Clever Idea #4 ~ The Mirror Mate

via Decorpad

I have been in so many tract houses that all have that same standard, unframed mirror over the sink in the powder and bathrooms.  In an effort to frame it quickly and easily, the Mirror Mate was born.

No more unfinished lackluster vanity mirrors ~ Give them definition, character, a sense of place.

Before, It's nice, but it could be better!  Look familiar ~

After,  the weight of the frame creates interest, a tableau, if you will; like an exclamation point!

You can get creative.  I like how the homeowners framed this mirrored wall.

Before ~ Again, good but not great

After ~ You've created a  focal point

Such an easy DIY project, anyone can do it!

MAD for Lee Nam Lee

I went to The Museum of Arts and Design, better known as MAD and saw an exhibit that literally stopped me in my tracks.

As part of their exhibition ~ Korean Eye: Energy and Matter,  I had the pleasure of seeing one of the most mesmerizing sites.

Artist Lee Nam Lee calling on traditional Eastern art overlaid it with modern digital technology to create the most achingly beautiful video art.  I have never seen anything like it!  Even my husband was blown away!  This video does not do it justice.  The end of the video is really closer to what I saw.

The five screen panel series took you thru the four seasons.  Rain washes over the screens and subtle colors change, like a stroke from a water color paint brush ushering in spring.  The light changes again and summer brings the lazy movement of people doing ordinary tasks along with the sound of water cascading over rocks and birds chirping.  Autumn brings different colors, sepia like, readying us for the beauty of the gently falling snow of winter; smoke gently billowing out of a smokestack and the clear moonlight.
I could have stood there for hours, lost in that world.



It's worth the price of admission.  The exhibit runs thru Feb. 2012. You'd be mad not to go to the MAD.
It's a great little museum on Columbus Circle.

Have A Wonderful Thanksgiving!

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy




                                         AMEN


ph: CLI

S is for Shagreen...

...sexy, shagreen.   I mentioned awhile back that I was doing a home with an Art Deco vibe.  I did a post on finding the perfect screen.  We were making our way through the living room and dining room and I decided we MUST have a shagreen cocktail table.

Skatemoderne makes beautiful faux shagreen couture pieces.  The inlaid agate tables are to die for!  I have a call in to them as we speak.

Shagreen is the skin of a stingray.  It's pebbly hide is decorative, durable, and adaptable for use in almost any application.  Its exoticism makes it a great choice if you want to up the "Wow" factor.

Pearson

Celerie Kimble

Shagreen was first used by the Turks to cover sword handles and was "rediscovered" by French cabinet makers during the Art Deco period, which makes it the perfect choice of this project.

Paul Marra @1st Dibs

You have probably seen it and may not have even realized it.  Its subtle beauty reveals itself upon close inspection.

Dwell Studio for Percedent makes a few tables that fit the bill.  I like the modern lines and the organic selection of treatments.

Shagreen is as fashionable in the home as it is on the runways.  Clutches have been popular these past few years. You know something has caught on when it makes its way to J. Crew or any other mass market retailer.  Decorative boxes are staples that I use time and time again, and I am even seeing wallpaper panels made of this wonderful material more often.  Below are beautiful bedside tables .

Turner and Pocock

Jean Louis Deniot

Shagreen was applied to the fronts of the bathroom cabinetry.  Faux shagreen is easier (slightly) on the pocketbook and looks just as lovely.  Come to think of it, I have seen a lot of bath accessories made from shagreen.

Smallbone

Vincente Wolf

There is a large range of colors.  It looks just as beautiful in bone as it does in pink.  I say, "Go Bold or Go Home!"

We Don't Live in a Barn ~

via AtticMag

 But make no mistake, these brawny beauties are beefed up and boldly making a statement, no matter where the location.

Martin Lawrence Bullard

via Homedit.com

The ability to roll in and out of use makes them a great choice if you're tight on space.  Pocket doors are a no brainer, but these doors really say ~ look at me!

via Heirloom Philosophy

MR Architecture + Decor

Decorative or Plain Jane, rustic or refined, make them your own with a little ingenuity and maybe, a can of paint?  That's always something I can "get behind".

Daryl Carter

via Beachbungalow 8

via Homedit.com

Another thing for the wish list I have created in my head for the new house (someday).

Pouf Positive

Peter Pennoyer

Pull up a pouf to create extra seating.  These go-to stools, tuffets, hassocks, or any other name you might have for them, are perfect to add seating without the heft of a chair.  This little statement maker is a great multi tasker.

I have bought many at John Derian for clients; grown ups and kids alike.

Thornton designs

Kelly Wearstler

These stacked pillows are slightly more formal only in their design.  They serve the same purpose and sometimes it's just what a room needs for a little added "zush."

Jamie Drake

 Bulbous, but cute

unknown

Jonathan Adler

This Hickory Chair baby is a personal favorite. I have ordered it over and over.  While not all these photos are of poufs per se, they serve the same purpose and are practical seating solutions while looking cute as a button!  Many people like the higher seat and slimmer design that the stool or hassock provides.

Thornton Designs

Nathan Turner

LOVE these boho beauties.  FYI... I saw something very similar at Home Goods

via The Mood Board

Poufs up the cool factor in even the most formal rooms and they're a great way to inject a little color in an otherwise neutral room.

Beth Martin

And yes, please, I'd love me a little Missoni

Shaggy AND Chic at Calypso Home

So, pull up a pouf and sit awhile.  Y'all come back now, ye hear?

Thinking Outside The (Orange) Box

Pascale Mussard, the artistic director and the great, great, great granddaughter of Thierry Hermès has come up with a brilliant idea.  Since she was a child playing in the Paris atelier, Pascale began collecting scrapes of leather, crocodile skin, beautiful buckles, and trinkets.  The thought of repurposing these luxury materials into something new forms the "Petit h" collection.

Mussard explains, "The idea is simple: Since everything at Hermès is of the finest quality, and almost everything is made by hand, there are inevitable mistakes or imperfections that render otherwise flawless materials unusable."  A beautiful scarf that takes 300 people to make is rendered useless if there is one stain, one pull in the otherwise flawless silk. Why not make it into a unique accordion pleated necklace?  It's an idea who's time has not just come, but is way over due!

These perfectly imperfect materials are given to artists, and they must reuse the materials to invent something wonderful that did not previously exist.  A laboratory of sorts was set up, and the experiments commenced.  If a collaboration is really successful, it may be used in the "Grand h" collection.  Hermès will put it into production later on.

Mussard wants Grand h to be thought of as high end arts and crafts.  Quality materials being repurposed by creative designers that represent and respect the Hermès name.

There are 2,200 pieces in the traveling show.  Once they're gone, they're gone, because of the unique nature of the items being made based on the materials available.

Giant leather pandas, light fixtures from carafes (because of an air bubble), a leather clad swing, toys and games.  They are only limited by their imagination!

This one has got to be my favorite.  For the person who has everything this holiday season:  a cup cozy.  Your Starbucks in the morning will never look the same.  Mussard wanted everyone to be able to embrace a little Hermès in their lives.

Hurry, it's a traveling show.  It will be in New York and on line thru November 22nd.  Everyone needs a little Hermès in their life.  Don't they?



ph: luxist.com, Hermes, Dodo Designs