Pearl River Mart

The place to find that prefect accent piece is Pearl River.  They are on the internet, but nothing beats browsing the 2 plus floors of furniture, lighting, accessories and racks and racks of everything Chinese… that you didn’t know you needed including fabric by the yard, plates cups and saucers, clothes and much, much more.  With careful selection, you can leave with bargains that enhance you interiors and mix beautifully with traditional or modern furnishings.  Can’t get to NYC or don’t want to ship but you want the look?  My advice is: Shop in your closest China Town or local import store, no doubt there are great things there… and remember accents and accessories do not have to be expensive to be beautiful, but always shop with discerning eye.

Remember a little bit goes a long way, think accent.

Love a bunch of these stacked on top of a bookcase.

Maybe in an all white room with seagrass and a ocean view…

Trend Alert!

Bathrooms are the new kitchen!  Meaning: The trophy kitchen has been put on hold ( or its next, because you just finished remodeling your kitchen) to make time for bathroom update!  There is probably a logical reason that bathroom remodels have become the “it” house project or design phenomenon.  Maybe the recession (are we still in one?) has moved the design focus away from one of the largest budget items a home owner can take on and toward a more affordable one…  or maybe people are just ready for prettier bathrooms.   My favorite look are slabs of a natural stone on floors and walls, hands down the best for a luxe look.

Mix Matched

After more than a year of daily blog posts I realized when I saw this photo that I’ve never touched on dining rooms.  I love this room because the chairs, stool, and bench go together without matching entirely and the truth is I have been shopping for dining room chairs recently so I’m hyper-sensitive on the subject.  I just can’t bring myself to sign on to buying a matched set of chairs is what it boils down to.  I am drawn to the idea of a bench down one side, two captains chairs (matching) and maybe a few random chairs to fill in the gaps.  Now, you know me well enough by now to know that doesn’t mean you can simply put any grouping of chairs together… you can’t.  The mix has to be thoughtful and there must be some order to the assembled grouping.  Maybe they are all wood, maybe they are unified by the same fabric, same color, same scale, something.  But they can be different too.  The image above ( from Hickory Chair ) shows different chairs, stools and a bench.  Upholstered differently, the colors still “tell a story” and the shapes are complementary, while still being a little different from each other.  This is what I mean about the individual pieces still having a connection to each other.  Found wooden chairs that are all different still have a connection – try and follow me here – because they are all different, and they are all wood.  they can be completely unique shapes and colors, their consistent randomness makes them similar.  Anyway, next time your looking for a unique dining room consider mixing up your seating options.

Walnut Wallpaper

Interior Designers are sometimes guarded when it comes o revealing sources, but I’m going to share a good one with you.  If your in the market for some wallpaper, Walnut is the place to go.  They have a great selection of papers (and designers) and the website is easy to shop… it beats going to your local paint or home store and flipping through old books with boarders and out of stock patterns.  That said, there is nothing better than making the decision with the help of a professional.  An interior designer can help you avoid costly mistakes, help you order the proper amount, help you envision the right color and make sure you choose the proper scale.

SNAPshot

Just a pretty shot…  I hope you and yours are well and your day was pretty.

ooops, I Did It Again!

Compelled to repost these Roost lights because I have committed to them for the apartment.  The warm light from the cherry wood shades is terrific and the look and finish of these lamps will compliment the chrome desk in the bedroom, all while  looking great and providing good reading light bedside.  They are not staying on this white parsons table that I have in the front hall, just a bit out of scale don’t you think?  Maybe one more post on these when they are in place along with the custom headboard I’ve ordered and a fresh coat of paint on the walls, keep checking back!

Blu Dot

Texture, color, and graphic stitching make little fluffy art pieces for your sofa. Non-allergenic polyfill stuffing and it comes in two colors that look great together… aqua and rust, with French seams.

What is Blu Dot you ask?  Three college friends and shared a passion for art, architecture, and design led to Blu Dot.  After college each began to furnish their homes, and realized they didn’t like the stuff they could afford and they couldn’t afford the stuff they liked… so they did something about it.  Blu Dot was born in 1997.  Their goal is to bring good design to as many people as possible.  Which means creating products that are useful, affordable, and desirable.  To make that happen, the design process is founded on collaboration.  I’m not sure which of the three designed this pillow, but it is so simple and well exicuted, i only wish it came in more colors!  

