Emily: Affinity

The topic of performance comes up again and again when low v.o.c. paints are mentioned, and despite what some people are saying I find them to be great to work with, personally and professionally.


Benjamin Moore came out with the Aura Collection last year, and have recently added exterior paints to the line. It coats really well, has wonderful color saturation and gives off little to no odor.


The chips below are some of the colors I have used in my own home...the bedroom color is the prettiest gray/blue....

And I have yet to try Natura...the zero V.O.C. base!

eco friendly scarves

a complete delight- eco friendly scarves from ecologicalartist on etsy. natural wool from local suppliers, hand dyed with plants like toyon, coastal sage, or coyote brush.

What's The Deal With Aura?

I'm all confused about Aura paint by Ben Moore.

I've used it successfully in my own home- both my entry and living room had the good 'ol Aura treatment and I loved the way it took to the walls and had no odor. No complaints here. I also love their very Farrow and Ball inspired color palate and modern approach to neutrals. But....

On the Eco Kitchen project it was time to bring in the big guns- the skim coaters and painters last week. I met with a rather large local contractor who'll be supplying her painting team. We went over all the details of the patching, the schedule, the cost and when I told him I could give him the paint schedule whenever, he asked what kind of paint I was asking for. I said, of course, Aura. It's an ECO kitchen, after all. My heart nearly stopped when both contractor AND client alike sounded a resounding no.

Imagine my shock. This is a client who will be spending the time while messy sanding and plastering is happening, upstate at an Ashram doing yoga, eating raw foods, and meditating four hours a day. How could she not want a more earth friendly paint? The Client says she read a NYT article about the low quality of Aura and other low VOC paints in the long haul. She said if she's spending the money she wants it to last. Word on the NYT reading street is that Aura's dirty secret is that it lasts about two years and not much more. The painter said he never uses Aura and pretty much refused to budge. He reason? The nearly double price tag. He went on to say there is a general silent boycott of Aura and other similar paints in the professional painting world. They just plain hate it.

So Eco kitchen will get oil based trims and Ben Moore Regal walls. I could have never seen that coming.

"They're Grreat!"

Perhaps it is because I feel younger when surrounded by things that show their age more than I do, but I always feel more natural when in a space that has a few "ye olde" elements thrown in the mix. When I was at Penn State I spent many a Saturday combing through local antique stores and now have several collections to prove it; vintage canning jars, maps and birdcages to name a few.

Great Stuff By Paul is a wonderful website that saves you the afternoon. Organized by material or room, they make it easy to find milking stools, old sap bucket or Parisian bistro chairs. And the prices are unbelievably low - think budget Wisteria.

Sonoma County Green Living Expo

All the cool kids will be at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds this Saturday, April 12th, to learn more about the options out there for sustainable living and building. It is from 10 to 5 and FREE! Click here for more information.

Mod Green Pod

While every bone in my body believes that we should all 'go green' - I sometimes get frustrated that green design has a "look" when I believe it more of a production method than an aesthetic . Enter Mod Green Pod, a company who's fabrics are beautiful AND hand silk screened on organic cotton.



Founded by two sisters in law, Nancy and Lisa Mims wanted, as their website says, to take organic "from hippie to hip." Click here to read more about their story. Oh- and they have a blog!


I simply cannot wait to find an application for their fabrics - "Atticus", shown above, is my very favorite from their collection, reminding me both of Galbraith & Paul and Hable Constuction.

What they wore in days of yore

Behold these prints from Jeffrys "Old English Dress" circa 1757. The engravings were based on portraiture of European nobility.























Hand colored and still brilliant, the clothing they depict is shown in such detail that images from this collection were included in the BBC television series,
"Through the Looking Glass - A History of Dress". Click here for a link to the companion book.

The actual prints can be found through my very favorite of all print sources, Panteek.

Handprinted Linen Woodgrain Pillows

There is something magical about the fabrics produced at Kevin O'Brien Studio...perhaps it is that the designer spends 5 days a week secluded in the Catskills designing and the other 2 at his studio in Philadelphia...or the fact that he views the folks who run the studio in his absence as colaborators...or that they are printed by hand on fair trade fabrics in an environmentally friendly way. Whatever the reason, these pillows are available in four colors and four sizes (three sqaure sizes and a lumbar), and the fabric is available by the yard to and through the trade. For more information on Kevin O'Brien Studio's products and practices visit their website, kevinobrienstudio.com , or click here.

Mac - is it too much to live in the woods and then have woodgrain fabric? I am SO tempted to cover my new pair of vintage white armchairs in this! And when is Sarah back from her trip to chime in?

Vicki Niolet - Mixed Media

While Vicki Niolet has been a mixed media artist for over 20 years, the work that she has created post hurricane Katrina is particularly moving. When her own home was flooded, she lost many of the paper scraps, photographs and small objects she had been saving for future creations. She evacuated, but her husband stayed behind and barely survived. His story can be read on her website, www.vickiniolet.com, or click here.


When she returned home, the landscape was littered with remnants of what had once been her neighbor's most treasured possessions. Somehow, her talent and spirit were able to overcome such and experience and has informed her work both in her choice of materials and subject.

I had the pleasure of meeting her at the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts last year, and was completely enchanted by her creations. There reasons were many; the use of found objects in a creative and compelling way, the humble, patinated textures juxtaposed with the sweetness of the music (many of her works are also music boxes), and the intimacy of her work, both in scale and the content, reminding me of the works of Joseph Cornell.

The Little Greene

As you both know I have been married to Farrow & Ball paints for five blissful years. Imagine my surprise when I received this beautiful package from another historical English paint company, The Little Greene, that made me swoon.

Not only do they offer an amazing array of colo(u)rs based on samples from as far back as 1773 when they opened, but they also produce a line of wallpapers inspired by historic London homes. My favo(u)rite, of course, is "Great Ormond St." circa 1890.

Now, I know you ladies are not as "Ye Olde" as I tend to be, but don't despair. They also have a "Catwalk" line of paints taken from the fabrics seen on the runways of Milan and Paris this season.

To top it off, every can purchased means a direct donation to English Heritage ensuring that the sites that inspired their collection will be preserved for future generations. I am a smitten kitten.