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Lighting

Island Christmas
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A Remote Christmas Holiday

Melanie Morris December 1, 2020 Beach / Caribbean, Furnishings, Interior Design, Kitchens, Lighting, Outdoor Living, Tips & Tricks 0

A St. Thomas Christmas
How do you and your family celebrate the holidays? Does everyone gather at a family member’s home to enjoy great company and great food? Or is it a time for an annual dining experience at your favorite local restaurant? What about a Christmas getaway kind of custom? Many families spend their Christmas holiday with a classic Christmas family vacation filled with luxury and tradition. This take on Christmas makes it one to remember every year with new adventures and joyous memories made in paradise. There are a few things to consider for your vacation home with an added island style for a magical experience during the most magical time of the year.

A Remote Christmas Holiday

 

Exotic holiday vacation spots can bring the festive yuletide, minus the snow. The culture, seasonality, and entertainment of your destination will make for a memorable adventure. With these vacation rental tips, your home will be the perfect place to “sleigh” the holidays.

1. Comforts of Home

Coming home for the holidays does not mean you have to go to your family’s permanent residence. Coming home for the holidays can also mean coming home to your family’s holiday island excursion. Spending the holidays in a home away from home still leaves a yearning for those little things in life that bring us comfort and cheer during this joyous season. Leaving plenty of room for holiday décor is one way to help make a holiday retreat extra special. Let those lights, tinsel, and holly fly! Ample amounts of kitchen space for families to gather in and make memories together to prepare all of their favorite decadent holiday delights is a sure way to make sure everyone’s spirits are bright. 

 

A Remote Island Christmas

 

2. One of a Kind Design

Unlike your typical hotel and resorts, vacation homes are much more personal and family-friendly. The amount of control you have over your vacation rental allows you to create a one-of-a-kind design for your guests to enjoy. Whether you are renting a beachfront or a villa that overlooks the island’s twinkling lights, your vacation rental will be the perfect home base for island visitors. Capitalizing on design elements that make St. Thomas a memorable and exotic experience is another way to make your guests’ accommodations unique. Gathering places that go beyond the living room, such as fire pits or outdoor seating areas that face the ocean’s grandness, offer memorable Christmas moments that you can only enjoy in a place like St. Thomas.

 

Island Christmas

 

3. Family Friendly

Not all vacation spots are the same. After a long year of COVID and many other hurdles, families will be planning on reconnecting to close out this year together. Family-friendly spaces will be environments for more intimate events but allow plenty of wiggle room for those larger families who have survived this year together. Open kitchens, sofa filled lounges, or roomy decks overlooking the beach are all ways you can prepare your home for plenty of space to play, dine, and celebrate. 

To pull off a St. Thomas Christmas holiday experience, give us a call. Our perspective and well-experienced team know island vacation rentals inside and out. We can weave the holidays’ magic with the prestige of island paradise, so the only question will be where you want to spend the holidays this year?

Kitchen Design Tips
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How to Design the Perfect Kitchen

Melanie Morris November 15, 2020 Beach / Caribbean, Interior Design, Kitchens, Lighting, Tips & Tricks 1

The kitchen is the heart and soul of many homes. There is something special about having all of your favorite people in one place to enjoy some delicious food and lasting memories. As you and your families begin to plan and prepare for the holiday season, you may find yourself spending a lot more time in this area of your home if you haven’t already been this year. In our previous blog post, How to Design Your Vacation Rental, we talk about the kitchen arena’s importance. Because of the kitchen’s larger footprint, we thought it would be best to devote a blog article to include anything and everything in its own entry. If you plan on remodeling or updating aspects of your kitchen, there are quite a few things to consider. 

Kitchen Design Tips

APPLIANCES

How many people do you anticipate having in your home at any given time? This will help you decide on the size of furniture and appliances to purchase. If you have a group of 12 or more in attendance for a gathering, you may want to splurge on a larger fridge, (or multiple refrigerators) to store larger quantities of groceries and any prepped dishes that require refrigeration. If you are limited on space, an extra outdoor fridge or dry bar area could take care of any overflow items you may accumulate. If you own a seaside location, consider an ice maker as well to keep island cocktails cool and water fresh.

