Pretty Up Your Porch & Super Sunrooms x

 

  Mixing Materials

Wicker furniture is often a staple of outdoor living, however, these sleek-lined pieces look anything but ordinary. A sisal rug beneath the seating arrangement helps define the area. The two-sided fireplace adds warmth and light when the sun goes down.

 

 Strike a Contrast

Lime green seat cushions and turquoise accessories infuse this screened porch with youthful energy. The mismatched collection of furniture looks cohesive thanks to white paint, which coordinates with the porch's white framing and the house's white trim. A large painting on one wall adds artistic flair to the outdoor living space.

 

Sunny Style

This sunny screened porch welcomes visitors with an eclectic collection of furniture and accessories. The cosy seat cushion atop the wicker sofa provides the perfect spot for relaxing. A trunk-turned-coffee table offers a surface to place a tray of drinks as well as a hidden storage area for blankets and spare pillows.

 

 Hello, Sunshine

A small skylight above the seating area in this indoor porch welcomes views of the sky. The wood panelled ceiling treatment draws the eye upward and emphasizes the skylight. Screened windows prevent unwanted critters from making their way inside without disrupting any views of the outside

 

 Wicker Wonders

Wicker reigns supreme in this sunroom, where the woven material infuses the space with an inviting and relaxed energy. The sofa and coffee table were painted a deep, emerald green, which adds whimsy to the ensemble of naturally finished pieces. The colorful rug beneath the seating area echoes the woven texture of the furniture

 

Opening Up

Collapsible screens allow this sun porch to transform from closed and protected to open and airy in no time at all. A trendy colour scheme of chocolate brown, lime green, and rusty orange infuses the space with energy. The lattice pattern featured on the furniture adds another layer of visual interest.

 

Straight and Narrow

A narrow screened porch off the back of this home provides a summery dining spot for the whole family. The red-painted chairs along the sides of the dining table add a splash of colour to the neutral space. Screens on all of the windows act as barriers that help keep out unwanted critters and crawlers.

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I cannot tell you how much I love a great place that is shared with the inside and the outside. Quintessentially this is the verandah, or for some also known as the porch. And with so many wonderful new products on the market it's never been easier to also make that semi inside/outside space into an enclosed and bug free outdoor sunroom too! Thought I would share with youwhat I found ... here are a number of wonderful spaces such as theses that you too could imitate or take elements from to help you create a special outdoor sunroom space.

 

My Grandma has always had a verandah of some sort front, back and some type of sun drenched room lined with armchairs, a lounge you could nap on, a few side and coffee tables, and most importantly littered with sift plump cushions and a few throw blankets - just in case you need to cosy up! I know that this verandah - sunroom 'exposure' has greatly influenced me and even why I fell in love with the home we now live in, and how I have been working on our outdoor sunroom - complete with wicker, armchairs, lounge, a coffee table, some plants and lanterns and many cushions!

Will post a pic of my modest favourite spot for a cup of tea, or wine, on weekend afternoons...

Enjoy,  

 

images via bhg.com, tumblr, pinterest - palatial living, country living, traditional home

Loving Aura...

I received the latest e-newsletter from Aura by Tracie Ellis today and I am in love with the Ikat inspired indigo duvet cover, the stippled coverlet cushions & accessories, and the rest of her range including the chevron stripes and geometric moor inspired printed shapes on linens. 

How can you not be enticed... it's even worse now for me - as our new bed & side tables finally arrived on the weekend! I just have our existing timber tallboy and blanket box to revamp - sand & paint to match the new bed frame & side tables [worn  effect with off-white colouration - 'white canvas'] and some new drawer knobs for the tallboy. Aura certainly provides the perfect 'canvas' for inspirational bedlinen.... take a look at the latest collection HERE.

Enjoy,

Note - this post are views expressed solely by Sarah Verity. This post is not an advertisement, and by no way or means has this post been supported or paid for by Aura by Tracie Ellis.

image via aura by tracie ellis

Part II - Trends in Decor/ Design & Furniture for 2010

Following on from my last post 'Update...Trends in Decor/ Design & Furniture for 2010'.

