Hello blog audience, sorry for the lapse in blog updates... I will be moving into a hotel early tomorrow for a couple of days while my own home gets a fresh new paint job inside, top-to-bottom! I'm very excited about it but it certainly has taken up a lot of time this week preparing each room for the paint contractor and his crew (not to mention my 14 year old son telling me to "stop trying so many paint samples on the walls - they are starting to look like Fred Flintstone's clothes!"). So yes, I want every room to be just right and I've tried several paint colors to make sure I get exactly the look I want. I can't overstate the importance of doing this... for instance, I color I thought for sure I'd be using in my home after seeing it in another home turned the ugliest, drab gray once it was sampled on my walls. The various lights of day and other surrounding surfaces such as tile and carpet can completely change what you think you are going to get.
I'll post more next week. Until then, happy decorating!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Monday, March 1, 2010
Architectural Feast
I've been blessed to see many amazing architectural works all over the world. My husband and I love to travel and it's fascinating to me to see not only iconic historic buildings, like the Coliseum in Rome and Big Ben's hands atop the legislature in London but also the newest structures that are quickly gaining notoriety.
I am always astonished at the results when an endless imagination blends with logistical engineering necessities. Most recently I had the opportunity to see Las Vegas' newest marvel, the City Center. It includes various new residences and hotels such as Aria, Mandarin Oriental and Vdara which are grounded by Crystals retail center at the nucleus. I love that in the desert there is such vast room (both vertically and horizontally) which allows for voluminous spaces that would dwarf an airplane hangar. The sky literally is the limit here, and alongside the adult Disney-esque hotels we are all familiar with for their gimmicks and themes there are more sophisticated structures taking up residence. I took a couple of photos with my iPhone, hence the somewhat low resolution, but here they are for you to see. The wooden skeleton tube you see houses a fantastic restaurant, Mastro's Ocean Club, in it's "belly".
We visited Dubai two years ago and I was astounded at what I saw recently constructed, what was still under construction, and what is planned for the coming decade. The photos below were taken across Dubai Canal looking at the cityscape as the sun was going down - notice how many construction cranes are visible atop the buildings even at this distance. The photo on the right is the Burj Al Arab Hotel, the world's only 7-star hotel (ok, self-proclaimed 7-star, but quite exquisite just as you'd expect). As a little note of interest, the tiny oblong pod you see near the top of the hotel is the restaurant where we enjoyed dinner on Christmas night 2007. As much as my passion is the interior finishing, I love that I have been able to see some of the world's greatest architectural wonders - and who knows what among them will still be standing and be the Roman Coliseum of the next millennium.
I am always astonished at the results when an endless imagination blends with logistical engineering necessities. Most recently I had the opportunity to see Las Vegas' newest marvel, the City Center. It includes various new residences and hotels such as Aria, Mandarin Oriental and Vdara which are grounded by Crystals retail center at the nucleus. I love that in the desert there is such vast room (both vertically and horizontally) which allows for voluminous spaces that would dwarf an airplane hangar. The sky literally is the limit here, and alongside the adult Disney-esque hotels we are all familiar with for their gimmicks and themes there are more sophisticated structures taking up residence. I took a couple of photos with my iPhone, hence the somewhat low resolution, but here they are for you to see. The wooden skeleton tube you see houses a fantastic restaurant, Mastro's Ocean Club, in it's "belly".
We visited Dubai two years ago and I was astounded at what I saw recently constructed, what was still under construction, and what is planned for the coming decade. The photos below were taken across Dubai Canal looking at the cityscape as the sun was going down - notice how many construction cranes are visible atop the buildings even at this distance. The photo on the right is the Burj Al Arab Hotel, the world's only 7-star hotel (ok, self-proclaimed 7-star, but quite exquisite just as you'd expect). As a little note of interest, the tiny oblong pod you see near the top of the hotel is the restaurant where we enjoyed dinner on Christmas night 2007. As much as my passion is the interior finishing, I love that I have been able to see some of the world's greatest architectural wonders - and who knows what among them will still be standing and be the Roman Coliseum of the next millennium.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
A Day in the Life
Ever wonder how decorators and designers just have all the answers so easily? How they seem to appear out of nowhere on those great TV shows and transform a whole house in one day with their magically-appearing drawer full of just the right fabrics, paint colors, furniture and accessories? Well, let me tell you....