Heating elements in your kitchen are another important appliance piece of your kitchen. We recommend induction cooktops for preparing a fantastic dish. They heat quickly like a gas stove but do not have an open flame. This set up is also super easy to clean. If you are one who has family members with dietary restrictions, multigenerational families, or if you are hosting your family’s holiday gathering this year, here is our favorite kitchen appliance piece to help you cook your traditional favorites. While this appliance is a little on the expensive side, this microwave/convection oven is a huge space saver that can hold a larger size pan.

No matter what your appliance choices are, it is always best to choose your appliances first. They are the functional part of the design, and appliances have very limited size options. Cabinets can be made in any size so it’s best to fit the cabinets around the appliances. 

CABINETS 

Your cabinets should be paired with the heart and character of your home. If you are thinking of updating your cabinets but unsure what options to go with, we recommend hiring a professional. There are many trends and styles out there to filter through and having a professional’s perspective can help you make choices that will suit both your home’s style and your family’s needs.

Cabinets are lasting fixtures in your home and a big investment so tapping into a pro’s knowledge even if they charge a fee is usually worth it! You can opt for custom cabinetry tailored to your home’s exact size and style and equipped with extra organizers if the budget allows. You could also explore pull pantry or trash units to help increase storage and make navigating storage even easier for you and your family. Here is our favorite cabinet style, hands down. The enduring classic, the Shaker cabinets. These cabinets can be dressed up in various ways and have many subtle variations to help you style them for a specific look.

COUNTERTOPS

When it comes to countertops, quartz is our go-to. This man-made material is durable, affordable, and gives a fresh, clean look to a kitchen. There are an infinite number of styles, colors, patterns to choose from in the world of quartz surfaces. If you’d prefer a more luxurious countertop, you could opt for granite or quartzite. These natural stone options are beautiful and well worth the investment. When you are designing your countertops, make sure you have plenty of counter space that maintains the room’s flow. If the room feels a little tight, don’t feel like you have to have a piece that does not fit your space. A countertop fit for a breakfast bar or a built-in banquette dining makes for perfect space savers that still allow everyone to gather in for a casual lunch.

LIGHTING

Ample lighting in the kitchen is essential. With all the activities in your kitchen, it will serve you better to have plenty of light for any task or event. Your space should include overhead and under-cabinet lighting to allow for easy use and overall warmth in the space. That homey feeling can also be brought in with decorative pendant lighting to accentuate the room’s overall look and feel. 

COLOR CHOICES

Color choices can amplify the personality of your kitchen. Dropping a brightly colored kitchen backsplash to your cooking area is a great way to add a little extra flair. This small area is not too hard to change out or add in later, and it can make a massive difference to your master chef environment. Here are some other ways to add color to your kitchen:

  1. Colorful Dishtowels
  2. Serve-ware
  3. A Fun Toaster
  4. Coffee Maker
  5. Colorful Dinnerware
  6. Cookware

DINING ROOM AND SEATING

The more, the merrier! Make sure you have enough seats for the maximum number of people you plan on having in your home. Another thing to remember is the purpose of the gathering. Is it meant to be more of a formal dining entertainment event or a fun come and go setting where swimsuits are welcome? Family is family, which does not mean you all must sit together to enjoy the others company. Whether your guests are seated at the breakfast bar or dining table, as long as everyone is together in the same house, and they can feel the love, you are good to go. For dining table selections, glass is always super easy to clean. However, if fingerprints will drive you nuts, maybe a rustic edge wood table would serve you better. Remember, seating for guests should be comfortable and relatively easy to move if anyone needs to be squeezed in. It is okay to spend a little more on a chair that will hold up better and provide sturdy support for all of your guests.  

