Minimalist Portland Apartment Tour with Alivia Fields / February 20, 2020 by Mackenzie Collier

MCI recently partnered with Portland-based lifestyle photographer and travel blogger Alivia Fields (@aliviafields) to help design her new PDX apartment: an eco-friendly oasis filled with light, love and avocado toast. Now we’re excited to share the reveal!

Portland boho apartment tour — *@aliviafields*

Travel photographer + social influencer + environmental activist. Alivia Fields is passionate about ethical living and sustainability. Learn more about her mission to spread light + love at *aliviafields.co* and check out her travelogue, *Never Going Home*.

Minimal and sustainably minded, the space combines earthy hues, natural textiles, and modern elements to create a stylish, down-to-earth atmosphere.

Portland living room interior design.jpg

Check out Alivia’s Southeast Portland apartment tour for an inside look!

Read our post on how we blended styles to create a cohesive space for Alivia and her husband Zach.

Anthropologie Launches New "Weather Ready" Indoor/Outdoor Living Collection—Here's What We Love! / April 30, 2018 by Mackenzie Collier

Anthropologie did it again! They launched a new line that we are over the moon about and making us want to spend all our money on outdoor furniture. Forget a vacation to Asia this summer, their new "weather ready" line makes you want to cash in your plane ticket for a whole new patio collection so you can just vacay in your backyard. The new "weather ready" outdoor furniture collection is SO cute and has so many bold pieces to transform your patio. The best thing about a lot of these pieces is that they are truly versatile and can work inside and outside.

So, before you head to the website and start adding everything to your cart, we want to show you a few of our favorite pieces so far...

Anthropologie Handcarved Lotus Indoor-Outdoor Daybed .jpeg — Handcarved Lotus Indoor/Outdoor Daybed

A handcarved traditional day bed that creates the perfect outdoor living room feeling.
Source: Anthropologie

Anthropologie Tahiti Indoor/Outdoor Hanging Chair.jpeg — Tahiti Indoor/Outdoor Hanging Chair

A hanging chair that can be posted in the backyard or in the living room for ultimate relaxation.
Source: Anthropologie

Anthropologie Wrapped Rattan Indoor/Outdoor Bar Cart.jpeg — Wrapped Rattan Indoor/Outdoor Bar Cart

You can never go wrong with a bar cart; and that goes for outside as well. Making cocktails on this bar cart is the perfect lemon wedge on top.
Source: Anthropologie

Anthropologie Palmyra Indoor Outdoor Chair.jpeg — Palmyra Indoor/Outdoor Chair

Talk about ultimate poolside glamour while sitting in this chic chair.
Source: Anthropologie

Bombatta Indoor/Outdoor Chair.jpeg — Bombatta Indoor/Outdoor Chair

Patio can't be complete without the perfect chairs to sit in while soaking in the sun.
Source: Anthropologie

Sun Porch Pot.jpeg — Sun Porch Pot

Top it off with a couple of these glazed earthenware pots since everything is better with plants.
Source: Anthropologie

We just showed you a couple of the pieces we love from the collection, but there's so much more on their website we're dying to get our hands on. Make sure to check it out and let us know which one you like best!

Color Me Impressed—New Trends in Interior Design / June 17, 2017 by Mackenzie Collier

For a few years now, a crisp white background with color or neutrals layered over it (very Scandinavian) has been all the rage in interior design. I still adore this more minimal scheme, but lately, I'm noticing a shift toward something a little more unconventional—a sort of late '60s/early '70s French bohemian palette—and I am totally digging it.

Colors

Chartreuse
Marine Blue
Forest Green
Mustard
Cornflower blue

Poppy Red
Blush Pink
Tangerine
Apricot
Cerulean
Hunter green

At first glance, the colors may seem to be paired somewhat haphazardly, but on closer inspection, they truly compliment one other quite nicely. It kind of reminds me of Alice in Wonderland honestly—and it’s rad.

Typically, we associate certain colors with specific seasons, but this look combines them all and pulls it off really well. The pinks and oranges keep the look cheerful, while the blues and greens ground the palette. The mustard keeps it optimistic.

The palette can be used for anything from a really bold, boho hippy look to a more restrained classic French look, and it works well with both. The key is to balance the solid colors with the patterns, keeping more than 50% of the surfaces solid. The more patterns you layer, the more psychedelic the look will feel. More restrained patterns and tailored silhouettes will give it a more classic look.

If you're going for the folksy beatnik vibe, pair it with rich neutral textures. Or forego neutrals altogether and use saturated earth tones in their place. For a richer, more rock 'n' roll look, throw in some black, burgundy, or dark plum. I really like to incorporate faded black (anything with a “folk” vibe will work great) to ground the color scheme and make it a little more dramatic. Then, I'll pair it with rough, natural wood and vintage hand-carved accent pieces. Aged brass goes really well too!

Images: Anthropologie — Images: Anthropologie

Anthropologie is really honed in on this look right now, and Jonathan Adler has some cool pieces as well. For the cost conscious, World Market and Target both have a lot of great products out right now.

Inside Mackenzie's Bohemian Midcentury Phoenix Home / April 15, 2017 by Mackenzie Collier

Welcome to my house!

