From an Interior Design Professional who really likes really nice things. Stay tuned by following me by email (below left).
I love this interview video with British furniture designer Matthew Hilton.
It is beautifully filmed, well conceived; holds interesting insights into the designer’s process and is all-round inspiring.
To view Matthew Hilton’s website, full of amazing photography and locations, in addition to his furniture designs: http://matthewhilton.com
Below are some examples of his work:
Source: http://www.dezeenscreen.com/2011/09/16/interview-matthew-hilton/
Casa Natalia (Agraz Arquitectos) has some really interesting interior and exterior details. I particularly like the simplicity and the use of interesting textural finishes on the front door and in the stairwell. Also notice the beautiful detail of the recessed light above the front door.
Links:
Link: Belvedere residence portfolio page
My Belvedere clients had already gutted the downstairs level of their home following a flood when I first met them. Drywall, flooring etc. had been removed from the site and fans were circulating air to remove damp and prevent mold.
Please click images to enlarge
Belvedere bathroom remodel, vanity wall
Belvedere bathroom remodel, tub surround & cabinetry
Belvedere bathroom remodel, Cabinetry
We designed the new bathroom to occupy the same footprint but significantly reduced the size and quantity of the ceiling soffits and eliminated the second door into the room. This created higher ceilings and a greater sense of space; as well as more wall area, along which cabinetry could be built.
Materials were carefully chosen to keep the project within a modest budget and a large amount of custom cherry cabinetry maximized the room’s storage potential. Beautiful tile work, interesting tub surround tile design and a harmonious combination of materials resulted in a serene, light and beautiful space.
The amazing Jaffa Apartment (2011), by Architect Pitsou Kedem of Tel Aviv.
Jaffa Apartment, Pitsou Kedem, 2011
Jaffa Apartment, Pitsou Kedem, 2011
Jaffa Apartment, Pitsou Kedem, 2011
Jaffa Apartment, Pitsou Kedem, 2011
Jaffa Apartment, Pitsou Kedem, 2011
Jaffa Apartment, Pitsou Kedem, 2011
Jaffa Apartment, Pitsou Kedem, 2011
Jaffa Apartment, Pitsou Kedem, 2011
I feel honoured to feature the furnishings of Italian Jaime Tresserra.
I do not possess the words to sufficiently capture the magnificence of his pieces. Perhaps it is only through Jaime’s own, very understated sentences, that it can be gleaned effectively:
“TRESSARRA COLECTION was created in response to the needs of a special kind of consumer, whose aspirations reflect a particular life-style.
Our objective has always been to reject the industrial constraints which so often sacrifice beauty for the bottom line.
Faithful to this ascetic compromise we combine craftsmanship with the noblest materials to give shape to our designs.”
http://tresserra.com
It is the attention to detail and the craftsmanship exhibited in Tresserra’s work that so inspires me. In a world and a time which has us surrounded by the products of mass production and a driving focus on ‘value’, Tresserra reminds me of the other extreme.
I have included a few images below, but to do full justice to these pieces, you should view them at his web site, where you will enjoy his high quality images and closeups.
Tressarra Collection
Tressarra Collection
Tressarra Collection
Tressarra Collection
This is a city condo, and as is so often the case, the bathrooms are small and have no natural light of their own; so we had to be thoughtful about how we treated the spaces.
Both vanities float 14 inches above the floor, which allows for the feeling of space and air and light. Being able to see the floor below the vanities makes the floor appear larger (and allows us to see more of the very beautiful floor tile). The vanities are custom made from a 20-year-old sheet of rosewood veneered plywood, a surprise discovery from the depths of the cabinet-maker’s shop, and which is exquisitely beautiful.
The rooms were finished with contemporary Grohe and HansGrohe polished chrome fittings and we kept the color scheme very light and bright.
