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Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Book Review: The Glass Room



"High on a Czechoslovak hill, the Landauer House shines as a marvel of steel, glass and onyx. Built specially for newlyweds Viktor and Liesel Landauer, a Jew married to a gentile, it is one of the wonders of modernist architecture. But the radiant honesty and idealism of 1930 that the house seems to engender quickly tarnishes as the storm clouds of World War Two gather. Eventually, as Nazi troops enter the country, the family, accompanied by Viktor’s lover Kata and her child Marika, must flee." 


This is the synopsis of the new novel by Simon Mawer, The Glass Room,  which made the short list of The Man Booker prize in 2009.  Written as historical fiction, this novel immediately caught my attention when I found out that it centered around the design, construction and habitation of one of Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe's most famous pieces of architecture, The Villa Tugendhat in the Czech Republic. This exemplary piece of modern architecture plays a central role in the lives of the fictional characters in the story, however, in real life this home was commissioned by a Jewish couple in Czechoslovakia between the two world wars.  Mawer takes extreme artistic license to create a tale of art, architecture, sex and betrayal but the description of the house is accurate down to the very last detail.  And as the review from The Guardian in the UK stated, "The Glass Room is not merely a piece of architecture within the book; it is the architecture of the book."


The Villa Tugendhat is Mies Van der Rohe's crowning jewel, the architecture is spectacular as are the interiors.  It is amazing how keenly aware, architects of the past were of the little details of a project.  From ones approach leading up to the property, to how you enter and exit rooms and the views you experience within the space.  I remind myself that it is often an interior designers job to come in after the fact and work with the "architecture" of today to create these types of experiences, long after the "architect" of today has gone.


I look forward to reading this piece of fiction and hopefully someday soon visiting The Villa Tugendhat in the Czech Republic, until then...









"living inside a work of art is an experience of sublime delight - the tranquillity of the large living room and the intimacy of the smaller rooms . . . the most remarkable experience of modern living" (From The Glass House)







"Ever since man came out of the cave he has been building caves around him, he cried. Building caves!But I wish to take man out of the cave and float him in the air. I wish to give him a glass space to inhabit." 
(Mawer channeling MiesVan der Rohe)






The slender columns are so elegant marching through the living room.





The sitting are in the Villa Tugendhat with the famous onyx feature wall behind.










The huge expanse of windows must have allowed the family fabulous views of the country side in Brno, Czechoslovakia throughout the seasons.





Critics of modern architecture cannot say that this space is cold, it exudes warmth through the use of exquisite materials.





A beautiful view of the approach of the residence and the surrounding landscape.


Monday, January 25, 2010

Old Dogs Can Learn New Tricks!




I love animals, I have been dreaming of getting a dog, someone to greet me lovingly at the door when I get home every night.  Alas, a dog is not in my near future.  So instead I started thinking about how to add animals in to my decor.  I also love vintage advertisements, a client of mine just chose the striking monkey above for his dining area.  He commands the attention of everyone in the room (the monkey that is) and he adds a liveliness to the atmosphere.  That is why I love the collection of prints below, these are just a few of the wonderful examples of vintage animal posters that are available with just a little internet searching.  They make a great statement and can add a punch of color to an otherwise neutral space or  some playfulness to set off a more serious room.  And that best thing about these pieces are that they can be integrated into almost any type of design and they work well as a stand alone piece or grouped with other art / decorative objects.








These two prints are great examples of Charley Harper art.  A graphic designer who was very prolific from the 50's through the 90's.  He produced many pieces featuring animals, some advertisements and others simply beautiful graphic compositions.





I love this little licorice juggling dog.  He is so lively and the colors and graphic style are classic!






A very famous print, Le Chat Noir, is wonderful.  The colors are so rich and by changing your framing this will work in a multitude of spaces.





I adore this Good Housekeeping print, it would look fabulous in a very sophisticated little girls room




How cute is the schnauzer above?  He adds a great pop of color and fun to a white on white room.



I have just started compiling my Amazon store online called The List.  This will feature many of the great products that I review as well as my favorite books, design products and more including some of these posters.  Check it out!

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Rain Rain Go Away

The Winter blues are here to stay. As I am writing this the weather has turned nasty, rain and sleet and everything terrible. It is the type of weather that makes you just want to stay in bed...FOREVER! And it is around this time of year that I start to feel really down, however its also a time when the little things can really brighten my day! Winter is a fabulous time to pick up on those projects that you didn't complete last year, filing photos, craft projects, recovering furniture. It is also a great time to do a little something for yourself, take a look at some things I have on my to do list for this winter!




Take a lazy Sunday!

Sit around in your underwear all day drinking cappuccinos, catching up on reading. Take a bubble bath. Make sure you have great easy food around, french toast for breakfast, fruit to snack on and perhaps a delicious seared tuna salad. The key it to eat light and relax, you will be amazed at how good you feel!



Discover new views!

