Each year, we love being a sponsor of the Traditional Home Hamptons Designer Showhouse. It’s a pleasure to see so many creative interior designers working their magic on a space, and we love the opportunity to partner with one of the designers on a room. This year interior designer Elise Som designed the most beautiful bedroom space using our products. We’re thrilled to be able to share it with you!
We sat down with Elise to chat about her space and learn what inspired this gorgeous bedroom and bath!
Ballard Designs: Where did your inspiration for this room come from?
Elise Som: I was inspired by what nature already offered outside of the house. Green is my favorite color, and I wanted this room to be very soft and elegant at the same. I wanted it to be a reminder of the beach and of the forest, just like the Hamptons. The beach is omnipresent here in the Hamptons, but there are also tons of trees and wooded spaces. So that’s where I drew my inspiration.
I brought that feeling of nature into the space using a blue and green color palette and also using tons of natural materials. Nearly everything in the room has a natural element to it. For example, I used burlap on the window treatments and also on the light fixtures.
BD: Yes! Tell us about the light fixture. It’s such an unusual focal point in the room. But beautiful!
ES: You’re right, the lighting is the biggest statement. I used 5 of your natural woven drum shades. Because of the height of the room, I wanted to play with that height and fill up the space more. Instead of using one large fixture, I chose a grouping of smaller ones at different heights. One large chandelier can be very expensive, so we created the look of one chandelier with lots of smaller shades. It’s a playful and relaxed, just like the Hamptons.
BD: The walls have the most beautiful sheen to them, it makes the space feel so open and light.
ES: We used Ballard Designs’ sisal wallpaper in light turquoise. It’s a beautiful grasscloth wallpaper and goes perfectly with the lighting and the the burlap window treatments. It’s really amazing and fits the room perfectly.
And we used the same wallpaper in a different color in the bathroom. We used a more blue color. We had to work with the brown tiles that were already in the bathroom, and we just thought the blue wallpaper looked great with the brown tile. You don’t always want the bathroom to match the bedroom, so we loved the way the two wallpapers spoke to each other but its still different.
BD: Ok, we obviously have to ask about the succulents on the walls!
ES: I wanted to bring the wooded element of the Hamptons into the room. Yes we have big windows, but I wanted nature to be within the house as well. I made air plants and cactuses as art on the wall. It’s not native to the Hamptons, but it is an element of mother nature inside.
Then we added some succulents over the bed in a rustic frame. It really draws your eye to the headboard wall, which is always the goal in the bedroom.
BD: Tell us about the other art pieces and the accessories.
ES: I love the Silvia Etageres. They’re beautiful pieces. I think most people would use them for books, but me, I didn’t want it to be so bulky. I wanted a more delicate feel for them. They’re airy which was my vision! We used algaes, some boxwoods, and some coral. The gold went beautifully with the green wallpaper we choose too.
Next to the etageres, we used two groupings of your anchor prints. I originally planned to put them over the etageres, but I prefer them flanking the window. They’re strong pieces so they create balance on either side of the tall window treatments. Plus, they echo the Caroline Bed which we upholstered in a navy linen.
BD: We love seeing the way you’ve mixed our pieces together to create a look that coordinates but feels very layered. It’s not all matchy matchy.
ES: No, absolutely not. The green wallpaper was this great jumping off point, but we wanted to bring in varying shades of blues, grays, and greens. So we upholstered the Caroline bed in Navy, used two light gray side tables, gray patterned drapery, and a large upholstered bench in a sky blue. They’re all very similar colors, but nothing matches perfectly which was the goal. It ‘goes’ but doesn’t match!
Also, I wanted to tell you that we got so many compliments on the side tables. Everyone loved that you could pull out the shelf for extra space!
BD: Well we always love to hear that. They’re great tables because they have a tabletop surface, lower shelf, and pull out shelf. Tons of place to put things, but not super heavy!
ES: Exactly! I also liked this bench because I don’t want to put my bag on the bed when I’m visiting for the weekend. I prefer to place it on a bench, ottoman, or luggage rack. This large bench (it’s almost more of a daybed) is perfect because it’s so large. It looks great under the windows, and it’s comfortable enough to read a book.
BD: We almost forgot the bathroom sconces! Let’s talk about those.
ES: The sconces are meant for outdoors. I wanted to use them inside because as a designer, you don’t want every room to look predictable. I wanted something a little different. We loved the gooseneck shape, so we thought it would be fun to put in the bathroom. The shape of the mirror has the same shape as the shade on the sconces. Both go perfectly with the brown tile on the floor.
BD: Well, we love the way this space turned out. We’d certainly love to wake up in this bedroom!
ES: I really love this space too. It was really a fun collaboration with you guys! Thanks for letting my borrow your furniture! You know, I usually prefer more transitional designs, more contemporary shapes, but it was really fun and challenging to use some of your more traditional furniture. Thank you!
Thanks Elise for chatting with us! We love this space and enjoyed working on it with you!