Here are further identified theme for Tends Decor/ Design & Furniture for 2010: Part II - 3.Handcrafted Details & 4. Honeycomb Patterns.

Trend: Honeycomb Patterns
The caged light has emerged as a trend in recent months, but here the focus is more on the geometry of the skeletal shade. Featured at 100% Design, Julian Mayor's quirky fractal Frame light was manufactured from spruce and plywood and made in an edition of 20.
JulianMayor.com.

Trend: Honeycomb Patterns
The Quilt Collection chair, sofa and ottoman designed by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec are upholstered in an honeycomb upholstery stretched over a fiberglass shell. The effect takes tufted to a new level of plush.EstablishedAndSons.com



Trend: Honeycomb Patterns
The honeycomb trend was echoed throughout the Cesarie tile fair, though Belgian architect Vincent Van Duysen's D.R.Y. (Don't Repeat Yourself) tile rose above the crowd. Inspired by the irregular cracks found in plaster, dry paint and earth, this uniquely shaped tile gains uniformity when grouted with hexagonal tiles.
BrixWeb.com

Trend: Honeycomb Patterns
The Zero 4 porcelain wall tile designed by Francesca De Simone for Marazzi brings a softness and shimmer to the grid, while the metallic finish adds depth to the intricate lines.
MarazziTile.com.

Trend: Handcrafted Details
Paola Navone, Gervasoni's artistic director, is famous for crossing boundaries, both stylistic and geographic. On a trip to Buenos Aires, she found young fashion designer Martin Churba, who has a real talent for dressing articles of furniture. His knitted pouf feels like a favorite sweater.
Gervasoni1882.com.

Trend: Handcrafted Details
The PS HÄLLAR stool is designed by Maria Vinka and handwoven from banana fiber, sea grass and cotton and covered in a clear lacquer. Even global retailers like Ikea are taking heed of individualistic detail.
Ikea.com.

Trend: Handcrafted Details
The tree of life was the inspiration for Cowtan and Tout's Wexford fabric, which combines fine chain-stitch embroidery with lacework detail. The woven linen with a cotton ground, shown here in yellow, was one of many embroidered fabric lines at Decorex.
Cowtan.com.

Trend: Handcrafted Details
Michele de Lucchi's Vegan table, shown here in walnut, is an ode to craftsmanship and nature. Its legs resemble everything from branches wrapped around a tree to animal bones. For its manufacture, the factory revived artisanal techniques that hadn't been used for years.
Riva1920.it.

Images & Text / Article from Elle Decor [U.S magazine] January 2010 issue

Update... Trends in Decor/ Design & Furniture for 2010 - Pt I.

Since the Pantone Colour of the year announcement I have been on the look out for styling/ colour & deign forecasting... So for the beginning of the week - here's a great update on what's happening in Trends for Decor/ Design & Furniture for 2010, from Elle Decor (U.S) January 2010 issue where there appears to be 5 Main Trends areas, these are: 1. Illusion and Fantasy; 2. Folding & Pleating; 3.Handcrafted Details; 4. Honeycomb Patterns; and lastly 5.Turquoise Tones ...

Here you'll find Part I for the Trend Update 2010 - 1. Illusion and Fantasy; 2. Folding & Pleating; with Parts II - 3.Handcrafted Details; 4. Honeycomb Patterns& Part III - 5.Turquoise Tones, to follow this post...Hope you're inspired!.

Trend: Illusion and Fantasy
[above Image 1] The brick pattern from Sebastian Wrong and Richard Woods's far-from-ordinary upholstery collection is wonderfully deceptive. The irony lies in the extreme comfort of the seating in contrast to the perceived hardness of the print.

Trend: Illusion and Fantasy
[above Image 2] Italian designer Gaetano Pesce feels that it's important to express oneself in imagery and that storytelling is a crucial part of design. His nine-foot-long, two-seat sofa takes the concept over the top.
MossOnline.com.

