interior glass doors: 2009-04-12

The quaker sampler wip

Algunos avances de este quaker que se deja bordar con gusto

We interrupt our regularly scheduled Kips Bay Decorator Show House coverage to thank Mother Nature for hearing our pleas and warming up the New York weather! The sun is shining! The birds are chirping! The tulips on Park Avenue are blooming! I couldn't have asked for a better birthday present! Happy Spring!

Panel de otoño acabado

Este es un panel que me regalaron hace bastante tiempo y que poco a poco he ido acolchado a mano cada uno de sus dibujos. Luego añadí alguna tela más de Thimbleberries para los laterales .
Puedes leer los progresos aquí y
aquí

El borde lleva un acolchado a máquina haciendo pequeños remolinos . Los dibujos del panel están acolchados a mano como os he dicho antes.

Medidas : 150cm x 112 cm
Guata : algodón

Espero que te guste , mamá. Todo llega.

The best way to tour the Kips Bay Decorator Show House this year is to take the elevator up to the 5th floor and work your way down. Give yourself plenty of time because there is a lot to see! Everyone I've spoken with agrees that it is the best show house in years and there is something to love about each room. Another one of my favorites is the 5th floor room designed by Donald Shermerhorn. I actually felt bad that I had never heard of Mr. Shermerhorn before because he is such a wonderful designer but that's what is so great about a show house. They introduce you to interior designers who you may not be familiar with and it's great for giving them the exposure that they deserve!

The rooms on the 5th floor were once the office of a gallery, more on that later, and were devoid of any architectural details so the designers had to get creative. I love that Mr. Shermerhorn created a shiny modern box which he then filled with a mix of antiques and modern art. I really love this type of mixing of periods and styles and could have spent all day in this room. The show houses are also full of fabulous ideas to take away like floating the bed in the middle of the room. I would never have thought of such an idea but now that I've seen it in person and how beautiful it looks, I might just have to try it for one of my clients.

Even though the colors in the room are mauves and ivories, it is a room that balances the masculine and feminine so perfectly, that I think anyone would feel comfortable in this space. The lovely George III tea table can be used for eating or working and I love the sitting area by the fireplace for reading with the large abstract painting by Stephen Pace (available through the Katharina Rich Perlow Gallery) behind it. What's funny is that another designer in the show house also uses a Stephen Pace painting in his room and there is a lot of other abstract paintings used this year. The house is full of wonderful coincidences that help the flow.

What I love most about this room is how serene it feels. The pieces don't jump out at you but are quiet and elegant. When you look around is when you start to notice all the wonderful details and they all perfectly relate to one another. The antique oriental rug from Stark also helps to pull everything together as well. I have a feeling that we are going to be hearing a lot about Donald Shermerhorn in the future and I can't wait to see more from him!

The best part of attending the press tour for the 2009 Kips Bay Decorator Show House is that I was able to speak to most of the designers directly and ask them questions. Most of the established interior designers usually take one of the larger rooms in a show house because they can afford to decorate them. They have great relationships with many vendors and workrooms and since their clients usually spend a lot, they are able to call in favors and get many goods and services donated. Younger designers without deep pockets usually choose a smaller room but as is the case with interior designer Garrow Kedigian, they can often make a big impact in their small space!

Garrow had just 95 square feet to work with on the 5th floor of the Show House but it's full of great style and design ideas. His inspiration was actually a room he had created for a client on Park Avenue who was a psychologist who wanted a room of her own to get away from her husband and children. He turned a small maid's room into a multi-use space where she could read and eat and get away from all the hassles of her day. Couldn't we all use a room like that?!

The room was painted a lovely orange/brown color which were varnished to create a sheen that reflects light. There were absolutely no architectural details in the room so Garrow created them using paint, an easy trick that anyone could try at home. We discussed how hard it is to choose a paint color and he tried about four colors before settling on Benjamin Moore Terra Mauve. You really need to try paint out in your own space so you can tell how it will look because it can look dramatically different in a magazine or online. They can even look different in regular photos as you see from the first two photos that I took and the last three that were taken by Bruce Buck. Of course, Bruce is a much more talented photographer than I am so that might also have something to do with it!

What's so great about the space are all the details that you only start to notice as you look around the room. The banquette was a great choice since it anchors the room and doesn't take up as much space as a regular sofa might. The pillows were actually made from fabric samples but don't tell anyone! The marble top table from Amy Perlin Antiques serves as a dining table and work space. The Greek key motif from the pillows is picked up in the custom rug which also complements the wall color. There are many classical elements that play off each other including the large painting of the Russian post, Mayakovsky that was found rolled up in another client's attic!

Outside the room is the skylight so Garrow opened up the wall near the ceiling to allow for a mirrored oculus and two other "windows" on the side wall let more light into the small room. The mirror on the other wall also helps open up the space. This was definitely one of my favorite rooms and I heard that interior designer legend Mario Buatta also declared it one of his favorites as well! Just goes to show you that big things come in small packages!

Closets para Niños

Que cómodos resultan estos closets para los dormitorios de los niños. Nos ayuda a mantener todo en orden. Los modelos de closest para niños pertenecen a la empresa California Closets.