Who: Designed and Manufactured by Blu Dot.
Where: This item ships to anywhere in the continental US.
Material: Wool felt. Non-allergenic polyfill stuffing.
Specs: (inches) 20w x 20h x 4.5d

Firewood

I apologize if your not as smitten with ‘rustic modern’ as I am.  I can’t stop myself from loving this trend manipulated into a wall treatment at Parliament, a creative services agency that boasts clients like Microsoft, Burger King and Volkswagen. When you check out their website click on ‘lath’ to see another great use of an unexpected material, the lath is on the outside of the wall, applied hoeizontaly… a good-looking wooden wall that plays nicely with the roughness of the firewood walls that divide spaces at their world headquarters.  On their own they are both cool, but the two different textures combined into the same space is really cool and the poured concrete walls and hickory? floors all pull the look together.   A+

I’m Working On It

Yeah, I know it’s been awhile since I’ve posted anything I’ve been working on.  I had a great meeting recently at  a clients summer-house, that is still under construction, and thought I’d share some of the ideas we are considering.  This shot was taken from the living room looking towards the dining room and the kitchen beyond.  Don’t you love the see through fireplace?  there is a fire place at the living room end of the room too for those chilly New England summer evenings.  We are finally choosing rugs and furniture, so the end of this large project is near.  I can’t wait to start bringing in furniture!

The tear sheets on furniture are to give the customer a visual on the over all aesthetic the furniture is to have, fabrics and finishes are typically chosen after frames and sizes are determined.  If you can make them out, we have already ordered the Hickory Chair sofa and love seat, one in a powdery blue and the other in a sand colored tweedy fabric with flecks of the powdery blue.  We will mix and match the toss pillows to visually link the two and then add a custom pillow (or three).

Most designers prefer to start with a rug and finish with a paint color however, most contractors want paint colors long before rugs are confirmed, but not always.  I lucked out on this job… the client already had the living room selected so the color palette was easy to confirm and build off of.  It really just depends on when the designer is brought on to a project and at what degree of detail is requested.  I love being involved from the blue print stage because it allows me the ability to think about furniture layout and change things before a change order is even a possibility,and everyone knows those just mean $.

We ended up choosing the turquoise, cream and brown striped rug for the dining room because it complimented the colors in the hand knotted rug in the living room so well and the stripes don’t fight with the more traditional pattern of the other rug.  Stripes also make a great statement in a room, they are fun and relaxed, like a summer house should be, and they mix well with other patterns and textures.  It might be a few months but I will be sure do a follow-up post when this house gets closer to doneness.

Hot & Cool

Check out this cool fireplace for your modern living room.  Available as a wall mount or free standing unit the bio-fueled fireplaces by Vauni are really cool I think.  The Globe fireplace is a freestanding, chimney-free design that requires no installation, and you can move it anywhere in your home, the space-saving wall mounted semi-spherical is called the Cupola. Both are available in a black or white matte finish, and retail for 2800.00 and up.  Worth every penny if you can’t build or afford to put in wood burning fireplace… and it’s so good looking!

Carlo Furniture

When you work in the design industry, you fall in love with well designed furniture with some regularity.  Currently I’m in love with Carlo furniture available through Nusa.  Their Damar cabinet, made in two sizes and two colors, and the Morotai table are my crushes du jour.  Both pieces take the ordinary to the extraordinary, they are artistic and beautify crafted,  and they are functional.   They are simply beautiful, sculptural… and thats why I love them.  The cabinet is available in a darker walnutish looking finish and a larger size, I think the smaller one would look good as one of a pair flanking a fireplace, or just one as a media cabinet in a small apartment, so chic!  The table has a smaller cousin.  Show is the larger dining table at 62″ diameter and 29.5″ high, also available is a 52″ version at only 18″ high.

Trend Alert!

