Crisp and Cozy

Here are more images I gathered for the house I worked on this summer. I love this house. It's modern, but I also think it is very warm, which many modern houses are not. I love all of the clean, crisp lines. And I LOVE this front door. Look at that detail!

 The dining table is made of structural steel and poured concrete. You can see the profile of the beam in this next shot. Isn't that cool? I think Mr. Sabbe would love this table. His first career was in Civil Engineering.

 

 

 

I cannot remember where I found this house {so bad} If you happen to know, give me a heads up so I can give credit where credit is due.

P.S. We just cut the net off of our Christmas tree. It is HUGE! and our living room is not! Have you ever pruned a Christmas tree? I think I may need to.

Meet Jared, Julia, and Beacon

We were fortunate enough to have the sweetest couple, Jared and Julia, move into the apartment below us earlier this Fall. A few weeks after their arrival, they welcomed Baby Beacon to their family. Julia asked me if I could take a few family pics for their holiday card this year. How could I refuse. Look at that face!

Advent

I grew up attending a small Baptist church and we did not celebrate Advent. I have attended a couple of different churches throughout my teen and adult years and still knew very little about what Advent actually meant. The church we have been attending in Boston does celebrate Advent, and is placing a huge emphasis on the idea, as seen in the video, of Advent Conspiracy. So I thought I should do a little research. Here are my findings.

What is Advent?
Advent marks the beginning of the Christmas season and the Church year for most Western churches. The word "Advent" means "arrival" or "coming" in Latin and represents the approach of Christ's birth (and fulfillment of the prophecies about that event) and the awaiting of Christ's second coming. It is composed of the four Sundays before Christmas day, starting on the Sunday closest to November 30th, which is the feast day of St. Andrew the Apostle, and ending on Christmas. Because Christmas is on a different day from year to year, Advent may last anywhere from 22 to 28 days.

In the 4th and 5th centuries, Advent was the preparation for the "Epiphany" rather than Christmas. (Epiphany is celebrated in early January and focuses on various events in Jesus' life such as the visits of the magi, His baptism and miracles.) It was also a time for new Christians to be baptized and welcomed into the church, while members of the church examined their hearts and focused on penance. Religious leaders exhorted the people to prepare for the feast of Christmas by fasting. Some say that early documents show that those leaders treated Advent as a second Lent.

Sometime in 6th century Rome, the focus of Advent shifted to the second coming of Christ. In the 9th century, Pope St. Nicholas reduced the duration of Advent from six weeks to the four weeks we currently observe. And finally, sometime in the middle ages--approximately the 1500's--an additional focus on the anticipation before Christ's birth was added to that of His second coming. For a more in-depth perspective, visit The History of Advent.

Celebrating the Season
For Christians, Advent is a time of reflection about the amazing gift that God gave to us in the person of His Son who came to live among us on earth. It is also an opportunity to restore Jesus to His rightful place as the center of our holiday celebrations! Advent is, appropriately, both somber and joyful!

The prevailing themes of the Advent season and the symbolism behind the activities which churches and families share are expectation and hope, preparation and peace, joy and sharing, and most of all, love. These themes are represented in the 5 candles of the Advent wreath. On each Sunday marking a new week in Advent, a candle is lit on the wreath (including candles from previous weeks) until we arrive at the snow-white center candle which stands for Christ! All Advent activities and traditions are grounded in the truth of Scripture...even though the symbolism and stories surrounding them have changed over time. The focus continues to be the great news that the Messiah was and is coming and how we live out our heartfelt longing for both.

The practice of lighting Advent candles began in Germany by non-Christians. They lit candles surrounded by evergreen branches in their windows on cold winter nights to signify their hope for the coming warmth and light of spring! Later, German Lutherans kept the practice alive and gradually the symbolism of the Advent wreath was added: evergreens represent everlasting life (because they do not die during winter) and Christian growth; the wreath is a symbol of God's unending love and of victory; candles represent Christ, the light of the world, and their purple or blue color signify the royalty of Jesus our King! Another tradition saying is that the four candles signify the 4000 years of waiting from Adam and Eve until, at long last, Jesus' birth.

All info found on Teaching Mom.  If you and your family celebrate Advent you should check out her page. She has a list of great ideas to help kids {and adults} understand the meaning behind the tradition.

And although I have not celebrated Advent thus far in my Christian life, I think this year I'll give it a go. I'm thinking the way I'll do it, is to try to break up Luke Chapter 2 (The birth of Jesus) into 25 parts and memorize it, a little everyday. Scripture memorization is not my strong suit, but I figure since I'm 20 years late on figuring out what this is all about, I better go big or go home:)

Do you celebrate Advent? If so, how?

p.s. I'm also a bit pumped about the crafts that are involved in the Advent season. Have you seen this stuff!? It's everywhere. I'm excited to now know what it all means.

Messenger Bag {take 1}

I've been filling my holiday weekend with my favorite pastime. Yesterday I made this messenger bag for myself.

I really like it and think I will get a lot of use out of it running around the city. It was actually a practice round for a bag I finished today for my friend Cherie. I'll post hers tomorrow. I think I like it better. Isn't that they way it always goes? I got started with a tutorial found here.

The boss was very happy to be back in the studio.

