We were so thrilled to see Gresham House display their beautiful craftsmanship at the Interior Design Show this year. As testimony to their fine work and exceptional service they are, bar none, one of our favorite sources for custom upholstery. We’ve had the opportunity to create some beautiful ‘one-of-a-kind’ pieces with this company; “Canadian-made” from start to finish! I love their new large ottoman with a clean-lined metal base and large removable tray. The textural pastel fabric combined with a bronze/gold patinaed metal frame and blond wood tray is such a soft and elegant take on a modern concept. I also quite liked the banded and studded detail on the settee. Classic lines with creative detail equals great design.
One of these beautiful hand-painted and sculpted decorative tile masterpieces will be the winner. It will cover the focal point wall from counter to ceiling in the kitchen of one of our new builds. We found this compilation of old world charm to be in perfect harmony with the Chateau inspired home. Among these we are also considering the black and white laser cut marble tile for the entry hall floor. The interlocking design will strike a dramatic and high-contrast chord amid the rustic envelope.
Imagine one of these creative works underfoot. We were stopped in our tracks with this recent find at Elte in Toronto.The ’Floor to Heaven’ collection of hand-tufted and hand-carved carpets by German carpet designer, Michaela Schleypen, is highly tactile and artistic. The pics here will be part of our inspiration file for a new build we’re currenlty working on and most likely one or both of these carpets will play a leading role in a beautiful room.
I’ve been cataloguing my latest and greatest digs and I have to say that this New Year will have a full wing spread in glorious technicolour and creative license.
From my favorite ‘go-to’ design shops in Toronto to the high fashion windows in Vienna the message is really consistent. Making headlines, from my perspective, are high contrast, luxurious textiles and saturated colour (some of the big hits this year are purple, reds and oranges leaning to fuchsia, intense yellows, peacock and bottle green). We are continuing to see the re-interpretation of classic and iconic designs through both the use of unexpected material (see the neo-classic chair we discovered which consists of a classically detailed, polished nickel frame and acrylic back and seat) and exaggeration in form and detail (note the baroque-inspired mirror articulated with whimsical contour and finely studded metal work). I love the luxurious gold patinas and refined and polished warm metals which have now taken a stronger stance than the cooler metals of recent years. When it comes to pattern, I’ve noticed beautifully intricate patterns with a tactile quality(see the raised-patterned wool area carpet we wooed over) and over-scaled, high-impact floral designs will be powerful additions to our monochromatic rooms.
Here’s another detail from our ‘Modern Frontiers’ featured home as published in the latest issue of Interiors. Prior to our renovation, this curved wall was composed of an intricately etched glass wolf scene. It was a predictable statement within the Southwestern architectural framework and a bit distracting amongst other dominating details. Our approach in the re-design was to allow the sculptural form of the curved wall to take precedence. Nature-inspired materials within the simple modelling offered up a more contemporary and approachable feature to work within a network of several spaces. It is viewed from the dining room, great room and great hall and highlights a kitchen wall. Three separate curved acrylic panels are suspended within a copper framework. The natural composition of sandwiched reeds within the panels is sublimely tactile and artful.
Regina
Since this project has just been published in “Hamilton Magazine’s Interiors (look for it at local Chapters and Indigos or in our Press section) I wanted to start speaking about some of the unique details which transformed this home into a very personalized and special place. The home’s architecture is deeply rooted in Southwestern tradition and our approach was to offer an unexpected and artful interpretation. Based on the client’s directives, the home was to be rooted on a spiritual platform; a place to feed the soul; offer reflection and inspiration; enliven the senses. An Eastern influence, as guided by the client’s travels, underpins the design of the tiered water feature in the foyer. The focal point, crowned with a Bhudda on its top tier, serves as a strong visual from various views within the open-concept home. The subtle trickle of water over rivited copper, curved plates (the rivets were added as a design revision to slow the water flow and to create more visual interest) needed to be fine-tuned several times in order to achieve just the right level of ambience. At closer glance, a few river stones within each pool are inscribed with a light-hearted positive message.