Caged lights have been around for a long time, but for decades they have been religated to factories, construction sites and other industrial zones.  The lights above are original fixtures from 1915 to 1920, fixtures like this can sell for more than $500 each!  Lately artists and industrial designers have really embraced the industrial or “repurposed” trend and newer (and less expensive) look-a-likes are flooding the marketplace.  I saw the fixtures below in a antique and architectural salvage store in New York on a recent weekend.  Both old and new versions of this light are sculptural and interesting and suit modern, minimal or loft type spaces, but they could work in a more traditional setting say over a kitchen peninsula or in a narrow hall or powder room.  Rejuvenation offers a version for just $160 or so and they are customizable.  Come to think of it I may have a spot for one or two of these, do you ?

SNAPshot

On a brisk walk through the Chelsea/Flat Iron  neighborhood of New York I caught a glimpse of this sleek courtyard.  I doubled back to SNAP a picture to show you.  I was rushing around looking for Quince branches to put in the apartment and instead I find this oasis in the middle of the cold raw city, a manicured zen garden… as if suddenly the city went quiet for a moment, lol.  Ok so, it wasn’t that dramatic but it’s beautiful, right?  Gotta give it the “love it” seal of approval.

Borrowed Blog – Rustic Modern

Borrowed Blog is a category I created that celebrates the very best of other websites, it’s a cut and paste post.  This posting on dornob.com was so cool I thought it deserved to be a Borrowed Blog on BILBLOG… enjoy!

Anything but your conventional log cabin home, one might see this structure atop a mountain or on a lake and and think it a pile of rough-cut wood logs rather than a cleverly camouflaged modular living and work space.

Designed by Hans Linberg, the ‘logs’ are merely a wood building facade covering a prefabricated plastic and steel frame. The ‘cabin’ is actually a recording studio for now, but would work just well as a mobile forest home or disguised hunting blind.

Rectangular in overall shape with likewise angular window openings, this seems to have little in common with traditional cabins but then again: many modern cabins are likewise built with fake facades – this one simply shows off its artificial nature more overtly.

Tory Burch Boutique

Where have I been? WOW, I walked into the Tory Burch boutique in New Yorks Meatpacking District the other day and was blown away by the attention to detail, the quality of the furnishings and the over all beauty of the shop.  This picture of the changing rooms does not do the grass green wool rug and purple mohair drapery justice.  The store is spectacular!  The walls were satin stainless with brass edging, and half the store was dedicated to a sitting area for soaking it all in. Tory designed her stores to feel more like a room in her own home than a traditional retail store.   Childhood on a farm outside of Philadelphia, as well as her mother and father’s unique sense of personal style, influence the aesthetic of the collection. Her sensibility is also inspired by art, photography, films, travel and the work of interior designer David Hicks.

Antique Show Highlights

This weekend was the Americana & Antiques Show at Pier 92 & the Armory.  Both locations were chock full of beautiful things and I spent the majority of two days soaking it all in.  It was great to see what’s selling (and what’s not) and I would have to say the big thing is mechanical and/or industrial looking light fixtures.  Almost everyone had a wall-mounted or desk top articulated arm light fixture and prices were not cheap.  Some of my favorites included brass armed lights with almost flat disks as the shade – the entire Edison bulb, also VERY trendy, showed and steel fixtures with green painted metal shades.  Furniture ranged from 1850 to 1950 and beyond.  Standouts included these great orange arm chairs offered by Jeffrey Beal Henkel out of Pennington, NJ.  he waited 7 years to create these custom finish chairs because his re-finisher didn’t want to attempt this wonderful color.  Id say it was worth the wait, they were spectacular!  There were also industrial looking accessories.  The picture below is of a fittings example made of wood to show the way pipes would be joined, the vendor had several and they made striking wall sculptures…  Bauhaus-ish.  very cool hung as a grouping anywhere you might have room, the colors and textures were really, really great.

So, not only were there rows and rows of interesting furniture and accessories, there were a lot of creative people presenting cool stuff in creative ways.  In my business presentation is everything… I loved seeing all the creative merchandising these folks came up with and fresh ideas about how things can go together or how to create the total package.  The shot I’m going to leave you with is one of my favorites of the day.  We’ve all seen glass domes used to display dried flowers, small birds and taxidermy animals and objects of curiosity but I had never seen one filled to the brim with eggs of all shapes and sizes.  This is something worthy of the most sincere form of flattery… Imitation!  I will borrow this look, you should too.

