Our Work Featured In KC Magazine, They Made Room For Baby

It is so wonderful to open such a gorgeous mag and see our work featured again.  KC Magazine takes the pulse of Kansas City to it’s pages.  Check it out!

Click to read and see more photos of this room

including all of the “Before” shots!

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Jill Tran is a Kansas City Interior Designer and creates beautiful, custom interiors for her interior design clients in Kansas City and clients around the country.

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Hanging With ‘Momma Said’ Blogger, Jen Singer

While at the Kansas City’s Central Exchange downtown last week (of which I am a member), I met fellow blogger of Momma Said, Jen Singer.  Now granted, she blogs about being a mom (and is quite funny!) and not interior design, yet being a mother myself and designing spaces for little ones, I wanted to share the moment with you. She was funny, charming and strong with her points…my kind of gal!

Jen Singer and myself

I constantly am designing with clients’ kiddos in mind.  I enhance spaces for children living their little lives while sharing the same spaces with family that loves them so.  As people ask Jen to share her funny stories of kids and parenting, people ask me how to help make their homes more enjoyable and easier with kids.  It can be done!

Thought this was a funny pic from Avanti...we have all thought about doing this at one point, right?

I wanted to repeat here my blog on designing for kids and pets so many of us are blessed with.  The link is below.  All those little feet and paws running all over our house…marking the carpets, chewing the furniture and wiping food on the wall…aren’t they precious?!  So messy, silly and lovable all at the same time.  I just got a call today to help replace a cushion that was the main course for a client’s dog.  Life happens.  Kiss all of your kids!

A Beautiful Home With Pets And Children? Yes!

And another blog on a baby’s room:

For The Baby Book; First Steps and a Design Award

Make it fab!

-Jill

Got a comment?  Reaction?  Question?  Interior Design question…WWJD? (What Would Jill Do) Tell me what’s on your mind.  I love hearing from you!

Photos:  Jill Tran Interior Design and Co.

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For The Baby Book; First Steps and a Design Award

The winners from the 2009 Design Excellence Awards by KC Home Design Magazine were published in their July/August issue with the fantastic finished wood cover.  I get asked quite a bit about the projects I was honored for so thought I would share them here!

A baby’s room I designed for a sweet little girl won the Silver in the Specialty Rooms category.  I am always tickled pink to watch my clients see their homes in print. They get such a kick out of it!  The big question is, “Can we enough copies for all of our friends and family?”

One copy of the mag is going straight to a little girl’s baby book. What a lovely and memorable page that will make for years to come!

Not available in the mag are thes “Before” and “After” shots.  Wow!!!

But before you look….

It is fun to know the client wanted to bring black into her baby’s room…AND she didn’t want a color commitment on the walls!   She wanted it to sing, “baby girl,” but not at such a high volume that it would be overwhelming.  She needed a rocker, but not the typical eye-sore rocker.  Once for storage, I saw this room needed some major changes.

My design solutions?  First, I love the challenge of making black work in a baby’s room!  I brought it into rich accent pieces that my Client can use throughout her entire home in the future, but that are soft enough for the baby room for today.  For the walls I chose a glass bead wallpaper and had panels created for a bit of sparkle and elegance.   A comfortable rocker big enough for Daddy to also sit in, soft sconces on remote control so they could be turned on and off without disturbing Baby and silk and linen drapes make even trips in the wee hours lovely.  Where is the changing table you ask?  In the armoire, of course…all tucked away.

The space is now gorgeous for Mommy to enjoy and peacefully cradle a happy child.  In the future it can even lend itself to a toddler or guest room.

"BEFORE" Crib corner.

"AFTER" Crib corner.

"BEFORE" Storage corner.

"AFTER" Storage corner.

"BEFORE" Window area.

"AFTER" Window area.

"BEFORE" Empty wall, but nice legs!

"AFTER" Now a functional and pretty wall!

I just love how this shot turned out.

I really wanted to give her a special baby gift so I selected scraps of fabric from the drapes, chair and bedding after they were made, and created little clothes for these sweet bunnies I found. The one on the right foreground I added gold wings to.

I added her eyelashes and her little "coat" I made is from the same fabric as the crib's bedskirt. She may get a little toasty...

Thank you again for the awards KC Home Design and such an honorable award.

If It Was Your Home That Won, Would You Jump, Scream or Cry?

There is nothing more thrilling than watching my client’s eyes light up when they walk into their home and see my design for them, for the very first time.  Some jump up and down, some cry, some scream (and keep on screaming for a long time) and some flap their hands. I have also gotten the quiet hands over their mouths clasped in amazement.  For that one, I have to gently remind them to breathe!  It is moments like that that make all the work I do worth every minute.

But, those moments belong to my clients to enjoy every day of THEIR lives.

For me, I get an additional moment in time…an interior design award.

At this year’s Design Excellence Awards on the lovely terrace at 909 Walnut, hosted by Kansas City Home Design magazine, I was honored with two.  One was a gold for Living Room Design and the second was a silver for a precious baby girl’s room I designed in the Specialty Room catagory.  It is hard not to smile (or flap my hands!) when someone recognizes all of my work, creative thoughts and ideas for each space.  We all want to be appreciated.  What many don’t realize about me, is that those awards add to my hopes and joy for each of my clients’ lives, too.  Each design I create is a dream come true for me, as well as them.

Thank you, KC Home Design, Zach Lieberman, Katie Van Luchene, Eryn Swanson and the rest of the staff.  Also, a big thank you to the judges:  Richard Wetzel, Kevin Harden, Kim Tucker, Erin Calvin, Katie Van Luchene, Suzy and Erich Goldstein, Jeremy Knoll and fellow fab blogger Heather Clawson.