Posts Tagged ‘Interior Design’
Garde On Beverly Boulevard
You know when you walk into a store and it’s just totally right and you immediately start dreaming about where each piece will go in your home? That’s what happens when you step into Garde, the newly-opened home furnishings and personal accessories store on Beverly Blvd, owned by Scotti Sitz.
Sitz is both impeccably stylish and incredibly sweet. She’s had an impressive career–working first for Calvin Klein and later as the director of retail development for Giorgio Armani. The classic, minimal style of those major brands finds its way into Garde’s retail space, which use to be an old electronics repair shop–untouched for over 30 years. “It was a boring space with no character,” Sitz tells Take Sunset. “I thought, how do I create an inviting environment out of nothing?” She completely overhauled the space. “You name it, we gutted it,” she says. “There was an old drop ceiling with 1950′s tiles, the skylight was boarded up, linoleum on the floors, bad windows, partitions.”
The end result is light, open, modern and minimal without being austere. “The space was long and narrow, so I needed to divide it without walls or partitions,” Sitz explains. “We painted the big grey stripe through the middle, added shelving and display surfaces so you have a subtle feeling of different spaces, but still open and gallery-like.” When asked about her design influences, Sitz says she has many–gathering her likes and dislikes over the years in order to fine tune her own style. But for this project, one particular inspiration stands out. “In the past couple of years, my go-to design influence has been the Belgian architect Vincent Van Duysen,” Sitz states. “Mr. Van Duysen represents the minimalist, which is in my nature, but without being severe. He puts the warmth and tactile elements back in spaces and manages to keep all the rooms flowing in a natural direction.”
As for picking Garde’s location on Beverly Boulevard, Sitz explains that she use to live right around the corner and has watched the neighborhood change into the perfect location for her retail store. “It’s become the neighborhood of higher-end vintage furniture and design, without being over the top,” she says. ”It is kind of the anti La Cienega and PDC [Pacific Design Center] area. It’s less commercial, which I like.” And so far, so good. Sitz says she loves her shop’s new neighborhood. “I love contributing to the cool vibe that’s now known as ‘the Beverly Corridor’.”
Contributing to that vibe is Garde’s unique mix of housewares and accessories, including silk textiles by artist Stevie Howell, jewelry by designer Satomi Kawakita, brass ornaments by Anna Karlin, pottery by Sara Paloma, and ceramic and hemp wall hangings by Michele Quan, which I immediately fell in love with. Sitz says the most important aspect in choosing the collections she carries–aside from being beautiful or interesting–is her personal connection with the designers. “I love the stories behind each artists’ journey and the process to create their designs,” she says. “And I curating collections from artists in the U.S. and abroad. The world has truly gotten that small, thankfully.”
Garde
7418 Beverly Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323.424.4667
Deja Vu In Long Beach
Lately, I’ve been obsessing over decorating our new house–which basically means I’ve been wasting time on the Internet browsing furniture and reading design blogs. I do love checking out local shops, but I’m lazy, so I like to preview everything online first. Which explains why I haven’t actually been to Deja Vu, although, I’ve fully explored their website. Deja Vu is located on 4th Street’s “Retro Row” in Long Beach and specializes in mid-century modern furniture and accessories by designers like George Nelson, Bertoia, Milo Baughman, Kai Kristiansen and more. The store is owned and curated by Vincent Dogat and has provided furniture for sets on Tom Ford’s A Single Man and Mad Men.
After browsing their online showroom, there are some items that I’d like to own, like the pair of Joseph-Andre Motte bridge chairs.
Or this desk lamp by Lightolier.
There’s also plenty of stuff in their sold items that I’d love to own as well, so I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on Deja Vu.
Deja Vu
2238 E 4t St
Long Beach, CA 90814
Hours: Wednesday – Saturday 12pm – 6pm, Sunday 12pm – 5pm, or by appointment
1500 Rising Glen Road In Hollywood Hills
1500 Rising Glen Road
Los Angeles, CA 90069
3 BR, 4 BA
$3,295,000
Situated in the Hollywood Hills above the Sunset Strip, this 1956 mid-century modern home features vaulted ceilings, fireplaces, a pool, and impeccable finishes and details throughout.
