Design & Lifestyle Blog

24 Jun ’11

From My Kitchen | Linguine With Halloumi

Well it is summer season already, not only do we not have time to cook, as most of us are vacationing, we need to eat something light, healthy, easy to make, and most probably have its ingredients lying in our kitchen anyway.

This linguine is one of my favorites it literally takes 10 minutes to prepare and that’s just due to the time cooking the pasta takes.

 

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23 Jun ’11

A Live Bar in Shanghai | Bar Design

Filed under: blog,Interiors,Restaurants — Tags: , , — Sahar @ 4:03 pm

This is the perfect example of how creative you can be when you have a client who is open minded to new ideas. When a receptive attitude is present budget doesn’t matter. In this particular project the budget was low, but the expectations were high. An unusual concept was expected, and there it was.

The architect ,Francesco Gatti, proposed for the project ZEBAR, a caved space with vertical slices continuing in 2D on the floors derived from images from the digital world.

The construction for this concept was fast and was almost finished in a couple of months, what was sad though is that it remained closed for 3 years because the owners did not really know what to do with the space or how to run it.

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21 Jun ’11

Actress Courtney Cox Malibu Residence | Celebrity Houses

 

According to Elle Décor, Courteney Cox wanted to be an architect before becoming an actress. She mainly chose this location in Malibu, California due to its privacy especially that her previous home, which she loved so much, was located at the same level of a public pool.

With this house she decided she wanted to go for a design totally different from the previous residence, she wanted it to look like a modern barn. Notice the open spaces, the bright ambience, the use of modern materials and others that are so natural that they take the house to a more timeless feel.

Cox hired architect Michael Kovac for the job alongside Trip Haenisch for the interior design.

“There was a good balance between Michael and Trip,” says Cox. “Michael is definitely more modern; Trip tried to make the house look like it had been here forever.” The result, she says, is “very simple, with bronzed-steel trim, white walls, and wood floors. Nothing too cluttered and not a lot of fancy details.”

 

 

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19 Jun ’11

Choosing You Interior Designer | Why It’s so Important

design

 

You can buy your cake from a baker you may not remember the face of or go to a lab and get blood tests and not remember the face of the nurse who sucked the blood out of you, yet encounter other professional relationships  where you have to spend a large portion of your time with and share more than the usual greetings.

Among these professionals is your interior designer, whom you hired to design your personal or work space. Either way, there are major points to take into consideration when selecting who to hand your space over to.

Your interior designer is a person you will inevitably have to like due to the amount of time and information you will have to share with.  The sharing may include meals, family gatherings , family feuds, and times when you freak out and need confirmation that everything will be OK.

You might never think about this, but in reality your interior designer will know more about you than you ever intended. Your ID will be studying your behavior, your likes and pet peeves,in addition to some of your most intimate details, and trust me that’s NOT the highlight of our job. We need to know whether you use a bidet when you use your bathroom, and whether you and your spouse need a large bed or will be using separate rooms. Most of these details you might not share even with the closest people to you.

In addition to chemistry, you should find in your designer qualifications that make them “reliable”. Someone who has seen it all and is up to date on all new technologies and trends. Someone who can come up with solutions to the biggest problems on the spot, and come up with multiple solutions for a single dilemma.

A good ID would listen to what you have to say and give you quick pieces of advice that make it easy for you to spot if they are what you are looking for.

But how could you possibly know? isn’t that why you are looking for a designer in the first place? Here’s how:

 

1- Always ask for references, try to see photos of their work and let them explain what they did and how they tackled the problems they encountered.

2- Always ask about work procedures, how will the study be conducted and what is considered within their scope of work. Many ID seekers have no idea what an interior designer does, and that should be clarified from the first meeting.

3- Ask people about their work and ethics. People might not always give credible answers, but that’s up to you to spot a bitter person from a sincere one who has truly suffered.

