This blog will take a short break , I will be back hopefully with news and photos from lovely Italy! See you next week!! 
Need anything from Italy??
11 Jul ’11
See you next week…
10 Jul ’11
Karl Lagerfield to Design Pens for S.T Dupont Using Nailpolish
French luxury brand S.T. Dupont has asked the famous designer, Karl Lagerfield, to create a range of stylish highlighters and pens with a distinct feature. Lagerfield is known for using Shu Uemura nail polish to sketch his designs, and will be incorporating the polish into the ink of the pen to create a “burgundy lacquer,” even the pens will be “fan-shaped” so that they fit neatly between fingers and won’t roll off of your desk. The price, details of release and other facts however are still not clear.
Photo: WWD
8 Jul ’11
Beirut Residential Building by Accent Design Group | Architecture
It seems irregular shapes in architecture is the trend nowadays. This is a project located in Beirut on the Fouad Shehab Highway, which is a convenient and beautiful location. The best part about the location is that it overlooks downtown Beirut, and unlike most other areas in Beirut, the view can’t be blocked.
The design focuses on “stacked glass boxes” with an additional aim from its design, maximizing buildable area.
The view from this building is amazing, you can see the best of Beirut, i.e. downtown and the sea at the same time, that’s mainly due to the location of the area on a somewhat higher level. The panoramic glass blocks have shading louvers to provide privacy and shade from the excessive sunlight.
Its important the main view was one sided, as the area behind the building is still to a great extent still abandoned and with no great views whatsoever.
Architect: ACCENT DESIGN GROUP
Location: Beirut Lebanon
Lead Architect :Elie Abs
Project team : Charbel Karam, Ahmad KHOJA, Petia RATZOV
Project Area: 11,000 sqm
1 Jul ’11
.PSLAB Creates Custom Lighting for Iris Restaurant in Beirut
Located in one of Lebanon’s hottest area, Add Mind have just opened up a new open air nightclub replacing the famous White, one of the most popular nightlife venues in the past few years. The management for the new restaurant/lounge hired .PSLAB to come up with a hip and creative custom lighting design for the rooftop club, and so they did.
The space is narrow and thus .PSLAB decided to create a dynamic aspect to that linearity defined by the v-shape installation of the lighting fixtures. The significance of the revealed bulbs added warmth to the open-air space.
The lighting fixtures were designed in tree complementary designs depending on the space or areas they are located in.
30 Jun ’11
The Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Paris | Hotel Design
The Mandarin Oriental opened its Paris location a few days ago in the famous luxury shopping street Saint Honore. The Asian based hotel chain has been opening in several high end locations around the world.
The hotel has 99 rooms and 39 suites within an eight-story building with an exterior façade dating back to the 1930s. The target clients of the Mandarin Oriental are luxury seeking guests from around the world, who enjoy staying at one of the most fashionable locations.
The overall feel of the space design is a little bit feminine due to the butterfly motifs and floral carpets yet very relaxing.
The hotel has a 900 square meter spa, a 40-seat restaurant overseen by Michelin-starred chef Thierry Marx, and a cocktail bar cut from a single piece of brown Spanish marble.
The rate for a deluxe suite with balcony overlooking the courtyard is 2,750 euros/night , also available is the 350 square meter duplex penthouse for clients with higher requirements.
29 Jun ’11
Isn’t This Your Dream Bed? | Furniture
27 Jun ’11
Barovier & Toso Murano Chandeliers | From the Past into the Present
Back in 1291, famous venetian glassmakers were forced to move to Murano, an island in Northern Italy. Hence it became famous for all its glass art and especially chandeliers. This is why you keep hearing people referring to high end glass as “Murano” glass.Among the very few families who were linked to glassmaking were Barovier & Toso, still considered among the top names in fine Murano glass lighting. Barovier & Toso have been in the market for hundreds of years with designs and collections ranging from the classic to the contemporary with their main focus on quality, trendy designs, and beautiful colors. Their services of allowing custom designs with endless shapes have linked them to the top names in hospitality and fashion houses designing exclusive pieces for their clients. They provide solutions to both commercial and residential projects. I included in this post a nice selection from their designs, hope you like them.
26 Jun ’11
Karl Lagerfield Glassware Collection | Complements & Accessories
The world renowned designer Karl Lagerfeld recently designed a collection of crystal glasses for Swedish Company Orrefors . Distinguished with the KL monogram, the collection includes champagne flutes bowls, vases, water and liqueur glasses. Finishes are in transparent, black ,or milky white.