Walk-in Closet

Ud. se imagina con estos walk-in closet en su casa? Los walk-in closet estan hechos especialmente para mantener bien organizado la ropa, zapatos, accesorios, etc. y poder ubicarlos muy rápido. Los walk-in closet te dan la comodidad de poner caminar dentro de ellas y sentirte más comoda al momento de vestirse o buscar la ropa que deseas. Además resultan muy funcionales. Estos diseños de walk-in closet son de la empresa California Closets ofrece varios diseños y modelos de walk-in closet según el gusto de la persona.

I feel like I have been at the 2009 Kips Bay Decorator Show House all day and that's because I have! I spent three hours there this afternoon on a press tour going through all the amazing rooms and meeting all the talented designers and I can tell you that you will LOVE it! Then I had an hour and a half to run home and change to go back for the black tie President's Preview Dinner as a guest of the New York Design Center and my friend Brad Ford. I ran into so many wonderful friends and designers including The Peak of Chic, Jennifer Dwyer, who I had never met before and was even seated next to Eddie Ross at the dinner! I also might have introduced myself to the doyenne of design herself, Ms. Martha Stewart. Since I work from home, I get to watch her show every day and I would have kicked myself if I didn't get a chance to tell her how much I admire her work. Oh, and no party would be complete without running into Michael Tavano!

It was a wonderful day and I have so many photos to go through and so many things to discuss that it will probably take me a week to post them all! This year's event is in honor of Mr. Albert Hadley and it was such a treat to see him in his tux and chat with him again. The room designed by Bunny Williams (above) has the most design elements related to her mentor and friend and it was fun finding them all among her new BeeLine of furniture and accessories. I think Mr. Hadley's wonderful design inspiration must have rubbed off on all the designers of the Show House because they have all created amazing rooms! I really did love them all and I can't play favorites but Garrow Kedigian's tiny little jewel box room was wonderful and Joe Nye's beautiful orange room was just lovely. Oh, and I might have a serious design crush on Juan Montoya now! He was as handsome as his room! Or maybe it was the accent! I also loved chatting with Eileen Kathlyn Boyd and Kathy Abbott about their gorgeous rooms! Everyone worked so hard and they all did an spectacular job! And best of all, it supports such a worthy cause, The Kips Bay Boys and Girls Club! I can't wait to post all the photos and write up all the posts but now it's off to bed for this Cinderella! Thanks to a ride from Wayne Nathan, I made it home before turning into a pumpkin! Check back for more detailed posts this week on all the rooms and participating designers!

Sala Comedor Cocina

Este diseño nos dá una idea cuando necesitamos diseñar nuestro casa y compartir un solo ambiente para la cocina-comedor y la sala. En estos tiempos donde el espacio es escaso para nuestras casas, tenemos que diseñar todo en uno, pero con mucho cuidado y siempre cuidando que todo este completo. Espero les guste la idea.

The temperatures may have made it feel like winter on Easter Sunday but at least the park looked like spring! The trees and flowers are blooming all over the city and once it finally warms up, every New Yorker is going to have a serious case of spring fever! We're getting closer!

Photos by moi

Swede Hill - Green on Block Island

I am taking a quick break from posting about my trip to New Orleans to give you a peek at what all my "green" friends in New England are buzzing about: Swede Hill.

Swede Hill is a newly constructed LEED "Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design," registered home. It promises to be one of Southern New England’s truly “green” luxury homes.

This stunning private hilltop retreat offers breath-taking southerly and westerly ocean views towards Montauk Point and Long Island Sound. The house is situated on a hill that faces both south and west, providing spectacular ocean views. The 3000-square-foot home will be located on four protected acres of Block Island, which is just off the coast of Rhode Island and east of Montauk Point.

The house itself has four bedrooms (plus a guest suite, on top of which solar panels will be installed) and is being offered as a single-family residence. Green design features include solar-heated domestic hot water and fifteen percent of all interior heat; the house’s swimming pool is also solar-powered. A graywater system will provide landscape irrigation (though the property does not have a lawn) and all shower heads and toilets are low-flow.

All photos Luxuo
Given the high winds that sweep across Block Island, the structural design of the house considers those additional wind loads. As you can see in the images above, the house will benefit from those winds through a design that both maximizes cross-ventilation, as well as considers other passive solar and daylighting techniques. Building materials include locally-sourced stone and reclaimed wood. The architect estimates that construction costs should be around $650 per square foot.

Although the property itself is four acres, the Swede Hill House occupies a relatively small footprint by comparison. It is an exciting project for Block Island, as well as a beautiful design. Who says "green" building can't also be luxurious?

addtl info from greenbuilidngsnyc

Everyone knows that I'm a city girl but all the lovely country houses I've been seeing lately might cause me to reconsider. I could picture myself being very happy on this Hudson Valley Farm by architect Gil Schafer. Of course, that would be after I stopped at Barbour to pick up the necessary wardrobe items like Wellies and waxed cotton jackets. Then you could keep Manhattan and just give me that countryside!