Inspired.talk

Chicago Dream Home

Last week we visited Chicago to host a panel discussion on social media and while we were there, we took a tour through the Dream Home at the Merchandise Mart. We have been featuring a lot of show homes on the blog lately, but we never get tired of seeing the industry's best collaborate to create inspirational homes.

 
My favorite room is the foyer, designed by Summer Thornton. Summer has been gaining recognition for her talents after appearing on design blogs like Daily Candy and Apartment Therapy. Power of social media! The room she designed in the Dream Home is stunning in person, and I could not get enough of the emerald green malachite wallpaper. We will certainly be seeing more of her! 

Another standout in the house was the bedroom. The mix of natural wood finishes with the rich velvet grey chairs was gorgeous. Adding orange to the mix gave it a fresh lively energy. Jeannie Balsam designed the space.

The dining room, designed by Simeone Deary Design Group was inspired by the fashion of the jazz era. Everything from the ruffled pleats in the window treatments to the bright sparkling chandelier reinforced that vision. I love how the mix of benches and chairs around the table creates a relaxed environment that is glamorous but unpretentious.

 
The Dream Home, located on the first floor of the Merchandise Mart, will be open through December, and it is definitely worth a visit.

-JP

Photos of the foyer and dining room courtesy of the Merchandise Mart.

May Showers at ICFF

The International Contemporary Furniture Fair happened this past weekend at the Javits Convention Center in New York City. With exhibitors from around the globe and many amazing student booths, we made sure to stop by to see what's new and what's next in contemporary design.

When it comes to trends these days, it seems like really, everything is in style: old is new, new with old is even newer. Everyone is talking about the mix. Everyone is talking about natural wood, gray with purple, and we saw a lot of it at the show. But it wasn't until Beth, our marketing VP, kept singing "Where Have All the Flowers Gone" while we walked around that I realized, they're all at ICFF!

So look out design world, we are sure to see bright colorful flowers styled in modern, contemporary ways. Here are a few pictures we snapped from the show, featuring some of our favorite floral motifs. 

 

This three-dimensional floral display was made from wallpaper.

  
These hanging lights look like a giant bundle of upside down flowers.

It's not made of flowers, but I'm sneaking in a photo of this tree bookcase because it's just too cute for a child's room.

       
This booth found a unique way to display fabric, with buds on the blouse and as part of the pattern in the pants.

The photos I took of this booth didn't do it justice: the metal flowers were so amazing in person.

       
These panels prove that bold, bright floral wallpaper is making a major comeback.

Snowed in: Eric Cohler's Lodge collection for Lee Jofa

The clouds are rolling over Manhattan and we’re all gearing up for what promises to be the Big One. Now I’m a Southern girl experiencing my first New York winter, so this is all very exciting for me. But we all know the South shuts down at the sight of flurries, so I can’t help it: when I think snow, I think snowed in.

So I thought this would be the perfect time to show you a little preview from Eric Cohler’s Lodge collection for Lee Jofa. If you haven’t been over to the D&D Building, or you’re already under a foot of snow in another state, take a look and imagine yourself curled up on the sofa, roaring fire in the fireplace, glass of cider in hand, watching the snow fall outside the window.

Cohler’s collection was inspired by the great lodges of the world, from the Western US to Tanzania in Africa. He uses texture and pattern to convey a sense of adventure and the romance of travel, but also the comforts of home. I love the upholstered walls, and how the bright blues in the artwork and in the bookshelves compliment the neutral textures and tones in the rooms, and pick up the teal in the curtains. All of the little details in this room create a story of a life that’s as rich and textured as the collection itself.

Enjoy!

-JP

 

 

The Lee Jofa showroom is located on the 2nd floor of the D&D Building at 979 3rd Ave. in NYC, as well as in design centers across the US. For more on Eric Cohler, check out his website. The March issue of Veranda magazine also has a great feature on Eric Cohler and the Lodge collection titled "In the Tradition of the Unexpected."

Kravet Your Room

We are excited to announce that we’ve partnered up with Traditional Home magazine to present Kravet Your Room, a digital design contest. We’re inviting interior design students to create a room using only virtual design tools and featuring Kravet products, including fabric, furniture, trimmings, rugs, wall coverings, accessories and more.

Entries will be accepted beginning February 1, and must be submitted as a jpeg. We are promoting our line of fabrics and furniture called kravetsmart, so all of the rooms need to feature one piece from the kravetsmart collection. Traditional Home’s website has additional contest details and prize information.

Real Housewives of Kravet Holiday

This year the Kravet window on display at the D&D Building in Manhattan is truly something special. I sat down with our Director or Merchandising and he let me in on some of the creative ways they went about designing this retro glam dream house.

The theme for our window this year, Keeping it Real in 2010, inspired a “Real Housewives” dream house for the Kravet merchandising team.

The dolls are slightly larger than a traditional Barbie, measuring around 16 inches, which gives you an idea about the scale of the rooms and the furniture. Their outfits (Brooches! Lace gloves! A fur stole!) came with the dolls but aren’t they fantastic? Be sure to check out the framed photo of Hugh Jackman on the nightstand.

All of the furniture is scaled-down Kravet furniture, and all of the fabrics are Kravet, but they have not been scaled down, so all of the patterns are actual size.

For the bedroom, they installed marble tiles for the floor and a metallic-effect wall covering made from tiny glass balls that shimmer in the light. The duvet for the bed was created with a Kravet embroidered silk and the upholstered headboard is covered in Kravet velvet.

Fun fact: the magazines on the nightstand are all replicas of current issues! The cover of Entertainment Weekly with Alec Baldwin and Meryl Streep is timely as they just held the premiere of It’s Complicated at the Paris Theatre just a few blocks away.

Beauty shots of our Kravet doll line the walls. The shell holding the magazines could fit in the palm of your hand, but at the Kravet showroom we have large-scale shells as well. Notice our Kravet signature logo fabric on the suitcase and the inlaid fur rug under the bed. The lamp on the dresser is a replica of a Kravet lamp from our collection, and next to it is a bottle of Fendi perfume.

For the living room, hardwood floors were installed along with an inlaid scaled-down custom Tibetan Kravet carpet. The walls are covered with panels of a retro printed raffia wall covering, custom designed for this application and available exclusively in the Kravet showroom at the D&D Building.

The coffee table is a sliver of agate on a wood base, and all of the accessories take on new life in this small space. For the lamps, they covered candle sticks in white lacquer and created small custom lamp shades. The miniature Buddha on the sideboard takes on new scale in the context of the room. All of the other accessories, including the books, silk pillows on the floor and boxes were discovered and purchased in small scale for use in the room.

The full façade is trimmed with limestone, giving the impression of an actual townhouse, and we are looking in on a glamorous holiday get together among friends.

I find myself constantly inspired by the creativity here at Kravet, and the holiday window this year is truly amazing! I hope you’ll head to the D&D Building at 979 3^rd Ave. to see it for yourself!

-JP

SKU information for bedroom: B300-K Northport King Bed in 19371-303, Duvet in 30236-16, Shams in 9199-16, D226 Libretto Armless Chair in 29872-1, Pillow for Chair in 29423-616, Lampshade on Nightstands in 28709-16, Pendant in 9573-6, Draperies in 30275-6, Carpet under Bed in 21780-1

SKU information for living room: D220 Jazz Sofa in VERSAILLES-E21418, Pillows for Sofa: 28786-19 & LA1317-752, B203 Navarre Chair (tall) in 19371-50, Draperies in 9539-16, Wall covering in bedroom TBD, Carpet: TAIKO / ground in KW104, Pattern in KS226 & KS72, Wall covering in stairway in 28709-16