Italy Apartment

We got a piece back from the Italian upholsterer.  The antique post-office bench in her entrance needed some help. She was planning on trying to keep the original look and just replace the leather, but I suggested we try something really different and fun.  It was pretty tricky to make a decision based on WhatsApp pics of samples, but I recommended the magenta twill... and she went for it! 

Tah Dah!  The good news is, she is thrilled with the result! Don't you just love it when people listen to you? It's my favorite thing.

I'm going to work on four rooms while I am there.  The entrance, great room, master bedroom and girl's playroom.  We are starting out in the entrance and great room with a bright global eclectic feel.

The master will have more muted colors (buying textiles there).  The girl's playroom will have the same bright vibe as the main living space.  I just got all the fabrics together for this shot and panicked.  The black and white!  I know I had a black and white fabric!  Did I forget something?  What can I have shipped here by tomorrow?  

Then I remembered: one of the first things I asked my friend is if she has anything really rustic from Colombia, where she is from.  I was hoping for a textile, like an old blanket.  She remembered that she has this fantastic hammock.  I was so excited! 

We briefly considered covering the bench with it, but it would just get too dirty. I am so excited to work this in with the other fabrics.  My first choice would be to mount it in the playroom to be used as a hammock, but that might not be possible.  They are only planning to rent this apartment for five years, and the landlords are very strict.  We are working around some serious limitations as far as the changes that are allowed.  For example, the marble mosaic floor.

The other tricky thing is the shopping situation.  I only had about a month to plan the decoration. There wasn't time to shop or have things made in the US.  While I am there, we will mostly be limited to antiques and IKEA.  Hopefully we'll be able to order furniture, I just won't get to help with the install.  I'm really excited to get there and move around the space.  I have some rough e-designs, but it's going to be a fun adventure to walk into a space and re-do it in a week!  Very HGTV: )  Wish us luck, we'll need it!