. Small scale patterns mix well with bold, oversized prints, giving a balanced approach to the textiles. Now, we look into the foyer and see the continuation of the laid back, coastal style…

Interior Design by Heather Chadduck Interiors

I love that this space is so well thought out and designed. Always remember the power of a well designed foyer, too! Often, this space can be overlooked and the focus can be more on the living spaces. But this area is often seen and used just as much… so attention to detail is important here, as well. I love that Heather has the ceiling painted blue! It draws your eye up and is a great way to bring in a color from a nearby room. The textures, patterns and coastal influence continue in this foyer, with the woven consoles, lantern pendants and beautiful bird art. Overall, these spaces and this whole home work!! What are your thoughts? To see all of the rooms in this gorgeous Idea House, visit Heather’s site, HERE.

Before and After: Project Casual Trad

by Filed Under: #projectcasualtrad, amber b design, Ana Gil Photography, design, interior design, living room, local clients

I am thrilled to introduce Project Casual Trad to you today!! This was such a fun design project to work on and before and afters always amaze me! I’m so excited to do what I love and when I am able to see a project transform and get it documented by a super talented photographer, it’s the icing on the cake! The after photos are all from Ana Gil Photography and she is a gem to work with. Her talent is inspiring and her enthusiasm is infectious! Ana introduced me to this client after photographing her family. The homeowners were looking for a living space that was warm, inviting, bright and a modern/traditional mix. They wanted some color, but in a subtle, relaxed way. Without further adieu, here is the space!

Before

After

I love this picture on the mantel that Ana took!

Before (The other side of the room)

After

It was so much fun being a part of this project and seeing the space take shape. Thank you so much for stopping by!!

Why This Works

by Filed Under: design, inspiration, interior design, why works series

If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you may remember the blog series I used to write on Wednesdays, titled: Why This Works. Basically, I select a room I have found that I absolutely love and I break down the reasons why I think it works. Over the past few years, I have really gravitated toward a clean, modern/traditional aesthetic. I love bright, open spaces that feel warm and welcoming. So, I think this living room designed by the super talented Bria Hammel, is a great space to kick start this series again!

All above designed by Bria Hammel Interiors

Am I right that this space is stunning? Ok, let’s break down why I think it works! The light and bright walls really allow the colorful furniture and accessories to take center stage. The wood beams are able to stand out and they are complimented by the gorgeous storage cabinets on either side of the fireplace. The natural woven area rug really grounds the space, while also bringing in a great dose of texture. The plants help to bring the outdoors in, while also introducing green to the room. Both the lantern pendant and the beautiful windows help to draw your eye up, giving the illusion of more space. The patterns in this room also work so well together. The subtle ticking stripe of the sofa is complimented by pillows that have a larger, more oversized pattern. The mantel art and accessories are simple, yet create a great graphic impact. I always love the look of a floating console behind a sofa, especially when you can work in a pair of lamps. The addition of the floor lamp and pendant allow different light sources in the room, which is a great way to bring that collected over time style to a space. So as always, Bria knocked it out of the park on this one! You can connect with her on her web site HERE as well as get her look with her on line SHOP Brooke and Lou. I hoped you liked the return of Why This Works. I hope to get back into this series more often!!

{Before and After} Project Colorful Oasis

by Filed Under: #projectcolorfuloasis, amber b design, Ana Gil Taylor Photography, before and after, design, interior design


Everyone loves a good before and after, right?!? Well it’s a very happy Friday then, because I have a complete overhaul to show you! When my client found this apartment, we started from scratch. She wasn’t bringing any furniture from her other home, so we had fun creating a new colorful oasis that she shares with her husband! She knew she wanted the living area to be fun, with loads of color and personality. For the master bedroom, she wanted a calm retreat to relax in at the end of the day. We wanted the home to have personal photos from their travels and an overall space that felt meaningful and personal to them. The before pictures show the apartment when we first met. The wheels were already turning for what this new home could be. And luckily, I had my friend and super talented photographer Ana with me for the final photos! We have worked together before and Ana Gil Taylor Photography knows how to make a space shine! So here we go… enjoy the before and afters of Project Colorful Oasis!!

Living Room Before

 

 

 

Living Room After

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before Living Room TV Wall

 

And After

 

 

With this apartment rental, there were elements we couldn’t change and had to work around, like the fire alarm, sprinkler system and venting. But we tried to distract the eye as best as possible, by instead drawing you in to look at the oversized artwork and other colorful elements in the space. Luckily, the apartment already had a great paint color! We worked with that, as it was a great base for the design.

Before Master Bedroom

 

 

After Master Bedroom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you so much for reading and checking out this transformation! Have a great weekend and I’ll see you back here soon with more details from this apartment makeover!

All after photos by the incredible Ana Gil Taylor Photography

Photo Reveal: Project Classic Trad

by Filed Under: #projectclassictrad, amber b design, bathroom, central new york design, design, interior design, living room, sarah heppell photography


I am beyond thrilled to reveal the photos from Project Classic Trad!! This was such a great project to be a part of, with amazing clients and an overall style that is right up my alley… a blend of traditional with modern. Today, I’m showing the living room and first floor bathroom. I couldn’t be happier to be working with Sarah Heppell on this project. She brought the rooms to life through her pictures and showed a sun filled space on a very cloudy day. That takes talent!! Here is the photo overload… enjoy!!

 

{I love that we upholstered my client’s favorite wing chair in new fabrics. Tonic Living has the best fabric options to choose from and a local upholsterer created this magic. I call it business in the front and party in the back!}

All photos by Sarah Heppell Photography

Thank you for stopping by and checking out the photo tour of Project Classic trad! Have a great day!