Places Archives - Kathryn Lemaster

Interview with Travel + Safety Podcast

“The podcast for those who want to play it safe while living dangerously” – if that doesn’t sound interesting I don’t know what does! Recently I had the pleasure of being interviewed over coffee and Skype by podcast personality Michael Beattie for his fun and informative show, Travel + Safety! Michael is an Italian and English native who ended up in California and now resides in the Florida Keys. In this episode, we talk a bit about my upbringing, living in the “Natural State”, some design philosophy Q&A, traveling for work, and more! Michael was a true delight to visit with and I found myself wanting to ask him more questions than he asked me during our chat. While I can’t say much for my southern accent (which I didn’t realize was evident until I heard myself talk…) you are certainly in for a treat when it comes to Mr. Beattie’s British accent. 😉 Click the link below to listen to our show!

“TAS033: Experiencing the Incredible Lightness of Being with Kathryn LeMaster ”

I hope you enjoy the show and learn a little something new, too! 🙂

Designer Insights: Interview with Terry’s Fabrics in the UK!

I hope you all have enjoyed a wonderful summer! If we’re connected on social media, you’ve probably seen it’s been a fun and full one around here. (If we’re not connect there… Um, we should be! I’m on Instagram and Twitter daily – @kjlemaster – please reach out and say hello. I’d love to stay in touch with you there!) Time seems to have flown by at lighting speed. It’s hard to believe autumn, my very favorite season, is just around the corner. Lots of exciting things are on the way, including some fall decor inspiration. More on that soon! 😉

A recent highlight I wanted to share with you today: I had the privileged of being interviewed by Terry’s Fabrics, an awesome fabric and home decor resource located in the UK, as a part of their “Designer Insights” blog series! Writing answers for the Q & A and sharing some decor inspiration I’m loving for the Top Choices section was so much fun. I always learn something new about myself and my style through collaborations like this; it is my hope you will learn something new through it, too! Click the article below to read the full page version on their blog. Thanks again to the wonderful Terry’s Fabrics team for the opportunity to be a part of this great series!

Courtesy of: Terrys Fabrics

Reclaimed Barn Beam Table Design Reveal!

Toward the end of 2013 I had the privilege of creating an original table design with the one and only Trevor Thurow! If you missed the beginning of this story, click on back to my post introducing Trevor as well as the first post on our table collaboration to catch up!

Picking up where we left off…

Once we decided on the top and leg design, Trevor worked up this awesome 3D rendering of what the table would look like using a standard trestle beam to brace the legs.

We decided to get even more creative with the center beam, so I worked up some concept drawings to make it more unique!

Trevor, being the artist that he is, came up with a trestle inspired by the first two options, S1 & S2. He worked many hours to bring our barn beam table vision from paper and computer screens to a perfectly crafted reality. Once the table was complete, then I worked many hours to capture the design through one of my graphite drawings.

Are you ready to see the finished product?

Introducing the first original design collaboration of Kathryn J. LeMaster and Trevor Thurow:

(Photos by Trevor and Jenni Thurow via Trevor Thurow Custom Furniture and Design)

How’s that for an original reclaimed barn wood table?! Side-note: I can’t get over those fabulous carved wood wine holders displayed above, also by Trevor. I’m telling you, the guy is a woodworking magician.

Thanks for joining us for this furniture design story. However, the story isn’t over yet, and YOU could be the one to help us write the ending! As of today, this one-of-a-kind table is available to come live happily ever after in your home (or maybe your friends home, if they beat you to it!) For more info and current pricing, please send inquiries to Trevor.

Have a wonderful weekend and stay inspired!

-K

West Coast Weekend

Happy New Year from sunny San Diego, CA! I hope you all had a festive New Year’s kick off with your loved ones and are feeling refreshed and ready for an awesome year ahead.

I took a little time off and flew in yesterday with half of my family for an extended weekend get-away to attended a friend’s wedding… what fun!

I’ve only been here a day and I already LOVE it here. Both the people and the weather are all warm and friendly and the landscape is equally lovely!

