Parade 2015

We got our tickets, and went to the Utah Valley parade of homes this year. I actually went three different times. Two different dates with Jeffy, and one afternoon with my friend. So funny, when I went to the parade before building our house, every house was done in the "Tuscan" style like the picture below. This year, almost every house was done in these Cape Cod/or Craftsman styles. Lots of white trim! 

 

 We saw lots of light greenish blue interiors, and lots of  texture --like last year.

 I'm not sure how to organize this post, so I'm just going to jump in and share some things I liked. This bathroom was my favorite. I loved how they had the whole room enclosed in glass to hold steam for the bathtub too, and not just the shower. The shower was around a corner inside of that room, and was really impressive too, but was impossible to take a picture of.

 We saw quite a bit of soapstone counter. I guess granite has been done too much!

 Lots of the homes had mudrooms off the garage, but this one had an enclosed hose down area for the family dog!

 We saw a bit more wallpaper this year than before. I especially liked this wall covering which was a linen-like fabric, although I think the Moroccan inspired print might be on its way out.

 OK guys. This theater room was a game changer in my mind. We always struggle with food in the theater room, because of the mess over the carpet, but it's hard to ban it completely.

 These guys did an eat-in bar over hardwood, with a mini kitchen in the back of the theater room. So clever.

I really liked this steampuck/industrial style boy's room. Look at the close up of the walls:

 I think it may be unpapered drywall? Anyway it looked really cool.

 A shower with two kinds of tile;

 and a tub with rough ledge cut quartz. I wish my photo captured the beautiful sparkle of this surround, but I think I'd pass on it in real life, because I have NO IDEA how you would clean this stuff.

 We saw a lot of glitzy, high glam pieces. I especially loved this bedroom, with nightstands and a dresser all done in a mirror finish, with mercury glass lamps and huge wall mirrors to match. Just fabulous.

 In contrast, this dining room was another of my favorites. Almost primitive feeling with the succulents and botanical prints.

 We saw a few examples of this oversized, glossy, textured tile in different colors. I really liked it in this gun metal grey.

 Here it is in white, with a close up below.

 I remember these shell chandeliers from my childhood in the seventies, and it looks like they are coming back.

 I had to get a shot of this lovely custom hood with the architectural detail above.

 Another shell light fixture, with a tower ceiling. This is in a master bedroom! Wouldn't it be lovely to wake up to look at this ceiling?

 We also saw mother of pearl on some floors and back-splashes.

 I fall in love with almost all of the little girl bedrooms. Do you think Jeff would put up with this color scheme if I did it in our master?

 Another thing I noticed were water color paintings or prints in almost every house. Tia's really talented with water color, and now I think she needs to do some for all over my house! Here are some more examples I saw:

 Of course the barn doors are still a big trend. I liked this updated look though with the bright color and glass insets.

 This was my favorite pool. I saw some serious money spent on pool stuff in this parade, But I thought that these simple fountains and square shape with the fire braziers was the classiest thing ever.

 

 I don't know how the decorator did this, but I thought it was a spectacular idea. It looked like this image was printed on metal, and then cut apart and hung.

 In one smaller house, we saw river rock floors in the bathrooms like we had in Nicaragua. I LOVE this idea.

 

 It looked especially nice with this dark glass tile wall section. It had kind of an Asian feel to it here.

 Now we get to my favorite house of the tour. From way down the street, this house stood out. It had a very classic feel to it; I was reminded of homes and historic buildings I saw in Philadelphia when I went there a few summers ago, although of course it was new construction.

 When we got closer, I could see that it was finished in painted brick --a very courageous choice!

 Inside was an interesting mix of very traditional, with very modern. Notice the lucite chairs with lantern light fixtures?

 More white painted brick indies. I loved it. Jeff hated it.

 Two story family room, with a gallery off on the side.

 A gas fire pit carved out of whole stone.

 This office had all kinds of natural curiosities. It reminded me of some of my zoology professors' offices in grad school.

 There was this "world traveler" vibe to the entire home. 

 I want to copy these mirrors and towel hooks.

 The loft room was filled with entomological prints and globes. 

 We also loved this dormer bedroom, with the bed platformed up into the dormer area. So princessy. 

 This spare iron bedstead was more my personal style though.

 One last whimsical touch -- a flying bird ceiling! I've never seen a ceiling papered before. Overall, I loved this parade. It was wonderful to see so many beautiful ideas I've never even dreamed of. Now, if I can just get myself satisfied with my old stuff again!

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