OK, I get asked all the time about where inspiration comes from and whom do I find inspiring for my aesthetic.
I would have to say the AXEL VERVOORDT is one of my all time great Interior Designers amongst many other defining talents.
AXEL VERVOORDT is a brilliant Belgian Interior Designer, Art Connoisseur and Antiquaire Extrodinaire!
Axel began his career in his teens by purchasing antiques and thus building a vast collection of exquisite objects from around the world.
Axel is renowned for his prestigious exhibitions at major world antique fairs. His interior design projects , in both traditional and modern settings from around the world,
combine antiques from all continents with a zen sensibility blending old and new.
These are books that everyone interested in inspiring interiors needs to have!
Happy Wednesday! I received a couple of emails yesterday in regards to the Kips Bay Show House Bathroom that I designed.
The emails were in regards to using very luxurious bath fixtures in very modern settings. the most interesting thing about the emails, were they were exactly the feedback I received while attending the Show House. Everyone was in love with the idea of Gold faucets and accessories and the idea of not only gold but the more formal and luxurious style of fittings.
To me the faucets have the potential to add that dash of glamour, that ability to evoke feelings of being away in a magnificent bathroom.
The fixtures that I used were in fact SHERLE WAGNER fixtures and another fabulous company that you should
definitely look at that I use as well is P.E. GUERIN
There is another wonderful company called COMPAS STUDIO that has some exquisite faucets and bath accessories.
When you are working with the design style of lets say a classical modern or even modern, think about bringing in almost
an exact opposite style with door hardware, faucets, accessories. The juxtaposition will give you that bit of luxury and surprise element!
The past couple of months were so exciting with the Kips Bay Show House and being part of the
Top Twenty Designers with Tradtional Home, that one weekend, I treated myself to a weekend in Pairs! Why not? Right! After all,
Paris is a hop over the water from New York!
So! I stayed in a great boutique hotel that Phillipe Starck designed called The Royal Monceau! They have the coolest glam restaurant called Le Cuisine.
That’s where looking up at the ceiling sometimes pays off! Placed on the ceiling were the most gorgeous pieces of art, which by the way, this hotel actually boosts an insane collection!
But the artist on the ceiling is Stephane Calais! WOW! Is a total understatement.
He is quite well known in Europe and especially France and his work is actually quite well respected and collected!
There is a fabulous gallery in New York that I found called ZIEHER SMITH that represents Stephane.
Mais Oui! I have been in touch with them as I must own one of his works immediately!
Florence and was researching some hotels I may want to stay at, and upon doing so, found some images
that I fell in love with! And after doing some digging came to learn that the artwork I am so in love with is that of FAYE HELLER!
A British Artist whose love of photomontage and her talents in photomontage are in-compreble!
(This is an excerpt from her bio from Bentley Publishing Group)
“Faye Heller’s captivating work takes the indices of the physical world and splits them up, mixes and multiplies referents to produce cool, seductively smart photomontage.
There’s always an element of intrigue, of cinema enigma, that recalls film noir, while the crisp black and white imagery also owes something to the French New Wave, as when she is juxtaposing a staircase and a woman’s eyes to invoke “The Start of Fiction”.
I am currently working on designing bathrooms for a beach house in Southern California.
And the style of the house is Mediterranean. In my sourcing for the bathrooms, as I find that sourcing is very inspirational and a great way to design bathrooms especially! I have seen an incredible trend in Exotic Tiles that are replicas from The Iberian peninsula.
In particular a decorative tile that is called IZNIK , which was a city in Turkey. IZNIK, which is a very old town, was first established in 310 B.C.
The history of the city is pretty fascinating in as much that it lies in a basin at an end of Lake IZNIK, bounded by ranges of hills to the north and the south, which made it a perfect fortress of a city that made all attempts to reach it very difficult.
Throughout the history, IZNIK, which was famous with its pottery, remained as an import center of trade on the road to the east from Istanbul.
During the Ottoman sovereignty, the pottery art of IZNIK influenced the European arts and all ottoman handcrafts became famous and demanded
Decorative tiles have been around for centuries and archeologists can actually date spans of time based on the tiles they may come across.
Think about all of the gorgeous medieval mosques and all of the stunning palaces in Turkey and Portugal.
I was in Ann sacks and actually came across some gorgeous examples of this sort of tile. The price point is definitely not for the faint of heart, but if used wisely, can make the project or the room stunning!
One of the most current trends, that is definitely not really a trend any longer, as it’s staying power is far outweighing it’s trend distinction, is Trellising!
