Happy Birthday Le Corbusier

Today is the 120th birthday of Charles-Édouard Jeanneret-Gris, better known as Le Corbusier.

A Swiss-born architect, designer, urbanist, writer and painter, Le Corbusier is mosr regarded for his contributions to modern architecture.

With buildings erected throughout Europe, India, Russia, and North and South America, he was dedicated to creating better living conditions for those residing in overcrowded cities.

Shop for literature on Le Corbusier.

More on Le Corbusier.

--allie

Tags: Le Corbusier, modern architecture, modern design, modern design maverick

Lizzie Thomas

An artist working in wood, paper, film, photography, drawing and etching, Lizzie Thomas has used her skills to capture the essence of each season in a box.

Here are Hidden Summer and Hidden Spring:

"Inspired by pop up books and cards, the Hidden Season series are hinged hardwood boxes holding a hand cut paper scene inside, waiting to burst out. Having experienced the mindful attitude toward the seasons in Japan, I have captured spring, summer, autumn and winter within the boxes. Catching and shrinking the transient, a season can be experienced in miniature at any time of year," says Thomas.

Skulls in Interior Design

More evidence of interior design following fashion has reared its now skinless head. Skulls have made their way into interiors.

To wit - FLOR's new "trendy!" skull covered carpet tiles. Perfect for boys, punks, goths and this guy. If you're the type to buy a rug for a specific holiday, this is hands-down the perfect pick for Halloween.

The skull thing should be interesting for maybe another 4 months and then go the way of the antler.  Really, by the time a fashion trend makes its way into so-slow-to-catch-on interiors, it's already over.

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Foscarini Modern Table Lamp

Italian lighting designer Foscarini have announced the release of a special edition of their iconic best seller Lumiere. The new version's base and shade will be completely in Winter white, just in time for the seasonal holidays and beyond. This special edition of Lumiere will be available only in the small 13 " table version, and gives the original a fresh, modern update.

Chiasso goes for the gold

Seems like the color predictions were correct -- gold and jewel tones are hot for fall and winter.

Check out what glitters from Chiasso.

Start shopping

--allie

Tags: Chiasso, modern holiday decor, gold sofa, jewel tones,  affordable home decor

Making a small bedroom bigger

I, like many, have one bedroom in my home that is particularly small. I fell in love with this charcoal Ralph Lauren paint in their River Rock finish and covered my walls with it. Now I know using a dark color in a small room isn't always the best idea, but I accented the room with with white trim, white mirrors, white shelves, and white wooden blinds. However, the room still appears small.

Thankfully Sy John Iverson, a design expert, has offered some advice:

A small room never gets larger, however, the proper choice in everything from furnishings to paint can make a difference on the overall feeling of the room.  So although you can't make a small room appear larger, you can make it feel unified, spacious and clean.

Lighter weight, appropriately scaled, furniture on legs can make a room appear lighter in feeling, less heavy.  Fewer layers and clutter also have an impact on how open a small room may appear. Large or over-scaled art rather than a bunch of smaller framed prints have a greater impact and will make the room feel cleaner.

Some kind of backdrop behind the bed and nightstands (inclusive of all three elements) can unify the headboard wall minimizing the start, stop of the eye between the headboard and nightstands.  So, with this in mind I like to paint a giant rectangle in the accent color on the headboard wall that is 12" off the floor, 15" from the ceiling and transitions vertically in the middle or so of the nightstands.

Sometimes I will paint a wide vertical stripe floor to ceiling, or use a solid grass or textured wall covering with 1 x 2 molding in the same finish as the case pieces.  Straddling the space between the nightstands and the headboard, running this treatment up the wall, across the ceiling and down the opposite wall, can give a small room dimension.

More Ask the Design Experts advice!

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--allie

Tags: modern bedroom, making a room appear larger, modern design advice, modern bedroom makeover

National Kitchen & Bath Month

October is National Kitchen and Bath Month.  Established in 1982, National Kitchen & Bath Month is the perfect time to shine light on emerging trends, design strategies and sustainability.

To kick off this month-long celebration, I'd like to present the DA 5000 Decor Island Hood from Miele.

It's features include centrally-located, glass touch controls, 3 fan speeds, delayed shutdown, integrated halogen lighting with dimmer function, florescent indirect lighting at chimney base, and two double-sided blowers.

It's best featured -- the DA 5000's opening is fully adjustable.

--allie

Tags: Miele, modern range hood, National Kitchen and Bath Month, DA 5000 Decor Island Hood