WHY SHOULD I HIRE AN INTERIOR DESIGNER? aka What Designers Do

Recently I got an email from a client about a new project. 

The client is downsizing and wants to make the most of her new outdoor living space. 

She emailed me from China with her assignment, saying she would be in Bali very soon and wants to ship back a container full of stuff for this project.

I went to work. 

I measured and created a drawing reflecting the current layout of the space and took some photos...

 

I sent this initial information to China then started my proposed plan, taking into account everything my client wanted from the space - dining for 8, a fountain, a relaxing place to lie down, interesting lighting and a barbeque - all easy to use and comfortably arranged. 

After emails back and forth, again taking into mind my clients preferences and desires, I came up with a sketch and a final layout. 

I sent a drawing with dimensions for everything so we can fill  that Balinese shipping container with furniture, carvings, a daybed, and a statue or two that will actually fit and bring this outdoor living/dining space to life. 

Stay tuned...the project continues....

ART: Art in the Streets at MOCA

Thanks, again, Mr. Geffen and Mr. Broad. It seems Los Angeles is one step ahead of New York in one aspect. Or is it a healthy difference? I suppose opposites DO attract. 

On April 17 2011, The Geffen Contemporary at Museum of Contemporary Art in the Little Tokyo district of downtown Los Angeles opened it's current exhibition - Art in the Streets. I went to see it last weekend and I cannot wait to go again. 

In my research to write this blog, I was reminded of something...MOCA commissioned a mural on one of it's own walls for this show. Well known Italian street artist Blu completed the mural on December 10th and MOCA's president Jeffrey Deitch, (a recent New York transplant, ironically enough) white washed it away less than 24 hours later. Unfortunately, there really is no such thing as bad publicity.

I was there. I got a photo, for you, my faithful blog readers.

 

Here today...

Art in the Streets dubs itself the first major historical exhibition of graffiti and street art to be organized by an American museum. I honestly had mixed feelings. I think a lot of people have difficulty differentiating between tagging and graffiti as an art form, myself included. But there is a difference. There can be more to spray paint than the crude markings of gang bangers. This exhibit proves that the streets have something to say.

New Yorks Brooklyn Museum, the next stop for Art in the Streets, just announced it has changed it's mind. Apparently, whether it's David Geffens money or that of New York City Council member Peter Vallone, who all but threatened to pull the Brooklyn Museum’s $9 million city appropriation if the show proceeded, money still defines art. 

You can't go wrong. 

On June 9th, Banksy, possibly the best known artist featured at this show, said he didn't think one should pay to look at graffiti when it was announced that he will sponsor free admission every Monday for the duration of Art in the Streets.

There is a lot to see and the space is laid out so well. No dead ends, no back peddling; you can wander thru and around everything.  

There's a time line. 

The museum has its very own Metro Gold Line station.

The Japanese American National Museum next door has a great gift shop.

etcetera

Yay L.A.!  

Some photos...

MINIATURE TRAIN WITH MINIATURE GRAFFITI

Here's what we saw on the way to the museum...

CFL BULBS: The dark side of efficient light

Jim Berlow, director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Hazardous Waste Minimization and Management Division, says:

"probably the most important thing that people need to connect with compact fluorescents is that they save significant quantities of energy," adding "two thirds to three quarters of the energy associated with lighting [is] being reduced".

He also recommends:

"quickly ventilating the room," and "Getting all the people and pets out of the room for 15 minutes and let the room air out."

when a Compact Florescent Light (CFL) bulb breaks. 

You may not know that mercury is essential to a fluorescent bulb's ability to emit light, around 5 milligrams of it to be exact, and mercury is highly toxic. When a bulb breaks, mercury escapes as vapor that can be inhaled and as a fine powder, settling into carpet and other textiles.

 

Disposal of burned out bulbs is tricky.

In many locales it is illegal to throw fluorescents out with regular garbage. 

The EPA and Earth 911 maintain online directories of collection sites. 

Among major retailers of fluorescents, IKEA offers to take back compact fluorescent bulbs in its stores free of charge.

Some Best Buy and Home Depot (left) stores also have recycle containers.

You can ever order a t-shirt

 

WHY SHOULD I HIRE AN INTERIOR DESIGNER?

