in the fall of 2023, my son was a senior in high school and my daughter was in her last year of middle school. we knew we would be facing big transitions for both of them the following year as theo would begin college and lucy would start high school. after fourteen years in colorado, we decided to make those transitions from my hometown of berkeley, california. i am eternally grateful to my first husband and to my children (hank needed no convincing - he LOVES the temperate weather of northern california - boulder got both too hot and too cold for his liking) for supporting this move as it allowed me to spend so much more time with my father in his last, sweet chapter and to finally reground myself in the bay area, where my heart feels best.
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my new house in BERKELEY! x0x0x
when i returned to my hometown of berkeley, california after living in a variety of cities over thirty years, i wanted to create a home that represented all of the adventures i shared with my family across the globe. this 1880s farmhouse in southwest berkeley, that was completely renovated and modernized, felt like the perfect canvas.
a wooden staircase leads to the home’s main entrance on the second floor, which includes the living room, dining area and kitchen, the primary bedroom and ensuite bath and another upstairs bedroom and bathroom. a long deck extends off the back of the house and is accessible from sliding glass doors in both the primary bedroom and the kitchen. the downstairs has an office, which doubles as a guest room, a third bathroom and a lounge area with floor to ceiling cabinetry and bookshelves. the third floor is a long, wide library with access to the roof deck that has views of the bay bridge and san francisco.
the exterior of the home is painted a deep charcoal with navy undertones and white trim. cedar siding centers the staircase and the front door. the interior palette includes clean white walls throughout, white oak flooring, cool grays in the tile and blond wood kitchen and bathroom cabinets all punctuated with matte black hardware, lighting fixtures and black steel railings. texture and color pops are brought in with the art pieces, rugs and textiles, giving the home vibrancy and warmth. the fifteen foot ceilings on the main floor give the space an open, gallery-like feel. we had fun playing with art placement, hanging pieces at various, sometimes unexpected heights.
Read Morefebruary's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x0x0x
(river run 2024 by ann rhode, 69W x 69L”)
river run is made with one block, a half-square triangle made two ways. some are made with only one fabric and some are made with a strip on one edge.
the colors are a contrast of warm neutrals with soft rusts in the strips contrasting with the cool blues to make the river against the sandy shore.
annette chavez fountain beautifully quilted river run using ripples in the water and pebbles in the sandy parts.
the tears (and FEARS!) of a clown! x00x
for as long as i can remember, i have been pretty scared of clowns. i don’t like full face make-up for costumes or life as it makes it hard for me to understand someone’s face (probably why i have trouble when my fifteen year old daughter’s application veers into tammy faye - i just love her CLEAN face!) but the white paint on a clown and the exaggerated, big red smile makes my spine go cold. i can’t bear those 60s clown paintings (i won't show you a reference because googling them might give me an anxiety attack) but i see them accidentally sometimes when i am in a vintage shop. i might be admiring a mid century credenza or lamp and i turn around and BAM there’s some creepy clown leering at me. and sometimes i’ve even run into a full figure, life size statue… i can’t imagine how anyone could sleep with one of those in the house. (my position on art for your home is that is should make you feel JOYOUS and lift you up. i recognize that there are important works like picasso’s guernica or munch’s scream that are important to view and contemplate, but when i walk into my kitchen for my morning coffee i want to be greeted by a piece that makes me HAPPY and peaceful, which is why i am such a big fan of sarah kinn… her paintings make my heart feel bigger.)
Read Morejanuary's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x0x0x
(challenge 2024 by ann rhode, 31W x 32L”)
twice a year ann attends “quilt camp” where she meets up with quilting friends for a week of quilt work, creative collaboration and socializing. they often “challenge” each other to design a piece with a certain fabric or pattern. this quilt is the product of one of these challenges. the blue and green background fabric was chosen as the challenge fabric. ann made a series of pillars in different fabrics and heights. she grounded them with contrasting horizontal stripes. for ann, it was a fun exercise and a way to play with value, proportion and pattern.
Read MoreREPOST: dellwood family home
* now that i am relaunching my business in california, i wanted to share some of my favorite projects. this dellwood family home was a wonderful collection of personal mementos, interesting art, a variety of textures and complementary elements and deep, vibrant colors. it was really exciting and fun to pull it all together! x0x0x
Read Morenovember's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x0x0xx
(violet garden 2021 by ann rhode, 68W x 45L”)
ann describes creating “violet garden” as an exercise in designing an intermittent “fence” or grid that allows you to see the florals behind it. she liked the idea of looking through something to view the unexpected.
violet garden is machine pieced and machine quilted. fabrics and batting are all cotton.
