Ruby Blue

I would like to start off by saying that even though I have a degree in Interior Design, I have never considered myself to be especially talented or well versed in the art of decorating a home, which may come as a surprise to those of you that aren't really sure what interior design is if it is not decorating a home.  And, if you're still doubtin', please trust me that it is so much more.  Sometimes I think that if maybe I had a lot more $$, or if I owned my own home, that I would be able to experiment more and actually have decorating skills to draw upon....but until then I spend endless hours dreaming of ideas I would "one day" like to execute.  I work with what I have which happens to include a very old and neglected (but charming) rent house on campus with a landlord who doesn't give a rip if I paint the walls. (yes!)  

Which now brings me to the fact that I have been thinking about my best friend Fronnie a lot lately who currently lives in Cairo, Egypt with her husband.  (They both teach at an American school, and with all the recent citizen uprisings they decided to get the heck out of dodge for a while until it cools down a bit.) Last summer, she came back home for a short visit and brought me two royal blue pillow cases.  I loved them but didn't really know where I could use them.  My bedroom is pretty green and my living room remains completely unfinished but looks as though I was steering it in the red & neutral direction with hints of yellow.  Perhaps I haven't ever truly tried to do anything with that room because I wasn't happy with those ideas and then it hit me: royal blue.  Perfect.  SO I have officially found the inspiration for my living room!

This first picture is of my very RED couch, the curtains my mom made and the pillow case from Egypt.  One of my favorite things is to mix patterns, and I think these go great together. Not sure about the zebra rug yet but I'm thinking it will work out just fine:

This next little piece of artwork is just stretched linen, a cheapy thing I found at Target a few years ago:

Somewhere along the line a lot of my decor in the living room is Asian inspired, which is fine with me! It was so unintentional though that it boggles my mind how I didn't notice. I also have a yellowish/gold blanket from Thailand that my friend Carter gave me and several red and gold decorations from the Orient that belonged to my grandpa.  So I think a pop of royal blue (perhaps on one or more of the walls) will be just the thing. I love how it can go so many ways from elegant to modern to eclectic to traditional.  Below are just a few images of royal blue inspired design that tickle my fancy:

  

decorpad.com

decorpad.com