Tromp Loy...

Do you have a room that is basically the catch-all room?  For me, that would be my home office.  When we first moved in, I painted it a dark navy, just to get rid of the builders beige, but never really went any farther.  The hubs, Bob, and I decided to have an impromptu New Years gathering a few weeks ago and since the only place to put the coats was in the office,  I found myself opening the door a crack and just tossing the coats in while trying to distract everyone from the disaster that was inside!  Enough was enough, I needed to do that room! 

But...I'm not finished with it yet!  I tried to get it done in time for today's post, but didn't make it!  I will tell you that I love it.  I'm not completely sold on the color yet, so that may eventually change, but for now, it is beautiful!  The color is bright.  Not in the "fresh" sense of bright, but in the "don-the-sunglasses-vitamin-D-producing-write-it-in-caps-and-say-it-loud-and-in-your-best-soprano-voice....BRIIIIIIIGHT!"  I haven't put up the window treatments, and some of the furniture is missing, so I will withhold final judgement - it may tone down.  Next week, you can be the judge...

Enough of that.  Because I am working on a small project for one of the walls, I thought I would show some of the trompe l'oeil (pronounced tromp loy) projects I've done.  Trompe l'oeil means "fool the eye" and is a very popular paint treatment.  There are masters that have painted a glorious painting, then painted a trompe l'oeil fly on the canvas!  I went to the National Gallery of Art a few years ago to see the Trompe L'oeil exhibit and actually told the boys to behave themselves or the security guard would get mad...only to realize that the security guard was trompe l'oeil!  It was alot of fun.

Trompe L'oeil by Borrel del Caso

Now, my work is nothing like the masters, but it's fun and lighthearted.  I guess mine would be more "tromp loy", said with a Jersey accent, than "Trompe L'oeil"  said very french-ly.

A powder room view of Franklin Farm lake in our last house.

I loved doing this for my client - these little chicks were taken out of a vintage children's book!

As an aside...you can just see the hand painted scrollwork I painted on her beams in the adjoining room.

The cabin room at the lake.

My current laundry room - this is where I WISH I was doing laundry!

The rest of the laundry room wall.

Hand painted gingham fabric on an old book case.

Not quite trompe l'oeil, but a hand painted welcome to my home!

This little guy is a nod to the Fox Mill area in which we live. 

I can't wait until next week when I can show you the office.  Go buy your sunglasses now and have a great week!