Good ideas never die and often come back to life as something fresh and new for following generations. The beauty of wood grain veneer is exposed on the classic plywood LCW.  It was little known that the chair was produced in an upholstered version until Herman Miller recently reintroduced the fabric covered chair.

The tailored softness of the upholstery and the opportunity to add color to a room, are good reasons to use the revived upholstered chair. What’s old is new and new again when great ideas are rediscovered. The Eames Molded Plywood Upholstered LCW is a modernist classic that will bring life and comfortable seating to both living and work spaces.

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Initially INSTUDIO interior design directors planned to replace the light fixture, add a contemporary console table and use a solid color wool rug to modernize the foyer. When narrowing down selections for a console table the designers were told by the clients that they rarely used the existing cabinet and could easily live with no furniture in the foyer.

When a new accent/wall color was selected for adjoining rooms it made sense to include some of the new color in the foyer to coordinate the rooms. INSTUDIO suggested painting the walls in wide horizontal stripes. This treatment would make the room itself a work of art. The antique lighting would then be replaced with a large scale classic modern pendant fixture. The couple could then take their time to select a large scale work of art to turn the foyer into a mini gallery space.

Homeowner/Husband Max Requenes surprised both his wife and INSTUDIO by teaming with his friend Delcio Gomes to create a large scale work of art based on the iconic Chuck Close “Self portrait, 1967” as an enormous Lego toy. Visiting guests now get a first impression of the young fun art loving couple who live in the house the moment that they walk through the front door.

Self Portrait, 1967 by Max Requenes & Delcio Gomes is available through: http://fineartamerica.com/featured/self-portrait-1967-max-requenes.html

Contact Max directly for the artist edition 55”x72” print: max@requenes.com

INSTUDIO the art of design the business of living instudio-sf.com

The couple chose INSTUDIO Design Directors to help them utilize their existing furniture in new plans, select new furniture as needed and develop individual style for their home. Initially the living room wasn’t a good reflection of the couple; they trusted the designers to use their artistic talents for a fresh new look.

When presented with toned down golden hues as color options the clients rejected the neutral palette. The Design Directors opted to paint all the white trim yellow developing a contemporary field of overall color.  Yellow was paired with a gray-green accent color. This bold stroke enhanced the rooms and became a backdrop for their art collection.

Greens, blues purples and bronze tones complemented the yellow walls as accessories, art and textiles. Neutral tones of oatmeal, pale sage, walnut, espresso, chalk white and polished stainless steel were used as large furniture and light fixtures. The key to using brilliant color is balance.

Wild about Saffron? Design with Mellow Yellow, quite rightly.  INSTUDIO can help.

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Italian architect Mario Bellini designed the chair in 1998 which won the prestigious “Compasso d’Oro” (Golden Compass) award in 2001 for its combination of beauty and technology in Italian product design.

Constructed in fiberglass-reinforced polypropylene the sleek dining chair is well suited for both indoor and outdoor use. The Bellini Chair is sturdy enough for commercial applications and is designed to be stackable as well. Priced at about $150.00 from retail stores it is also widely available from online sources.

The Perfect chair for those who are purchasing their first pieces of furniture this contemporary classic is available from most sources in White, Light Gray, Dark Gray or Black. The Bellini is a chair for all seasons and design styles.

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Presented as books the new selections are grouped in volumes that reflect colors found in nature:  Shades of Gray, Naturally Neutral, Earthen Hues, Violet Twilight, Fluid Blues, Elemental Greens, Golden Fields and Fiery Sunset.  Our color memories are vivid moments that are captured in our mind’s eye as a pleasant experience. We see a full spectrum of a particular color for instance on water or in a stone with variations in light, transparency or shadow.

The secret to the uniqueness of the Color Stories collection is that colors are developed with pure pigments which do not contain blacks or grays to enrich their character. Because of the absence of blacks or grays, surfaces painted with Color Stories change dramatically with natural and artificial light.

INSTUDIO Design Directors almost immediately used selections from the Color Stories Collection for the interiors of a completely remodeled house. The same color used in two adjoining rooms looked entirely different based on the room size and light source.

