Wednesday, August 2, 2017

What Do You Think of This?

So I'm considering a new blog series called What Do You Think of This? Effectively, it's a ploy to a) look at photos of (what I consider to be) interesting design and b) get myself, somehow, to a place that I can think beyond the pit, I mean, the healthful foundation, of my transforming home. Really, the pit is more metaphoric than anything, she says, trying to sound convincing.

Here's the idea: I'll find and post photos from one of my interior design sites. The photos will not be of one style or palette or room or locale. I will aim to make them relatable, whatever that means. The rooms will likely trend towards cozy and the homes/gardens compact, to resonate with the kind of home I'm building. I wonder if I'll come to regret writing that sentence if the only rooms that appeal to me from here on in are big! (Think: Mood Board, not "this is what I'm working with specifically".)

Then, I'll tell you what I like about the pic in question - and perhaps relate it to some aspect of design I'm thinking about for my own home.

I play a version of this with my mother on a daily basis. Note: She dislikes a full 84% of everything I show her, but I've got her number when it comes to places in Paris and Barcelona. Have I ever bothered to, um, save any of the house tours or photos?!?! Apparently, that would be entirely too structured for my interior-design brain which, I've recently discovered, is a fucking renegade. Do not tell her to organize in the way she does with, well, anything else. Style is a muse, y'all. Disclaimer: There is one other thing I undertake as unstructuredly as interior design and that's cooking. I refuse to follow a recipe. I commune with the food as I commune with spaces and I don't think mathematical structure helps overly, in those instances. Honestly: food and design are the same in that they are entirely associative. That's why there's relatively little, objectively bad design. (I'm going through an open-minded phase.)

So, for our inaugural space - and let's not put too much stock in any one photo - the Paris salon:


Photo courtesy of Apartment Therapy

You can learn more about this photo (and see a very French, full tour) here.

Kristin, what do you think of this? Well, it's in Paris (big city, gorgeous architecture both get points in my book). But in terms of the room itself, I love the light, the height of the windows and the juliette balcony. I love the textured walls and how they allow simplicity to shine. I love gold accents (though I do NOT like that table which one would get injured by routinely, I imagine, and which overwhelms the rug). I love that the only things that bring depth of colour into the room is the couch - and the TV. It's not that I support the overt visibility of TVs but I have a TV in my living space so I like to see versions of rooms that embrace the inevitables of living life. Who doesn't love the floors and the dimensions of the door? I'm fine with animal skin conceptually, but I don't think it's the piece, so much as the neutral layering that makes the rug integral. There are cut flowers - the essence of elegance, IMO, and a sign of nature within urban sprawl. But most of all I appreciate this room's cozy minimalism. It is not cold, even as there's very little in it. It's comfortable. Would go well with a glass of wine and some good music.

So, what do you think of this? And, by all means, do my mother proud with your honesty :-)

11 comments:

  1. Hahaha! My first though was that the table is a trip to A&E (ER) waiting to happen. And you'd hide the cables for the tv. But! I do love the simplicity, and the light and the deep coloured sofa. I'm always drawn to this in other peoples spaces. For me I need more textiles. I always itch to dress a bare window. Even if it's just acres of sheer cotton or linen.

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  2. I know! The table is crazy. No kids in that house :-) Interesting about your perspective on window coverings. For sure, window dressings are practical and I believe in them! But man, if I had a perfect view in Paris, I would say, look at me in my undies - I don't care :-)

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  3. I am in agreement with the table...too angular. Give me a round table any day. Personally, I would like a bit more colour, even if it was just in the accessories. Love the big windows and the walls with the trim.
    Barb

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    1. Barb - interesting about colour. I'm wondering how I'm going to apply colour but it will probably be with accessories. Mind you, I am having the house repainted. And I do love wallpaper (not that I'm likely bold enough to make that kind of commitment - which is really hard on walls).

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  4. You could invite us to comment on a Pinterest board? :) That's what I use for picture ideas, of which I have far too many.

    Comment on the above space? High ceilings, textured walls, warm walls, warm floors, light - all good. The table is horrible for use by humans. Glass with corners??

    The bones of the room are good, but let's start completely over with the furniture. Navy's good though.

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    1. You know, I don't think I have it in me to use another platform (over and above this blog and Insta) at the moment. Although, I agree it would be a good platform. I've tried to get into Pinterest but not as yet, apparently.

      And I love your honesty! You sound like my mum with the "let's start over with the furniture" :-)

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  5. I am confused by this room because the sofa is rumpled and the TV looks like it belongs in a dorm room because of cords cords cords, cords showing on wall, cords showing down below because the "entertainment center" has no cabinetry. I get it people watch TV and shouldn't need to hide it all in an armoire (though hey that is an idea) but it shouldn't look like you just dragged it in from somewhere. And not only does the table have glass edges but the base looks like a tripping hazard, sticking out to the edge of the top like that. So, I love the bones of the room and while I wouldn't go all formal to "match" I think I would go less mixed eras and have a more formal sofa (formal but comfortable) and table(s) that could actually be used by people sitting on the sofa: this table seems very far away. I am not much at interior design from scratch but more like "know what I like" and have been through many iterations of how to make sofas/coffee tables work in the daily functional sense. The picture does make me want to go to Paris....

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    1. Margaret - I love your comment. I have always assumed (when my mother says something I like is "vaguely shabby") that she was in the minority. But I see where you're coming from. I have a high degree of tolerance for TV wires, apparently :-) And I get where you're coming from. Good thinking for me. Do I want to flex my "grown-up" design muscles?

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  6. I am in agreement with the table"hate "; though I do get what the designer's concept was with the size, glass and warmth of the brass. My problem is 1)how you gonna watch the tv from that couch,? The angle is neck twisty for me. I need to see the rest of the room to really get a good feel for the functionality of the design. I do realize that the photo stylist most probably moved/removed some of the furniture to improve the sight line for the photograph. Speaking of photos, why are these ones hung so high up on the walls? Curmudgeon out.

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    1. Oh - I can answer that! You lie longways on the couch facing the TV! I think that would be ok for the neck (if slightly on an angle).

      I can see this room is not a huge "resonator". Off to find something else...

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  7. Oh this is fun. I used to think I was more of a minimalist that I actually am. I like the walls and the floor, and the windows and the door. I like the curtains, but do not like the way the tv pushes the curtains. I don't mind the tv, it is a practicality of life.

    I would watch the tv by lying on the sofa, but then no one could watch with me, so perhaps not the best arrangement. I don't mind the color of the sofa, but I might like more color, or a sofa that looked a little cozier.

    I do not like the coffee table. I like he way the rug looks in the photo, but my experience with similar rugs is that my feet would not like them. I also think the pictures on the wall are too small. I would do something in a larger scale, either larger and with more color if I kept the dark sofa, or large and graphic but perhaps more neutral if I opted for color on the sofa.

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