Spend the day walking around the city/town in which you live taking photographs. There is nothing like rediscovering your home town in a whole new way. You will be amazed at the shots you can get from seemingly mundane subjects.



Play dress up!

This is the perfect time to purge your closet. Experiment with mixing and matching things you never thought would go together. Think outside the box and be a little daring with your selections. When you can't buy something new the next best thing is to make something feel like new! Its not a bad idea to invite a friend over to help you look at things with a different perspective and it couldn't hurt to drink mimosas while you work!





Throw a party!

Not only will the planning keep your mind occupied for a few days, but hosting a party will allow you to see all of those friends that you couldn't squeeze in during the holidays. Chances are they too are experiencing the winter blues! Encourage your guests to dress up and really make it a special occasion.



Make your own Paris Sidewalk Cafe!

Turn your kitchen or living room into your very own Paris Sidewalk Cafe. Serve coffee and pastries and watch your favorite French movies.


Whatever you do this winter to get through, just remember spring is right around the corner and it will only be a few more weeks until those first flowers come pushing up through the snow!


Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Young Designers to Watch

I am always slightly depressed when the lists of "young designers to watch" come out. I often feel like I haven't accomplished anything in the design world, but then I remind myself I am only 26 and have plenty of time to become one of these young designers. This particular list features 20 designers who have a more traditional flair, and in today's world it is refreshing to see young designers following in the footsteps of great designers of the past but at the same time "exploring what it means to be traditional in the 21st century." I pulled out a few of my favorite rooms but for more photos and the bios of these up and coming stars visit Decorati. Hopefully in a few years I will be on one of these lists!





Paul Corrie- Washington, DC





Meg Braff- New York, NY





Massucco Warner Miller- San Francisco, CA





Massucco Warner Miller- San Francisco, CA






Marshall Erb- Chicago, IL






Mark Roberts- Cedar Rapids, IA





Jessica Helgerson- Portland, OR






Garrow Kedigian- New York, NY





Elizabeth Bauer- New York, NY





Brad Ford- New York, NY





Brad Ford- New York, NY


































Friday, January 8, 2010

Sipping Toddies By The Fire

All this week I have been obsessively checking out my new iPhone app, Ski Report. This very cool little program lists all of your favorite ski locations and gives you weather reports, new snowfall amounts and comments and pictures of the slope conditions. I am drooling over the fact that here in the mid-atlantic we have actually had some decent snowfall, including 5" of new snow at Wisp in Maryland just yesterday! Maybe I should go skiing tomorrow! Well, all of this cold weather and visions of snowy ski mountains makes me think about beautiful ski lodge design. After a long day of skiing or boarding there is nothing like cozy-ing up to a crackling fire, hot toddy in hand in a gorgeous lodge. I have found a variety of spaces some appropriately rustic and inviting and a few with a contemporary take. I hope you can enjoy these until you too can hit the slopes!



The Ritz Carlton Bachelor Gulch Beaver Creek, Colorado


The Main Living Room at The Ritz Carlton Bachelor Gulch. I hung out here for a few hours, took a nap and drank hot chocolate after a long day of skiing last year. It was such a warm and inviting place, complete with ski check at the door and slippers to wear by the fire!




Beautiful Idre Fjall ski lodge in Sweden.



Contemporary lodge at The Omnia in Switzerland



Ralph Lauren design with beautiful textures and that traditional rustic feel.



Ralph Lauren's rustic bedroom, wouldn't you like to just cozy up in this room with a good book?!



The Verbier in Switzerland suites with in room fireplace and contemporary lodge feel.



I'm not sure where this great lodge is located but the view is spectacular as are those leather poof chairs.



I really enjoyed this photo because I thought it was a great example of how to apply lodge design to your own home with a contemporary flair.















Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Iron-ing Maiden


I can't wait to have a real laundry room. Any house I someday own must have an actual room dedicated to the art of laundry. Now most of you are probably scratching your heads in confusion, don't get me wrong, laundry is NOT my favorite thing in the world and ironing is pretty much on the bottom of that list. However, if you know me at all you know I have perfected the art of folding, some say I fold clothes like origami! So having a beautiful room in which to make my paper crane clothing creations is a dream. Check out these gorgeous laundry rooms of which I am completely envious. And while you are at it invest in some great laundering products from The Laundress, it may just make doing laundry a little more glamorous!



Soft soothing green


I absolutely love this beautiful contemporary room complete with large vessel sink for hand washing.


The built-ins in this laundry room are beautiful and I adore the black and white striped chair.



The wall paper in this cute laundry features vintage laundering scenes.



How lucky would we be to have a beautiful room and view like this in which to do our daily chores?!



I love how the washer and dryer are hidden behind folding doors for a seamless look.



One could spend all day in this room, although I'm afraid no laundry would get done!



Simple and chic by adding wallpaper and a chandelier.



Super sleek and wonderful with plenty of folding space.