Tag Archives: Kitchen and Bath Fixtures

Contributing Editor- Trent Haston with Andrew Roby Inc. in Charlotte,NC (UHM Feb/Mar 2013)

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If These Walls Could Talk

If you’ve ever endured the painful process of removing wallpaper from your walls, you’ve probably sworn it out of your life forever. While wallpaper has been scraped, scoured and peeled right out of décor for the last decade, I want to urge you to reconsider this misunderstood design
element. History repeats itself, as they say, and I believe we will be seeing a lot more character on our walls in 2013.

Maybe it’s just my opinion, but I have always seen wallpaper as tacky, cheap and outdated. Over the years, I have come to prefer and appreciate a more clean, crisp and monochromatic aesthetic.

However, I’ve noticed many of our clients going beyond the basic painted sheetrock wall and incorporating various wall coverings in their homes instead. And I have to admit; the special pop it adds has really won me over.

Today’s wallpaper has come a long way from our grandmother’s homes. You will find bold colors and patterns, some textured grass cloths and even some luxurious fabrics. The options are endless, so make a statement and don’t be afraid to use it in unconventional places. Use it in your laundry room or stairway, for example. It’s an easy way to instantly add character to drab rooms. Wallpaper is not the only upgrade you can make to your walls, however. Another old-new trend is wood paneling. Wood slats can be hung horizontally or vertically, and can be applied in either tongue-and-groove style or butted. Instead of slats, you can add constructed panels that are built-in like cabinets. Many people are using antique or reclaimed wood for a rustic feel, but new wood will give a more sleek appearance. Either way, wood adds a lot of warmth to a room, whether you do an accent wall for a little pop or the whole room for that cabin feel.

Stone is another option for your walls. Depending on the look you are going for, you can use full slabs or smaller tiles with grout joints. Where wood adds warmth, stone adds grandeur and formality.

Stone has been very popular in kitchen and bath applications, but take it to your foyer or formal living areas for that special wow-factor.

If you are just not friends with wallpaper, can’t warm up to wood and feel cold about stone, you can always just change the paint for an updated look. A lot of people feel married to the wall colors in their homes, but remember, paint is the easiest and cheapest way to update and spice

up your home. If you haven’t changed the paint colors in your home in the last decade, give it a try! Go for a textured paint, do a bold accent wall or paint a pattern. Do something different to make your home feel brand new.

Whatever your style, I urge you to make 2013 the year of upgrades in your home. If your walls could talk, I think they’d thank you.

Trent Haston is CEO of Andrew Roby and has spent many years in project management, focusing on style and craftsmanship for custom home projects. For more information call 704-334-5477 or visit www.andrewroby.com.

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Dare to Tango – San Antonio/Austin, TX Summer 2012 Issue

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Dare to Tango- The Year’s Top Color is Easy to Incorporate into Decor
Written by Dana Todd

Feeling brave? High energy? Daring? Playful? You might think these are the traits of a homeowner who would go so far as to include the vibrant orangey hue of Pantone’s color of the year, Tangerine Tango, in a home design project.

Surprisingly, some of Austin’s interior designers have discovered ways to incorporate the tangerine colourway in rooms that express modern sophistication, where energy and subtleness co-exist.

Heed the Siren Call of Subtlety Muted, subtle design may not be the first thought that comes to mind when you think about adding orange to your décor. The color, however, can be surprisingly subdued when used in conjunction with the appropriate accent colors.

“Tangerine is a great accent color, especially for contemporary design,” says Stephanie Villavicencio, RI D, ASI D, of Bella Villa Design Studio, who has assimilated the color into a few homes she recently designed. She used Sherwin Williams 6601, “Tanager,” for adding lush color in a dining room and living room for an added hint of a red undertone. “It’s not used as an accent in this instance, but it is a more toned down application,” she says.

When Villavicencio designed the living room of the Symphony Showhouse 2010 at The Austonian, she relied on a slightly brighter shade of tangerine on throw pillows and an accent chair to enliven the space. “Tangerine has been used throughout the years but is not like the avocado green of the ‘70s that obviously went out of style,” Villavicencio says.

“It is good for people who like bright colors because it is a lasting color. Still, when a color is this bright, use it in smaller portions through accessories. Then you can change it when you grow tired of it.”

Uplifting yet relaxing is how designer Sharon Radovich, Principal of Panache Interiors, describes the effect of an Austin home she designed for a couple who explicitly requested orange throughout the house. “It’s an uncommon color request,” says Radovich, who managed to work in tangerine in most rooms and the outdoor living space. Using hints of Sherwin Williams 6887, “Navel,” Radovich highlighted the recessed dining room wall, producing a modern, artistic backdrop for cobalt dining chairs and ultramodern pendant lights.