 

 

We hope this discussion helps you start thinking of those essential elements needed for your kitchen renovation or update. We are happy to provide our expertise in the transformation and would love to discuss your kitchen project details. Going through the process will significantly impact yours and your families’ quality time, where so many activities and memories are made.

Book here, today! 

Are you looking for the perfect kitchen accessories for the holidays? Check out my latest guide on items that all ship to the VI!

Ocean view out of a chic guest bedroom
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What NOT to do when Designing and Decorating an Island Home

PMMAdmin3 October 29, 2019 Color, Furnishings, Lighting, Tips & Tricks 0

Designing and decorating an Island home is much different from one in a city or suburb in the North. Once you select your property, there is a lot to consider in the planning stages. From incorporating views, to choosing materials suitable for the climate, it’s easy to slip up during the process.

Clients dream of enjoying their ideal vacation home. They long for a space complete with a beautiful outdoor area, tropical decor and of course, an enchanting view. When it comes to the tropics, there are specific things which clients need to consider when designing or decorating an island home.

With all you invest in a holiday home, you don’t want to miss a moment relishing the beautiful surroundings. The primary focus when designing a vacation property should be incorporating the view. For ease and simplicity, our clients choose to have professional guidance when building their custom vacation home.

Tiffany Cassidy, Lagnappe Custom Interiors.

The following is a list of common issues which occur when designing an island home:

  1. You’re not maximizing the view.

    Clients typically reside in locations which lack beautiful, natural surroundings, especially tropical ones. When they purchase a vacation property in the islands, they choose a place with an incredible view. Not maximizing the opportunities to see it is the number one fall when investing in a vacation home. Of course, you can step outside and relish the sea and vegetation, but you want to enjoy the vistas while indoors too. A builder can help achieve this, but you need to consider how you’re using your windows.

    The Fix: Don’t block your view with curtains.

    “To be honest, I love curtains more than most people, but not when they cover up the glass on a window with an amazing view,” says Tiffany. “You paid extra for that view, do the drapery right and you can accentuate your view, rather than cover it!”

    Modern designs are all about clean, geometric lines, which allow a lot of light. Invest in custom window coverings, such as motorized blinds or roller shades. They can transform a dark room into a beautifully well-lit room looking out to the ocean. Rather than clutter the window, they can be hidden away when not in use with the touch of a button. They allow you to maximize your view by day and sleep in with blackout blinds on your vacation. Motorized blinds integrate with Smart Home technology, such as Control4 and Nest. These high-tech designs also allow you to control settings with timers and amount of light you wish to let in. Ocean view out of a chic guest bedroom

  2. You haven’t clearly defined a focal point for the room.

    Again, when on vacation, you want to take advantage of time embracing the tropical surroundings. In most island homes, it should be the view which is the focal point. Of course, clients wish to personalize their home with art, decor, and unique features, but it’s what’s outside which should be the focus.  

    The Fix: Arrange your furniture around the window.

    “You’d be surprised how many homes I go into where the sofa is turned with its back to the view, and the focal point is the TV,” Tiffany jokes. “Pretend the window is the TV with the best view, and arrange seating accordingly.”

    From the initial planning stages, make a clear choice to determine which window has the best vista. Arrange your couches, coffee table, and furniture so you’re looking out to the sea, and find a place for the TV last. Consider clever ways to hide your TV, such as a cabinet, or behind frames or a screen. You don’t want to distract from the view when not it’s in use.

  3. Too much Caribbean Color

    Colorful pastels of different shades on the Caribbean color palette add to the overall island vibe. While these eclectic colors add to the joy of being on vacation, they can become too much when over used in a home. Too much color can distract from your furniture, decor, and even the view.

    “I know, the vibrant colors of the islands are inspiring, we love them too! However, if you paint each room a different ‘Caribbean color’, you will soon find it overwhelming,” says Tiffany.

    The Fix: Use nature to inspire color choice

    “Inspiration from nature is the best way to go. Use the neutral tones to inform color choice for the ‘big stuff’,” says Tiffany.

