CUERPO BLOG: Barrie Benson

Hello rainy Saturday morning where have you been all summer? It was so nice to lie in bed this morning and listen to the sounds of thunder and rain while fading in and out of my sleepy slumber.

I have had a rather eventful week involving a little work and a whole lot of fun!

Mid-week we surprised my 6 year old daughter with tickets to see Selena Gomez in concert. She was beyond thrilled and relished the idea that she was an only child even if for only 24 hours. Our road trip took us to the Queen City, Charlotte, NC which included her losing a big front tooth, a much anticipated stop at Ikea, and a few wrong turns. All in all one for the books.

Before I left Charlotte we popped into women's clothing boutique Capitol for a design fix. Yes it is gorgeous women's clothing but the interior is amazing and it along with owner Laura Vinroot Poole have been featured in several publications. It so happens that Charlottean interior designer Barrie Benson helped Poole with Capitol as well as her home which was featured in an issue of Domino Magazine back in the day. A month or two after Poole's home was featured, Barrie Benson popped up on the cover too with a glimpse into her mid-century ranch style home.

I have had a design crush since that time and have been unable to find anything about Mrs. Benson. Although I was pleasantly surprised to find her in this month's Garden and Gun magazine (that I picked up at Barnes and Nobles right before we went into Capitol) in an article with other lovely women as "Redefining the Southern Belle"...strange how things like that happen.

Great inspiration all around. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend...enjoy!

Capitol

Style.com, The Beauty-full Life, and The NY Times

Laura Vinroot Poole's home

Domino Magazine

Barrie Benson's home

Domino Magazine

Charlotte home by Benson

Charlotte Home and Garden

Photography by Chris Edwards

My love affair with Schumacher "Chiang Mai Dragon" began a few years ago when Domino featured designer Barrie Benson's Charlotte home and she used it on her kitchen chairs with a vinyl covering to protect it from "kid slop."

It had me from hello...

The fabric has since been on countless blogs, shown in magazines and used for everything from chairs, window treatments, wallpaper, pillows, tissue box covers, stationary, and I have even seen custom stockings for Christmas if you love it so!

Clients adore it, sometimes husbands not so much but there is no denying the power of the dragon.

Images courtesy of Domino, Style Court, Pink Wallpaper, Revival Home and Garden, Dempsey and Carroll, and The Desk of Annie

Schumacher

Thirteen and South

Schumacher with a little mix of Lee Jofa

I do have a certain affinity for F Schumacher fabrics, they are the tried and true staple I can always count on to please everyone. Current designer collections include Celerie Kemble and Trina Turk which are both out of sight! Quality and price point are right on and they have an awesome website that is easy to navigate when I need samples and can't get to the showroom. This week Schumacher announced their entry into the blogging world which makes me doubly excited to learn the inside scoop on inspiration for fabrics, how there were made and what designers are using where. Right now check out Trina Turk and her interview with Elle Magazine, Sara Richardson of HGTV's "Sarah's House", and the inspiration behind their "Cloisonne Weave" print.

whatsnew.fschumacher.com