5/27/2010

Tone on Tone Done Beautifully





Tone on Tone doesn't have to be boring.  Keeping things all one color or in the color range and making the textures and patterns different gives a very elegant feel and makes it easy to change at any time just by changing your theme color.
I am attaching four pictures that show examples of tone on tone in the darker neutral fields yet it can be in any color range.  Hope this gives you inspiration.
                   

5/25/2010

Paint your Doors Dark? What do you do with the Baseboards?

We bought a house with white doors and baseboards and I have always wanted to do something with them.

Being an interior designer I have a thing for everything matching. If I was to paint the doors, I would have to paint the baseboards too. Then I looked around the house at how many baseboards there were and lost my motivation.

Last year when we were renovating I wanted to replace my interior white doors to stained louver doors to add a bit more pizazz to the house with the look of the door and warmth with the stain. The thought went by the wayside.

Tonight when I was reading designers blogs I came across some pictures of dark doors leaving everything else white. I really liked it. Even designers sometimes need to get out of their own way and find something to visualize. This is a way to add warmth and no, I don't have to paint the baseboards. (Now....what about the closet doors? Will have to ponder this!)

5/21/2010

Custom Lighting Workroom Visit



I was invited to a gathering at a local well known lighting company called Hinkley's here in Scottsdale.  They set it up in the back where they actually made the custom fixtures.  I was really intrigued.  I love watching things being made. 

We were walked around by one of the designers who showed us some of her work. She is very talented and knowledgeable and you can see by the way she explains some of the fixures very passionate about what she does.

Also at the workroom there were guys actually melting steel, hammering it, twisting and turning it, and molding it to make parts of the fixtures.  I love lighting fixtures and why I had never seen this part of it I'll never know.  I guess I was to busy specifying them then to get into the science of how they were produced.  That was their job.  This I am understanding now, was my loss.

I have been getting pretty involved with going to my vendors events lately and I am happy I am doing this.  Vendors are also taking this time to inform designers on their products properly by putting on these events.
In the past month I have been to Kallista for a presentation on Custom Showers, Kravet Furniture where they uphostered a chair in front and displayed the types of frames/padding, fabrics, etc.  And as I mentioned above Hinkleys Lighting.

  Business being a bit slow is giving me a chance to relearn.  To put a face to a name rather than just talking to vendors on the phone.  Actually seeing what it is that they do on a day to day.  Realizing that always seeing them in my place of business could hamper me because seeing each little thing that goes into the job is just as important to the whole process of what they bring to the table.

5/18/2010

Making money with google adsense, Blogging & SEO.: Seven Worst Adsense Mistakes.

For those of us who are working on our online marketing presensce. This paragraph made sense to me. Simple rules to follow to make the best of your ads from day one!

Making money with google adsense, Blogging & SEO.: Seven Worst Adsense Mistakes.

5/16/2010

Coolest and Most Creative Hair Salon I have ever seen!!

How about this for a hair salon. It is located in Dublin, Ireland. This is what happens when clients let designers run free and we get to express whats in our heads!! What an imagination the designer Garry Cohn has!!
Its worth watching!! For more info I attached a link to his site



5/11/2010

Old & New

I found this picture on a blog that I read.  What a way to incorporate old and new!
This was one of Sydney, Australia's oldest historic buildings (the mint) that was converted into a public place of business.

You can check out all the detailed information and other pictures in the attached link (Click on the Title) along with a detailed drawing of what they saved and what and where they added.

5/08/2010

Extremely Large Lampshade - Cool Light Fixture

I stopped in my tracks when I walked by this shoe store.

Look at the extremely large "red lampshade" over the cashier counter.  What a way to warm up store design and create a visual!!  The lighting was just right for the picture and the tech blue wall and floor color makes this light fixture pop!!

Another great out of the box idea!!  I love these!!


5/01/2010

Sandwich shop light fixtures

I went to a cute sandwich shop today and they had the prettiest blown glass floral light fixtures mounted in color painted tray ceilings. The pendant lights that hung over the tables were in the shape of tulips.
I loved their slogan also "Stop and Smell the Flours" purposely spelling it "Flours" instead of "Flowers" because it was also a bakery.
It's ideas like these that can make a simple place fabulous. Great out of the box thinking!









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