big move

i'm moving into my new apartment this weekend! thank goodness for fabulous friends ~ i have no less than 12 people coming to help out! i found this image on designer's block ~ perfect for motivating the masses for tomorrow because we get to climb 2 flights of stairs with all the stuff. it'll be a great work out, but with the mimosas and beers flowin' it should be a breeze!

buon weekend everyone!

coral bourgeois

a little custom tile shop in rhode island, coral bourgeois has some very interesting tile designs ~ the depth of their work is refreshing. they can do entirely custom jobs or you can select from their stock. some of my favorites:

west wave

shameless plug:
this is printz dance project's first time in the annual west wave festival of local dance. performing on a sunday night, so you don't have to give up your hot fri/sat dates to catch it.

pdp will premier "birds, bees, and other metaphors" ~ closing the show!
for tickets, get in touch with dudley: dudley at rhythmandmotion dot com

tiles i do like

as a contrast to previously showing off the tiles i don't like, here are some tiles i really really like. to start off i'll highlight two of my favorite tile providers: ann sacks and sicis.

(ann sacks ~ angela adam's forms tile)

(ann sacks ~ heath tile collection in gun metal)

(ann sacks ~ sakura wall tile mural: cherry tree)

(sicis ~ glass3 collection)

(sicis ~ neoglass collection, i like the shape & the shimmer but would prefer it in a warmer hue)

(sicis ~ metalismo collection)

(sicis ~ poshpix collection)

my new bathroom needs your help

i'm moving into a new place soon and although i'm extremely excited about it there is one huge designer challenge looming over my head.

the main guest bath is covered in what i consider the least attractive tiles ever. they are in great condition, and vintage 1960's style, so i can't complain there. but i'm not exactly a fan of pink (i really don't like it actually. and, no, the irony isn't lost on me), so it already had that against it, but the accent backsplash tiles are pretty unfortunate too.

i'm renting so there is only so much i can do. but i am so baffled by the challenge that i don't know where to start. that's why i'm reaching out to you all today with this major designer challenge.
i can paint some nice shade of taupe on the walls to tone down the white-pink contrast. i can go for a parisian-vintage theme and try to live-it-up in a think-pink way. but honestly all i want to do is paint over the top of all of the tiles and start with a neutral clean slate.

have any of you ever painted tiles? how did that turn out for you?
any great ideas for other ways i can solve this conundrum?
please help a design girl in distress!

{the shower ~ nice pepto-pink & white combo}

{the vanity ~ stained wood base with white tile countertop, pink surrounding tiles and a backsplash that really deserves a close-up ......}

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{the close up ~ teal & periwinkle little daisies on an off-white background, surrounded by the pink abyss. sigh. i guess i just need to increase my appreciation for the 1960's bathroom design aesthetic}

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{this is a pink tiled bathroom i re-vamped for a house flip project. the 1950's tiles had to stay for budget reasons but i painted the walls & changed out the fixtures to modernize it. this i could certainly live with. but my new bath has those contrasting backsplash tiles too. yikes!}

graceful kitchen island

the ultimate in beautiful minimalist kitchen island design can be found in the grace kitchen by schulte design. a german based firm headed by franz-josef schulte, all of their furniture and designs are exquisite. but today i'll only be highlighting the grace kitchen island (because i really really want one). it is a stout solid wood worktable (available in maple, oak, walnut, olive, plum, apple or cherry) boasting innovative retracting electrical receptacles and five disappearing drawers. coordinating wood and leather benches, as well as cutlery-drawer organizers, are also available.

modern economy beckons

a sample sale to-die-for that comes only a few precious times a year..... modern economy brings together fabulous contemporary designer's products with steep discounts to fort mason saturday july, 28. 10:00am - 3:00pm, no entrance fee
sara paloma, thomas paul, inhabit, tikoli, dwell and many others will be there ~ oooo the anticipation!

boca do lobo

for gorgeous furnishings to complement your urban-chic, classical-tendency lifestyle boca do lobo is a perfect resource. their products are all handmade in portugal by the best artisans and distributed to hand-selected design shops. their mission: "to understand the past, interpreting it through techonology and contemporary design, transferring all our artisan's wisdom into what we do." they shoud have also mentioned impeccable attention to detail and innovative design sensibilities. i suppose that is a natural result when great minds such as these come together with the purpose of collaboratting to create high presitge furntiture pieces.

soothe & stimulate simultaneously

the element of surprise in design is what makes a room something special ~ something that makes you go "ahhh" when you walk in. without having magic tricks & fully automated lights, walls, & windows in a room, you can still give that subtle hint of surprise by adding a small splash of color to an otherwise monochromatic room. the concept is to have a space that is soothing (the monochrome) and stimulating (the color splash). can you feel it?

p.s. can you tell which one was done in the 1960's?

and the frosting......

i like to call the interiors the frosting on the cake of a project ~ the decorative part that makes the house a home. but actually i suppose a better analogy might be that interior design is the creamy filling......but you get the point. ;o)
here are some interior photos of our recently completed east hampton's project i posted about below.

e.h. project comes together

i've been off the blog for a week while beckoning in the 32. so, to ease back in i'm happy to announce the east hamptons project is nearing completion! here are some exterior shots of a 2 year, multi million dollar, 13,000 sq.ft. project that took a ton of blood sweat and tears from everyone on all sides at oda (contractors, architects, interior designers, project mgrs, etc). this is when you get to start feeling like all the stress & strain was worth it; with photos as your trophy!