Please click on the images below to enlarge
Twin Peaks guest bath
Twin Peaks Master Bath, view 1
Twin Peaks Master Bath, view 2
I stumbled upon this British photographer through an article for the New York Times. A clearly highly successful photographer and photojournalist, his work dazzled me. I’m particularly taken by his composition and the strong contrast in his black and white shots.
I’m featuring two of his photographs of the Moken ‘Sea Gypsies’ who live off the coast of Thailand. Their story is as fascinating as the pictures are incredible.
You can see more of his work and read more about him at http://www.andrewtesta.co.uk
It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to transform this small and very dated Twin Peaks kitchen into a beautiful, bright and highly functional contemporary room.
We worked with sequenced and book-matched anegre veneer which worked particularly well; it is quarter-sawn, offering a very straight grain and figured for some additional beauty.
We stained the oak floors relatively dark, in order to offer contrast with the anegre cabinetry. And the black counter tops completed the picture, bringing a deep contrast to the room.
Please click on the images below to enlarge
Eltham Palace entry hall
Photograph by Andrew Testa (Click on the above image to enlarge)
Next time I’m in London, first on my visiting list is Eltham Palace.
Former home of Kings Henry II, IV and VIII, Eltham was acquired in 1933 by Stephen Courtauld, an heir to the British textile fortune, and his Italian-born wife, Virginia. They commissioned architects Seely and Paget to revamp the estate into a “modern home suitable for their considerable entertaining needs”, in an elegant mix of styles that reflected the prevailing tastes of the day. Eltham featured an internal telephone system and a clock linked directly to the Greenwich observatory.
The New York Times notes that the Swedish Art Deco hall pictured here, with its Australian black-bean paneling and marquetry scenes of Venice and Stockholm, is a showstopper. I must say, I agree.
More images at: http://www.elthampalace.org.uk And by Googling “Eltham Palace images”
New York Times article at: http://travel.nytimes.com/2011/01/02/travel/02cultured-london.html
Walker Zanger 'Studio Moderne' collection
I’ve been doing the rounds of the tile stores this week, as I select tile for a bathroom remodel I’m working on.
While in Walker Zanger, I was taken by their ‘Studio Moderne’ collection (above), apparently inspired by Art Deco, Hollywood Regency and Classic Modernism.
The scale of these tiles is what so strikes me, with some of the tiles as large as 18″ x 20″.
Use with care, however, as only a very special space can handle such a bold architectural focal point.
Walker Zanger 'Studio Moderne' collection
Walker Zanger 'Studio Moderne' collection
Architecturally, the English Georgian cottage below is strikingly similar to the house in which I spent my teenage years. This very sweet cottage is smaller than the one in which I lived, with its small servant’s wing that had bells mounted on the wall which could be rung from the main rooms of the house, but proportionally, its slate and brick and its simplicity, are one and the same.
Georgian cottage, England
A GEORGE II WALNUT CHEST-ON-CHEST, CIRCA 1740
My post of January 27th featured two beautiful Georgian chest-on-chests, one of which I show here to demonstrate the aesthetic similarities to the architecture of the time. Both are devoid of excess decoration, proportionally simple, elegant and restrained.
Are you seeing remarkable similarities between the chest-on-chest (left) and Bridgewater house (England) below?
A bit of history
Palladio’s four books on architecture of 1570 had brought the principles of classical Roman and Greek architecture to Europe more than a century earlier. By the early 18th-century, interest in classical architecture had reached its peak and we’re seeing architecture based on mathematical proportions rather than the flamboyant ornamental style more characteristic of the previous Baroque period.
Bridgewater House, early 1760s
‘Audacity’ is a piece of sculptural wall art, designed and built by myself in 2006.
Raw, unglazed white clay in 3-d relief, mounted on a Peruvian Walnut backing. 22″ tall x 16″ wide.
Below is a shot during the production of a larger custom piece to the same design.
And below is the custom piece prior to firing. The final piece is also mounted on a Peruvian Walnut backing and is in a private collection in Northern California.
