Here is a reader request from Monika: I’m about a year away from a major kitchen/family room remodel and our architect is recommending we have a large island that would stand alone without a sink or stove. The sink and stove will be on the wall opposite the island. I love the idea of a large open space with no sink/stove paraphernalia to clutter it up, but I haven’t seen an example of this in real life and would like to see a few examples before I give the go ahead… my mother in particular is skeptical siting the importance of the “work triangle” while I feel a large clutter free expanse creating a sense of calm & cleanliness trumps the triangle. If you find examples of large islands with no sink/stove, I would love to see them. I am absolutely with you Monika. Plus, with the main sink in the island, you’ll always have a pile of dishes there. Who wants to see that so clearly?

Style At Home

Freunde von Freunden

Antoine Bootz

Gunkelmans Interior Design

Nathan Egan

Hus & Hem

Lonny

Sköna hem

Robert Bailey

Sunset

Sunset

Bolig Magasinet

Hus & Hem

Susan Gilmore

Lone Pine Pictures

Summer Thornton

Parsonson Architects

Marjorie Skouras

Ivo Tavares is a photographer from Portugal who wanted to share his portfolio with our readers. He’s got a great eye and creates very interesting compositions. The following photos were shot for his client, Interdesign Interiores, and for more photos check out Ivo’s Facebook page. Thanks Ivo!

Lotta Cole is a Swedish interior designer based in London who wanted to share a project she just completed in Notting Hill. The flat is situated in the heart of Notting Hill, and the design scheme mixes bright splashes of colour with reclaimed materials and quirky details, such as the antique spoon handles in the kitchen, antique mirrors in the stair, and wooden door knobs throughout the flat. The project was completed May 2011 by Lotta Cole Design. Love the Smeg fridge – and the colour!! Thank you for sharing Lotta!

I am just DYING to have the work on my house started, but we’ve had to redo the plans to try and save a small fortune so my husband can get an extra 16″ of height for his basement “man cave”. While our plans are being finalized once again, we’ve started the quest for interior and exterior finishes and we frankly don’t really know where to begin. It’s a pretty daunting task for 2 people who have never really done any renovations before (except my kitchen a few years ago). We’re going to need pretty much everything – a staircase, windows, exterior finishes, fireplace, bathroom fixtures, hardwood, tile and on and on… You guys help out our readers when they have design dilemmas so I thought maybe this time you could help me out. I am hoping you can give me suggestions on where to shop, design ideas etc. Since I am located in Ottawa some of the products should probably be relatively accessible locally (ie. staircase).

We also have another dilemma. This renovation is going to cost us WAY more than we initially thought, which means we’re not sure we can complete the finishes in all the rooms (and I’m not even talking about furnishing them – there’s talk about leaving the floors with only the sub-floor, completing only one bathroom…). This brings me to my next call for help. If anyone out there would like to help us with some of the finishes by offering great bargains for materials, even freebies (!!!) I’d LOVE to chat  (email me at desiretoinspirekim@hotmail.com). There would of course be blog mentions/publicity in return.

So today’s post is about bathrooms. We will have a master bedroom ensuite, another full bathroom upstairs, and a powder room next to the front entrance. (For a peek at the plans see this post, keeping in mind the layout of the bathrooms is totally up for grabs). I’d love to have some fun with the powder room and do something really industrial and I have a thing for black and white bathrooms so I hope one of the other bathrooms can be done in those colours. I went through my stash of bathroom photos and found some of my favourites. Any ideas/sources etc. that you can suggest, let me know in the comments or via email! Thanks!

Annette English	Martha Stewart
Pappas Miron	Design*Sponge
Adela Cabré	Hus & Hem
Design*Sponge	Design*Sponge

Dwell

David Mikhail

Living Etc.

Bruce Bolander

Decor Demon

The Selby

Kate Hume

Bolig Magasinet

Liz Artindale

Charles de Lisle

Met Home

Living Etc.

Lorissa Kimm

Micasa Revista

Nuevo Estilo

Oak Management

Style At Home

Country Home

envelopeA+D

Scott Weston

Occasionally I like to blog a designer/stylist/photographer whose style leaves me a bit out of my comfort zone. Luisa Olazábal is an interior designer from Madrid, and her portfolio filled with beautiful spaces does just that. They are classic with a contemporary flair, sophisticated and refined with soothing, muted colour palettes.