Displaying posts labeled "Living Room"

When a textile and jewellery designer approached Brad Krefman of BK Interior Design to redesign her home in the hills of Mill Valley, California what was the result? A home that is bright and open, functional with high end finishes, light filled and fabulous, contemporary with a Scandinavian vibe, the perfect home for the client and her family.

P.S. If you love that fabulous painting in the dining room it’s Cool With Chloe, 2015 40×42 inches, acrylic on cut paper by Reed Anderson.

I’m daydreaming … again. A beach house somewhere exotic, well at least exotic to me.  Somewhere simple but stylish, relaxed and beautiful. A house where bare feet are de rigueur as are long lunches with friends, dips in the pool, walks by the ocean. A house with natural finishes and layers of texture and a monochrome palette.  A house in the dunes in Comporta, Portugal by Isabelle Stanislas.

Jessica Helgerson continues to rock my world with every space she gets her talented hands on. This one is no exception. This was an extensive remodel of a Portland house built in 1907, which had been subdivided into several apartments at one point in its history. Although the house had been restored to a single family dwelling by the time our clients purchased it, there were still clear signs of its former incarnation. Our first step was to reimagine the circulation throughout the house, which required removing the back stair, opening up the kitchen to the dining room, and adding a master bath where a balcony used to be. In addition to this, we layered on architectural elements like coffered ceilings, columns and ceiling rosettes to dress up a house that lacked a lot of the charm and character that we typically associate with older homes.  A comfy built-in sofa occupies the family room for movie nights and lazy lounging, while a large curved sofa in the living room is the perfect place for dressier get-togethers. Our aesthetic direction for the house was to create “an ode to the Pacific Northwest.” The palette is moody, green, lush, mossy and heavy on the western walnut while the decorative lighting and furnishings are markedly modern and playful, which suits the youthful, forward thinking character of our clients and their kids. In the kitchen JHID designer Mira Eng-Goetz hand-painted a mural of sword ferns across all of the walls as a way to create a garden view in a room with windows that look out onto the facade of a neighboring apartment building.  The tiles even continue over the built-in fridge to achieve a seamless fern-scape throughout the room.

(Photos: Aaron Leitz)

Two days ago I had us all running away to the spa region of Victoria. We were renting houses and indulging (or should that be overindulging) in the local delights. Today nothing much has changed except the location. We’re off to the coastal wonderland that is Byron Bay in northern New South Wales and I’m not sure about you but I’m staying at one of the Byron Beach Abodes. The Chapel in fact. 100-year old exposed bricks, timber beams, concrete floors and raw steel staircase. A mix of old and new furnishings, vaulted ceiling and dramatic draped curtains, hand-woven carpets and fine linens. Tempting enough?

Imagine a collection of houses in the Victorian spa region, each as stylish and beautiful as the next. Imagine that you can rent them out for a fabulous getaway whether there are just two of you or 24. I’m in. Are you? Time for a virtual house party. Today I’m sharing two of my favourites from The Houses Daylesford, The Oxford a historic 12 bedroom, 5 and a half bathroom home in the Hepburn Springs area with a stunning family lounge and spacious dining room seating 24. Think eclectic design with fab paintings and a touch of quirkiness (you may be sleeping with Salvador Dali, Andy Warhol and Ned Kelly). Large, luxurious and fun.