The interior was designed by Kelly Wearstler, and it has been featured in many publications.
Another Look at Ellen & Portia’s House
Remember Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi’s estate in Beverly Hills, listed for $49 million? Yeah, I can’t forget either. And as is the trend when mega-mansions are looking for a buyer, they did a spread for the November issue of Architectural Digest!
“We never had a house when I was growing up,” Ellen explains in the interview. “We always rented. But my father would dream, and we used to look at houses all the time. I’d pick out which bedroom would be mine and get all excited. The first thing I did when I made money was buy a house,” she says, “And then–”
“Another one,” Portia says. “And another one and another one and another one…”
Lots more photos of their palatial estate, after the break, if you’re into drooling over celebrity homes!
Missoni for Target Collection
Target’s designer collaborations with lines like Liberty of London, Jean Paul Gaultier, Zac Posen Alexander McQueen and many more, have brought high-end fashion to the masses for over five years. There is always a fashion feeding frenzy over the collaborations, thanks to an evil mix of advanced hype, secrecy, and a sense of urgency spurred on by Target’s limited-time-only events.
And now Target is joining forces with the luxury Italian home and fashion brand Missoni to release the 400-piece Missoni for Target collection. The line will include pretty much everything under the sun, including a plethora of zigzagged clothing for women, men, kids, and babies, shoes, knits, office products, luggage, housewares, accessories–even a Missoni-clad bike!
Of course, my eye is on the home decor, which is all Target-priced. Items range from $3 to $600 with most landing around $40. The Missoni for Target collection launches in stores and online September 13 and runs until October 22. But get there early if you want the good stuff! It will go fast.
(Image Source: Missoni for Target on Facebook)
You’re Golden
Pantone says the color of the year is Honeysuckle, but personally I’m feeling gold. Especially when paired with creamy white. It’s just so, well, rich looking. But proceed with caution because with metallics in general you can quickly cross into gaudyville. Just a touch gets the point across. But I like my touch to have a twist…
Midas Glassware Collection by Front
Etch Pendant by Tom Dixon
Glass Skull by Esque Studio
Mono-A gold-plated flatware designed by Peter Raacke in 1958
Yves Saint Laurent Arty Ovale Ring
What are some of your favorite gold accents?
The Herman Miller Sale
This is the final weekend of the Design Within Reach Herman Miller Sale, including the work of Charles and Ray Eames, George Nelson, Isamu Noguchi, and more. It’s time to make some decisions because the sale ends on Monday, and this stuff doesn’t go on sale very often! It’s 15% off all things Herman Miller, and if you go totally crazy and spend over $5,000, you get a free upgrade to DWR’s White Glove delivery service. Here are some of the items I’m dying to add to my cart… At top, the Eames Molded Plastic Dowel Leg Armchair. I’m a big fan of the Eames chairs with the wood base. They look beautiful paired with a wood or glass dining table.
And a few matching Eames Dowel Leg Side Chairs too, of course!
Speaking of Eames and chairs–I love, love the Eames Wire Chair with Bikini. I mean, seriously. It’s a chair, with a bikini.
And how gorgeous is the Nelson Swag Leg Armchair? It is one of my favorites. Like a delicate sculpture. Sigh. I wish I could buy them all!
Garden In Hell
Diana Vreeland (1906-1989) was a major visionary force in fashion and style during the twentieth century. She was fashion editor at Harper’s Bazaar for twenty-five years, as well as editor-in-chief at Vogue. Vreeland was known for her passion, charm, and wit. She was endlessly quotable with statements like, “The bikini is the most important invention since the atom bomb” and “Never fear being vulgar, just boring”.
Vreeland herself was certainly never boring. In 1955 her Park Avenue apartment needed a bold and original decor to match. Vreeland worked with close friend and famous New York decorator Billy Baldwin to design the apartment, famously informing him, “I want this place to look like a garden, but a garden in hell.”