    The Caribbean color palette doesn’t necessarily need to be bright and bold. It can be playing on coastal colors of light blue, brown, or beige. Think about the shades of the drift wood on the beach, or the color of the sand and stones. Soft shades can inspire as well, like the creamy color of a conch shell. Use these tones for the paint on the walls, tiles, and cabinets. Vibrant shades, like the bright color of the inside of a conch shell, can then be used to accentuate. 

    “When you keep flooring, walls, and cabinets in understated tones, you can add the bright colors in the accents and accessories, like pillows and bedding. This makes it easy to change your look in the future as well,” exclaims Tiffany.
    A living and dining room that uses conservative colors indoors allows the accentuates the colors from the view outside.

  4. Not enough lighting

    “We love our large expansive views and indoor-outdoor feel here.  Large windows and sky lights provide a room with natural light from the sun during the day. At night, however, if a room is not equipped with the right lighting, it can appear very dim,” says Tiffany. 

    The Fix: Look to light the room in layers

    By layering light, you create atmosphere within a room. Interior designers put together different textures, fabrics, colors and materials together to create the feel of a room. Similarly, layering light is by adding different types of lighting to create a particular mood or feel.

    “The first is ambient lighting. It’s the general, overall glow which makes nighttime into daytime.  Ambient lighting is often achieved with track, recessed, or overhead cove lighting. You may need professional help to add this to an existing space, but it will be worth it.  Second is task lighting. It helps you see to actually do something, like a reading lamp next to your bed, or under-cabinet lighting in the kitchen. Last, there is accent lighting. Is there a pretty painting that needs to be highlighted with a sconce, or a textured wall to be featured? Look for opportunities to decorate with light,” says Tiffany. A modern kitchen and dining room with great lighting

  5. You bought furniture without a ‘space plan’

    You fell in love with a gorgeous, comfy sectional you saw in a stateside showroom, but now there’s little room for anything else.Often clients will choose things they see in the showroom, because they like the look. However, they take a guess, and haven’t correctly determined if it will fit. 

    “It’s very hard to interpret scale in a showroom.  Even as a seasoned professional, I am often surprised to measure a sofa in a showroom and find it’s a 108” when I thought I was looking at an 84”. Showrooms are huge, and even large pieces do not look big in that setting,” says Tiffany. 

    The fix: Measure the room and determine a ‘space’ plan before you shop.

    Measure and record the scale of the rooms, including the lengths, widths, and heights of floors, walls, and windows. Bring these dimensions when you shop, and share them with the sales people. They can advise you which items will be scaled correctly for the space. Scale is important, as even if they fit, a space will quickly feel cluttered if the furniture is too big. 

    “If you are decorating a vacation home, you need to leave space for people and their STUFF!” Tiffany laughs.

    Space planning can be challenging. It is worth investing in a designer’s time to get it done correctly.

  6. Your furniture isn’t old, but it’s looking kind of shabby

    In a small space, every piece of furniture is used every day. Especially in an island vacation home, your furniture will have a hard life. Island elements like the sun and salt water, and also vacation renters, will wear out fabrics faster. Your space will start to look noticeably less fresh.

    The fix: Invest in higher quality furniture

    It’s no secret that cheaper furniture will wear out faster. With high quality furniture, the foam in the cushions and frames are made to last longer. There really is a difference in furniture quality, specifically, with the durability of the fabrics. Choose reputable brands, and especially ones recommended by professionals who work in the tropics.

    “We love to add machine-washable slip covers to upholstered items. It makes it easy to keep them looking and smelling fresh,” says Tiffany.

    Designing and decorating Caribbean vacation homes can be challenging and time consuming. By investing in the help of professionals, such as Lagnappe Custom Interiors, the process can be easy and enjoyable. With experience working with clients in the islands, they provide unrivaled knowledge when planning your tropical getaway home.


