Styling inspiration: whites

A very nice mixture of scandinavian, industrial and bohemian styling inspiration from the Dutch magazine vtwonen. I like all the airy whites!

Fireplace, an inspiration...

The heart of the house...

images via: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

Living Divani: Family Chair, Drop table, Pasticca sofa and Garden plate table

Family Chair collection (2010) from Living Divani caught my eye a while ago - fun and unpretentious design with beautiful graphic outlines. The chairs compose nicely with translucent Drop table (2010) that distorts the shapes behind and plays with our perception of space. Both designs were created by Junya Ishigami, a talented Japanese architect.

Pasticca (2010), modular seating system by Piero Lissoni is worth noticing as well. It allows to create endless compositions of sofas and lounge sets. Rounded shapes, pleasing to the eye, fit elegantly in open-space interiors.

Garden plate (2010) is another great design by Junya Ishigami - a low, translucent table meant to be an “out-of-scale” home garden. I love the idea!

www.livingdivani.it

photos T. Sartori, styling Carin Scheve

Nika Zupanc

Slovenian designer Nika Zupanc creates intriguing everyday use objects. What makes them so different and interesting?

Not only the actual toys, like the car Konstantin, but also the lamps and sofas seem to be made to play with. All the "toys" are meant to seduce and awake our true selves: our inner children. “Emotional ergonomics”, this is how the designer defines the personal interaction concept between the users and the object.

"I was asking myself if we buy something because it’s functional, or simply because we like it on some emotional level?"

Nika Zupanc clashes our everyday true life with the inner images of ourselves and, what could seem impossible - binds the two realities together. The designs refer to stereotypes of feminity and masculinity, the girlish and the boyish clichés. Especially the feminine icons are present: innocent and seductive, both from flirtatious boudoir and boring kitchen.

www.nikazupanc.com




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Lolita lamp, 2008




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Unfaithful feather duster, 2007



...................................................................................................................................................................... Maid chair, 2007



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Mrs. Dalloway, mini hot plate, 2009



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Konstantin B, toy car, 2009



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Scarlet table, 2009



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Boy’s Lamp, 2009



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Black cherry lamp, 2010



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5 o'clock chair, 2010



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Modesty sofa, 2010



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The doll house, 2009



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The wind pavillion, 2010

Sacrum vs Profanum - church buildings redesigned

What happens with Genius Loci, the spirit, the soul of the place, when the building had been redesigned? And what happens when sacrum becomes profanum?

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The White Rabbit Restaurant & bar in Singapore

Charming restaurant housed in beautifully restored old chapel. The interior was redesigned from an abandoned church building by Takenouchi Webb. Visit the architects website and have a look at the photos from restoration.

www.takenouchiwebb.com

via: Yatzer 


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Bookstore Selexyz Dominicanen in Maastricht

The bookshop installation was designed by Merkx-Girod Architects (Ewelyne Merkx and Patrice Girod). The architects aimed to emphasize the architecture of 13th-century Dominican church without destroying its unique quality. A monumental, multi-level "bookcase" was designed and asymmetrically positioned embracing the gothic columns of the main nave. Wandering between books, the visitors can experience the atmospheric, medieval interior and admire historical murals. The interior design concept was awarded The Lensvelt de Architect Interior Prize 2007.

I like the humorous accent, a crucifix-shaped table at coffee bar in presbytery. And note the amazing aureole-like chandelier! Playing with blasphemy?

www.merkx-girod.nl

photography by Roos Aldershoff, via: urbarama


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Kruisherenhotel Maastricht

Housed in beautiful, 15th-century Kruisheren cloister and gothic church, the hotel seems to be a dream. Interiors, contrasting modern, designer furniture with historic murals and old stained glass windows, were created by Henk Vos.

I smiled at the motto of the hotel: "Design between heaven and earth". The exclusive interiors were proudly furnished with the works of Le Corbusier, Rietveld, Marc Newson, Piet Heyn Eeck and Philippe Starck. The light installations are by Ingo Maurer. Snobbish heaven!