Mackenzie here! Shannon and I recently opened our doors to Phoenix New Times for a personal tour of our newly remodeled home in Arcadia (read the feature here!). Not long after, I had some of the interior design progress photographed by the always amazing James Stewart, and now that the pictures are in, I thought I'd dive a little deeper into some of my decor choices. Your shoes can stay on, if you like...

Guitar Wall Hangers & Vintage Record Console

Bohemian Hangs

Shannon and I aren’t really “formal living room” people, so we saw this area as a place to play or listen to music, kick back with an issue of Arizona Highways and a craft beer. This is also the best spot in the house to catch a sunset. The vintage console-style record player is perfect for Sunday morning NPR and coffee. Shannon is a great guitar player and sweetly only has a few design requests, one being that her guitars are handy. Guitar wall hangers are a cool way to display prized instruments while keeping the floor clutter-free.

You'll see fun, personal touches in every room, like the wooden box labeled St. Louis Anheuser-Busch (I was born in St. Louis) and the baskets—both family pieces that I grew up with. Oh, and I bought the framed piece for Shannon as a surprise on closing day because we saw a UFO one time at the beach. Just kidding… or am I?

The Dining Room

We literally never eat here. Ever. We do walk by it 1000 times a day though and really appreciate the storage bonus of having extra cabinetry just off the kitchen. And it’s great as a spillover spot for miniature relatives who can’t cut it at the adult table. When I was working my butt off in design school, I swore I’d buy an Eero Saarinen Tulip Table with my first paycheck (I grossly overestimated how much interior designers make after graduation). I wasn’t able to afford it, but years later when I saw an original one on Craigslist for a steal, I was out in Fountain Hills buying it within the hour. I never imagined a day that I wouldn’t mind our sweet nieces coloring on it, but that day has come and gone and we all survived just fine.

On the left we have the original watercolor sketches of Shannon and my tattoos done by Austin West with a framed photograph of a canyon we found on Society6 that reminded us of our first backpacking trip together in the West Fork. The light is a vintage barn light that I picked up at Zinnias at Melrose. It was one of the very first pieces I nailed down when we were planning our remodel; everything had to revolve around it and a picture of a Golden Retriever named Aspen in a canoe on Lake Louise. I don’t know Aspen the Mountain Pup personally, I just saw him on Instagram, and he happened to be the same color as our cabinetry.

Brunch Banquette

This wall has the best view in our entire house—that’s why we wanted it to be cozy and multi-functional. I have my coffee here each morning and watch the hummingbirds play while the sun rises on Camelback Mountain. I like to take advantage of the few hours in the day where our neighbor’s children aren’t screaming. We invested in the custom banquette bench and the extra thick custom Sunbrella cushion. We saved money in other areas: the dining table was donated from a client who was getting rid of it, and the chairs were on clearance at World Market, which was awesome because I had pinned them for the house months earlier! I lucked out and found that large acrylic of Saguaro National Park at HomeGoods.

Vintage Vibes

I was lucky enough to snag this midcentury Takeshi Nii Ny Chair on Craigslist for a photo shoot and absolutely had to bring it home. Find of the century! [Fun fact: Inspired by the classic director's chair, Nii’s innovative, foldable creation was designed in 1958 and is now part of the permanent collection at MoMa.] The little bird pillow was another Zinnias at Melrose find. To add a little texture, I rounded out the seating area with the faux fur ottoman.

I’m obsessed with round mirrors—you’ll find them in pretty much all my designs. Whenever there is a great view, I like to put a mirror on the opposite wall to repeat it. Notice the royal palm reflected in it—I’m really jazzed that I have been able to keep this plant alive for more than three months. On the right, the shelves are filled with items that are meaningful to us in some way: my grandparents' wedding photo, embroidered art I found at a women’s art co-op in Mexico, family books—all mementos of things we value in life. Nothing wrong with holding on to things that bring you joy.

Built-In Reading Nook

We needed a solution to hide our TV components (they live behind the baskets), create storage, and add some seating to the space, so we had this bench and cushion custom made to match the dining banquette on the other side of the room. Textile wall hangings add a softness to the space and dampen sound, so I went that route over hanging framed art to keep it cozy. I picked up this mid-century style marble table at Target because I needed a place to set my coffee. [Do you see a theme here? All of my design decisions are based on creating places to drink coffee comfortably.]

Master Bedroom

Truth: we like camping more than living our “real lives,” so we decided to take a stab at achieving a campsite feel in the bedroom. Full moon, bonfire, sticks, camp blankets, triangular mirrors that subtly suggest mountain peaks… you get the idea. We’ve even got a fur rug in front of the fireplace because our Golden Retriever thinks he’s Barry White. The sticks are from bigger hikes we’ve done in Olympic National Park and Glacier National Park. We need a rug, but have yet to find the perfect one that is cozy, casual, and low-maintenance.

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This has truly felt like an episode of MTV Cribs. Thanks for stopping by!

Keep an eye out for our next post where we'll be announcing a sweet Mother's Day giveaway!

Mackenzie Collier Interiors Featured on Wayfair — "Wall Décor Makeovers from the Experts" / March 15, 2017 by Mackenzie Collier

Looking for design inspiration and tips on wall décor? Wayfair recently asked us to share one of our room makeovers featuring a wall decor transformation—check out our advice in their latest post on Wall Décor Makeovers from the Experts.