I designed Trellising on the outside of a client’s home, the project on my website is called Casa Blanca, as there was so much negative space on the stucco walls that the Trellising brought a very romantic feeling and at the same time brought a lot of definition.
Trellising can been seen at many price points when it comes to fabrics and pillows, and tends to be a bit more costly
when you are actully using a material
such as wood to design it into.
I love the idea of using Trellising over a mirrored wall to bring in an insane amount of drama and design! Just think of the fabulous reflections that are broken up!
This would be a great design detail for let’s say, a dining Room
or even a powder room! And not to worry on how you would clean it, you would put a piano hinge on one side that you could readily pop open!
I am working on a remodel, where of course as the project grows and the programming is getting more substantial, the budget is being gnawed away at,
and I have two bathrooms for the children, still to design. So, in my designing a way to get a hot look on a tight rope, I came to think of one of my favorite combinations! Ceramic tiles, in blocks of colors.
The idea is that the pattern and the color blocking is what makes it look so expensive.
One of my favorite designers from the ’80′s ,Andre Putnam, was infamous for this idea,
especially when she was responsible for the revamping of Morgans Hotel in New York.
Play around with the widths of the stripes and the color palette that works for you. Dal tile has some great buys for not a lot of money! And actually any tile store in your neighborhood will carry an inexpensive ceramic tile line.
For years I have collected Hermes ashtrays! When I am in Paris, at the flea markets, my favorite item to go on a hunt for is this ashtray! One of my favorite hostess gifts is to bring with me a vintage Hermes ashtray! You see, it is not about the smoking, but about the porcelain and the pattern. Much like it doesn’t have to be a cold day to sport n hermes scarf, although you are not going to wear an ashtray, its still so versatile! And absolutely timeless!
I was invited to a dinner party last week, while I was back East and
was trying to find the perfect hostess gift as my hostess has everything a gal could want!
I immediately scoured the antique shops on West 25th street, which if you don’t already know about those you should!
Anyway! Eureka! I found the perfect one!
Expect to pay somewhere between $350-$500
Now, these are not an inexpensive item, but the value as far as a fabulous gift far outweighs the cost!!
So make this a new favorite obsession! I love to have these in my bathroom for hair ties, and guest baths for wonderful scented soaps!
News flash: Although disco is thankfully dead and gone, mirrored furniture is not. Unfortunately, with many trends in fashion and in the interior design world, when a style is picked up by low budget manufacturers and mass produced, the trend ends immediately. Mirrored furniture, fortunately, has not fallen victim to that tendency. It is really that quality that makes something classic and timeless, and eventually iconic. I just saw an article in Elle Decor talking about the top 10 mirrored furnishings and I thought to myself: How long has mirror been stunning people? The most historic mirror reveal and display was in the Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles for Louis XIV in France during the Baroque. The making of mirror was a technology that was just being experimented with, and it could only be produced in small sheets and then fitted together. It was also incredibly expensive. However, if you have ever been to the palace of Versailles and seen the Hall of Mirror, then you know kind of optical properties mirror processes and just how it can be used to transform a space. By the end of the Rococo, mirror was replacing natural stones for tables tops as the more luxurious and desired material.
Optical illusion is the key quality that mirror possess; its means to alter the reality of space and form is undeniable. A DIY design tip that you hear again and again, is use mirror to make a space look larger, but it is true! Mirror can make walls fade away, space seem to on for miles, and has an amazing reflective quality that people love. The thing about mirrored furniture that is so appealing is that is can be present and yet practically disappear because it is reflecting space back to the viewer. With the technology that has developed in finishes and treatment of mirror, the possibilities are truly endless From beveling to antiquing, there is no shortage of options. Mirrored furniture is also unique because the furnishing can match any style of home and the mirror simply becomes a finish, therefore making its way into every kind of home decor. It is know for its “glam” quality, but there can be something nostalgic about mirror like a hand-held looking glass, or industrial like a reflective piece of old metal. Basically, if you have ever thought about using a mirrored furnishing but thought that it might be overused, think again. Mirror is something that will be around forever, it is just about finding the right piece for your home.
In being inspired by what I have read, I decided to provide my own mirrored furnishing guide of the best pieces in a variety of price points, that JH LOVES. Please take our inspirations and source them, mirrored furnishings exist in as many different markets.
Nancy Corzine
Arteriors Home
Jean de Merry
Jan Showers
There are many more but these really are the best on the market. Have a great day!
His interior design projects , in both traditional and modern settings from around the world,
House of Turquoise