Having a great sense of your likes and dislikes is an excellent starting point, but there's so much more to a well-designed room than simply filling it with your favorite things. But why? Why bother "creating" a room? The easy answer to that is 'comfort'. Believe it or not, a professional designer can help in ways you might not expect. 

I CAN'T AFFORD IT
A home is an investment, whether it's an apartment, condo or mansion. Hiring a designer is definitely a budgetary consideration - a top designer can earn about $150-$250 an hour (plus up to a 30% commission on furniture) - yet the input of a trained, creative, professional person has numerous advantages. A top designer has his or her place, but there are many young designers who charge half that hourly rate and come with the same resources and discounts. 

I'M TOO BUSY
If you simply don't have the time, hiring an interior designer is a great idea. The furniture/lighting/accessory/art/remodeling/renovating/space planning/painting/rug shopping/plumbing fixtures can be overwhelming and certainly time consuming. A designer can narrow everything down and steer clear of regrettable expensive purchases or awkward construction surprises. 
Yes, contractors are not designers, nor do they want to be. 
A designer's value for the money is exponential. A good designer can spot a poorly designed kitchen in 10 seconds.

WHAT DOES AN INTERIOR DESIGNER DO? 
I personally do not like to refer to myself as a decorator. I do not only help chose lamps and drapes. From a home office layout to a home renovation from the ground up, I can advise, I can design, I can purchase, I can draw floorplans, I can provide the best options - all based on your individual needs and desires. 


To be continued

One of my own favorite before and afters...

UPCOMING EVENTS: Pasadena Chalk Festival

I apologize to the Pasadena Chalk Festival for stealing the above image and the following information from their website. 

PASADENA CHALK FESTIVAL WEBSITE 

SATURDAY, JUNE 18 AND SUNDAY, JUNE 19, 2011 -10:00am. – 7:00pm.

Designated the World’s Largest Display of Chalk Art in 2010 by Guinness World Records, The Pasadena Chalk Festival will draw over 600 artists from across Southern California and beyond, who will use 25,000 sticks of pastel chalk to create spectacular murals on concrete throughout the beautiful courtyards of Paseo Colorado. Amazing works of art from every style imaginable, classical to contemporary, whimsical and fantastic to socially relevant, will be created and shown at the festival over the course of Father’s Day weekend. 

This one-of-a-kind public art event, now in its 19th year, is free-of-charge at Paseo Colorado. The most outstanding murals in several categories, as selected by the participating artists of the 2011 Pasadena Chalk Festival will win jetBlue round trip tickets, along with other special awards from our sponsors. Visitors will be able to vote for their favorite mural, “The People’s Choice Award” in participating Paseo Colorado retail stores.

All winning murals will be announced at 5:00pm Sunday evening.

Some work from previous years:

see you there?

PASADENA CHALK FESTIVAL WESITE

The Inspiration Architpod (re-post...)

Coolest little round building ever!!

It could be an office,

a meditation room,

an outdoor changing room/restroom,

a tea room,

a yoga room,

the naughty child's time-out space,

a panic room,

a fallout shelter,

a room where one can go to scream when life becomes too much...

A portable spherical room, from a catalog...The possibilities are endless...
Hammacher Schlemmer, America's Longest Running Catalog

UGLY ARCHITECTURE 2: Oy vay iz meer

This house is located in the Mid Wilshire area. It is surrounded by classic L.A. 40's Spanish and Craftsman style homes. I wonder what the house that once stood here looked like. I hope it was decayed beyond belief. 

It's so big. And square. 

I like the idea of the entry...it's almost brown-stone-ish. 

The tree is nice.

How should I look at this? Strickly on a critical level? That seems bitchy. 

Should I think about what someone could do to the house short of knocking it down and starting over? 

The windows are OK if not lacking in any sort of rhyme or reason from the exterior.

The totally flat front facade is awful from top to bottom. The balconies are silly. The balcony covers are sillier. The enormous arched window is enormous. And the colonnade across the top is totally fakakta. 

The lights are no good, especially the wee little guy floating in the center of that side wall. Poor little thing out in the middle of nowhere...

Call Ashleigh ASAP!