Are any of you “west coasters” or know of any must-sees while I’m out this way?

Hope you all have a wonderful first weekend of 2014 and I’ll see you next week!

-K

Cafe Lalo

Ah, Cafe Lalo. Is there a more picturesque french cafe this far from France? I think not.

(Brad Kelly Photo via Cafe Lalo)

This is one of my favorite places to visit in NYC, so naturally we had to have brunch there (my favorite meal) on our recent trip. It felt like visiting an old friend.

(via Cafe Lalo’s Facebook)

There are a million reasons to love this little cafe. Here are a few of mine:

1. It’s famous. It is the meeting place “Joe Fox” and “Kathleen Kelly” (aka Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan) choose to meet in the classic chick flick loved by many, “You’ve Got Mail”. Look familiar?

(via Guest of a Guest)

2. The coffee. It’s delicious. And I love the espresso machine. And the brightly colored cups, saucers, and cream pitchers. Let’s just face it – coffee tastes better when it’s made and served in pretty things.

(KJL)

(via Cafe Lalo’s Facebook)

3. The interior. I love the brick walls, Art Nouveou art, brass rail bakery case, crystal flower track lighting, marble table tops… the list goes on and on.

(via Simple Recipe Raves)

(via Cafe Lalo’s Facebook)

4. The french windows. I know this technically falls under #3, but the windows are so fabulous, they get their own category.

(KJL)

5. The menu. From breakfast to midnight snack and every meal or treat in between, Cafe Lalo features an impossible array of delicious offerings. I say impossible, because it’s impossible to choose, so I always end up placing at least two orders for myself. A personal favorite: the Belgian waffle with home made cinnamon whipped cream and fresh strawberries.

(KJL)

(via Cafe Lalo’s Facebook)

6. The details. From the working vintage cash register to the souvenir match boxes… it’s the unique and unforgettable details that make Cafe Lalo so special.

(via Cafe Lalo’s Facebook)

Need I say more? I think not.

So next time you’re near the Upper West Side of Manhattan, you most definitely should stop in. Even if you only have time for a cupcake, it will be totally worth it. Until then, you should go like their Facebook page and check out their website.

It’s one of my happy places. I close my eyes and imagine that giant yellow cup of coffee and suddenly all is right in the world.

Happy November. Stay inspired!

-K

New York, New York

Happy Monday! Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

As I mentioned in my previous post, here are a few of my other favorite shots I took on our recent trip to NYC!

Hope you enjoyed this little snapshot tour of our trip to NYC. There’s so much more beauty where these came from accompanied by more history and culture – not to mentioned mesmerizing architecture around every corner. (I still have a crick in my neck from walking around looking straight up for hours on end just drooling over all of the mouldings.) I highly recommend a trip to NYC, especially if you’ve never been!

Don’t you just love New York in the fall?

New York City is dear to my heart. I used to visit every chance possible while my sister went to school in the heart of Manhattan for 4 years. It became especially special, however, in March of 2008 when my now husband completely surprised me on one of those visits to see my sister, showing up on top of Belvedere Castle in Central Park and proposing to me.

Sneaky AND romantic!

Well, our 5 year wedding anniversary was a week ago today, so Will and I flew out first thing last Saturday morning for an extended weekend in NYC to celebrate. Of course we had to return to the spot where it all began.

This is us at the scene of the surprise, five and a half years later:

What a wonderful 5 years it’s been!

Of all of my visits to the Big Apple, this was my first visit in October, and my was it lovely! Temperatures in the mid 60’s, sunshine and blue skies, and the leaves had already begun to change for fall. We strolled through Central Park for about 3 hours one afternoon and soaked in the symphony of colors and critters that unfolded around every turn.

These were just a few of my favorite shots from our stroll in the park. It was an amazing trip and I can’t wait to share more of my favorite photos from around the city, soon.

The week of celebrating isn’t over yet, because tomorrow brings another favorite day of my year – my birthday! 🙂

Hope you all have had a great week and are heading into a wonderful weekend, too!

