Beach Elegance: 10th Street Kitchen

Hello all! We're so excited to show you a project that is just wrapping up. Take a look at what the 10th Street kitchen used to look like: 

The finishes and color scheme were too dark and formal for this house by the beach, the original lay-out which included a small island and a bar were awkward, and overall the space just did not function as well as it could... the goal was to transform the space into something that reflected a lighter west coast beach mood and could be a full service kitchen and HQ for this busy family of 5. A look at the kitchen remodel in progress: 

 

Here's a sneak peek of the kitchen dining area as we wait for the dining table and settee to arrive to accompany the dining chairs and that gorgeous chandelier: 

A close up of the iridescent tile we used for the kitchen back splash:

And the house is nearly complete! Those bar stools are a temporary, but quite useful as we wait for the new ones to arrive. If you're wondering whether that's a ping pong table in the bottom right hand corner of the last photo... you're absolutely right! The wonderful family that lives here is fun-loving and while the family room is filling in, they figured why not

Saara's Fav......

...the Saarinen table!

I'm sure I'm not alone with this one, and would be happy with any variety - but the white marble top holds a special place in my heart...

I love the wood veneered option for the right room too...

Then again, sticking with simple white is always a good choice too! Oh, the options!

I'm seriously thinking about buying one of these for our kitchen table. But, of course, I have no idea what to do! I REALLY can't afford a Knoll table and have been looking for good-looking reproductions. Here's the dilemma, do I go with the more economical simple white option, or save a bit and scout-out a marble-topped option? 

These tables look GREAT with EVERY style imaginable, and are TIMELESS!

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"The underside of typical chairs and tables makes a confusing, unrestful world, I wanted to clear up the slum of legs." 

- Finnish designer Eero Saarinen. Design Year: 1956

House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year: Jeff Lewis

I caught a segment about the House Beautiful kitchen of the year on the Today Show Monday morning and was so excited to see that it was designed by Jeff Lewis of Flipping Out. Bravo is the TV channel of choice in my home, and Flipping Out is one of my favorite shows! I would LOVE to spend a day with Jeff, he totally cracks me up!

The kitchen is very much a Jeff Lewis design - sleek, modern, minimal, and amazing! If you watch the show, you know that his kitchens tend to look similar, but that's okay because his signature style is both beautiful and functions well for cooking, and most importantly to him as he doesn't really cook, entertaining. He always includes amazing appliances and high-tech kitchen goodies into his designs. You must watch this video and look for the cutting board-sink-flushing-garbage disposal-trap thing in the counter. LOVE IT!

 I love the contrasting dark cabinetry and white island with the medium-tone wood floors. The open wine storage wall is a great way to create two distinct spaces, while still keeping things open and airy.

He makes me want to attempt open shelving, just don't feel like I could keep them looking neat and tidy! 

The futuristic Licht im Raum chandelier is so perfect, it is by far my favorite part of the design! And check out all the texture added by those various plants, they look great! The table was created using wood from the old Vanderbilt polo barn. Also, pretty darn cool!

{By designer Jeff Lewis, all images and video via House Beautiful}

If you're going to be around NYC in the next couple of days you should make your way over to Rockefeller Center to check out this dream kitchen. It is free and open to the public until the 23rd, complete with cooking demonstrations and guest appearances by Jeff Lewis and his Flipping Out crew. Sounds pretty fun to me!

ps...this kitchen will also be featured in the October issue of House Beautiful :)

Attention HGTV Lovers...

I know many of you likely watch HGTV and so I wanted to make you aware of a show that they just recently started to air. My all-time favorite TV design host is Sarah Richardson, who has 4 - count them FOUR! - design shows! I have a love/hate relationship with her. Well really it's love/jealously because hey, I'm a Saara from Toronto who's a designer. And well, I want to be her. And if her beautiful room designs aren't enough for me to covet, she also designs great furniture.

For 5 long years I have missed watching new episodes of Room Service, Design Inc, Sarah's House and Sarah's Cottage because only really old episodes were shown on FLN in the US but now very luckily for me, and you, they are airing brand new seasons of Sarah's House on HGTV. Yay! You must check out the farmhouse she is currently renovating - the show always starts with her real estate search and goes through all the steps to create the home she wants. And at the end she has her realtor assess the new value of her project. It's fun and educational watching her go through all of the steps.

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To lure you in, here are some shots from the first season of Sarah's House...

I think she does a great job at keeping the charm in old houses apparent while mixing in new and vintage materials and furnishings.

I love the way she mixes patterns in wallpaper and fabric so effortlessly...

The shows talk a lot about budget which is nice to see on TV and she regularly uses stock cabinets and has them sprayed for a more economic, custom look...

Lots of her shopping is done if thrift stores and at auctions (which makes me miss home because I recognize all of her favorite stops). She bought these dining chairs for peanuts and had them refinished along with a slew of other items for this house...