The end result was completely bloodred. Scarlet chintz covered with brilliant Persian flowers draped the room. Piles of patterned red pillows, a thick scarlet carpet, and a mix of red accessories completed the monochromatic look. Vreeland explained, “Red is the great clarifier–bright and revealing. I can’t imagine becoming bored with red–it would be like becoming bored with the person you love.”
I Dream Of… Bathtubs
At our current place, we don’t have a bathtub. So I spend a lot of time dreaming about my perfect dream tub…
This “invisible” tub was designed by the Boston-based architecture firm Stern McCafferty. It’s made from a thick sheet of glass inserted between two tile walls. I can’t imagine actually getting in and out of this tub, but it certainly looks great, which is an important feature in my dream tub. It must look fantastic.
This ultra modern tub is in a remodeled London residence designed by architectural firm Fourfoursixsix. Very minimalist yet serene. Also important: bath time must be quiet time.
What’s better than a bath while on vacation? And what’s better than a bath while on vacation in your home in Bahia, Brazil? This discreet sunken tub is paved in polished cement and manages to be both rustic and opulent. A new bath rule: Must lead directly to the beach.
This dramatic egg-shaped concrete bathtub was custom-fitted to the body of French stage designer and director Jean-Pascal Lévy-Trumet. My future bathtub shall be cast from a mold of my body so that no one else will be able to bathe in comfort except for me! Also, I want that lamp.
More dream tubs, after the break.
Vidal Sasson Renovates Neutra’s Singleton House
Vidal Sassoon revolutionized hairstyling in the 1960s. His easy-to-maintain, precision cut bobs and geometric shapes modernized women’s hair. Sassoon is credited with inventing the five-point haircut to complement the bone structure of model and Vogue creative director, Grace Coddington. He gave Mia Farrow her famous pixie cut for the 1968 film Rosemary’s Baby, and his most famous cut at the time was the asymmetrical bob or the Nancy Kwan, which he cut for the actress’s role in the 1963 comedy The Wild Affair. “My whole work, beginning in the late 1950s, came from the Bauhaus,” Sassoon explains in April’s Architectural Digest. “It was all about studying the bone structure of the face, to bring out the character. Architects have always been my heroes,” he adds.
With his love of architecture, it makes sense that in 2004 for $6 million, Sassoon and wife Ronnie purchased the iconic Singleton House designed by Richard Neutra. The home was originally commissioned in 1959 by industrialist Henry Singleton for its spectacular Bel Air location atop Mulholland Drive with views of the Pacific, downtown, the desert, and San Gabriel Mountains.
When the couple purchased the Singleton House, it was in disrepair. Just two weeks after closing, part of the roof collapsed, and a few months later a huge chunk of the property slid into the neighbor’s yard. Due to dry rot and modern code requirements, the Sassoons did extensive rebuilding of the home. They worked with contractor Scott Werker of GW Associates of L.A. to replace the damaged ceilings, pour new terrazzo floors, and remove a number of walls to create larger, brighter interior spaces. They also added a master bedroom suite, which Ronnie designed with Werker and building planner Tim Campbell. Ronnie, however, is unapologetic about any changes they made. “Unless the house is a museum, or you only spend a few weeks a year there, you just can’t live this way today. And given how valuable the land is, the house would have been torn down,” she says. (Which is exactly what is potentially happening with Richard Neutra’s 1955 Kronish House in Beverly Hills.)
After the remodel was complete, the couple turned to close friend and decorator Martyn Lawrence-Bullard for advice on the interiors. The kitchen features a Saarinen Tulip table and chairs by Knoll and built-in cabinets by Neutra; the hanging cabinet and stool are by Jean Prouvé.
Left out of the Architectural Digest article, is mention of the fact that the Sassoons have been trying to sell the Singleton House on and off since 2007. (Although, what better advertisement for the home?) They listed the 5+ acre, 4 bedroom, 5 bath residence for $20M in 2007. It was on the market for 471 days and then taken off until February of 2009, when it was re-listed with an asking price of $14.995M. It’s now back off the market.
See more of Neutra’s Singleton House, after the break!
Subscribe
Copyright 2009-2012 Take Sunset. Designed by Curt Ziegler.
Most Comments