If you’ve been following the Joy Street Design Instagram page, you’ve seen it’s been a crazy-busy past few weeks with lots of traveling, reveals, and announcements. Well, I have one more! Last year, I was invited to be one of the designers for the Embello and National Media Partner, Martha Stewart Living, FIRST EVER “Living by Design Showhouse” which opened on March 8, 2022.
What is the Living by Design Showhouse?
The “Living by Design Showhouse" is a virtual experience for consumers and designers nationwide to showcase what’s new and next in-home design. Twenty of today’s leading home designers and experts worked to create spaces throughout a 10,000 square foot home set in Bedford, New York, the primary residence of Martha Stewart. In alignment with Martha Stewart Living’s timeless and approachable aesthetic, each room within the virtual showhouse incorporates original ideas and new products to discover and shop.
I’ve previously spoken about the challenges of hosting and attending design events because of travel restrictions and overall health concerns due to the pandemic, so I LOVED the idea of the showhouse being virtual. We worked closely with BrandonArchitects and YouSee Studio to create the 3D visualization tour to ensure every detail was executed perfectly to make you feel as if you were actually walking through the showhouse.
Zoe & Coco
What’s fun about participating in showhouses is that most of the time you aren’t given a client. This allows the designers the freedom to experiment with new ideas that often would go unexplored or minimized due to the restrictions of the clients’ desire for their space.
While in the designing stage for this showhouse, my family was in the process of moving, so my daughter, Zoe, became my muse. How would a 16-year-old Zoe feel about moving from Oakland to Bedford? She'd embrace it, ask for a horse, and live her BEST life.
With Zoe being the muse, we developed a full concept of our hypothetical client and her transition to Bedford, NY. With a job relocation for her father, she was forced to leave her hometown. She’s loving her new surroundings and school but is struggling with the transition to a slower pace. As a wonderful birthday present, Zoe received a beautiful male horse, Coco. She is now absolutely obsessed with Coco and has learned to appreciate the great outdoors and farmland that surrounds her family’s home.
Joy Street Design Bedroom Suite
For this showhouse, we were tasked with creating a space that was indicative of Bedford, NY and working within the gorgeous architecture. However, in true JSD fashion, we wanted to bring the our colorful aesthetic and a bit of urban flair to the suburban town. With Zoe being 16, we wanted to honor her growth into a maturing young woman. Rather than only designing a bedroom, we chose to convert the space into a teen hangout to include: a built-in bed/resting area, a workspace, lounge, bathroom, and closet. We combined lots of bright colors, shapes, and textures throughout the space. Some of my faves are the Thrive Pillows for the window seat, Calico sheer window treatment fabric, Berenson Lanterns in the bathroom, and the Birds Nest pendants that hangover the bed.
One of my favorite parts of the space is the Watterworth Brick White Rose Tile on the bathroom walls, which if you look close enough, includes mosaic marble in between each tile. We also chose to include some elements that were as fun and unique as Zoe like the Mido Chair from Jomo Furniture, Indi Chandelier, and the Nanna Ditzel Hanging Egg Chair to tie the room together. In the lounge area, we were mindful that the room needed to be functional with plenty of storage space and multi-purpose furniture like the Jagger Coffee Table. To elevate the space, we also added a few planters from Monrovia and artwork from Minted that represented her new found interest and gave representation to the woman she’s becoming.
To be a part of this showhouse was truly an honor and I want to take time to send a special thank you to our Official Brand Sponsors: California Closets, Carrier, Minted, and Monrovia.
Next time you’re out, head to your local store and pick up the April issue of Martha Stewart Living!
- Kelly
