Bathroom Beauty's

Are you considering updating your bathroom?

 Here are some things to consider before you begin.

 1) what is your style? is it contemporary or traditional?

 2) what materials will you use?

3) how much space do you have and how can you best use it? 

4) what style tub and sinks are available to me?

 I've been trolling through the internet searching for what's new and interesting with bathrooms and one common product kept showing up...Copper!  Copper is very trendy right now so I wanted to provide you with some ideas to get started.

Here are a few amazing products I've found that may peak your interest.

 

Bathtubs

 

We know we can get claw foot and jacuzzi tubs so here are a few unusual or out of box types.

Copper Japanese soaking tubs
 

this is a stainless steel soaking tub, it is really very comfortable because it has a little bench seat in there. they're not very wide but they are deep and perfect for a soak

 

This one is custom designed and can be molded on the inside to curve like you body

 

Holy Feng Shui! this one is stunning

 

I'd like to schedule me for 6 hours in this room

 

 

Wooden

 

 

Colored Stone

Stone

 

 

Sinks

 

 

There are currently 7 styles of vanity sinks you should consider when choosing products for your bathroom.

1st is the self rimming which sit on top of the counter and have a rolled or finished edge.

2nd is the console sink which is similar to a pedestal but it has a small amount of counter space available and looks more like a furniture piece.

 

3rd is the vessel sink, this looks like a bowl you've just set on top of the counter to catch the water as it pours into it.  

 

4th is the pedestal sink, this is a free standing sink and are great for very small bathrooms

5th is the wall mount sink which is mounted directly onto the wall.  These are also a great functional solution to a tight bathroom

6th is the under mount sink which is set just under the counter top 

 

7th is the vanity top sink which is a single sheet of material that is the counter and the sink all in one.  

 

Thank you

Kitchen Bath & Lighting Modern style Kitchens Trends

Modern Purist Kitchen Trends 

The definition of Purism is: an early-20th-century artistic style and movement founded by Le Corbusier and the French painter Amédée Ozenfant (1886–1966) and emphasizing purity of geometric form. It arose out of a rejection of cubism and was characterized by a return to the representation of recognizable objects.

So with the modern style of a purist kitchen, you would not see traditional ornament and classical motif’s anywhere.  What you would get a sense of is a clean even sterile aesthetic with contemporary yet incredibly functional materials and furnishings.  The purist kitchen typically means that it has pure color like white on the walls, it would seem there is a lot of white or natural purist colors that are used.  With fixtures like the faucet, they would have tubular shapes that are simple yet beautiful.

 

 

This is the "Purist" faucet from Kohler kohler.com

 

This is an example of the "Floating Glass Series" appliances by Jenn Air.  jennair.com

The aesthetic is very minimalist but Modern kitchen trends today can still have a purist flavor but just more inviting and encorporate luxurious elements like appliances and glossy lacquered cabinets or stainless with glass inserts like the example kitchen below. 

 

There is a desire for people to want to live in homes that are comfortable and personable and functional

 

  You may see concrete floors and counter tops and you may see organic wood floors with a lustrous chrome for cabinetry and or counter tops.  A Modern purist kitchen exemplifies an uncluttered aesthetic that would be pleasing to the eye as well as inviting.

Paradise Found

Paradise found

This week I read an article in Architectural Digest one of the homes of my doppelganger Cindy Crawford (She wishes)!

It seems miss Cindy has great taste not only in clothing but her interiors.  She and her entrepreneur husband Rande Gerber decided to partner up with George Clooney and build a sort of compound  or side by side home if you will for themselves when they come to visit the small town of Los Cabos, which just looks like paradise on the southern tip of the Mexico's Baja peninsula.  The group agreed that they wanted to stay away from the typical "hacienda" style homes that you commonly see.  This home is much more modern and one of the most serene homes I've seen with incredible exotic, warm wood coffer ceilings and open to the elements wall concepts. You enter into a double height central courtyard with Spanish Limestone on floors and walls and exposed to the elements. The colors are very neutral, but you don't need a lot of foof when you have views with spectacular turquoise waters and lush palms and other vegetation right out your door and even on your lanai as your decoration.  You can see that the space was designed for entertaining with so many spaces for gathering, the compound is named Casamigo's which means "house of friends".  

George did agree or entrust Rande and Cindy to make the majority of the design decisions knowing that they do have an eye for design as well as impeccable style.  They worked with a local architect, Ricardo Legorrita and son Victor Legorrita.  This home is stylish, bright, warm and welcoming just like you want to feel when you come home or enter into your vacation home.  