4- Ask for a first meeting. Take them to the place you want to design, check how they treat you and your project. Beware of those who give out false hopes. Look for the realistic, yet not pessimistic, the creative, not the “we’ve done it a 100 times, we’ll do it for you as well” designers.

After your first meeting , the interior designer should lead the way. Your designer should explain to you how they will be saving you time and money and not the other way around. At this stage, try to provide drawings of the space you intend to design,  or schedule a site visit, that should enable them to issue a proposal stating all you discussed and be clear in terms of phases of work and fees. From then on, you should have all the elements that should help you decide whether to hire them or not.

Last tip, ask as many questions as you like, after all you are going to be spending a great deal of your time with your interior designer, this contract will tie you together for a great deal of time!

 

Sahar

If you have any questions or need any tips, please ask away!

16 Jun ’11

Carlo Pazolini Boutique in Milan | Shop Design

Filed under: blog,Interiors — Tags: , , , , , , — Sahar @ 4:45 pm

Giorgio Borruso Design was  hired to design the Carlo Pazolini boutique in Milan located near the Duomo. The space is  4,150 square feet that formerly belonged to a McDonald’s. The main aim of the boutique is to display the brand’s shoes, however, the design approach is what is actually interesting.

Borruso wanted an artistic look that would display the relationship of shoes with feet, i.e. how shoes embrace the foot. Using felt material in collaboration with none other than Paola Lenti, he was able to make felt shaped into a leaf, the major part of his theme design. Another major attraction point is the combination of colors which are very vibrant and make a huge impact all the way outside the boutique through the massive 8 arches in the façade.

 

 

 

 

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Marcel Wanders Designs Suitcases

 

 

If you are a follower of this blog you will know how much I love Marcel Wanders work, if it were up to me I’d post about every single item he designs. This time the world renowned designer has designed a collection of suitcases for  luggage and bag company Fabbricapelleteriemilano. The collection is called: ‘Saint-Jacques.

Each of the suitcases comes with a TSA combination lock and handles designed to provide easier means of toting the bags around.

The interiors are organized to allow for the optimal placement of one’s belongings, while the exterior of the suitcase is covered in wanders’ signature pattern with zipper pulls that recall the ironic face of the designer.

‘I think the style conscious people will love the colors, the contrasts and the interior in bright colors,
while those who are attracted by the multi-sensory will appreciate the three-dimensional embossed surface (…).’ – marcel wanders

The suitcases are available in quick silver, jet black or space blue colors.

designboom

The New BMW M5 | Cars

Filed under: blog,Cars — Tags: , , — Sahar @ 10:55 am

 

BMW premieres the new 5th generation of the M5 “a bold business car that at the push of a button turns into a sports car.”

The new generation brings a high-revving 4.4-liter V8 engine with an M TwinPower Turbo package that delivers an impressive 560 hp at 6,000 – 7,000 rpm and a peak torque of 502 lb-ft from 1,500 rpm. The model will sprint from 0 to 60 mph in 4.4 seconds and, when the speed limiter is removed, is capable of hitting an impressive top speed of 190 mph. Despite these impressive performance numbers, the car will deliver an estimated fuel economy of 28.5 mpg.

The new BMW M5 will make its world debut this fall at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Sales will begin shortly after and prices will be announced at a later date. If you still prefer the older models, you can find 335is for sale at Zemotor.

For all interior and exterior details of this car check this link.

Top Speed

14 Jun ’11

Bringing Nature Inside: Loft 24-7 São Paulo| Residential Design

This is a beautiful attempt at creating outdoor moods indoor. In this 250 sq. m loft, São Paulo-based architect Fernanda Marques was able to come up with an earthy and very natural ambiance within the residence’s interior, by using logs, limestone, rough stone, and the likes. Very simple, the use of the right materials and the right combination gave this loft the exquisite look.

 

For more information on the designer, you can check her website, hope you can read Portuguese though.

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