time travels

having few words worth sharing right now, i offer you a visual story to contemplate:

a whole new view

this weekend we're moving to a new home. . . . . new spaces and new discoveries and new adventures await. whatever your plans are i hope you have a wonderful time!

{image from emery & cie}

masculine baths

i haven't blogged about my work in a while, so i thought today it would be nice to show a couple of baths specifically designed for a masculine aesthetic by a team i got the privelege to work on. these are both in the same house, so the style is very similar. the client wanted a warm yet contemporary feel with natural finishes. once again i don't have professional shots to share, so these not-so-high quality ones will have to do. this residential project was part of a huge team effort, so i wasn't the only person working on these baths by any means.
{ a powder room using the ann sacks mosaic bar tiles on the walls, grey pietra serena limestone countertops and custom vanity & lighting. the bar lights are recessed into the wall so they are flush with the mirror face ~ this creates a picture frame effect for the images being reflected. the faucet is the atrio from grohe in satin nickel and the sink is the garland from kohler}

{this is a full bath utilizing the same custom lighting technique as the bath above in the mirror and fully custom cabinetry. the wall tiles throughout the shower & bath are the waterworks phantom glass tiles. the countertop is riverstone botticino poured resin slab ~ there are stones & shells embedded in it. the sink is from kohler and the faucet is from dornbracht}

beach house master bath

i think this will be my last post on the east hampton's beach house. there are more photos of other lovely aspects of this home, but i think the master bath is a good place to rest. it has a simple, soft theme ~ floor to ceiling silver travertine to incorporate the sands and waves on a grey atlantic day. the custom millwork is finished to match. the shower walls are waterworks glass mosaic in ice blue and the shower floor is ann sacks white river rock. this is the largest master bath i've ever worked on, and i'm delighted and proud to have had the opportunity.

a beach house kitchen

the big east hapmton's house is finished, and the site photos are trickling in. i already posted some photos a couple weeks ago, but for now i'd like to highlight the kitchen.

the cabinets are from valcucine {artematica line in teak, stainless steel and glass}; the counters and backsplash are bisazza terrazzo {logos in brown/gold}; the floor in the main kitchen is 18x18 ceramic tiles from floor gres ceramiche {bronzo}; the floor outside the kitchen and throughout the house is custom stained honey maple, 4" wide plank with a grey wash.

the refrigerators are sub-zero, the range is viking, the faucets are from dornbracht.

{end of construction, while the kitchen is being unpacked and prepared for the clients to move in}

{a close-up on the finishes ~ starting at top left: counter top, cabinets, kitchen floor, great room floor}

{looking down the hall between kitchen and sitting room}

valkommen till cosas

i really like the rustic calmness of this room. i've been holding onto this picture in my "inspiring calm" folder for a while so it's another one of those spaces i can't properly identify or appreciate the designer for.

when i stumbled across a swedish online shop called cosas i was reminded of this room so i thought i'd share the coincidence. i'm willing to bet the person whose home looks like the photo above likely shops at places like cosas. their website is all in swedish so i can't understand a word, but the lovely photography of the wonderful items for sale pretty much speaks for itself.

zara's shades of grey

as some of you may know, i have a thing for greys and taupes. my handbags, my favorite shoes, my sheets, and my favorite wall colors are all in these shades. when i put together interior designs, i really enjoy layering different neutral shades to create warmth, softness and elegance. so i had a major swooning session as i experienced zara home's fall/winter '07 collection. i absolutely love the way they layered textures (some roughness, some sparkle, some smoothness) while using neutral colors. especially those greys! i'd just love to put almost everything from this collection in my own home. . . . . keeping the dream alive:

.

.

side-note: i know this is from their spring '07 collection, but seeing as how i have a life-long infatuation with the golden ratio, and therefore with anything in a spiral pattern, this just had to get blogged too. someday i will have a home with a spiral staircase, there's just no getting around that. ;o)

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?

project progress: cpw in nyc

a new blog i've been taken with, the kitchen designer, (susan serra) just posted about nyc's new residential building on central park west. my colleagues and i just so happen to be designing a large penthouse interior build-out in this same building (no, they aren't any of the celebs that susan lists, just their soon to be neighbors). she critiques the kitchen design by the building's architect, robert a.m. stern, and although i agree with her critique i wanted to add to it by saying that most of the large residence's kitchens will be torn out and re-done to the client's specific taste once they take over the apartment. our clients are demo'ing the entire penthouse interior and we are re-designing everything top-to-bottom. it is an unfortunate snaffoo in the nyc building code for apartments that the building department will not allow a residential space to be turned over to the clients unless there is a functional kitchen & bathroom fully up to code, even though the clients intend to do an entirely different design once they have ownership. very wasteful and frustrating! anyway, i thought the coincidence was uncanny that susan brought up this building while i've been in the throws of construction documents and design detail drawings in the same place. so i'd like to build on what she wrote by sharing some photos of the inspiration and design process for our project.

(view from penthouse looking over central park ~ taken by my project mgr)

( exterior of the building during construction ~ taken by my project mgr)

and to familiarize you with the design process:

(stone and wood samples of materials to be used in the project)

(fluted wood paneling ~ it will be stained french grey and cerused over the top of the stain. it will be on many of the walls ~ the pattern will become soft and neutral when the finish is applied)

(rendering of a fireplace wall)

we also got to build a model of the entire apartment!

(model of stairs)

(model of corridor with windows)

(model of living room ~ looking towards windows)

(model of family room)



and, lastly, some inspirational photos we used to help the client visualize what the look and feel of the interiors will be: