Showing posts with label architectural. Show all posts
Showing posts with label architectural. Show all posts

Friday, June 17, 2016

2016 Design Excellence Award Winning Bathroom

2016 Design Excellence Award Winning Bathroom 

After moving in, the new owners of a ninety two year old traditional center hall colonial quickly realized it was essential to rework the awkward second floor bedroom with attached bathroom.  The existing bathroom ran directly through the middle of the room, creating two compartmentalized bedroom spaces with a cramped, disconnected bathroom that included a small fiber glass shower stall.  Two floor plan options were presented to the owners.  After careful consideration and collaboration, it was decided that the bathroom would now be absorbed by the front of the house, where the previous owner placed the bed and dresser.  Conscientious of the young families’ needs and future resale marketability, the floor plan needed to include an apron front, cast iron tub to accommodate bathing youngsters.  The original window was in good shape, however its panes were replaced with tempered glass due to its proximity to the bathtub.  Also original to the space is the entrance door, hung using the refurbished brass hinges and hardware retrieved during renovation.  Interest was added to the space with the choice of flooring, Carrara Marble hexagonal tiles, mindful of the homes Colonial Revival backdrop.  Open storage shelving, open sink base and white walls were chosen to maintain a line of sight to every inch of the room’s footprint.  The decor was chosen to add pops of color throughout the room, which resulted in a fun child’s bathroom that plays nicely with the adjoining bedroom’s design.  



Thursday, April 21, 2016

Client Inspired, Designer Coordinated

Sometimes things are just this easy.  I was contacted through my website to aide in the repurposing of a kitchen table, hand made by a family member.  The desire was to update the table so that it still maintained the intended functionality and craftsmanship at its inception, but looked like a fit in the newly refreshed kitchen.  The client shared her inspiration photos and voiced her vision to me over the phone.  I was able to coordinate pick up, implementation and redeliver remotely.  The traditional table was converted to counter height with the use of large industrial castors and the bottom half was refinished to reflect today’s popular blue/grey palette.  The client could not have been happier with the end result, as it looks beautiful in the kitchen.  

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Refurbishing Hardware

Often overlooked and typical to older homes; high quality, original door and cabinet hardware in seasoned homes is frequently marked by or completely covered with layers of paint.  Many homeowners are quick to replace the hardware with new pieces, creating a clean beautiful finished look in any space.  However, when renovating/restoring an old home it is easy to assess whether or not the hardware is worth refurbishing.  Ultimately, if the existing hardware is of good quality and you have the time, a little TLC will bring the pieces back to their luster of yesteryear.  
This held true during a recent renovation/restoration of a 92 year old Pennsylvania Colonial Revival house.  Using a magnet, the homeowner determined that the homes hardware was made of solid brass.  These items were original to the home and therefore the decision to refurbish was an easy one.  With the support of the general contractor, the time was spent removing, soaking, cleaning and buffing each piece before reinstall.  Great effort was put into this process, but the beautiful restored look throughout the house, undeniably, was worth it!

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Making A Statement

An aspect of interior design, an element interwoven into the art of home decor, is the incorporation of a statement piece.  A statement piece does just that, it makes a definite or clear expression, offers a perspective, that enhances a space.  In most cases, this occurs through the use of bold color, unique shape, and/or material.

The Gehry Cross Check Armchair (http://www.dwr.com/product/gehry-cross-check-armchair.do?gclid+CLLviZz_iL0CFaN9OgodUHEA4Q) featured was designed as part of the Gehry Collection by the critically acclaimed, award winning architect Frank Gehry and was commissioned by Knoll - a retail company committed to the philosophy of presenting customers with modern furniture that complements an architectural space, but does not compete with it (http://www.knoll.com/discover-knoll/our-story).  Bold in its form, color, and material this chair easily functions as a piece of art; making it a beautiful statement piece within any room.