Originally, there was absolutely no closet space on the main floor of this home which was really not an ideal scenario. Our solution was to design a built-in armoire in the back entrance hall. Voila! Complete with versatile storage and display, the new millwork is completely integrated within the architecture and presents clean line and detail from floor to ceiling. The armoire’s stepped design is purposed to allow some visual breathing space and, on a functional level, accommodates the entrance door swing. Neatly concealed behind the doors of the two recessed side units, we provided coat hooks for the kids. The shallow units are also fitted with shallow drawers and upper, open display cubbies which are completed with recessed lighting. Glass vases which refract the light are on display here. The center unit offers traditional closet depth for coat storage. We completed the unit with deep lower drawers and upper cubbies to house a pair of textural baskets. Now to fill it all!
With space at a premium, this dining area packs quite a punch. It serves as a focal point from various vantages within this compact yet striking open-concept home. The dynamic area offers a certain hinging of the home’s overall design ethos. Seamless within the architectural framework, additional pantry storage is incorporated on either side of the sleekly detailed recessed banquette. The banquette niche provides the perfect home for spectacular original artwork (my personal favorite). We also love the contemporary artisan lighting provided to us by AM Studio. Each glass unit is an art piece in onto itself. A truly inspirational space.
The finished photo-cum-T.V. wall in our clients’ master bedroom: The top centre “picture” is actually a remote-controlled, retractable screen that hides a recessed flat screen television. We incorporated the custom screen into a collage of photographic images that references our clients’ interest in European history and travel. The entire fab master bed and bath reno will be the subject of our next photo shoot, and will be posted on our website shortly. Stay tuned!
Here’s a teaser from our latest photo shoot entitled Living Large now posted on our website. We combined clean lines, a fresh palette, bold accessories and vibrant artwork to create big style in this 1800 square foot Toronto character home. A favourite recent project of ours, with a VHC (Very Happy Client) outcome.
THIS JUST IN………
We were very excited to receive our shipment of Modular Arts “Quincy” wall blocks, to be installed in a commercial office we’re designing. The blocks, available in a variety of patterns and textures, are made of cast rock over a soy-based core and interlock to create a feature wall that is seamless, lightweight, fire rated, and pop-art cool. We’ll post a photo of the finished wall once completed.
You’re going to like it a (w)hole lot.
We were very excited to receive this prototype of the grand stone mosaic floor we’ve designed for the entry rotunda of the custom home our clients are building on the lake. This elegant floor design will underscore the inherent drama of the space, with its domed, vaulted ceiling and attentuated circular staircase.
The design is executed in the three marbles seen to the left, and will be surrounded by a rich brown hardwood, also shown. Given the dramatic 14 ft. diameter of the overall design, we decided to use warm, subtly coloured stones so as not to overwhelm the other elements in the space. The centre stone is especially beautiful, with its distinctive gold veining piercing the softer cream and camel tones.
(To the right is a completely stunning crystal wall sconce in soft gold, a warm metal finish that we’ll be using throughout the home in hardware, lighting and other accents.)
The complicated arrangement of interlaced circles within a circle, seen below, reiterates the leitmotif used in both the ceiling detail and custom railings (both of which we designed - more on those features in upcoming posts.) Our mandate was to create an enviroment that is chic, contemporary and dramatic yet warm, and this mosaic inlay floor will deliver in spades.
A coloured rendering of the complete design. The actual mosaic will have a warmer colouration, and with a diameter of 14 ft., will give the entry rotunda a dramatic underpinning.
Today we address the eternal question: How do you dress a wall with a big-screen T.V. placed right in the middle, opposite the bed? (Designers are too busy pondering things like this to worry about the meaning of life.)
We’re loving our recent installation of black and white art work in oversized frames that surrounds the television and fills the entire wall. The television itself, niched in the centre, will be finished with a black framed retractable screen that is printed with a similar image, incorporating it into the scheme when the screen in lowered.
To achieve this design, we drew the wall to scale and planned out an assymetrical yet balanced arrangement of large rectangles, representing the finished frame sizes. The images themselves were found on art.com - we loved their moody, old world atmosphere which married well with the overall feel we wanted to achieve.
Next came framing selections. We kept the frames uniform: black, with a simply routed profile. Instead of the more traditional matting, we had the images bordered with black and then sandwiched between glass so that the wall behind is visible. This treatment kept the installation from looking too heavy, and also creates an interesting play of shadow that varies with the room lighting. One caveat - hanging the finished pieces requires great precision, as any extra, oops!-caused nail holes will be visible through the glass. The finished effect, however, is worth the effort.
So there you have it: completely customized, cost-effective artwork that adds plenty of wow factor and yet doesn’t overwhelm.
Really, we belong on a mountain top somewhere.