I really liked the adult den in the house and would love to have that brass pendant and coffee table! I know the coffee table was vintage and super cheap, just another item that makes me thirsty for furniture hunting!

The kids bathroom was fun and a great example of how she uses inexpensive tile in interesting ways to create a more expensive look (hard to see but the white tiles are laid in varying directions and patterns). The vanity was a nightstand that was purchased online and then painted and topped with a sink...

Even I wouldn't mind doing laundry in this room. She really gives every room a lot of thought. The large frame on the left is hung on a piano hinge so it can swing open to reveal the ugly circuit breaker box. So smart...

All of these photos were taken from Sarah Richardson Design, and you can view the complete set of photos from this home 'here'.

Anyway, check her out. I think you'll be glad you did!

Poppies at Play - Parade of Home

Growing up with parents who were always designing and building - new house, new cottage, etc - I was dragged to many parade of homes. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, it's where one or more houses are designed by various decorators, designers and architects and their work is showcased to the public. I wonder if my parents ever thought I would become an interior designer and my brother an architect?! I guess we were definitely influenced!

Lately I've been enjoying the Pasadena showcase houses but I was just made aware of an online parade of homes...blogger homes! Check out Parade of Homes on Poppies at Play - what a fun way to sneak peaks (legally) into other peoples homes and be inspired!

Every day four bloggers' homes are showcased, so be sure to revisit daily! Oh and they are holding a linky party on Saturday where you can upload a photo of your favorite room in your house. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's photos!

Enjoy!

New For The Kitchen

My mother-in-law sends me clippings and links to the newspapers back home whenever she sees something she thinks I'd like to read - pretty nice eh? (Ah oh, there's the Canadian in me.) She sent me a link to an article that was in Canada's Globe and Mail Sunday about new kitchen trends. So, here are a few of the trends our neighbor to the north is predicting and anticipating!

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I've seen these before but had forgot about them. Faucets that turn on and off simply by touching them anywhere sound pretty fun to me. Love the functionality of these and this Delta model looks sleek too...

KitchenAid is getting ready to introduce a refrigerator with an LCD touch screen. At first it sounded completely unnecessary to me, but after reading about it I learned that you can specify how much water you want it to dispense which would be handy when following a recipe. Fun if you love gadgets or you've got extra money to spend...

The article predicted that we will see more glass used in kitchen design. This Blanco sink is a mix of stainless steel and glass and has a glass cover to provide more counter space when needed...

How about these illuminated glass counters from ThinkGlass? Not sure about these myself, but they may appeal to someone...

So what do you think? Are these trends hokey or hits?

{The article talks about a bunch of other trends too! You can read it 'here'}

Manhattan Beach Kitchen UNVEILED!

This Manhattan Beach Kitchen exudes warmth while still capturing the essence of beach living. These fun Spin stools from Crate and Barrel sum up the client's design sensibility; fun, functional, clean and always young-at-heart!

Over the course of the past 9 months, GEORGE I.D. has had the privilege of working with the most wonderful couple, on a dream home project in Manhattan Beach. When the couple first interviewed GEORGE, they expressed a desire to keep the interiors light, bright and simple. They wanted warmth but not the feeling of stuffiness that sometimes accompanies it. They smartly decided that Mediterranean architecture was most suitable for the Los Angeles climate (sea air takes a toll!) but they did not want to sacrifice a light, airy, beachy-feel for the interiors.

From studs:

To drywall:


To designing millwork (guided by the patience and expertise of Tom from Holly Cabinets) and nervously awaiting installation:


To shopping slab yard after slab yard...


...before finally deciding that Caesarstone was the right choice for this kitchen... (Pebble caesarstone for the wall countertops and Organic White caesarstone for the island and "Waterfall mosaic tile for the backsplash) :


To selecting stain and paint colors (we stained all of the downstairs millwork in Zar's "Chestnut" and painted the kitchen cabinetry with Dunn Edwards perfectly chalky-white, "Milk Mustache.":

To shopping fixtures for the kitchen and prep sink, like this Hansgrohe model which we ultimately selected:

To fine-tuning the hardware... we went with these totally cool 3" modern cup pulls in Satin Nickel from Top Knob:




and these sleek satin nickel 1-1/4" cabinet pulls (also Top Knob) for all of the doors:

To installing carefully planned out appliances, like the subzero refrigerator, 48" Wolf Range, Wolf double ovens and warming drawer, GE beverage center, and the impressive Modern Aire kitchen hood:


and then to watch Dutko Flooring install the drop-dead gorgeous hardwood floors, at long last (!):



Here are some photos of a 2 of the 4 baths prior to finishing touches:






It has been a long road but a very gratifying journey. The clients are moving into their beautiful home this week but there is still much to be done! The bedrooms were all carpeted yesterday and we have begun shopping for furniture and window treatments.


Time to get back to work!!