Working her way through the house with associate Julie Francis, the Panache team continued to accent inthe tangerine colourway, sometimes using quite a bit of it without jarring the subtle aesthetic. Even in large doses, such as in the upstairs entertainment room, they managed to keep the tone restrained, yet stimulating. A custom built pool table with orange cloth and “Fire Swamp” Maniscalco Aussie Dream glass tile on the legs, echoing tile on the fireplace surround, and racing stripes on the wall in Sherwin Williams 6886 “Invigorate” showcase color but still appear restful to the eye.

Splashes of tangerine introduce excitement into rooms without overcommittment. In the Austin home’s office, Radovich worked a tangerine compact sleeper sofa into the
corner with a matching bolster pillow, unifying it with lime green chairs snuggled up to a tangerine color-topped tripod table. A kicky tangerine and aqua rug completes the trifecta.

A kitchenette on the other side of the room showcases Anthropologie coral cabinet knobs and a recycled glass backsplash from EnviroGLAS.

Use Color Outdoors
Tangerine is easy to incorporate into outdoor settings, where it is naturally effervescent mingling with flowers and other natural elements. In the Austin home, Radovich used tangerine throw pillows and ceramic side tables as accents on the outdoor deck to provide continuity.

In a San Diego design project, she boldly hung tangerine curtains ready-made from Sunbrella fabric and coordinated with off-the-shelf seat cushions from HomeGoods to bring an exotic air to an outdoor patio. A dark rug and neutral walls, echoed in similarly colored furniture, help tone down the space to make it feel relaxed and not over-invigorating.

Neutral is often tangerine’s best friend, balancing the room and grounding it. Neutrals can enliven an Old World palette.

“Taupes and browns work best with a bright tangerine,” says Villavicencio, “as well as muted lime green.” Go Full-Color If a homeowner is reaching for the “wow” factor, tangerine can sizzle when paired with the right brights. Radovich uses this technique in entryways, where knockout designs are noticed.

In a sassy home renovation project, she painted an entry wall in a mango hue (Benjamin Moore “Mango Punch” 154) punctuated with equally vibrant colors on an Oggetti mosaic tile drum pendant light and tabletop accessories grounded with neutral floors and furniture.

Radovich has been using orange tones regularly in her work since 2008 and believes pops of bright colors, such as aqua, lime green and hot pink work particularly well with tangerine.

“These color combinations evoke tropical, spirited and slightly feminine feelings,” she says. With all these different ways to use and accessorize with Tangerine Tango, how did Pantone decide 2012 would be focused on this colourway? According to Pantone Institute’s Executive Director Leatrice Eiseman, the road to an annual color choice is based on her travels worldwide.

She says in the colourlovers.com community blog, “If I see a color that I think is ascending in importance, I make special note of it and then look for evidence in it gaining momentum…

There are so many creative design areas that must be considered including graphics, the world of art, product design, home furnishings and so on.”  With the recent recession fading into the past, she goes on to say in her online interview that tangerine is nearly the opposite of the “downer” gray of the economy, and its choice as color of the year is an opportunity to encourage hope.

Whether it’s a spicy and energizing mood you’re after, or you prefer warm and inviting tones, mixing in tangerine has the ability to transform the climate of your design.

Bella Villa Design Studio
512.443.3200 www.Bellavillads.com

Panache Interiors
512.452.7773 www.Panacheinteriors.com

Pantone Institute
1.866.PANTONE www.Pantone.com

To view more articles from San Antonio/Austin, TX, please visit www.urbanhomemagazine.com or click here.

 

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Daring Transitions- (Charlotte June/July 2012 Issue)

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Written by Nancy Atkinson

Every year, the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) surveys the design industry to learn more about the materials, styles and products designers used most often in the past year. The fixtures, finishes, color palettes, technology and shapes are all part of the toolbox used by the nation’s most creative kitchen and bath designers – and their picks set the trends that inspire the rest of us.

The NKBA recently held their Kitchen & Bath Industry Show in Chicago, where they released a list of the nation’s top ten kitchen and bath trends and treatments for 2012 and we’ve outlined them for an easy go-to guide.

Transitional Style. One broad trend is the increased popularity of transitional style in both kitchen and baths. For the first time since the NKBA began tracking annual design trends, traditional is no longer the most popular type of design. Transitional style blends traditional and contemporary design, with lines that are simpler than traditional, but more elaborate than contemporary to create a modern, classic look.

Cassie Abernethy, manager at the Charlotte showroom for Hughes Supply, says understated design is in demand. “Our customers are asking for simplicity.  They want clean lines and less detail.  The transitional style fits all of those requests. Clients can use this in their traditional and contemporary settings.”

