sf decorator's showcase house 2009

this year is the first since moving to san francisco that i won't be going to the decorator's showcase house. boo! not only is this showcase a fabulous way to see what some local designers can do when put to the test, but it's also one of the only ways to see some incredible old-school san francisco residential architecture. so i have always enjoyed seeing these homes from the inside as much as seeing what the designers do within each of their choosen rooms. this year the house is 2830 pacific avenue ~ built in 1910 by architect nathaniel baisdell, it is a four-story 10,000 square foot mansion in pacific heights with gorgeous views and beautiful georgian-style brick exterior architecture.
alas, instead of forming my own opinions through my own eyes, i've had to dive into the blogs of others to get a sneak peak through some one else's lense. even still, there are some interesting and inspiring interiors worth sharing with you:

first up is the entry foyer by nicole hollis


obviously "collections" is a theme nicole chose, shown on the stairwell above and in the unfortunate taxidermy case below:


orlando diaz-azcuy designed the formal dining room {yes, he's my former employer}. i really like the color palette but wouldn't feel comfortable dining underneath a bladed fixture like that and it could be awkward to speak to the person sitting directly across from you with all those vases blocking your view:


the breakfast nook and family room were designed by matthew leverone. i love his choices for both spaces ~ fresh, chic, surprising and yet simple enough to be very liveable and enjoyable for every day use.




the teenager's bedroom by palmer weiss ~ the perfect blend of hip and traditional with a young-at-heart theme:

the master suite by cecil starin ~ masculine and soothing with a neutral palette:

"her study" was designed by benjamin dhong ~ gorgeous & very creative:

if you'd like to attend, the decorator's showcase house is open until may 25th. please let me know if you visit it and what you think!

if you're unable to attend here's a link to the video tour on the california home + design website. enjoy!

{thanks to anh minh , the sunset blog and california home + design for the photos!}

bay area architectural voyeurs.....

the sf chronicle has nicely listed all the home tours available this fall for those of us living in the bay area, so i thought it might inspire some of us {i.e. yours truly} to go to some this year if i posted about it here too. there are a lot of compelling options with different themes. . . . from historical victorians to ultra modern homes with living roofs ~ something for nearly every house voyeur taste.

and the best part is the tours are benefitting worthy causes such as children’s enrichment programs, architectural preservation, and families in need.

here's the schedule of tours:

sept. 13-14: american institute of architects' san francisco chapter home tours weekend
sept. 20: junior league's "a day by the bay" house tours
sept. 11-15 and sept. 18-22: dickens house design tour
sept. 28: alameda legacy home tour
oct. 5: shades of green home and garden tour
oct. 19: victorian alliance's fall house tour

and here's a sneak peak at just some of the homes you can get inside of:

{all photos from sfgate}

p.s. i'm also counting down the days until the cas opening {17 to be exact} ~ oooh, so much anticipation for the spectaculars within! for those who don't know: the california academy of sciences is the only place in the world with an aquarium, a planetarium and a natural history museum all under one roof. and the best part is: it's a platinum-level leed certified architectural & design marvel. talk about instant adoration, before i've even stepped foot inside!

magical mind mastery

i'm sure most of you have seen a magic show at some point in your lives. but how many of you have been knocked completely senseless by an expert in mentalism?
{for those who are curious: "mentalism is an ancient performing art in which its practitioners, known as mentalists, use mental acuity, cold reading, warm reading, hot reading, principles of stage magic, hypnosis, psychokineses, extra-sensory perception, precognition, clairvoyance or mind control. from wikipedia}
this past friday night i had a magical experience that i just can't help but share with you all. the ever entertaining & beautiful tangobaby took the brilliantly delightful & gorgeous ms.paris-parfait {& her lovely daughter jordanna} and me to see her friend's show: christian cagigal's pandora experiment.i wasn't quite sure what to expect, but i was excited because tangobaby has excellent taste and anything she raves about is sure to be fantastic. and let me tell you, christian's show was beyond incredible. he created a mood of mystery and old-home comfort in a small black-box style theater in which he proceeded to blow us away with his mental gymnastics.his "tricks" aren't just sleight of hand curiosities ~ they are mental adventures with twists and turns that leave you mystified as to how he did it. i don't want to give away too many details because anyone within reasonable distance of the exit theater needs to go see this show asap, but i'm dying to share with you that i got chosen to be a part of the show. somehow either i was able to read his mind or he was able to read mine, but through a series of interesting guessing-games i was shocked silly by what was uncovered. {literally i giggled in spite of myself several times because i couldn't believe what he was doing nor what i was doing under his direction}.
in one scenario i had to close my eyes & select from a group of people holding keys which one held the only key that would unlock the chain around my wrist hanging from the ceiling {no, it's not that kind of show} ~ with eyes closed, i visualized where my key must be, which hand glowed white & drew me to it the most..... and i blindly selected a pregnant woman. to my amazement. and of course the key she held set me free. then, to everyone's continued surprise we discovered that we both have the same due date. pure fascinating coincidence. now that, i know, wasn't part of the show christian had planned but it certainly added to the overall sense of awe everyone was feeling at his mastery of our minds.please go see his show ~ you will not be disappointed. his blog with more info is here, and a trailer for the show is below




{all photos by femme fotographie and were graciously taken from her flickr album}

invitation: milonga en el museo

would you be so kind as to join me in a celebration of argentine tango dance and music at the de young museum in san francisco's golden gate park. . . .
friday evening, june 27, 6:30 pm
hosted by terence clarke and beatrice bowles
admission to the milonga: free

reap what you sew

this is one of the best urban interactive art projects i've heard of in a long time ~
michael swaine sets up his portable sewing machine in san francisco's tenderloin 'hood on the 15th of every month to be a street tailor for the afternoon. he makes repairs to whatever garments people bring him. . . . for free.
this began as part of "the generosity project: strategies for exchange in contemporary art," held in 2001 at the california college of arts. originally titled "reap what you sew," the performance consisted of swaine pushing his cart around the city on a predetermined route for an entire week. afterwards, he turned it into an ongoing project. swaine considers the project a collaboration between himself and those whose clothes he patches, mends, hems and darns ~ an opportunity to create social interaction where there would otherwise be none.
a little piece of hope & generosity amidst a lot of urban turmoil ~ and boy that feels good!

