I was thrilled to be selected as a 2019 Style Spotter for the High Point Market - it’s Fashion Week for home furnishings! As a Style Spotter, I look for trends and fabulous new products that I think are noteworthy and on the cutting edge. I had the chance to get an early look at what’s coming for the April Market, and I chose 5 amazing new products that I think will be showstoppers! Let’s take a look…

Modshop

Known for my use of colour and moments of eye candy in each room I design, I have now fallen head-over-heels in love with textures. Adding another component to my designs means that this incredible tufted green couch by Modshop ticks all the boxes. Traditional in its shape, colourful in the perfect shade of green to balance the sophisticated lines of the furniture. The eye candy is a tie between the textural tufting and the killer brass kick plate. This piece is the perfect foundation for a phenomenal living room!

Streamline Art

Art is a big part of the finishing touches for any room design. Abstract art is a favourite of mine because it can be many things to many people. You can also find abstract art more readily from up-and-coming artists, which means you might be able to purchase more pieces! This piece by Streamline Art is fantastic because of the use of colour and scale. Perfect as the statement piece in a hallway or hanging over a couch or bed.....I might even be tempted to hang it vertically to mix things up!!

vanCollier

The art work of Wendy Concannon has always been a favourite of mine for obvious reasons....colour!! Now available as tables from vanCollier? I mean, come on!! In my mind, no design concept is complete without a small cocktail table that is more art than anything else. The accent, the fun, the eye candy these tables would bring to any room are a home run and definitely the piece that will start conversations! 

Robert James Collection

I am having a love affair with natural wood at the moment. Always one to build a dining room centred around a wooden table, the textural elements of the rough-sawn or quarter-cut tables on the market today have me swooning! This design by Robert James Collection is the perfect table in my opinion. The simplicity of the design allows the transition from modern to transitional depending on the chair selection. It is a statement piece to itself and the warmth of the wood colour is fabulous in any setting!

Robert James Collection

With my obsession for draping curtains on beds, the potential for this incredible four-poster bed is what caught my eye. Needless to say, the beautiful wood treatment, the square posts, the incredible brass details.....this bed by Robert James Collection is one serious bed! Drape sheer white panels around the edges, drape it in colourful sheets, and I am never getting out of bed!!

What do you think of my 5 picks to preview from Market? You can see it all in a video I’ve created for High Point Market on my Instagram account here! And stay tuned - I’ll have more fabulous looks from Market Week April 6-10!

Until next time,

-Cynthia

Every year, paint companies and colour trend forecasters make their predictions for what the Colour of the Year will be in the coming months. Behr says it will be an “uplifiting blue,” Benjamin Moore selected a neutral gray, Sherwin-Williams says it will be a terra cotta colour, and Pantone went bold with a bright coral. But I’m leaning toward the selection by PPG called Night Watch.

PPG’s Night Watch

This is a rich and classic green that I think more people will want to use in their homes. In times of uncertainty, a calming colour always becomes more popular. Plus, green is always listed as the second most popular colour for people, just behind blue. I’ve noticed that I’ve been using it more in my own projects, too!

Selections for one of my projects

Interior designers are always the first to use the latest colours or to spot new ideas before they become trends. As you can see above, I was already starting to gravitate toward deep greens all the way back in July.

A green door in Nantucket

In fact, looking back through my travel photos from 2018, I can see how inspired I was by this deep green colour - in art, in fashion, and even on a door!

I was stopped in my tracks by the incredible green-glazed pottery in Sarah Bartholomew’s Nashville store!

I started specifying even more than usual from this part of the colour chart, as you can see above. So many gorgeous greens to choose from!

Cynthia Ferguson Designs for Alden Parkes

As an early adopter, I’m using these green hues more and more now, like I did above for Alden Parkes. How gorgeous is that Kelly Wearstler fabric for Kravet??

Designers are always early adopters, and working as much as I do with colour I know I’m on the write track. I’m looking forward to 2019 being the Year of Green!

Until next time,

-Cynthia

I absolutely love having family and friends visit during the holidays! Planning those dinner parties and get-togethers are half the fun for me, but I know some people find it to be stressful. The key is to not try to make everything perfect, but to enjoy every moment! So I’ve put together 4 of my best tips to set a stress-free - and gorgeous! - holiday table:

Cynthia Ferguson Designs

Mix high and low

I like to use three categories of items on my tables: current, vintage, and precious. Current could be something you picked up at a store that isn’t necessarily expensive, but you love it! Vintage could be china you inherited from your grandmother, or a great piece of silver you found at an antique store. And precious - well that’s something that holds more sentimental value than monetary value. Then it’s all layered on the table; it makes the look approachable, but still special!!

Cynthia Ferguson Designs

Fresh flowers

Always have fresh flowers or greenery on the table. It could be a bouquet professionally done, or a bunch of seasonal flowers from your local market, or even fresh-cut greenery. If budget is tight, spread the bunch of flowers out by using single bud vases lined down the middle of the table for greater visual impact!

Cynthia Ferguson Designs

Make it personal

If it’s a family gathering, use some vintage pieces passed down to you. If it’s a bunch of friends gathering, make simple place cards, tie ribbon to the back of each chair, and thread the place card through the ribbon

One of my own collections!

Use your collections

There is nothing better than a collection. Maybe it’s a collection of salt and pepper shakers. Maybe a collection of monogrammed napkin. Perhaps a collection of mini nutcrackers. Use your collections to make your table about you and your personality. People are gathering around your table because they want to spend time with you. Show them a little about you through your collections. Don’t have a collection? Start on by searching on Etsy or going to your local thrift store. Start with what speaks to you and go from there!

Use these tips to create new memories this holiday season - and remember to have FUN!!

Until next time,

-Cynthia

It’s Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada, a sign that we’re definitely close to winter and the holiday season. That also means shorter days and longer nights – a time when the lighting in your house becomes even more important! I love finding new and exciting light options for my clients. Here are a few of the top trends in lighting today:

Schoolhouse light, interior design by Cynthia Ferguson

Matte Black. Deep, dark black is a big trend in Europe and it’s starting to appear in homes here! I love the impact it makes when it’s paired with metal, like in this bedside lamp from Schoolhouse that I used in a boy’s room.

Ridgely Studio Works that looks more like an installation than a sconce!

Free-Form Lights. Sculptural designs are taking lighting to a more artful place! I recently worked on a custom commission with Ridgely Studio Works that looks more like an installation than a sconce.

Kelly Wearstler chandelier, interior design by Cynthia Ferguson

Wow-Worthy Chandeliers. This Kelly Wearstler design I used in a master bathroom takes the starburst or Sputnik design to a whole new level! Designed in that oh-so-trendy black, the chandelier adds drama to the decor.

Le Deun Luminaires

LED Lights. LED has been a major trend for lighting manufacturers for a while, but only recently have they made them look as gorgeous as they are efficient! I’m so in love with these gorgeous gold rings from the French company Le Deun Luminaires!

Get Lit

Traditional Shapes. In table lamps, traditional shapes like the ginger jar you see here from Get Lit are coming back in a big way. The green colour definitely speaks to me, too!

Primavera

Bold Color. Speaking of colour, bright pops of colour are being featured not just on the lamps bases, but also on the shades, as you can see in these pretty designs from Primavera. 

Use these ideas to light up your fall and winter days! And if you’re here in Canada, I wish you and your family a very happy Thanksgiving!

Until next time,

-Cynthia