You Gotta Get A Chandelier!

Recently a rather questionable "chandelier store" opened up near one of our favorite restaurants.
Mark and I quote lines from this SNL short all the time now.

SoCal Modern

I could scroll through your site for hours:) And yes I will take this house...as long as the car is included.

You can find more photos of this modern ranch here.

Hot Off The Presses

If you are like me, you took a Monday off from blogland. If you did you may have missed the release of
Refueled magazine's third issue. If you haven't seen it, its a great collaborative effort by bloggers Chris Brown,
Cheryl Schulke, and Don Weir. I'm a big fan of their styles and love this magazine! Check out the
article featuring Courtney Barton's home...although it makes me a little sad that Courtney is so far away now:(

I also love the article these photos taken at the hotel Saint Cecilia. definitely need to put this on my list of
places to stay. It is the most recent venture of the creative minds who formed the Hotel San Jose. So fabulous!

Passion - That is the Key

 

"Passion - that is the key in Interior / Exterior: the urge to beautify and capture reality and to inspire others."

This is an excerpt taken from the book: INEX by Wolterinck.  It is one of my favourite books as it features the interiors of homes and shows how the surrounding gardens have been designed to compliment the interiors, creating a total lifestyle concept. This concept is especially more relevant at this time of year when the weather is warm and invites us to spend more time outdoors, thereby extending our useable living spaces.  In 1986 Marcel Wolterinck opened a flower shop in the village of Lauren, Holland. His concern for perfection and versatility later resulted in his own furniture range and his passion developed for incorporating the interior of the home with the gardens. 

The above pictures are part of the garden that surrounds an updated 70's house.  Both the garden and the house breathe an Oriental atmosphere.  The garden by the bamboo planting around the house, and a Japanese touch is provided by the oak fence which turns gray when weathered.  The garden fountain is lead produced by W, and the table in the upper left is a work of art in bronze by the Dutch Sculptor, Huub Kortekaas.  The garden chairs are teak and metal.

  

This Provencal Villa (above and below) is situated in St. Tropez. where the emphasis is placed on the exterior life.  This is expressed in an outdoor room and outdoor terraces.  How very pleasant to sit at the large, wooden table with a zinc base underneath the pergola overgrown with Wisteria.  The presence of an outdoor kitchen provides an additional dimension to being outdoors and can be used as an exterior fireplace lit on summer evenings. The planting is a combination of old and new.  An age-old olive tree dominates the view (below) and is surrounded by a row of box trees and a wealth of plants such as Santolina, Pittosporum, Senecio, Helichrysum, Laurus nobilis, lavender, thyme, and Westringia fruticosa, all creating a subtle interplay of greens and grays and a perfect match for the various local types of stone. 

 

 
 

Paradise in Algrave: This beautiful villa (above) is located in Portugal.  Wolternick arranged the seating areas surrounding the villa like rooms.  The floor lamps, tables, and chairs with cloth upholstery have been assigned a permanent place in these comfortable outdoor areas.  Taste and rhythm also apply to the exterior kitchen with its fireplace to grill dishes.  Meals can be prepared on the worktop that flanks the fireplace on either side.  At right angles with the fireplace is a bold U-shaped zinc table surrounded by delicate director's chairs.

 
 

The above photos are part of a 20-hectare estate in Bremen, northwestern Germany.  The 16th century farmhouse on the estate is surrounded by ancient trees and hedges.  The farmhouse court, where horses once stood, was all stone, but was given an intimate character by Wolterinck by means of 60 year old beech hedges, walls, and trained box trees.  The garden has many exotic varieties of plants.  "The people who used to live on estates like these traveled extensively and brought back with them plants from distant places.  This is how many exotic varieties ended up here, like Brugmansia, Hibiscus trees, Agapanthus, lemon trees, figs and Plumbagos.  In summer these are put outside in pots, in autumn they find shelter in the orangery". The teak bench from the Lister Collection in the top right picture is in the style of the English Architect, Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869–1944) who collaborated with Gertrude Jekyll the renowned English artist and gardener.

What is your most favourite garden?
What makes a garden special to you?
Please let me know by leaving a comment.

Photos and excerpts from: INEX Wolterinck
Photography: Sigurd Kranendonk

 Patricia Gray writes about 'WHAT'S HOT 'in the world of Interior Design, new and emerging trends, modern design,
architecture, and travel, as well as how your surroundings can influence the world around you.
© Patricia Gray Interior Design Blog, 2009

This Just In....

At this precise moment, I am obsessing over this dining room.
More news later.

(Found via Deco-Inspiracion and Houzz)

A Woman's Point of View: Carol Isaak Barden

A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Houston developer Carol Barden. It was an interesting series of events that got us in touch. Several weeks ago I posted photos of one of my favorite Houston homes that is on the market. The photos were picked up by several other sites which brought them to the attention of Carol. Why is this significant, you ask. Well, Carol is responsible for saving the home from the scrap heap several years ago. Swamplot wrote an interesting article breaking down the time line. So, we got in touch and I got the opportunity to visit with a fascinating woman with strong convictions on what makes a house a home.

As the developer, Barden conceives of every new project and then infuses her personal touches throughout the space. Several details I like in her homes, are first, the importance of nature. When a new home is ready to be built, existing trees are left standing. This is not something that is done nearly enough in Houston. Also, windows are placed to allow the homeowners to actually enjoy the beautiful greenery. This doesn't sound like an Earth shattering idea and yet many builders never actually do that! Perhaps my favorite details are the natural feeling brought inside via natural materials and textures. For someone who loves texture and earthy colors as much as I do, these homes really entice me:)

Carol believes women have a natural advantage when it comes to building and designing homes because they can visualize all the small details that a home needs. For example, the idea of having natural light in a bathroom for applying makeup. Separate vanities in the master bath, so couples don't have to watch each other spitting into the sink every day. Hey, we gotta keep some of the romance alive somehow! Barden's company is especially known for their beautiful and well thought out kitchens. Of course, designed with real people who cook in mind.