Lagnappe Custom Interiors is a full-service interior design firm, specializing in bringing the small niceties to a home or commercial space that make it memorable, functional and yours. Based out of St. Thomas, Lagnappe [LAN-YAP] is led by Tiffany Cassidy who enjoys working with clients to create a home that reflects their style and needs. Tiffany marries her artistic and scientific sides together to bring the residents of the Virgin Islands and continental U.S. an interior decorating service that manages the complex and turns it into beauty. Her goal is to not only make a home prettier, but in doing so, make your life better. Visit www.Lagnappe.com for more information.

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How to Choose Interior Lighting for Every Room in the Home

lagnappe February 4, 2019 Lighting, Tips & Tricks 0

This comes as a surprise to many people (and clients!), but you don’t have to keep the lighting that was in your home when you bought it. It’s true! There are so. Many. Options. Gone are the days when a single light fixture in a room was sufficient or that all the fixtures need to be the same throughout the house. Here are some ways to choose lighting for any room in your home, as well as some different types of fixtures to spark your imagination.

Size is a top thing to consider when choosing a fixture. A good basic equation to keep on hand is to add the length of the room plus the width of the room, and that measurement in inches should be the approximate diameter of your light fixture:

Width of room (10 feet) + Length of room (12 feet) = Diameter of light fixture (22 inches)

This equation will keep the light fixture on scale with the rest of the space, and keep lighting from either overpowering or looking oddly small.

Use is something else to make sure and consider before installing lighting. If the living area is used for relaxing and entertaining, there’s no need for lots of bright fluorescent lights. The kitchen, however, is not the place to be without adequate light.

Lastly, haven’t you always wondered how high lighting is supposed to be? For pendant lights, measure 66-72 inches from the floor to the bottom of the fixture. For lighting above a dining table, hang the fixture 28-36 inches from the table top to the bottom of the fixture. Where people may be walking underneath the fixtures, like in living areas, bedrooms or hallways, leave a 7-foot clearance when possible. If you have shorter 8-foot ceilings, a lower-profile fixture is the way to go (keep reading for more info!).

In addition to HOW to choose a light fixture, it can be hard to know what KIND to choose as well. Here are some basics:

Flush Mount/Semi-flush Mount

These fixtures hug the ceiling or hang just a few inches down. They offer the “low profile” mentioned above, and are great for smaller rooms or rooms with lower ceilings.

Pendant

Pendant lighting has become more popular in the last few years, and it can often be seen in kitchens, though pendants are making their way into every room of the home. A pendant light – or grouping of pendant lights – hang from long cords or bars and can be quite dramatic.

Chandelier

A “classic” lighting fixture, the modern chandelier is a far cry fro your grandmother’s, dripping in crystals (though those are still around too!). Chandeliers can be made from anything now, and are often used to fill larger spaces.

Floor and table lamps

Lamps are another way to add light to a room without needing to hang anything. From architectural pieces to timeless lampshades, the possibilities are endless.


About Lagnappe Custom Interiors

Lagnappe Custom Interiors is a full-service interior design firm specializing in bringing the small niceties to a home or commercial space that make it memorable, functional and yours. Based out of St. Thomas, Lagnappe [LAN-YAP] is led by Tiffany Cassidy who enjoys working with clients to create a home that reflects their style and needs. Tiffany marries her artistic and scientific sides together to bring the residents of the Virgin Islands and continental U.S. an interior decorating service that manages the complex and turns it into beauty. Her goal is to not only make a home prettier, but in doing so, make your life better. Visit www.Lagnappe.com for more information.

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Caribbean Sun: Incorporating Yellow Into Your Home

lagnappe April 18, 2018 Color, Furnishings, Lighting 0

This is post #3 in our spring color blog series! We’re offering ideas and inspiration for those wanting to add more color into their homes, but are maybe unsure of how to go about it. Our design philosophy is about making a space beautiful and liveable. The color yellow has sometimes been relegated to muted kitchens or a neutral baby’s room. But the Caribbean sun is bright, vibrant and alive! Here are some ideas for brining the sunshine into your home without getting burned.

Want some more color? Check out our blue and green posts and stay tuned for more in this color series!

