Wednesday, September 30, 2009


















Fashion Designer Anna Sui remains very true to herself with this awesome apartment of hers. I can't help but be happy for people that remain true to their personal style and identity when designing and decorating their homes. I know that this seems like a "duh" kind of statement but you would be surprised at how many people don't trust their own instincts when it comes to their own spaces. Remember, you never want to feel like a stranger in your own home. you want to make sure that you respect both environment and personal vibe. Never try to re create, rather borrow and reinterpret. It really is the only way to feel connected to your home.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

"Happy 99th Birthday, Hoffman!"

“Hoffman Series B” Drinking Set
Design: Josef Hoffmann, 1912



I almost choked on my sandwich when Anna showed me this fabric! I became crazy. Like all that is perfect, it can easily be adapted and applied to many different mediums ei; textiles, accessories, carpets, etc. This pattern called "Linien" is the proof. The strength is in its simplicity. One very basic element of design was used..."contrast in direction". My clients are always amuses when I say "It's so simple and yet, complicated." The possibilities with this pattern are endless. Also, it's been around for nearly 100 years. This textile now produced by Unika Vaev, is as valid today in the 21st century as is was the day it was created. I look forward to specifying this textile to a worthy project. It will truly be an honour!

Monday, September 21, 2009

Marni, Madison Avenue









So many people have tried to dispaly clothing in a way similar to displaying Art and I can tell you that more often than not they have failed. This boutique is brilliantly done; London's Sybarite has truly created "a prime example of synchronocity emerging from a mix of moder art and fashion" p.59 Frame , issue 70. www.sybarite-uk.com.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Manhattan





The Neue Galerie
www.neuegalerie.org



The Lobby of the Mark hotel
www.themarkhotel.com



The New Museum
www.newmuseum.org

Here are some great glimpses at the epicenter of art fashion and design.


Got nothing to do this weekend? Do yourselves a favor and go to New York city for a couple of days. There really is so much happening there and no great excuse for missing it. Fly, drive you get the drift; just go! I know, I know you've been, but there is always something new to see and experience, Manhattan is constantly reinventing itself, and you will always come back home re-energized and inspired.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Viva Las Vegas!








I just got back from a much needed Las Vegas getaway, I drank by the pool side at the Trump; gambled at the Bellagio (can you say Muranno); tried to re-new my vows at the Graceland wedding chapel (never mind $800) and ate at the renowned Aureole restaurant. However the one thing I did not have the pleasure of visiting was the Barbie-themed suite at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas created by none other than Jonathan Adler. If you grew up with Barbie (as I have), can you imagine how fabulous this life size, pink-filled doll house must be?
From the wall decor to the furniture to the bathroom accessories Jonathan Adler has brought Barbie's world to life.


Monday, September 14, 2009



What a treat for Fabio Novembre fans! They sure got their fill at the Triennale Design Museum in Milan with a retrospective of his furniture designs, including two new pieces. The whole idea: exploring Novembre's world (process, obsessions and inspirations). www.novembre.it

Friday, September 11, 2009

Broadway Boogie Woogie


This painting is awesome in person. I saw it at the MoMa a few years ago, and I think of it often. Mostly for it's complex composition, and use of colour. Balance is the prominent element of design here. I've included below a blurb explaining it's story...
Escaping to New York after the start of World War II, Mondrian delighted in the city's architecture, and, an adept dancer, was fascinated by American jazz, particularly boogie–woogie. He saw the syncopated beat, irreverent approach to melody, and improvisational aesthetic of boogie–woogie as akin to his own "destruction of natural appearance; and construction through continuous opposition of pure means—dynamic rhythm." Bands of stuttering chromatic pulses, paths of red, yellow, and blue interrupted by light gray suggest the city's grid and the movement of traffic, while the staccato vibration of colors evokes the syncopation of jazz and the blinking electric lights of Broadway.
Many architects and designers have been influenced by Mondrian's Broadway Boogie Woogie. Below is Dutch artist Gerrit Thomas' famous chair. He's also known for having set the tone for movement of De Stijl. I think this chair is one of the very few pieces that have been influenced by Piet, that actually is successful.


Gerrit Thomas Rietveld (25 June 1888–27 June, 1965) was a Dutch furniture designer and architect. One of the principal members of the Dutch artistic movement called De Stijl, Rietveld is famous for his Red and Blue Chair and for the Rietveld Schröder House, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Rietveld designed his famous Red and Blue Chair in 1917. In 1918, he started his own furniture factory, and changed the chair's colors after becoming influenced by the 'De Stijl' movement, of which he became a member in 1919, the same year in which he became an architect. He designed his first building, the Rietveld Schröder House, in 1924, in close collaboration with the owner Rutger Jan Schimmelpenninck. Built in Utrecht on the Prins Hendriklaan 50, the house has a conventional the ground floor, but is radical on the top floor, lacking fixed walls but instead relying on sliding walls to create and change living spaces. The design seems like a three-dimensional realisation of a Mondrian painting. The house is a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.

Rietveld broke with the 'De Stijl' in 1928 and became associated with a more functionalist style of architecture known as either Nieuwe Zakelijkheid or Nieuwe Bouwen. The same year he joined the Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne. He designed the "Zig-Zag" chair[1] in 1934 and started the design of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, which was finished after his death. He built hundreds of homes, many of which in the city of Utrecht.





Less for me, but in the right setting, I could be wonderful. Please ask a professional if you are going to buy these, it may become a total disaster.

I think this could be good if the colours were the original ones. Why play games when the concept it perfect? This is what happens when people think they are getting 'creative'. Stop. If you feel you can adapt to the concept, and succeed, then do it; otherwise-don't!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Lladro - Equus







Equus Collection. I must admit, I was surprised to see so much zebrano wood veneer.




Seating area upstairs





Equus collection



Equus collection

I just came back from Barcelona and headed for the Lladro showroom! After being allowed access into the shop, (yes, we had to be buzzed in!) I was in pure amazement. Not only was the interior lighting and detailing impeccable, but the product followed suit. I must admit, I was surprised to see so much zebrano wood veneer. I think I've seen too much of it over the past 4 years, and it's starting to loose it's charm. There are so many innovative materials on the market, there is no reason to dwell on zebrano. I really think zebrano is starting to have what I like to call "The lucky bamboo effect". But I digress...
I'm not that much into porcelain, but I have to say that a 24" Chinese dragon retailing for 18,000 euros, caught my attention. What I fell in love with is the beautiful and brilliant Equus Collection.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Caziness!!!















Yesterday my boyfriend and I were visiting the Telio showroom and we came across the new Jim Thompson collection inspired by Tony Duquette (http://www.jimthompson.com/). Now you all know how much I lovecraziness; none crazier than wonderful Tony Duquette (and I mean good Crazy) . This collection is so very well put together, that you just want to use it everywhere. It clearly embodies the Design Icon that was Duquette (http://www.tonyduquette.com/) and very much reflects that L.A feel that is so present in his work (as you all know Duquette worked for the the film industry in Los Angeles, and mainly with Vincent Minelli). The collection says extravagant and lavish yet tasteful. I can think of a million applications already!!!