The Wabi Sabi house is one of Barden's most recent projects that garnered a lot of attention. It was based on the ancient Japanese concept of essentially finding beauty in imperfection. Personally, I am a believer in this concept and I'm sure many readers would not be surprised to know that about me;) If you are unfamiliar with the concept of Wabi-sabi, I highly recommend studying it.

This beautiful home was completed so succesfully that Carol already has a second one in the works. It should be scheduled to finish in the fall of '09 and I can't wait to see it! Hope you find these photos as inspiring as I do and have a great weekend, everyone.

Making Orange Work with Sherwin-Williams Paint

Making Orange Work

 

 The following is an article I was interviewed for in this month's issue of Sherwin-Williams Stir on how to
successfully incorporate orange walls in your home.

You can successfully incorporate orange walls in your design by choosing the right rooms, complementary colors and accessories.

Orange is a vibrant, happy, social color. An orange wall can bring a dynamic energy to any room. It can simultaneously brighten a space while warming it up. Paired with the right colors and accessories, a large swath of orange can make a room really shine. But orange walls haven’t always been an easy sell to homeowners. An orange wall need not look like a giant homage to the citrus fruit; many different hues of this inviting, invigorating color exist in the paint world. Patricia Gray of Patricia Gray Interior Design in Vancouver, British Columbia, has selected three Sherwin-Williams paint colors that she feels illustrate the diversity of orange:

• Husky Orange Sherwin-Williams 6636: "Husky Orange features rusty tones with more brown in it, and I find that this color is a lot more acceptable to a broader range of people. It is one of my favorite colors for using in living rooms, libraries and family rooms."
• Tango Sherwin-Williams 6649: "Tango Orange is what I would call more of a mid-range orange, a current and hip color. I would use it for a focal wall in the living room or dining room; it would also be fun for an entryway."
• Kumquat Sherwin-Williams 6648: "Kumquat is beautiful because it tends to go into the peach tones, but it’s an upbeat and livelier tone than what we were inundated with in the ’80s. I find that Kumquat is very relaxing and soothing, which makes it ideal for a bedroom, sitting room or anyplace where you want a quieter mood."

Like any dramatic color used abundantly, orange needs its counterparts.
"White or cream help balance the heat of the color," Gray says.
"Chocolate browns and charcoal grays are also accents that balance and coordinate nicely."  

 
Sherwin-Williams Husky Orange 6636

An example of what might look like on a wall in a living room or family room.
Photo Jeffery Bilhuber

Sherwin-Williams Tango Orange 6649

An example of what Tango Orange might look like on a wall in a dining room. in a dining room.
Photo Antonia Hutt

Sherwin-Williams Kumquat Orange 6648

An example of what Kumquat Orange might this color might look like in a kitchen on a backsplash of back painted glass.
The glass gives this color more vibrancy.
Photo Jennifer Gilmer
** Colors may show differently on computer monitors than in real life. I always recommend painting a sample test.

Have you used orange paint in your home?
Do you think that you are likely to use orange in your home in the near future?
If so please let me know about it by leaving a comment.

Read full article at Sherwin-Williams Stir
Read another article on The Color Orange where I give examples of Benjamin Moore Colors.

 

Patricia Gray writes about 'WHAT'S HOT 'in the world of Interior Design, new and emerging trends, modern design,
architecture, and travel, as well as how your surroundings can influence the world around you.
© Patricia Gray Interior Design Blog, 2009

To The Market and Back!

(Peek at my booth)
Well, we did it! Over the weekend we showed at the Houston Urban Market for the first time.
I'm only now recovering enough to write about it. (I also had a kid who got sick on Monday).
It was quite an undertaking, I have to admit. Its funny that I never gave to much thought to the process of setting up a booth, whenever I was out shopping!
Both Paloma and I (and our handsome assistants) began setting up Saturday afternoon. Everyone was a little nervous because of some ominous looking skies, but we kept going. In fact, it did rain that evening, but
thankfully it mostly just cooled everything down. After that we returned early Sunday morning to finish preparing for the 9:00 opening.

Paloma's chairs were amazing! I can't believe I forgot to take more photos of the rest of them!

My two favorite guys were very helpful. Liam even set up his first display w/ his own cars! Of course I wasn't allowed to actually sell his cars. If you're wondering, Liam didn't hang out all day, Mark was a very accommodating babysitter.

Some of our blogger friends also made an appearance. It was great to see them!
Left: Lauren (Material Girls) and Paloma (La Dolce Vita) Center: Joni (Cote de Texas)
and her trustee Starbucks coffee. Right: Paloma and Courtney (Under a Paper Moon).
Unfortunately, I missed meeting Sarah of Jeune Marie. Sarah, I also missed meeting you at
Courtney's garage sale last month. Maybe we'll coordinate some day:)

I didn't have time to walk around very much, but I did find a couple interesting pieces I really loved. Including, what else; but a couple of amazing chairs!

I couldn't resist snapping shots of several interesting characters roaming around.
What surprised me was how willing they were for me to photograph them.

By the end of the day everyone was pretty worn out and I was wishing that I could be magically transported home.
I loved getting to meet several readers. I especially cracked up with a lady who called me by name to ask for a price and talked to me like we were old friends. That was fun! Thanks to everyone who stopped by and thanks to Paloma and Fabian for sharing a booth with me. Most especially I want to thank my wonderful husband for helping and supporting me. I had a great time and hope to do it again!