A sunny yellow pendant light in the kitchen can bring some personality to a space that gets used a lot. It may bring you some energy on early mornings!
Even though the outdoors is often bright enough, some sunny yellow patio furniture creates a welcoming space. Forget traditional brown wicker and go for bold yellow chairs or accent pillows.
  Sometimes painting an entire room yellow can be too much. But a tiled accent wall can provide just the right pop of color.
If painting IS the way to go for you, a softer yellow is a good idea for a bedroom. It keeps things light and cheery without being too loud and making your restful bedroom too “alive” for sleeping. A muted yellow tone can almost serve as a neutral canvas that you can build on.  
  Yellow wainscoting or paneled walls set a soft and cheerful mood in a dining space. You can imagine hosting brunch here or enjoying dinner with your family.
Back in the kitchen, painting cabinets yellow is a great way to incorporate color without fear of going too bold. Make sure the color is soft but not too beige-y to avoid a flat, monochromatic look.  
  If yellow cabinets still seem like too much, a yellow valance over a window brings a nice vibrancy to the sink. You’re doing dishes and preparing food there, so you may as well have something bright and fun to look at!
Say you DO want something bright and bold. Nothing does that better than yellow! Home accents in bright yellow tones bring the eye to places in the room normally overlooked.  
If you must work at home, creating a space that you actually enjoy working in is key. Yellow is a great color for an office as it can help energize you and keep you motivated. A cheery wallpaper in a small office space may make you more productive!

We hope you’ll join us for our next color series installment: orange! Wanting some design inspiration? Contact us, we can help!


About Lagnappe Custom Interiors

Lagnappe Custom Interiors is a full-service interior design firm specializing in bringing the small niceties to a home or commercial space that make it memorable, functional and yours. Based out of St. Thomas, Lagnappe [LAN-YAP] is led by Tiffany Cassidy who enjoys working with clients to create a home that reflects their style and needs. Tiffany marries her artistic and scientific sides together to bring the residents of the Virgin Islands and continental U.S. an interior decorating service that manages the complex and turns it into beauty. Her goal is to not only make a home prettier, but in doing so, make your life better. Visit www.Lagnappe.com for more information.

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Powder Room Sinks, Perfectly Coastal

lagnappe July 12, 2017 Furnishings, Lighting, Niceties 0

If there’s anywhere in your home you can be a little more adventurous with your design choices, it’s in the powder room, with the powder room sink. This half bath is typically on the main floor and serves as a guest restroom and can be a really fun place to show off a bold style.

The sink is an often-overlooked element of design that can easily serve as a centerpiece of a powder room. While you may not want to see these throughout other baths in the home, they offer a lighthearted sense of whimsy and bring the ocean indoors.

via Overstock.com
 A literal interpretation, this clamshell pedestal sink is dainty and feminine.
Another great image of the sea creates a dramatic place to wash up with this bronze nautilus shell powder room sink.

via Overstock.com
A frosty “seaglass” powder room sink offers a more subtle, modern look.
The bathroom becomes a whale of a good time with this beautiful ocean-inspired powder room sink (with a tail!).
This beautiful mosaic sink is elegant, and the starfish drain stop adds a luxurious touch of the sea.

We can help you design the perfect powder room! Drop us a line and let’s create something great together.

Lagnappe Custom Interiors is a full-service interior design firm, specializing in bringing the small niceties to a home or commercial space that make it memorable, functional and yours. Based out of St. Thomas, Lagnappe [LAN-YAP] is led by Tiffany Cassidy who enjoys working with clients to create a home that reflects their style and needs. Tiffany marries her artistic and scientific sides together to bring the residents of the Virgin Islands and continental U.S. an interior decorating service that manages the complex and turns it into beauty. Her goal is to not only make a home prettier, but in doing so, make your life better. Visit www.Lagnappe.com for more information.

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  • St. Thomas Christmas Traditions
  • A Remote Christmas Holiday
  • Seasonal Living Magazine’s Virtual Showhouse
  • How to Design the Perfect Kitchen
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Compass Point Marina
St. Thomas, VI 00802

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