Let INSTUDIO help you tell your own color story with Benjamin Moore Paints.

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EXPEDIT shelving units add instant architecture to a room. A thick square or rectangular frame contains a grid of squares that will enhance displays of books, decorative items or collections. The new colors add urban chic to the design of a room.

The red gloss lacquer reminds the Design Directors of a Ferrari and can add a vivid focal point to a room. The charcoal gray finish has a refinement that could easily blend with a room of antiques or contemporary furnishings. Gloss white can recede in a white on white room making items on display a focal point or add a sparkling contrast against dark colored walls.

Over the years INSTUDIO has used the classic sturdy shelving for both residential and small business interiors. Unfortunately the Designer Directors can’t take advantage of the new look of EXPEDIT shelving. Their studio has six double stacked units that is their design materials library in the birch effect finish.

Visit http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/70201811/ for more information.

INSTUDIO the art of design the business of living   instudio-sf.com

When visiting the chic JDG interior design studio for a new project Lewis noticed a few changes on the 1035 Post Street façade. He unexpectedly walked into a hotbed of construction activity that would soon be CAVALIER by Jay Jeffers.

Returning to JDG a week later to deliver a drawing Lewis walked into a beautifully designed retail space that represented the exquisite design style that Jay Jeffers is known for. Luxurious contemporary & vintage furniture, accessories, artworks, candles, objet d’art, books, teas and one of a kind items for the home that were personally selected by Michael Purdy and Jay Jeffers were displayed in engaging arrangements.

Kingsley, Jeffers & Purdy’s Cavalier King Charles Spaniel acted as the official greeter at the door (Kingsley has a sofa named after him).  Jeffers was available to give Samuel Fleming Lewis and Lynne Gillan a personal preview tour of CAVALIER. The INSTUDIO Design Directors will be returning to CAVALIER not only as a new resource for their design clients but for some personal shopping as well.

Open to the public May 1, 2012

CAVALIER

1035 Post Street,  San Francisco, CA

http://jeffersdesigngroup.com/

HOURS: 11am-6pm, Tuesday-Saturday or by Appointment

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Custom design allows designers and their clients the opportunity to create one of a kind furnishings and window treatments. INSTUDIO Design Directors take clues from their clients who request custom designs to develop a palette of color and texture that suits the client’s lives and the overall design of rooms.

The completion of custom design projects is bittersweet for designers. The process of building relationships with their clients has come to an end.

Orders are placed for custom furnishings and special textiles.  Soon deliveries and installations of stylish items that make the clients home an individual living experience come together. When the home is complete the bags of rags are returned to the showrooms. The samples will be borrowed by another designer who will be inspired to use them in different ways for other unique designs.

For custom design use INSTUDIO the art of design the business of living instudio-sf.com

Match your personal style and use a cell phone to bid on three works of art that happen to function as furniture. The artists approached their pieces very differently reflecting their own vision. Gillan used images from one of her flowing watercolor paintings to cover her “River Beneath the River Table”. Lewis reproduced a technique that he developed as a teen that incorporates leather scraps and carpet tacks for his “Topography Table”.  Kladder who creates edgy large scale drawings in black and white collaged copies of portraits from his current series for his “Parting Glances Table”

The design Directors will be greeting the fashionable attendees of Discarded to

Divine to answer questions on their artistic inspirations and encourage competitive bidding on their art tables.

St. Vincent de Paul Societies Discarded to Divine. Gala, Cocktail Reception, Live + Silent Auctions

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

SF Design Center Galleria

101 Henry Adams

San Francisco, CA

Tickets & Information: www.discardedtodivine2012.eventbrite.com

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We think of natural accessories as flowers, shells, fruits, dried leaves, branches or stones and forget about bones. Bones have interesting shapes that will enhance contemporary, artistic, edgy, rural or modernist rooms.

With a nick-knack paddy whack give your home some bones!

Recycle bones by first boiling them to remove anything attached. Give the bones a bleach bath overnight to remove color. After bleaching, allow bones time to completely dry. This treatment will give them the aged appearance of lying in the sun for years waiting to be discovered. Bones can be placed in bowls or trays as objects or mixed with other natural dry elements that are used as accessories.

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