Although I had to kick her out when the thread spools started getting knocked all over the place. Does anyone else have a cat whose favorite treat is sewing thread? {please say yes, I need a support group} It's like drugs for her. She can't stop, nor can she ever recall her prior bad experiences. She chews and swallows, chew and swallow....30 minutes later, she throws up....then does it all over again. I obviously try to keep her away from the thread, but she's an addict, and addicts do crazy things to get their fix.

Black Friday

This is where I would like to spend Black Friday...

Where you here?

Do you venture out at the crack of dawn?

I never have. Growing up, my family was never into going shopping on Black Friday, or any other day that involved large crowds.

I can see how it could be fun, kind of like the designer wedding dress sale at Filene's.

What is the best deal you have ever found on Black Friday?

Happy Thanksgiving

We're going to miss this guy's famous pumpkin pie this year.

And good new ladies, he's single. You could have a Mr. Sabbe of your very own.

They both come with matching evil eyes and hands that fit into pockets.

A Home in the Woods

This past summer I did some freelance work for the owner of the last firm I worked for. He is building a 4 bedroom mountain home in Arkansas. Owning a 100 person architecture firm, I was both honored and nervous that he asked me to help him on this very personal project. Here are some favorites from the imagery I put together to get us started. He is an architect and a fly fisherman. He wanted the space to reflect both.

 

 

 

  

 

 

The styles obviously vary quite a bit from image to image. I LOVE working with clients who can see past the specifics of a photograph. In other words, I like bits and pieces of each of these spaces, but my final design would look not attempt to copy any of them. Interior photography is meant for inspiration, not duplication...what fun would that be?...unless you are a set designer.

Beam Me Up

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lighting is my favorite design element....today.

Black and White and Love All Over

You know how you come across images ever so often that are not perfect for everyone...but are perfect for you. That happens to me often because I have no loyalty to one particular design style and when on an image hunt, 9 out of 10 times fall passionately obsessed with something. I came across this kitchen/dining room space the other day and immediately went into that mode.

 I love the juxtaposition of so many different styles. The mid-century chairs + the ornate mirror + the uber modern kitchen cabinetry + the stainless steel appliances + the natural wood table top + the walls that are so dark I would typically hate them...but I don't = design love.

I think I like it the most because it appears to be a super small space and I now live in a super small space, so I am always on the look out for those who make it work. Did you notice the mirrored backsplash on the kitchen run? Clever, clever. At first look I thought it was an opening to another room.

p.s. They don't cook. Want to know how I know? Scroll back up, the only sink is a bar sink.

p.p.s.  I just noticed that this room almost matches my blog header to a T....so random, I just found the image Monday. All it needs is a little touch of animal head:)


Images: Living

Who's Not Afraid of Color!?

When I was interning in Atlanta, my boss at the time refused to let us use the color green...in anything! My co-intern, Garrett, and I always pondering...how, as a designer, can you eliminate an entire family of color based on your own personal preference? So to make each other laugh we would occasionally ask Who's not afraid of color...and the other would shout I'm not afraid of color!

Garrett and I also dressed in head to toe pink to see the Legally Blonde sequel together. We were two peas in a pod.

This cute, kitschy family is definitely not afraid of color.

 

 

 

 

I think the photography of some of the rooms could be art.

Images Milk Decor

Bringing the Outside In: Residential

Quick Note: and a new mission statement

I realize that most of my blog readers are probably far more interested in residential design over commercial design. Most of you are not looking for ideas for your next corporate headquarters building. But being a commercial designer, who fancies herself dabbling in residential one day...I plan on fully subjecting you to both:) I promise you will benefit from both and hopefully have an enriched appreciation for the overall built environment. My hope is that from reading my blog you are able to notice good and bad design in everything you see. I am not referring to good and bad in regard to personal style (i.e. one loves the color purple, another hates it). Good aesthetics are in the eye of the beholder (most of the time). I am speaking more about creative and smart uses of materials, great detailing, balance, proportion, and lighting. These are things I notice everywhere I go.

I can be so inspired by a storefront design that I have to go home, get my camera, come back and be the weird girl (who promises she is not a terrorist) trying to consume every square inch, in hopes that I don't forget about it when the next project comes along.

On the flip side, I can be completely turned off, from an otherwise fantastic design, if I notice the base lines around the room do not line up (i.e. if a 6" high wood base is smacked directly next to a 3" tile base in the middle of a wall, that's bad and a professional designer should know better than that)

Understanding design is a blessing and a curse. It's something that gets inside your head and you will never again look at the built environment the same. My hope is that my blog helps design become a part of your everyday lens. And when you see something and you think that is good or that is bad, you will be able to back it up with a because.....

AND back to the regularly scheduled post...

Bringing the outside in is a concept Californians are no stranger to.

Richard Neutra was a pioneer of this look with his design of the International Style  Kauffman House in 1946.

This one is by far my favorite of this set. See how the geometry of the countertop plays on the geometry of the second story slab...which appears to be a bridge with the HVAC system built in....look how the two doors align perfectly from the first to second floors.... and those stairs...are you kidding me!

I love the idea of these glass garage doors opening up this small office and indoor/outdoor  space.

A product called Nana Wall has made this look a pretty easy, plug and play, architectural feature.

And yes, I would love to open my wall, roll out my bed and sleep on my patio. How about you?

Images Metropolitan Home. Nano Wall . Eben Interiors