Glossy Finishes and Fixtures. Current kitchens shine with a combination of shimmering surfaces, high-sheen finishes and perfectly placed lighting accents. Stainless steel, walnut wood veneer and lights along the base of a kitchen island’s recessed toe-kick and polished wood floors are perfect examples of this prominent trend.

Interior Concrete. Concrete used inside the home continues to grow in popularity and is seen in many different contexts. Think bathroom countertops with integrated sinks or concrete surfaces buffed to a high shine and tinted with a variety of hues. When used with stone surfaces like recycled tile, exposed brick or lava rock, concrete unifies the space.

Color Infusion Behind Glass. Glass may be a niche material for kitchen countertops, but the survey shows more than half the NKBA designers are using it in several ways. One kitchen in the design competition inspired the judges with its simple painted wall and glass panels overlaid to create a sleek sheen of cool color that became a calm focal point in a family kitchen.

Jennifer Creasser of Tile Collection in Charlotte suggests incorporating colored tiles in a different way. “Say good bye to painting over the scuff marks on your stair raisers every year,” she says. “With color infused glass, you can add a whole new dimension to your stairway and dress up your high traffic areas with color.”

The White Kitchen, Reinvented. Classic, contemporary and clean, the white kitchen is consistent from year to year. This year it’s cleverly reinvented in a variety of hues including muted, milky tones.

Jennifer has also noticed this trend with designers, seeing their use of White Carrera marble countertops. With a backsplash of flickering metals, color or glass, it really pops. “Traditional material meets contemporary tile finishes in popular linear designs to create a transitional look,” she says.

Suspended Lighting. In kitchen design, suspended lighting provides an element of artistic sculpture that exudes light, glimmer and glitz. These dangling focal points drop light onto defined areas, perfectly accenting the high-sheen finishes that are so wonderful in this year’s kitchen designs.

Symmetry in Design. Symmetry in room design creates stability and balance. For example, a wall with a large framed window behind the kitchen sink will be counterbalanced by open, glass door cabinetry that draws the eye up and around the room.

Repeating and Complementing Shapes. Designers know that repeating a particular shape in various sizes, colors and textures creates a continuum that adds a soothing element to any room design. In a bathroom for instance, a designer may use large squares of travertine on the floor, glass mosaics in the shower and a series of square windows to draw the eye up and repeat the theme.

Traditional Technology in Non-Traditional Spaces. Creative designers are using today’s technology to solve design challenges in the kitchen. Fridge drawers that are integrated into the sleek lines of cabinetry and a steam oven placed where sink plumbing once existed create solutions to kitchen space problems.

Tile in Totality. Designers are using tile for more than the wall, floor and bathroom space. One bathroom design presented at the 2012 NKAB Design Competition featured translucent recycled glass tiles surrounding a Japanese soaking tub. Muted pine green tiles were paired with small mosaic tiles in colors that evoked a tranquil sunset. Linen-textured, sand colored porcelain tiles created the foundation for a restful space wrapped entirely in glass tile.

Open Concept Bathroom. The space-efficient and sleek open-plan bathroom was highlighted in this year’s designs. With few walls, these expansive bathrooms have an entirely open shower and a minimalist product selection approach. By eliminating the shower stall and extending the open floor, the room becomes a sweeping space.

Resources
www.advancedrenovations.com
www.andrewroby.com
www.arborconstructiongroup.com
www.mybeconstruction.com
www.benhambuilders.com
www.bistanydesign.com
www.cosentinonorthamerica.com
www.crossvilletileandstone.com
www.e3cabinets.com
www.hughessupply.com
www.impactdesignresources.com
www.lanternbuilders.com
www.myschultzcustomhome.com
www.sheacustom.com
www.stone-systems.com
www.tilecollection.com
www.wolfappliance.com
www.zarcustomhomes.com

To view more articles in Urban Home Magazine visit www.urbanhomemagazine.com or click here.

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Feature Home- (Charlotte June/July 2012 Issue)

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The New Bold South
Written by Anne Marie Ashley

There is a certain charm to older homes that can only be truly appreciated by someone with an eye for seeing character in wood paneling, narrow doorways and pronounced rooms. And further, for seeing the potential these character-laden elements can bring to a well designed home, making it equally stylish and relaxed.

Charlotte is dripping with these homes and for those that can see the possibilities, it’s a paradise. The homeowners of this feature home have a soft spot for early 1900s architecture and when they discovered this home in one of the most historic parts of Charlotte, they knew they’d make it their own.  The resulting home was bold – and completely comfortable.

We spoke about this project with interior designer Lindsey Coral Harper and the renovation team to find out how it all came together.  Andrew Roby General Contractor and Sam Greeson of Meyer Greeson Paullin Benson Architecture were called in to oversee and execute the renovations.

