Chicago Design Blog | Material Girls | Chicago Interior Design

Thanksgiving is here and what better time to extend my thanks and appreciation to each of you for reading, commenting and simply sharing your love for all things design with me. Big B.I.D. thanks to you!

Absolutely adoring these endearing thank yous by Wiley Valentine and The Happy Envelope.

There’s truly a place in my heart for a little letter press love and amid hustle and bustle, e-mails and texts, voicemails and memos, there aren’t many treats that compare to a crisp card, sealed with a stamp.

Local favorites Paper Doll and Elizabeth Grace, always do a brilliant job filling their shelves with both vintage and modern finds…  Stop in, stock up and reconnect with a little snail mail.

Tis the season to give thanks…

Erin go Bragh!  I forgot to wear any green today (hoping not to be pinched) , so I decided to try and redeem myself by posting some of my favorite images using green as an accent color. This sofa is fabulously antique french yet with a strikingly modern shade of green velvet.  Love the combination!

Below, the ottoman is a rich jewel toned green lost in a  sea of other jewel tones.  Nanette Lepore sure knows how to mix colors.  From fashion straight into her own home.  Image courtesy of Elle Decor.

Love the wall color and the hint on green in the lamp below.  The art is graceful and subtle. Black and white always looks great on a green wall.  Image pulled from House Beautiful.

Many fun things happening here in my town this day….Have you heard that our Chicago River has turned green?  ;)

The response to MG Abby in NYC was so great that I thought it might be fitting to add some Valentines Day furniture options for all of the fabulous pillows that she discovered and passed along to us…Numero Uno has got to be this “Red Lips Sofa by Bocca.  Do you think that it is too late to order for delivery on the 14th?

Maybe you feel like being alone on Valentines Day for a change…less stress….but still great pillow choices as company….

This combo red hot seating includes your very own musical accompaniment!  Bring on the bubbly.

Cozy two seater aka “Love Seat”

Although these chairs seem a bit “cool” they look as if they could actually connect in some sort of way…share a pillow anyone???

Could use a bunch of your favorites here.  Call some peeps and have a cosmo par-tay!

This chair is just screaming for a comfy pillow!  Best if used as part of a set.  Look stackable for last minute guests.

Happy Valentines Day to one and all…however you may decide to celebrate!

A group of extraordinary young women are gearing up to host their second annual “March The Mart” event here in Chicago on Monday, January 19.  The walk begins on the 18th floor of the Mart and winds down through the stunning corridors of the famed institution for all that is design in the Windy City.  Their charitable drive is a magnificent effort and the children of the Misericordia Home would agree, is a good time.

This is a great way to get a bit of exercise, view the amazing showrooms without any distractions, support a great cause,  and just imagine the prime parking spots that all designer’s covet during the week to be yours alone!  I confess that last year when I attended this event with my daughter, Madi,  it was the best spot that I have ever snagged

The event is chaired, manned, and run by the girls themselves.  They are hoping to surpass the success of last year and to provide the Special Children’s Charities, which has been the financial sponsor of Special Olympics Chicago since 1969, with a donation that will make a tremendous impact yet again!

Come join them!

I want to send you all a very warm greeting for the holiday season from the freezing zone that is Chicago.  Hard to believe that we have any warm thoughts at all here!

I shared the season with a group of very close friends this Saturday afternoon,  along with our extremely close daughters (they have shared high school and have since separated to five colleges from California to North Carolina) at the historic Fortnightly Club of Chicago.  We have celebrated all of our daughters milestones over the last seven years and are attached at the hip. There will be no separation in the near future

Just when you think that you have enough to be thankful about, you are invited to the home of a dear friend for an engaging lunch with amazing women… what a warm and cozy home so perfectly decked out for the holidays.  Don’t you wish that you had a stab at that pumpkin tureen?

Cruising through Lincoln Park today, I came across a transition of sorts. What better way to start the holiday design and home preparation frenzy than the onset of holiday decorations? Out with the corn stalks, in with the swag draping at RL’s Rugby, and a toast to the elegance of the simple statements at Tabula Tua, a premier tabletop and home furnishings store located at 1015 W. Armitage. Time to turn it up a notch for all of the family and friends getting ready to descent upon you!