-K

The Farmers Market

Hope everyone had a great weekend. We went to visit our friends, who moved up to Columbia MO a few months ago, so it was the best of weekends! One of my favorite things that we got to do with them during our stay was shopping at their local farmers market.

It was just the funnest thing ever – so beautiful and inspiring, too! Everyone had their products displayed so nicely in their booths. Everything looked like fall and smelled like fresh coffee and baked goods. I’m not sure how I’ve managed to miss out on the local farmers market experience at home, because I absolutely loved the one up there. Note to self: go to Arkansas farmers markets. Like, now.

(photo cred: Laura)

My take-aways from our market trip were an amazing cup of freshly pressed french-press coffee by the Fretboard Coffee, Inc. and a giant basil plant that cost a whopping $3. What?! It matches Laura’s basil plant (above) she picked up on an earlier visit, along with some tomatoes and farm fresh eggs. Omelette, anyone?

Trevor Thurow Custom Furniture & Design

Today it’s my pleasure to introduce to you the incredible Trevor Thurow Custom Furniture and Design! Trevor and his lovely wife, Jenni, are based out of Austin, Texas – a state near and dear to my heart. (I was born in Dallas and let’s face it, once a Texan, always a Texan!) 🙂

Trevor is ridiculously gifted at was he does – his work is simply spectacular! Everything from the furniture style to the variety of materials used is precisely my cup of tea. Check out some of my favorite pieces of his work below!

Awesome, right? To read more about the above pieces and see more of Trevor’s work, be sure to check out and like their Facebook page and visit their website.

Now that you’ve met Trevor Thurow Custom Furniture and Design, I’m so excited to share that I’ve been asked to work with them to design a piece of furniture from these amazing old barn wood beams! What?!

I’m extremely honored to be teaming up with them on this one-of-a-kind project. It’s going to be a blast!

Stay tuned to my blog and Trevor’s blog to follow the design and production process over the next month.

Back to sketching! 😉

Ikea Love

Can we just talk about how much I love Ikea for a moment? I love the product variety and reasonable prices. I love the innovative thinking of the product designers. I love the crazy Swedish product names. I love their cinnamon rolls (and free coffee if you’re an Ikea Family Member, which you should be). Where else can you go for a combined dining and designing + showroom and shopping experience? Nowhere I tell you. Nowhere.

I returned home from Dallas via Frisco yesterday in order to stop by Ikea on the way out of town. I needed to pick up something for a client as well as pay a visit to my Swedish “family” and pick up a few treats for myself. It’s always a sweet, sweet reunion (partially because of my traditional cinnamon roll snack).

During this visit, I met this chair named Strandmon and I really wanted to take him home! He’s very handsome, super comfy, and comes in gray or orange linen or dark blue velvet… and is only $279!

Allow me to introduce you to my new crush, Mr. Strandmon Wing Chair.

Here’s a pic from Ikea’s inspiration gallery of Strandmon and a few of his buddies chillin with Isala (the cute little coffee table.)

Yep. I’m bumping two orange Strandmons to the top of my wishlist. I’ll come back for you someday, my dears!

If you live far away from an Ikea store as I do, you may find it helpful to know that Ikea’s website has great inspiration galleries for various room types. It’s the next best thing to visiting the showroom in person, as it helps to see how items can look within a certain context and a great way to get ideas on how to incorporate their products! Here are a few of my favorite Ikea inspiration pics:

How about those yellow Stockholm swivel chairs?! Super fun and funky and a great pop in this living space! View more products from this space here.

Who knew you could create a complete kitchen design including cabinets and countertops all at Ikea? It’s a one stop shop I tell you! View this image and find out item details here.

From the dining room gallery, I’m loving this rustic/industrial look! For more item details, click here.

Last but not least, how about this cozy living room? What a great way to create a Pottery Barn type feel, but for a fraction of the cost! More details on this space, here.

I hope you enjoyed this little Ikeaspiration sampling. If you get a chance to go by a store soon, please give Strandmon my love. Thanks!