Trend: Illusion and Fantasy
[above Image 3] Once again, Front showed its mastery of illusion with a subtle trompe l'oeil collection for Porro at the Milan fair. The cabinet has lightly drawn lines that suggest a curtain ruffled by the wind.
Porro.com.
Trend: Illusion and Fantasy
[above Image 4]Hyde House's collaboration with 55max.com, which offers works by more than 30 international artists and photographers, as well as iconic shots from the renowned Getty Images library, now allows consumers to pair art with wallpapers, fabrics and blinds. Here, Kate Martin's sensuous photograph Suck This is the basis for the surreal upholstery on these bar stools.
HydeHouse.co.uk and 55Max.com.

Trend: Folding and Pleating
[above Image 5]Dror Benshetrit's armchair has all the flair any fashionista might desire. It's created entirely from a single sheet of two-tone felt wrapped over a metal base.Cappellini.it

Trend: Folding and Pleating
[above Image 6] U.K.-based Tomoko Kita, daughter of famed Japanese designer Toshiyuki Kita, is an accomplished product designer in her own right. Her book light folds tightly when closed and fans out to an ambient glow when opened and turned on. Available in a cloth, wood and leather cover, the perfect folds remain the highlight of each.
Tomokokita.com.

Trend: Folding and Pleating
[above Image 7] The Motley 3 Collection contains lamps that are shade and base in one; their solid plywood bases blossom into unique ribbed shades. The Complete lamp stood out as a favorite at London's 100% Design.
ChannelsDesign.com.

Trend: Folding and Pleating
[above Image 8] The New Zealand partnership Scott, Rich and Victoria debuted the spectacular Moscow Road Collection at London's 100% Design. Unit24, a folded, creased and rolled lamp shade, is inspired by traditional pleated-fabric shades and is offered as a pendant and floor lamp.
ScottRichandVictoria.com.

Design Trend Forecast 2010
After visiting the world’s premier design fairs and speaking with industry leaders in interior design, creative retail and product development, we’ve compiled a primer of the styles to watch and the products to snag in the new year Produced By Melissa Feldman and Anne E. Collins

“Survival mode” may have been the name of the game in 2009, but in 2010, the design world is looking to have a bit more fun. While designers are still conscious of the economic and environmental challenges ahead, the upcoming trends they’re fashioning impart a boost of happiness and a shot of color, as well as an infusion of surrealist fantasy and handmade charm.
With household budgets still at the top of everyone’s mind, quality and craftsmanship will also be of the utmost importance in the new year. Bonnie McKay, the director of creative retail at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, explains that people are “looking for things that are well made” and that “timeless pieces are the best investments.” As for the designers creating the products, Murray Moss, an American design entrepreneur and retailer, sees their new focus on handmade objects that are “decorative, tactile and narrative” as an instinctive reaction against cold and impersonal industrial materials. From the designer to the consumer, there is a desire for design to become more personal.
And if an assurance of quality isn’t enough to please the consumer, beauty and humor will. The product previews at fairs like iSaloni and 100% Design promised a smile in this new decade of shopping. Surreal shapes and fanciful imagery stimulated, while soothing colors like turquoise and purple made for pleasing displays.
From the trade show floors of Milan, New York, London, Las Vegas and Tokyo, here are the top design trends bubbling to the surface for 2010.
Illusion and FantasyPerhaps as an escape from a grim year, fantasy imagery and objects are emerging as a strong trend for 2010. Milan’s iSaloni has long been known as an influential furniture fair, and this year’s show revealed a variety of surrealist furniture and accessories, such as Gaetano Pesce’s fanciful Montanara sofa, which takes the form of mountain with a pattern of landscape painting. Meanwhile, at London’s Decorex, Hyde House displayed photorealistic fabrics of lush lips beckoning the trade-show attendees.
Folding and PleatingThe Japanese craft of origami objects made from cloth, ceramics and paper has inspired a wide range of products. From lighting to seating, Asian and European designers have latched onto the finely folded motif, as showcased at 100% Design with lighting fixtures by Scott, Rich and Victoria and at Milan with designer Dror Benshetrit’s Peacock chair.
Handcrafted DetailsThe 2009 shows proved that 2010 will be the year of craft. Embroidery, patchwork and handcrafted woods, all with an irregular and personal charm, emerged as the details to cherish. As Murray Moss says, even the industrially produced pieces were embellished with stitching and embroidery at the 2009 fairs. Bespoke textiles dominated at Decorex, and the edgy iSaloni fair showed more natural woods than ever.
HoneycombBritish decorator David Hicks and his legendary hexagon wallpaper have spawned a whole new generation of honeycomb patterns. From the Quilt Collection by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec for Established & Sons (shown in Milan) to Vincent Van Duysen’s hundreds of tiny intersecting tiles (shown at Cesarie), the hexagonal shape continues to multiply into the 21st century.
TurquoisePantone, the global color authority, just released its color for 2010: 15-5519 Turquoise, which conjures up images of tropical waters in shades of bluish-green. Traditionally the gem color is a symbol of healing, faith and truth, and it’s said to have positive vibrations. Whether designers were conscious of its deeper meaning or not, the fashion-forward color made a strong showing at all the previews.

