Tag: Interior Design Trends

Categories
Design Events Featured Lifestyle NYC

6 MAKER MEN TO 💘 AT THE AD DESIGN SHOW 2020

Since we’re quite enthused over Valentine’s Day, but don’t necessarily crave flowers, chocolates, and all the other love tropes adorning every aspect of our daily commutes, we thought we’d bring you something a little different this year to properly channel your ardor. Design ardor that is. This year’s Architectural Digest Design Show (held March 19–22, at Pier 94), is chock-full of gorgeous designs, featuring everything from furnishings, to accessories, art, appliances, and shops full of beautiful merchandise—where, yes, you can purchase a coveted piece and take it right home. While you can peruse the aisles by section, including REFRESH, SHOPS, FURNISH, and MADE, we are turning the tables this Valentine’s and focusing our love on the stylish men of MADE and their show-stopping designs.

Reed Hansuld and Joel Seigle of Harold

Reed Hansuld and Joel Seigle of Brooklyn-based Harold, took their love of industrial design and high-end chair building to create gorgeous furniture—candelabras, coffee tables, and sconces included—that stands the test of time. Their new sconce—which was inspired by the duo’s admiration for the setting sun—perfectly recalls the beauty of a sunset at its prime. Fun fact? Both Seigle and Hansuld had grandfathers named Harold.

Piet Houtenbos

Piet Houtenbos’s career began at Modernlink—a purveyor of Midcentury Modern masterpieces—where he honed his understanding of proportion and the ideals of modern design with an award-winning collection, Onelink. Today, his sculptural designs each feature unexpected moments, intriguing shapes, and elements of whimsy. The Halsey Fracture Dresser, which comes in various custom finishes and hardware options, is one of our favorites.

Justin Nelson of Fernweh Woodworking

Justin Nelson started Fernweh Woodworking in 2015 with no formal training in woodworking. When his first furniture line item debuted in 2017, he took the world by storm. His award-winning design for the Sling Chair came next, and the rest is design history. His Oxbend chair (above left) was born from a desire to create an elegant yet organic dining chair that exemplified the beauty of simplicity. From this design, the Oxbend Bench was born. It’s subtle, handcrafted tubular curves showcase just how adroit Nelson is with his hands.

Brett Miller of Jack Rabbit Studio

Did you ever think you would absolutely adore stumpy furniture? Neither did we, but Brett Miller’s Hudson Valley-based furniture design studio, Jack Rabbit Studio, is putting forth some incredibly beautiful (and comfortable) thick-lined furniture. From the aptly named Chubby Chair (shown above) to new two-leg dining chairs that form part of his Funky Bunch collection, these are some elegant yet whimsical designs.

Andrew Finnigan Works

Andrew Finnigan, a studio furniture maker in New York’s Hudson Valley, continues the tradition of handcrafted work. Through his eponymous studio, Finnigan Works, he puts designs forth that not only employ traditional methods of construction, but relay both a classic and unique appeal at the same time. Finnigan’s simple yet inviting oiled maple desk is enhanced by chestnut bridle leather.

See More

Meet Puerto Rico’s Hidden Pearl in the Culinary World, Chef Natalia Vallejo

Global Glamour: Noha Hassan transforms a SoHo pied-a-terre with a globally-inspired sense of style

10 Favorite Finds at Cersaie 2019: The Premier Destination for Ceramic Tiles

Ken Browar and Deborah Ory’s New Tome Offers a Fascinating Visual Journey Into the Art of Dance, Fashion, and Photography

IIDA NY’s Annual Color Invasion Event Was a Master Class in Imagination

Categories
Uncategorized

2019 Design Trends from Lighting Technology Brand Ketra

Ketra lighting
Founded in 2009, Ketra has made dynamic light accessible in any environment with a flexible, fully integrated lighting and controls solution.
Uchi Dallas Lighting
Uchi Dallas was designed by architect Michael Hsu with lighting by KL Lighting Studios. The two-story space features 74 total zones, each controlled by Ketra products in a combination of wireless and wired communication.

Ketra, the innovative lighting system that focuses on providing homeowners and commercial spaces alike with the highest quality of natural light, spoke to a group of diversely talented designers about some of the most important trends they see occurring in 2019. From technology as a form of security, to the return to neutrals, the investment in furniture that is meant to last, and the value of light in our lives—here are few of the trends these designers expect to see this year.

SMART TECHNOLOGY

Ketra lighting
Ketra Mobile App.

Erin Ruby, Founder of Erin Ruby Design, LLC: One of the major advantages to tech and connectivity in the home is the ability to manage the property remotely, with doorbells now doubling as security cameras, wireless thermostats that can be preset or adjusted while away, or programmable lighting and window shades to save energy and/or to make it appear that people are in the home. These features provide a welcome sense of control and security.

This sensibility extends into the commercial market in a similar way—allowing employees to manage infrastructure conveniently from their phone, whether they are on or off site. For lighting in particular, I love working with Ketra because they take this concept a step further: offering full spectrum LED lighting that is limitless in its variety of applications. Their wireless system can be programmed as a brand accent, entertaining tool, or to mimic the path of the sun throughout the day.

Charles Pavarini III, Founder + J. Randall Tarasuk, VP, of Pavarini Design: Almost all clients, at whatever financial level, are looking for SMART home technology such as remote audio and lighting control, to enhance the way they live and to reduce energy costs.