A day of locating those "just right" fabrics and similar products starts like this (and let me say first that I really love what I do, and apologize if the following truth takes some of the glamour out of it for some of you): (1) carefully select outfit and shoes for a day of shopping in design centers, which means comfortable pants to bend down in, since we are often crouched on the floor digging through racks of hanging fabric swatches and large libraries of trim books. Wouldn't do to be wearing a dress or skirt that flashed a revealing view upon squatting down! Also consider shoes... hauling large bagfuls of samples, heavy sample books, handbag, water bottle, etc. while covering many thousands of square feet of designer showrooms requires footwear that is professional, fashion-forward (since what we designers are selling is style, after all), and will not induce an ankle-rolling while arms are loaded down with aforementioned bags; (2) ensure all samples of existing client finishes are firmly in-hand for proper color matching, style and texture matching; (3) stack of business cards and necessary business documents packed along to ensure shopping privileges at designer-only showrooms; (4) healthy lunch options bagged up and brought along since I will be in my car when my lunchtime hunger pangs start and I promised my husband I'd forego drive-thru fast food during Lent this year as a testament to doing something to better myself.
Then the pursuit for the most perfect products ensues. Row after row, aisle by aisle, showroom upon showroom we scour every display wing of hanging fabric samples, pour over books of swatches, like eagles hunting for a mouse for lunch we squint our eyes and quickly take in the view before us trying to hone in on the exact shade or tint of color, tile sample, or furniture style for which we are scouting. At the end of it all, we end up back in our offices with armloads of goodies and begin editing. Not this, not that, doesn't look as right in this light as it did in the artificial showroom lighting.... on and on, until we are confident that the handful of options we carefully narrowed it to are appropriate to show our client with full confidence that we can create the intended outcome that we and the client have both envisioned from this project's outset.
My husband watches me occasionally as I sort through these piles of furniture spec sheets and piles of fabrics and asks, "you really like doing this?" to which I reply "are you kidding? This SO jazzes me! I LOVE doing this.". I hope you love beautifying your home, or working with your designer or decorator who loves it, as much as I do.
A day of locating those "just right" fabrics and similar products starts like this (and let me say first that I really love what I do, and apologize if the following truth takes some of the glamour out of it for some of you): (1) carefully select outfit and shoes for a day of shopping in design centers, which means comfortable pants to bend down in, since we are often crouched on the floor digging through racks of hanging fabric swatches and large libraries of trim books. Wouldn't do to be wearing a dress or skirt that flashed a revealing view upon squatting down! Also consider shoes... hauling large bagfuls of samples, heavy sample books, handbag, water bottle, etc. while covering many thousands of square feet of designer showrooms requires footwear that is professional, fashion-forward (since what we designers are selling is style, after all), and will not induce an ankle-rolling while arms are loaded down with aforementioned bags; (2) ensure all samples of existing client finishes are firmly in-hand for proper color matching, style and texture matching; (3) stack of business cards and necessary business documents packed along to ensure shopping privileges at designer-only showrooms; (4) healthy lunch options bagged up and brought along since I will be in my car when my lunchtime hunger pangs start and I promised my husband I'd forego drive-thru fast food during Lent this year as a testament to doing something to better myself.
Then the pursuit for the most perfect products ensues. Row after row, aisle by aisle, showroom upon showroom we scour every display wing of hanging fabric samples, pour over books of swatches, like eagles hunting for a mouse for lunch we squint our eyes and quickly take in the view before us trying to hone in on the exact shade or tint of color, tile sample, or furniture style for which we are scouting. At the end of it all, we end up back in our offices with armloads of goodies and begin editing. Not this, not that, doesn't look as right in this light as it did in the artificial showroom lighting.... on and on, until we are confident that the handful of options we carefully narrowed it to are appropriate to show our client with full confidence that we can create the intended outcome that we and the client have both envisioned from this project's outset.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Art: Like Jewelry For Your Room
Artwork falls under that category we decorators and designers call accessories. What is ironic about that is that many times the artwork is the inspiration for the design aesthetic. A single small canvas painting or print or piece of sculpture can influence the color scheme and simplicity or complexity of what else is chosen for the space.