{found out about this, & borrowed photos from, here and here and here}

printz dance project & paco gomez dancers share a home

firey combinations of thoughtful beautiful choreography will collide at dance mission theater! a rare opportunity to see two of san francisco's most dynamic fusion dance companies performing together on one stage, for three nights only: may 9 & 10 at 8:00pm, may 11 at 7:00pm, $20 general, $16 students & seniors.
and there is a reception to follow friday night's show so you can meet the dancers & choreographers!

no one turned away for lack of funds {being on the board has its perks} so please email me if you wanna go but find the ticket prices too steep.

hope to see all my local blogging buddies there!

a mosaic of spain

last month i went to the macy's annual flower show to see the transformation and enjoy the visual splendor. they always go all-out for these shows, and this was no exception. the theme "a mosaic of spain" was thoroughly displayed throughout the store showcasing flora, food, decor & style from all regions of spain. set against the backdrop of thousands of blooms and citrus, olive and cypress trees, tons of bright colors, gorgeous patterns, and enticing displays kept me absorbed for at least an hour as i wandered through every floor to see what was around each corner.

for the 2 weeks long event macy's hosted cooking demonstrations, concerts, fashion shows and, most importantly, spectacular floral arrangements. i took a ton of photos and chose a few of my favorites to share here. feel free to jump over to my flickr album to see the rest.

i can, so can you

this is exactly the type of event i've been hoping for ~ so i had to help spread the word too....
design*sponge will be hosting a biz lady meet up at dwr in a couple weeks! wonderfulness!
date: tuesday, october 23
time: 7-9pm
location: dwr on jackson street
rsvp to: designsponge@gmail.com
discussions about small business concerns, marketing/pr, real life designer success stories and retailing/wholesaling. {please bring a snack or drink with you if you can}


{thanks to the lovely miss.calie of nohea lookbook for the tip!}

capsule design festival

this sunday, may 27th, hayes valley will be taken over by the capsule design festival.

featuring tons of booths filled with unique products from all and only west coast designers ~ jewelry, furniture, art, accessories, clothing, accents, and treasures ~ i can't wait to see the creations and meet the artists, designers and craftspeople. i'm hoping for inspiration overload!

sophisticated yet playful

the phrase that sums up the 2007 sf decorators showcase house is: sophisticated yet playful.
there were some unusual choices, some unfortunate choices, and some gorgeously inspiring choices. this is the 30th year of the showcase and they selected the stunning four-story mansion at 2901 broadway atop pacific heights.
getting a rare look inside one of san francisco’s most architecturally significant and mysterious residences was definitely worth the $30 entry fee. plus the fact that it was an 80-degree, sun-filled day made the tour all that much more delightful.
i wish all the designers had photos of their rooms on their websites, because we weren't allowed to take any photos of our own on the tour. i'll keep my eye on their websites in case they post photos of their work later on, because they are all definitely worth showing & discussing. so far this is what i've gathered:

(exterior of house, taken from street below. thanks, teri)

(view from veranda at the front door, thanks, teri)


(the kitchen, butler pantry, & tea room were designed by tish key. this is the only photo she has posted on her site & i couldn't find any others hiding out there on the 'net, unfortunately. this is the type of kitchen i'd love to have someday. i really liked her glossy black cabinetry with mirrored fronts, her touch of lime accents throughout, the light fixtures, and the integration of old with new styles)

(this is the chronicle's photo of the dining room, because so far no photos are on the designers site nor the artist's site. the designer is steven miller & the painting artists are christel heinelt and thad warren of lushart. this photo doesn't do the room justice. the shadowy softness of the taupes & lavenders & greens combined beautifully for a mature yet slightly whimsical dining space. i really appreciate the softness and attention to detail. the furniture lighting & murals are all stunning)

------------------------------------
details of the gentleman's bedroom:
designed by jay jeffers, this was a well-balanced, surprising, engaging room. the oranges, browns, and blues blended well and cheered the space, lending a cultured but vivacious feeling. a custom tartan headboard, antique french art deco settee, ormolu-mounted blue glass chest, and claw foot platform bed were all wonderfully done.

the sf chronicle's story & photos here

more info on 2901 broadway here

more info on the decorator's showcase here

india visits macy's

imagine india... macy's 61st annual flower show: an exploration in flowers, food, clothing and home décor. i've been captivated by it all week and wanted to share some of my photos of their incredible transformation. if you haven't seen it for yourself yet, it's well worth the union square crowds ~ but you gotta hurry in, because it's over this weekend.

and the design genius behind all this beauty?

krsna mehta design director of zebaworld. he has completed design projects for a host of clients ranging from corporate settings to hospitality clients like the marriott and the taj group of hotels to high-end residential projects. krsna has also designed and developed products for leading international design labels, global chain stores, mail order companies and has partnered with many international interior designers and architects. his designer line "krsna" is soon to be launched in their company owned store in soho, nyc.