MERCEDES IN THE HOUSE

If you know me, you know I love cars a little bit more then the average girl. My Dad is a classic gear-head and some of that respect for steel and need for speed was bound to rub off on me. I stumbled across this collection and I thought to myself; what took so long! In collaboration with Formitalia Luxury Group, Mercedes-Benz is launching a high end, highly stylized line of furniture. All of the pieces I've seen have a futuristic shape that's clearly inspired by the lines and forms you see in a newer Mercedes model. The Head of Mercedes-Benz design, Gorden Wagener, describes the collection, "The various pieces of furniture reflect the progressive, dynamic design idiom of our current show cars and concept vehicles, offering an exclusive, emotional experience outside our vehicles as well." Any of these sexy items would make for an amazing statement piece in any high-end bachelor pad. The collection  was previewed in Milan this April and will launch in exclusive furniture showrooms this October, can't wait to see the price tags attached...

I love the style of their furniture rendering, they have the style of car renderings!

photos from gizmag

SMOOTH TO THE TOUCH

I read about Mineheart at one of my favorite blogs, The Designer Pad. This UK based company produces a line of wallpaper that features realistic patterns on high-quality paper. Their wallpaper can be used residentially and commercially- I love the idea of using the tufted Chesterfield pattern in a lounge or a nightclub! The stone fresco and wood paneling patterns are really interesting too because they're such traditional images used in an untraditionally way. It must be a little trippy running your fingers against these images with so much depth and antiquity only to find a smooth (and washable) wall. When I browsed through the Mineheart website I was reminded of a couple other wallpaper companies that have similar collections, check them out below.

photo credit

Wall & Deco is a crazy cool wallpaper company with a lot of unique patterns. They have graphic patterns, large scale artwork, custom paper and photo realistic wallpaper. These beautiful images below are another example of realistic wallpaper; it's such a sexy way to add texture and grit to a room!

photo credit

Concrete Wall is a collection of  wallpaper made by manipulating high-res photographs of concrete, cinder block, brick and wood. All the images are from Norway and no pattern is ever repeated.

photo credit

BUCKHEAD RESIDENCE

Often I work with interior designer Patti Krohngold. One of our clients moved to Atlanta from Miami, and due to his needs he purchased a large traditional home in Buckhead. When we walked thru the house he told Patti and me how much he loved his Ultra-modern home in Miami. A lot of the furniture he brought with him was modern and reminiscent of the Miami flavor. Our challenge would be to find a way to blend it with the style and architectural features of his new house. How do you work with the architecture of your home if it's not your personal style? The most important things to keep in mind are, you can't ignore it and you can't cover it up so do your best to embrace it. The house was many shades of warm and creamy yellows and beige when we started (a great background for oil paintings in gilded frames and antique wood furniture) and as you can still see the iron work and details are very traditional and swirly. The first step was to cool down the palette with shades of grey, black and white - no more butter yellow! The client didn't want to deal with removing the iron or changing many light fixtures so we had to include these traditional form and materials when furnishing the rooms; this keeps things in balance so no feature sticks out like a sore thumb. You need to work with the foundation you have; by mixing eras, styles and artwork you will personalize any home.

One of my favorite things about this project is the silver leaf entry! We were working with very high ceiling and wanting to create a statement upon entry. Because the railing, light fixture and door were not up for negotiation, we decided to customize the walls. Tommy Taylor, a talented Atlanta artist, created a large scale pattern that he painted with adhesive and then silver leafed. It's subtle on the grey wall until it hits the light and shines! The dining room directly off the entry was a great opportunity to spread the traditional and formal elements by selecting furniture with classic curves and antique finishes. The cool color palette and pop of a unique materials (goat-skin end chairs) brought the room back to this century.

In the living room we paired the home-owners modern sofa set with some more eclectic pieces like this hand-painted city landscape and rugged cocktail table. We especially love this table because its a replication of an elephant stand (from the circus), the rubber and leather materials are incredibly durrable - perfect for the two little boys who live here to climb all over! The built-in media storage is simple and modern; a great juxtaposition against the existing cast stone mantle. 

The master suite needed to be black-out ready, so we darkened it and added heavy-weight custom drapery. The clients already started a distinct theme in this room with his previous furniture, it was fun and very easy tying it all together. That included custom bedding for the extra large mega-bed.

THE LIGHTING SWITCH-UP

Last week I took a photo from Elle Decor and showed you how switching up one furniture piece would change the whole mood of the room. When I look at a photo of a room I can imaging the particular person or family it was designed for, by switching a focal piece it's like you are switching out the inhabitant of the photograph. The person becomes a little more refined and traditional or they have a wilder sense of humor or a taste for modern art. Each piece of furniture in a photo tells a part of a story, by shaking things up slightly you may alter the ending.
Today's beautiful dining room photograph is from Pintrest.com. Lighting is such a important part of design and the options are endless! Below are a few chandeliers that would impact this dining room greatly if switched.

pinterest.com

I really like the staircase in the background of this photo and I thought by adding some warm bronze to the for-ground it would make the carpet on the staircase pop. The fixture I picked is a crystal globe from Restoration Hardware. I was hunting for something in this color palette and this one was a clear winner because the globe shape plays off of the arched doorway, the drapery pattern and the chair back pulls. Because of the form and finish, it would add formality, antiquity and tradition to the room.

restoration hardware

This funky fixture is called Knotty Bubbles and it could take on a lot of different rolls depending on it's environment. This dining room is transitional and the current fixture reminds me of British Colonial Palms (a popular style in the South). If we switched it with the Knotty Bubbles it would steer away from "Southern Plantation" and straight towards "New England Shoreline".  This nautical inspired fixture would look beautiful against the grey and sea-foam color scheme and would add a slight touch of rustic charm. 

roll & hill

The Josephine Queen Chandelier by Metalarte has become a pretty iconic fixture (that few can afford). It's a really sexy and modern take on a traditional form. The shades also come in acrylic but I like that the linen option brings it back down to Earth a little. The curved lines and traditional form suite the room well, while the material and color transform the room into something young and daring.

metalarte

This fixture is my personal favorite of the bunch! I love mixing traditional and contemporary pieces and this chandelier from Y Lighting is a big jolt of excitement in a very mellow setting. The dark bronze finish would accentuate the dark details in the room, like the rot iron railing and the dark chair legs. Because it is a skinny fixture, it wont add too much weight to the setting.

agnes chandelier