Consider a carved wood figurine found while vacationing in Indonesia, purchased and carefully transported to it's new owner's home because of the "feeling" the new owner got when he or she found the piece and couldn't walk away without it. Translate that "feeling" into some specific emotional reactions such as happy, delighted, intrigued, relaxed. We have now identified exactly the emotions we designers will want to incite for the room's owners (and hopefully, also for it's visitors) and have a "jumping off point" from which to start and can identify appropriate furniture and textiles.
Now imagine a very large, graphic, abstract and brightly colored painting, and how different the space around a piece like that should feel: exciting, fresh, avant-garde, untraditional, etc.
Most often, however, the artwork and accessories are like the finishing touches on a carefully selected outfit: the jewelry that adds the interest and conveys the overall feeling of either traditional or contemporary, funky or timeless and so on. Whatever point in the design process your art enters the scheme and regardless of it's monetary value or origin, the most important factor is that you really, really love it. (One of my favorites - because of my love of design and decor - is this drawing of a chandelier, by Daniel Schneider and available through www.artinteriors.ca)
Consider a carved wood figurine found while vacationing in Indonesia, purchased and carefully transported to it's new owner's home because of the "feeling" the new owner got when he or she found the piece and couldn't walk away without it. Translate that "feeling" into some specific emotional reactions such as happy, delighted, intrigued, relaxed. We have now identified exactly the emotions we designers will want to incite for the room's owners (and hopefully, also for it's visitors) and have a "jumping off point" from which to start and can identify appropriate furniture and textiles.
Now imagine a very large, graphic, abstract and brightly colored painting, and how different the space around a piece like that should feel: exciting, fresh, avant-garde, untraditional, etc.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Happy Chinese New Year - and Hello Red!
For those of you out there recognizing and celebrating the start of the Chinese New Year (Year of the Tiger, for those keeping track), I wish you a prosperous and healthy New Year.
An important part of the celebrations for Chinese New Year includes adorning windows and doors in red. Let's talk about using red in decorating your interiors on an everyday-basis.
Red is one of those hot, "pay attention to this!" colors. It boosts our appetites and raises our pulse and breathing rates when used in large areas around us. It is a great color to use in dining rooms for these reasons, and it keeps conversations active since our physiological response to it is to get more active. For these same reasons, it is an obvious less appealing choice to paint the toddler's bedroom!
Designers will often inject a little red into a scheme through smaller details (think vase, book, pillow, flowers). The trick to doing this well is to have an odd number of items in this color, and sprinkle them around the room so they eye keeps moving around the room. If you were to cluster your only red accessories in one area of the room, the eye is drawn to them like a "bulls eye" and your eye would stop there. The goal in a great design is to keep the eye moving around the room and view the whole space as balanced. Keeping red in three or five small accents in various places will accomplish just that. See the photo below of the home office of one of my fave designers, Sarah Richardson. Plus, who knows what luck and blessings it may bring to the room's occupants during the Year of the Tiger... Gung fat hee choi!
An important part of the celebrations for Chinese New Year includes adorning windows and doors in red. Let's talk about using red in decorating your interiors on an everyday-basis.
Red is one of those hot, "pay attention to this!" colors. It boosts our appetites and raises our pulse and breathing rates when used in large areas around us. It is a great color to use in dining rooms for these reasons, and it keeps conversations active since our physiological response to it is to get more active. For these same reasons, it is an obvious less appealing choice to paint the toddler's bedroom!
Designers will often inject a little red into a scheme through smaller details (think vase, book, pillow, flowers). The trick to doing this well is to have an odd number of items in this color, and sprinkle them around the room so they eye keeps moving around the room. If you were to cluster your only red accessories in one area of the room, the eye is drawn to them like a "bulls eye" and your eye would stop there. The goal in a great design is to keep the eye moving around the room and view the whole space as balanced. Keeping red in three or five small accents in various places will accomplish just that. See the photo below of the home office of one of my fave designers, Sarah Richardson. Plus, who knows what luck and blessings it may bring to the room's occupants during the Year of the Tiger... Gung fat hee choi!
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