Enjoy these pictures of Casamigo's.

  

All of the pictures came from the November issue of Architectural Digest Magazine

Fall Centerpieces

Centerpieces for the Season

I read an article in Better Homes and Gardens October issue on tablescapes and centerpieces.  The article is called "Natural Genius".  It's about not spending a lot of money to make your table look pretty but using the natural resources we have available to us right outside our doors.
 I'm sure most of us have something on our dining tables whether it is just place mats, table runners, a tablecloth or a plant in a vase.
 To me, a centerpiece is like jewelry, you always want to accessorize and yes, you should always have a some sort of dressing on your tables, we're designers, of course we're going to accessorize.

Even though summer blooms are gone, painfully obvious from today's snow, you can still create a beautiful and low to no cost tablescape just by simply looking around your yard.
You will need some items like; spray paint, (gold and silver are great for this time of year), unique looking urns, wicker bowls, vases you don't mind altering, mason jars and even old glasses that you never use.  Just give them a good wash, and start getting creative.  Here are some great examples of tablescape options and accessories.

We all have leaves in the yard...here is a great way to use them as decoration for a table centerpiece

www.bhg.com

This stuff is free people!  it's right out your door

www.bhg.com

Leaves, gourds, acorns, pine cones, and candles and you've got a great tablescape

www.bhg.com

Maybe reconsider throwing out that old sweater, how sweet is this little tea candle holder with some of that fabric to warm up that little vignette.  

www.houzz.com

Get some gold spray paint and go nuts!

This is a throw blanket, cut up some burlap, sticks, candles and voila!  How clever

www.houzz.com

www.bhg.com

www.pintrest.com

How about this...who would've thought pumpkins could be so elegant.  Decorative nail heads and your initial, very nice.

www.houzz.com

Go to your grandmother's basement, she's got these mason jars in all shapes and sizes and if she doesn't....I do!  Come ask me for some:)

www.houzz.com

this reminded me of Natasha's table centerpiece just a touch. This is just a cool branch that fell from the tree spray painted white.   

www.houzz.com

I hope these idea's inspire you to create a one of a kind and very inexpensive tablescape that you can change out every other week if you're so inclined.

Modern Twists

Happy mid-week to you all!

 

I read an article in Trend Ideas magazine this week on one of my favorite design styles... modern design.  What I love so much about being able to use modern elements with any design style is that it can feed all of your style cravings, from rustic woods paired with shiny surfaces to arabesques etched in a modern glass panel.  Speaking of cravings, I've got some delicious kitchens to show you!

 

The article is all about kitchen's that have been remodeled.  The article, Modern Outlook talks about remodeling an old loft kitchen, ripping everything out down to the studs and starting with a clean slate.  Modern design is often times much more expensive than other styles because the materials you're using are going to be, well...modern...new.  There are those modern designs that encorporate classical elements and I think that is where the magic happens. 

 

 

 

The linear lines attract your eye to all of the interesting levels and layers of what could be a fairly boring kitchen if it were just your typical beige kitchen.  The backlit drop ceiling provides deliniation of the one big expanse kitchen/dining combo.

 

There are plenty of reflective surfaces that help bounce the light around.  The rich wood warms the space under the waterfall countertops.

 

The next kitchen space is full of hidden compartments where your practical day to day kitchen tools are concealed with back lit lacquered cabinetry.  I love the stainless toe kick, the bands around the countertop and cabinetry

I love the idea the designer had here to encorporate a little bookcase nook for collectables and even cook books.  These are a java stained quarter sawn wood cabinetry with 3 form panels for doors that actually do open up for storage.  

 

Here is a view from the dining area, so as you can see, every ounce of space has been taken advantage of.  I love the stainless "island"

 

The below pic shows a beautiful modern kitchen with an element of classical, the herringbone pattern plank floor.  No, those are not modular or movable walls, it's a small galley behind the stove.

 

 

The Moooi LED pendants in this lovely remodel below cost between $3,000-$4,700 each pendant depending on the size.  The Sicis backsplash is more of a work of art than mosaic tiles, this backsplash alone I would estimate to be around $15,000 alone.  I love how they've used three different countertop surfaces, stainless on the range wall, a light granite on the perimeter and a beautiful dark granite on the island.  All of these luxurious elements of this design make you want to gather around and never walk away.