Images & Text - article from Elle Decor - [U.S magazine] Januray 2010 issue

Stylish Colourful Storage Furniture...

'Trip Trumeau' chest console designs in 2 & 3 darwer styles from Seletti's

How about some colour into your furniture - it's one thing to paint a solid hue but what about mixing it up in a very stylish fashion....colour and pattern certainly breathe new life into these traditional shaped pieces. I adore these colourful, modern & tres stylish drawer 2 & 3 drawer chest/ console units. I think they are perfect for a contemporary space or perfectly playful for a children's room... With its rainbow of stripes, the 'Trip Trumeau' chest becomes the center of attention in any room. Made of MDF, the three-drawer unit measures 100 x 48H, 84cm (approx. US$1,360) and two-drawer measures 100 x 39h, 76cm - from Neo-Utility.com and Seletti.

Do you have any pieces like this at home or at the thrift/ op shop that you may have spied - that you can apply your own paint & pattern (the simpler the better the effect), to make into a modern colourful piece?

Images from Metropolitan Home & Seletti

Bedroom Inspiration...

Our bed is due to go to God soon - it's had a great life, so now I'm looking at new beds - frames, headboards & mattresses and further inspiration for our bedroom at the moment... I have a few pieces I think I will keep & re-vamp and several I think would work better as newly introduced pieces. So before I make any major purchases and any unnecessary painting or upholstery work I am looking at a few different approaches to bedroom settings and colouring, naturally I get caught on blue, white and a neutral colour palette! However aside from colour - styling and what I need out of the bed and will it go with existing pieces is quite a high priority...

I found these great bedroom images in my photo file [above] that I quite like - they're fresh, contemporary, stylish and have a sense of relaxation - all feelings very important in my bedroom sanctuary. So I will keep on with the search - will let you know how I go and what we come up with!

Images from Southern Accents, House Beautiful, & Country Living

More Mirror Love...

Today I have extended more love to these fabulous mirrored (furniture) pieces from Horchow... I just love the use of line through cut pieces and beveled edges to form another shape. Each piece has subtle reference to styles such as Art Deco and the romance of Hollywood yester-year, but also hails to a new a (Post) Modern Glamour take. Mirrored furniture although not practical for people with young families - finger marks - is perfect for that instant sleek & elegant look brightening a room with it's reflections and creating depth through mirrored endless horizons....

Images courtesy of Horchow

Mad About Eames

Eames Wire Mesh Chairs - advertisement

This particular advertisement for the Eames Wire Mesh chairs has an almost 'Hitchcock' air about it - not sure if it the lone bird, or the post-modernist grpahic appeal, almost 'Charade' 1963 - Audrey Hepburn & Cary Grant.

Sofa Hang Tag - Eames for Herman Miller
I have such a pengent for post-modern advertising and printed product info such as this image of a sofa hang tag for a Eames (for Herman Miller) sofa lounge.

Eames Rocking Chair

Eames Alumiunium Chairs 1958

I love these chairs I am looking at getting 2 replicas for our newly design open office/ media area. Not only are they comfortable but after 50 years the purity of the design remains ever so contemporary.