Read Moremy chautauqua project was featured in BOULDER MAGAZINE! x0x0x
one of my final projects in boulder was this super colorful, vibrant, whimsical family home in chautauqua. it is so exciting to have it included in this month’s boulder magazine. THANK YOU to heather shoning for the wonderful article, heather burns of HBK photography (as always) for the beautiful photos, sarah kinn, whose art is seen throughout the house and to my adventurous clients who were so much fun to collaborate with on this project. here is a link to the article! x00xx
Read Morecome to a POP-UP ART SHOW featuring ann rhode's quilts (and to celebrate jennifer rhode design launching in california!) x00xx
* i am reposting this story i wrote about my mother’s quilts a few years ago, in preparation for one of her shows to explain her design process. i am so excited for you all to see what she is sharing at our pop-up on october 17th x0x
Read Morecome to a POP-UP ART SHOW featuring sarah kinn's work (and to celebrate jennifer rhode design launching in california!) x00xx
* i am reposting this story i wrote about sarah kinn’s amazing paintings several years ago. her work has continued to evolve creatively and i am so excited for you all to see what she is bringing to california! come see it live at our pop-up on octover 17th! x0x
Read Morecelebrating the california launch of jennifer rhode design with a pop-up ART SHOW! x0x0x
hi friends! it has been so amazing to be back in my home state of california and i am thrilled about relaunching my interior design business here. to celebrate, we are hosting a pop-up art show featuring:
* the paintings of sarah kinn, a dear friend and boulder based artist whose bright, colorful pieces are all over my house as well as in the homes of many of my colorado clients. she is coming out to berkeley to paint and create in the california sunshine and to share her work at our pop-up. a few of her gorgeous paintings…
Read Moremy eldorado springs project was featured in home & garden colorado magazine! x0x0x
i am so thrilled that my eldorado spring project is included in the summer 2025 issue of home & garden colorado. this was an especially rewarding project because my clients moved from the house we worked on together in boulder to a smaller, jewel box of a home in eldorado springs. we had a great time placing their original furniture and layering on new pieces. many thanks to lori tobias for the story and to heather burns for the lovely photo and of course, my wonderful clients! x00x
Read Moreseptember's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x0x0x
(floating, 2021 by ann rhode, 80W x 84L”)
ann created “floating” in another attempt to reduce her scrap bag. the printed strips were all leftovers from other quilts. she estimates over 200 different fabrics were used, which gives a sense of the incredible size of her fabric collection. the scraps were organized by width and then arranged with the lightest value prints at the top and increasing to the darkest at the bottom. the horizontal solid strips were appliquéd in place after.
floating is is machine pieced and machine quilted. fabrics and batting are all cotton.
Read MoreREPOST: interact brand design studio
(the lounge area of the office complete with vintage ads)
* now that i am back in california, i am sharing some of my previous projects… this commercial project was so much FUN. i loved all the whimsy and unexpected “art” like the giant ice cream cones, the collection of vintage soda cans, the big drum and the ad campaigns from another era. work spaces can always have a bit of “silly” slipped in! x0x0x
Read Moreaugust's FEATURED QUILT of the month by my mother, ann rhode! x0x0x
(flower power, 20XX by ann rhode, 62W x 62L”)
ann created “flower power” to showcase her collection of big floral prints. when designing it, she felt it needed the darker verticals with the thin strips to give some structure to the piece and to encourage the feeling of dappled light peeking through. the wider horizontal strips provide tranquil pathways across the lighter triangles.
this piece did not end up making much of a dent in her big print floral collection!
flower power is machine pieced and machine quilted. fabrics and batting are all cotton.
Read MoreREPOST: winter park mountain home x0xx
(incredible views out of the expansive, angled back windows)
* now that i have moved my business to california, i wanted to share some of my favorite projects with all of you bay areas who might be ready for design help. one of my all time favorite jobs is this winter park mountain house. i LOVED this project because everyone from the architects to the builders to the craftspeople and artists were TIP TOP and so good at their jobs. and of course, my clients were especially awesome! x00xx
Read MoreREPOST: COLORFUL christmas tree drive
we did an extensive remodel on this family home nestled under the flatirons in the chataqua neighborhood of boulder, colorado. originally built in the 80’s, we updated the exterior with earthy wood siding and local stone, in keeping with the home’s mountain setting.
Read Moregorgeous santa fe! x0x0x
(these sconces were hung down all the hallways of our hotel: inn on the alameda)
five years ago, when my daughter was turning ten, we were supposed to take a girls’ trip with my mother to santa fe. that plan got kabashed with the pandemic and this spring break we were finally able to make it happen. i have never before been to a place so concentrated with art museums and galleries and beautiful shops in a relatively small geographic footprint. it was absolutely exhilirating to be exposed (inundated?) to so many pretty, innovative, inspiring, engaging works of art literally EVERYWHERE we went. and the food was outrageous too… so YUMMY! here are some of my favorite discoveries…
Read Moremy denver project is featured in this month's DENVER LIFE MAGAZINE! x0x0x
i am so thrilled to share that my denver project is featured in this month’s denver life magazine! this remodel was such a joy because we assembled such a terrific team: architect anne marie kaufman of AMPk architecure, sanctuary kitchen and bath design, builders DT construct, artist sarah kinn, photographer heather burns of HBK photography and of course, my wonderful clients. THANK YOU to sahale greenwood of denver life for including this project in april’s edition. here is a link to the article and here is a link to view the full project! x0x0x
Read Morefirst featured QUILT (for sale) by my mother, ann rhode: TEA POTS
(teapots, 2019 by ann rhode 54W x 54L”)
for ann rhode, designing a quilt often begins with a geometric challenge. in creating tea pots, she originally wanted to make a one block quilt with curved seams. ultimately, she needed two blocks to make it pleasing. the emergence of the tea pot was a surprise!
ann used japanese yukata fabrics to build the tea pots, supported by solid fabrics and other small prints. the warm background fabrics offset the deeper blues, greens and reds of the tea pots. 100% cotton fabrics and batting were used. the quilt is both machine pieced and quilted.
contact jennifer@jenniferrhode.com for pricing information. to see the full array of quilts avallable for purchase click here.
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