“Most of the changes were stylistic,” explains Greeson, “to meet the new owner’s desire for a younger, more modern look.”  That’s where New York-based interior designer Lindsey Coral Harper came in. “It just needed a little bit of freshening up,” says Harper. “We took out every bit of carpet and repainted every square inch!”

The kitchen was the largest of the renovations, making the originally tiny space much larger and marrying it nicely with the recent family room addition. An artist was flown in from New York to hand paint the interesting kitchen floor.

“The banquette was added at the pass thru to the family room, where the sink had previously been located,” explains Greeson. “We discussed opening the wall up, but it would have disturbed the flow and arrangement of both spaces. With the final solution, you feel that the kitchen is huge, but we actually didn’t add any square footage.”

The whole project, renovation and interior design included, took just four months to complete. “The process was faster than it normally would have been thanks to the homeowner knowing exactly what she wanted and Andrew Roby’s well organized schedule,” says Greeson.

“Communication is everything when it comes to construction schedule and overall quality,” says Chris Maynard of Andrew Roby. “Projects don’t go this well or turn out this beautifully if you don’t have the team of home owners, designer, architect and contractor all working for the same goal – which is outstanding quality and a wonderful experience.”

Harper knew what her client was looking for from the get-go. “I knew my client was moving from a one-bedroom apartment in New York City to a four-bedroom house in Charlotte,” says Harper. “ I had a sense of her overall taste, so shopping for her and finding things she liked was the easy part. It helps when your client has great taste!”

Harper called on the help of local custom window treatment and sewing experts Elaine Mitchell and Pam Dawes of Interior Couture of the Carolinas. “Lindsey’s eye for design is unparalleled,” says Pam. “The fabrics she chooses, the textures and layering of design, really creates some unique elements in a home.” Elaine adds, “her designs are simple, but with the bold fabrics and rich textures, the result is extraordinary.”

Harper says incorporating this client’s personality into the home was easy. “I am creating a ‘home’ and space for them, it’s not about me. I know they are a very friendly, young, stylish couple that loves to have friends and family over. So that is what I tried to translate.”

Harper suggests a fresh coat of paint in any room to liven it up and change the look or mood. Pam and Elaine suggest freshening up a room with window treatments, adding that great window treatments can truly make or break the look of a home. “In this case,” says Harper, “we stripped away everything and painted and/or papered every room. We changed everything about it and basically started from scratch.”

There are several ways to use bold design in any home, but according to Harper, it will always change depending on the client. “In this home, each room has at least one bold element. In the entry it’s the wallpaper; the dining room – the glass chandelier; in the kitchen it’s the bold use of color and pattern; the living room has those beautiful curtains and all the powder rooms have really great wallpapers.”

“I think there are a lot of bold elements throughout this house,” says Harper, “but they all blend together to make one cohesive story.”

Resources
www.andrewroby.com
www.iccarolinas.com
www.lchinteriors.com
www.mgpb.com

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Decorating Essentials- (Charlotte Issue- June/July 2012)

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1. Mutabilis Rug Lush, wool-crewelwork hibiscuses shift hues across the floor, from saturated fuchsia, brown and burgundy to spectral grey. www.anthropologie.com

2. Silver Camel Tapered Glass Brass Lamp This sleek table lamp by Arteriors looks chic with a silver and camel tapered glass base. Brown leopard print lines the lamp’s shade, bringing a spot of glamour to the neutral accent piece. www.bedsidemanor.com.

3. Belle Meade Bijou Bar Cabinet Fashion meets function in the Bijou bar cabinet, making a luxurious statement with modern glamour. Belle Meade Signature defines this simple silhouette with rich borders around its sterling-finished drawer and door fronts. The cabinet opens to a fully lit bar. High Cotton Home, 704-335-1220.

4. Klismos Chair A classic form that remains timeless and iconic, this chair is generous in proportion and as comfortable as a dining chair. It is also ample enough to work into many settings as an occasional chair. www.phoebehoward.net.

5. Prisma Speaker System Prisma is a treat for your eyes and ears, designed to compliment modern PC, monitor styles and personal notebooks. Available in 9 colors, the uniquely shaped subwoofer with a glossy finish enhances any environment. Connect to a source or simply link to your iPod, iPhone or MP3 players for flexible, instant plug and play music. www.edifier.com.

6. Cameron Vase Z Gallerie makes use of the natural attributes of spectacular abalone shells to create this vase. The small shells are artfully applied to a composite base so that the beauty of the opalescent shells is visible.  www.zgallerie.com.

7. Quentin Dining Table From the fine home furnishings brand Bernhardt, this dining table has a hand hammered stainless steel top with a solid Mindi wood base. The trestle-style stretcher in a sandblasted Driftwood finish gives it an edgy, unconventional style to match contemporary décor. www.thefurnitureconnector.com.

To view more articles in Urban Home Magazine visit www.urbanhomemagazine.com or click here.

 


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