Rendell Fernandez, Design Director at Pembrooke & Ives: Technology always has something new that peaks a client’s interest. Voice actuated smart speakers now add another layer of home automation controls that were non-existent just a few months ago. Think of the possibilities when voice recognition becomes as reliable as flicking a switch.

Benjamin Moore color of the year
Benjamin Moore’s Color of the Year 2019,  Metropolitan AF-690, reinforces the notion that neutrals are back.

THE RETURN TO NEUTRALS

Pavarini and Tarasuk: We’ll be seeing an abundance of neutrals grays and pale pastels that contrast with early 80’s varieties of pale plums, pomegranates, and violets contrasting with dark charcoals.

Fernandez: While most colors are driven by client preferences that illustrate the diversity of the full color spectrum, the designers at Pembrooke & Ives stay true to neutral tones and natural finishes.

LET THERE BE LIGHT

Ketra lighting
Founded in 2009, Ketra has engineered lighting technology that mimics the natural spectrum of light.

Pavarini and Tarasuk: Natural light is a key element to think about when designing a space.It reinforces our connection to nature and makes us feel good. Full spectrum LED lighting like that which is now being offered by Ketra, certainly avails us to another level of consideration. The ability to amplify the natural spectrum of light coming through your windows is something we have never had the ability to do before. It’s a breakthrough that is sure to find a growing market.

Ruby: As the quality of lighting technology improves and evolves, this will continue to be an increasingly vital aspect of the built environment. Any space is only as good as it’s lighting. Lighting dictates how spaces are perceived (warm and inviting, or cold and stark) as well as how color is rendered. When you use Ketra’s designs, the dynamic light shifts throughout the day, providing crisp white light during the day, and soft, warm light in the evening, making a space feel bathed in sunlight.

FURNITURE THAT IS MEANT TO LAST

Ruby: In response to the culture of fast furniture and disposable pieces purchased solely for convenience, more and more manufacturers are offering quality products in reasonable lead times. Even IKEA is making fine crafted products now! Businesses are seeing the value of investing in meaningful pieces, be it furniture, artwork, or lighting, etc., to elevate the experience within their space, and offer a more thoughtful representation of their culture and brand.

 

Categories
Culture Lifestyle

Twelvehome: Luxurious Design Made Easy

Twelvehome is seemingly a beautiful decor website – yet it’s more than that. The dynamic duo behind is Paige Kramer and Christi Rogers, and together they wanted to create a way to make interior design easier – through their brand website they’ve introduced seven pre-designed rooms including original items such as rugs, lighting and art.

Each with their expertise – Kramer has a background in PR and Marketing, while Rogers has spent much of her career designing luxurious interiors for clients in the US and Europe. By combining their talents, the website radiates excellent design and materials, while accessibility is at the forefront. Living stylishly with a luxurious designer look does not always require an interior designer – or the price of one.

But how did the company come about? Downtown sat down with the two to talk about design, hardships and rewards as well as interior design tips and trends right now.

How did you go about creating Twelvehome, from idea to business?

We talked about it for years – literally years! We really wanted to be thoughtful about how we approached it and what our offerings would be and how we would differentiate ourselves from the other home decor websites out there.

We really looked to fill a gap in what we saw in the market in terms of products, giving consumers curated collections with a more overtly sophisticated and elegant style. And then we took it piece by piece, we started shopping and designing fabrics simultaneous to developing our website and looking for the best partner to do our cut and sew.

What has been the hardest part of starting the business?

Balance. In addition to being entrepreneurs we are also both moms. Christi essentially has three full time jobs and Paige has two. Managing this while paying careful attention to every detail from manufacturing, to web design, to room design, packaging and everything in-between has absolutely been a balancing act but we allowed ourselves a extra time to get it right.

And what has been the most rewarding?

Seeing something we both feel so passionately about come to life. It’s been long road – we started batting around this idea more than five years ago and now seeing our love for twelvehome come to life – it’s indescribable, the joy we mutually feel.

Which clientele do you cater to?

This as such a wide range. From first time home owners who want a beautiful pulled together look but either don’t want to emotionally engage or don’t feel financially comfortable engaging with an interior designer, to someone who just purchased their second home, to a bride, to a bachelor – we really feel as though we span a variety of demographics.

Who designs the rooms and choose the pieces?

It is truly a collaboration. We have worked together as designer and client for more than ten years now and sometimes we feel like we don’t even have to speak we are in each other’s head – we approach color and design identically. It’s absolutely the most fun part of twelvehome for us – we could design new rooms all day long and never tire of it. 

Interior design wise, what’s hot right now?

Obviously, we all know Greenery was the Pantone color for 2017 so we are seeing much about that and are still seeing endless amounts of the dusty rose craze. What we love about this is if they are your favorites or not, they both show a movement into bold beautiful colors in your interiors. And when you look through our rooms you will see our passion for color. Additionally, we are seeing a movement into beautifully layered textures which we have made a conscious effort to include in each of our rooms.

 

For someone dipping their toes into designing their homes, what is your best advice?

Follow your gut, yet don’t be afraid to try something out of your comfort zone – sometimes you will be surprised to see how that one thing you were not exactly sure about ends up being your favorite thing about the room.

Why should people use your website and not hire an interior designer?

Oh we love interior designers — we are absolutely not saying don’t hire an interior designer. We are here to give another option that didn’t previously exist. We want everyone, who desires to live luxuriously with a perfectly designed room, to be able to do so – even if they don’t have the safety net of an interior designer.

Photos courtesy of Twelvehome