With social distancing as the new normal in our daily lives, it's likely you missed celebrating St. Patrick's Day the festive way you usually would. We thought it might be fun to celebrate the day in a new way - by celebrating the color green in our homes.Incorporating green into your home is actually much easier than you may think as, depending on the value of the green, it can be considered a neutral (think grey/green). Not only that, but almost every color works well with green depending on the hue. Green and brown is good for color contrast. Yellow and green is a fun and lively mix, and pink and green is the go-to for any preppy look - just ask Lilly Pulitzer!   Green is the color of nature, the backdrop of our lives, and a color we are very used to seeing. So, to our eyes, it compliments every other color - bet you might not have thought about that!When it comes to adding green to your room there isn’t one easy answer on color, it’s more personal preference. I usually go for bright greens, whereas Courtney likes more of the neutral shades. That's one of the many reasons Ivy Lane loves working as a team -  to offer many different perspectives.Accessories and pillows are the easiest way to add splashes of green to your current space – especially if you’re focused on the spring green we think about with St. Patrick’s Day. Trays always help add that special pop of color and I love to use malachite (green marbleized stone) accessories or even furniture pieces in rooms. It’s an interesting approach to green and the objects are always conversation pieces. 

Malachite box

  For items that are a little more permanent, you can always add color to the walls and millwork too. Think about grasscloth textured pieces and green wallpaper options as well as hardware. Eddie Ross x Addison Weeks has a hardware line that incorporates gemstone colors, and the use of the emerald color on those is so glamourous and adds fantastic detail.  Of course, we can’t forget to mention to use plants to add green to your home. The greens you get from nature are so versatile. You tend to see those darker hues during the winter months and in spring, as things are newly sprouting and growing, we get more of a citrusy green and brighter shades. If you need help figuring out where and how to add plants to your home, check out our Houseplant How-to post.   So, while you might not be drinking a green beer at the pub, instead think about adding that special splash of green to your home. 

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Hoping this post serves as some light-hearted thoughts in these crazy chaotic times. Just as a reference,  the below is what Ivy Lane has in place as our current protocols.

With the current health concerns around the Coronavirus, we wanted to let you know the protocols we have put in place. First, we would like to assure you that the projects we currently have in the pipeline are being actively worked on and are progressing as planned. We intend to continue working towards successful completion and will advise anyone impacted by any supply chain delays we may experience. To this point, we have only felt such effects with a few fabric delays. We are hopeful that no other delays will slow down our work on your homes - but we are prepared to address any challenges as quickly as possible.As a precautionary measure and in an effort to do our part in “social distancing” measures, we will be minimizing the number of face to face appointments we have with clients for a few weeks. Unless necessary for construction site visits or outdoor space planning, we are encouraging our clients to participate in more virtual style appointments either through FaceTime or simple conference call communications. In most cases, we can be very effective and efficient in handling project development through these methods. We will also do our best to minimize the number of sub contractors and installers we have coming to your homes. Should you prefer that we reschedule any of our workers/appointments, please let us know as soon as possible.Providing our clients with beautiful homes is our business and we love it. But providing for the safety of our employees - and your families - must take a priority during this awful pandemic. We appreciate your understanding and, rest assured, we will pursue your projects with passion while we maintain a level of health and safety for all.Take good care!Sincerely,Alex, Courtney & the entire Ivy Lane Team