Savannah, GA

When I’m working on the vision for a project, sometimes the best thing I can do is get a change of scenery. So--twist my arm--a few weeks ago I spent some time in beautiful Savannah.

One of my favorite things about this city (besides the plethora of fantastic antique stores I’ve grown to love over the years, oh and the fabulous southern food) is the architecture.

So in addition to lots (and lots) of shopping, I made sure to take time just strolling the streets and neighborhoods, taking it all in with one of my Long Beach projects in mind. Finding inspiration like this is one of my favorite parts of my jobs; creativity in its purest form

Savannah’s architecture has a wide spectrum of styles, with most of America’s 18th and 19th century prevailing architectural styles represented. On almost every street you can see influences from Federal style, Greek Revival, Roman Revival, and Colonial and Victorian eras (to just name a few!)

The thing I love about historic pieces and antiques is the idea of taking elements of timeless pieces and recreating them; honoring things of the past by turning them into something new.

The iron railings on these Federal style homes became inspiration for fabric for a dining room I’m working on. For custom, hand-painted textiles like this, I love to work with Coleman Taylor --a to the trade fabric company based in Alabama--to create one-of-a-kind pieces for clients.

Another architectural detail that caught my eye was this copper banister finial. I couldn’t help but envision it in one of my client’s entryways

In addition to beautiful exteriors like two story verandas, and weathered brick, I was struck over and over again by how green everything was. Nature is such a, well, natural source of inspiration and everywhere I went I was overwhelmed with this refreshing, verdant, green-ness. From ivy to flora to fauna, everything had that “after-a-rainstorm” lush feeling. And while I always have a great appreciation for color in general, I found my mind wandering to ways to incorporate this citrus-y pop into an interior. With live plants, a crisp print, or a bold chair, this fresh feeling can easily be brought into the home.

Savannah reminded me that you really never know when inspiration is going to hit. I’ve spent all week reflecting on my images from this trip and every time I look at them I see something different.

Where have you been lately that has inspired you?