The Red Cat

Who wouldn’t like deep fried bacon?  I haven’t had it yet at the Red Cat in NYC but they are famous for it. I did have the BEST grilled radicchio salad I have ever had there the other night.  I guess I should confess that the salad did have bacon in it.  I was so blown away by the salad I figured that my entre would take a back seat to it. but I was wrong.  My braised short rib was tender, moist and quite possibly the best I’ve ever eaten.  Wow, how could it get better?  So imagine my complete delight when the dessert menu came out, with the s’mores bread pudding calling my name.  I indulged and it was worth every bite.  If you haven’t been to the Red Cat, go!  Oh, and BTW… the dining room is pretty and comfortable and the prices aren’t too bad either.

Check out this review:

http://www.nyc.com/restaurants/red_cat.53287/editorial_review.aspx

Easy Does It

I wanted to post this image  because I think the room is beautiful, and because this well designed room looks great without feeling decorated.  That is important to keep in mind when pulling a room together.  Of course everyone sets out to create a beautiful room, but you will want an end product that makes people feel comfortable in the space, not a space that people feel uncomfortable in because it’s too perfect… yes there is such a thing as too perfect.  The room shown ( design work by Thomas O’Brien)  above is so simple in its execution, but beautiful and well-appointed without that look of “this room is not to be lived in”,  It is comfortable and accessable.   A few things to consider about this room: Sisal carpeting always looks good and is the easiest way to keep a room from going to formal, when in doubt… try a natural woven rug; Wicker or any type of natural framed furniture is another way to make a room “easy” or casual to the point of comfortable; The informal sheer drapery is elegant but not stuffy, skip heavy or formal drapes and go with sheers only in something casual like linen, hemp or cotton; and, of course don’t be afraid to mix english antiques with transitional wicker with asian import items with traditional pieces… mix it up for an eclectic and unpredictable look.

Trend Alert!

The folks at Prada are getting in touch with their feminine side, big time.  The Spring/Summer collection looks like they borrowed their accessories from Ru Paul, Varla Jean and Lady Bunny if you ask me.  I was a bit surprised by the over embellished shoes and bags that came down the runway as Prada debuted it line for spring.  Call me crazy but I would have expected something a little less flashy… aren’t we still in a recession?  And what does this mean for interiors?  Is it possible that we are going back to glam?  Yes, the current Rustic-Modern obsession will most definitely see a backlash (eventually,but my guess is Prada is a few seasons ahead… as they should be) and home design will take a turn towards opulence in the seasons to come.

Mondrian Bathroom

I forget where I found this snapshot of a bathroom painted to resemble a Piet Mondrian painting, but I loved the idea of it.  Small rooms (especially powder rooms) that you visit briefly and infrequently are the perfect room to take liberties with and take risks in.  If you have a boring white bathroom this might just be the look for you.  I recommend experimenting with painters tape and mapping out where you think you might want your lines – think about where they intersect, if a fixture or switch might be in the way and where you want the color blocks – before you start to paint.  Although the technique of taping off lines and simply painting between them sounds easy, a thoughtful composition and a good “look-alike” to Mondrian’s famous paintings might be harder than you think.

Piet Mondrian was a 20th century abstract painter whose most famous compositions are made up of black lines and colored rectangles. Mondrian’s early works were naturalistic and impressionistic landscapes, but his discovery of cubism around 1910 put him on the path toward pure abstraction. He left his home in the Netherlands for Paris in 1912, but returned to the Netherlands in 1914 to care for his sick father. He remained there during World War I, exploring abstract forms and formulating an approach he called neo-plasticism. Back in Paris after the war, he made what may be his most famous painting, Composition with Red, Yellow and Blue (1921), a composition of primary colors in rectangles on a grid of black lines. In 1938 he went to England and in 1940 he moved to New York, where he continued to discard “non-essentials” and restrict his works to “basic forms of beauty.” Influenced by the philosophical approach of theosophy, Mondrian believed painting to be a two-dimensional interpretation of nature that is guided by the artist’s intuition.