Eames Lounge Chair 1956

There's a fantastic upholsterer and furniture seller in Sydney, located in inner-city suburb Glebe, that always seems to have this Eames lounge chair and ottoman in their window I pass it almost everyday and always have to make sure I keep my eyes on the road - Not sure if it's the owners and they show it off to get people's attention or unbeknown to me it hasn't found a home yet! Ahgast!

For more info www.eamesoffice.com and http://eamesoffice.com/index2.php?mod=furniture

Bio on the legendary Product Designer / Artist - Charles Eames
Charles Ormond Eames, Jr was born in 1907 in Saint Louis, Missouri. By the time he was 14 years old, while attending high school, Charles worked at the Laclede Steel Company as a part-time laborer, where he learned about engineering, drawing, and architecture (and also first entertained the idea of one day becoming an architect).
Charles briefly studied architecture at Washington University in St. Louis on an architectural scholarship. He proposed studying Frank Lloyd Wright to his professors, and when he would not cease his interest in modern architects, he was dismissed from the university. In the report describing why he was dismissed from the university, a professor wrote the comment "His views were too modern." While at Washington University, he met his first wife, Catherine Woermann, whom he married in 1929. A year later, they had a daughter, Lucia.
After he left school and was married, Charles began his own architectural practice, with partners Charles Gray and later Walter Pauley.
One great influence on him was the Finnish architect Eliel Saarinen (whose son Eero, also an architect, would become a partner and friend). At the elder Saarinen's invitation, he moved in 1938 with his wife Catherine and daughter Lucia to Michigan, to further study architecture at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, where he would become a teacher and head of the industrial design department. One of the requirements of the Architecture and Urban Planning Program, at the time Eames applied, was for the student to have decided upon his project and gathered as much pertinent information in advance – Eames' interest was in the St. Louis waterfront. Together with Eero Saarinen he designed prize-winning furniture for New York's Museum of Modern Art "Organic Design in Home Furnishings" competition.[1] Their work displayed the new technique of wood moulding (originally developed by Alvar Aalto), that Eames would further develop in many moulded plywood products, including, beside chairs and other furniture, splints and stretchers for the U.S. Navy during World War II.[2]
In 1941, Charles and Catherine divorced, and he married his Cranbrook colleague Ray Kaiser, who was born in Sacramento, California. He then moved with her to Los Angeles, California, where they would work and live for the rest of their lives. In the late 1940s, as part of the Arts & Architecture magazine's "Case Study" program, Ray and Charles designed and built the groundbreaking Eames House, Case Study House #8, as their home. Located upon a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean, and hand-constructed within a matter of days entirely of pre-fabricated steel parts intended for industrial construction, it remains a milestone of modern architecture.

Source - see wikipedia.com

Outdoor Lounge & Chair Design

Recently I stayed at a fabulous resort,Peppers Salt Resort & Spa, on the far northern coast line of New South Wales, Kingscliff. Here at the lagoon pool side the resort had these fantastic oversized day beds that you could lay on then swim, then sun and then do it all over again. The shape, materials and colours were condusive for just taking it easy!

For similar furniture designs visit http://www.dedon.com.au/

http://www.peppers.com.au/Salt

A fantastic furniture company, Coast, from New Zealand is succesfully marketing outdoor range of bean bags and oversized cushions. The bean bags and oversized cushions are made from weather resistant 'Sunbrella' fabric, I think they're fabulous for both the adults and the kids! The mail order business ezibuy also distributes these bean bags for a lower price point.

http://www.coastnewzealand.com/ , www.ezibuy.com.au

Reinterpreting traditional weaving through modern technology and material, the Kettal Maia Outdoor furniture collection has a modern geometric style. The spun aluminium framework has a light open design that defies the strong solid metal. I love the texture of this chair against the slick sharp lines of the tiles and pool surface.
Visit http://www.kezu.com.au/


For more Balou designs Visit http://www.kezu.com.au/ and designer profile http://www.kezu.com.au/index.cfm?page=products&searchWords=Text%20search&ManufacturerID=&CategoryID=&DesignerID=5161&ProductName=&ProductTypeId=&start=1&pid=