the highlow

Tag: California Design

  • Movies + Interior Design = My Kind of Math

    So I’m going through my “should see” list of movies over the holidays and come across The Candidate, which has been camped out on said list for almost as long as its been in release (1972), but dismissed because I’d never really heard  anyone I know talk about it (a very scientific and highly reliable method, I assure you.)

    But there it was, and Robert Reford looked so young and pretty on the poster, so what the heck, let’s do this.  And lo and behold, it RULES.  And I’m talking from just about every angle.  Screenplay, acting, direction…and the icing on the cake…the interior design.  Where has this movie been???  (Do you like how I made it the movie’s fault here and not mine?  Note: it did win an Academy Award for Best Screenplay in 1972 so the scales probably tip against me in terms of culpability here.)  

    Take a look at the foyer of Redford’s “Bill McKay” character’s San Diego home:

    The Candidate1

    The pop of that orange outlined with the gold frame against white-washed adobe walls makes me want to grab a margarita and hightail it right back to my sun-drenched days spent living in Santa Barbara.  

    In fact, if Production Designer Gene Callahan could just replicate for me (in the house I’m currently daydreaming about in fantasyland) the layered, eclectic, yet sophisticated look he achieved for the living area off of this foyer, I might just do that and never come back:  

    The Candidate2

    Marcel Breuer Wassily chairs + some modern art on the walls = a great way to add a fresh, contemporary spin on an otherwise traditional room.  

    Want a few more fun shots throughout the house running the same theme?  Here you go:  

    The Candidate3

    The Candidate4

    The Candidate5

    The Candidate6

    The Candidate7

    And then there’s the office of “Bill’s” campaign strategist:

    The Candidate8

    And I thought black leather sofas were sexy…but get a look at that green one!  Again, a great balance of daring and traditional by tempering the color of the leather against the more conservative chesterfield design, and balancing a luxe leopard art piece with black and white family photos.  

    And finally, the library of “Bill’s” father, retired governor “John J. McKay” (played by the venerable Melvyn Douglas):  

    The Candidate9

    A little more traditional but you still get that great layered effect…and the pink sofa adds a nice wink to an otherwise manly space (“John,” you grumpy old dog, who knew you had it in you?!).  
     
    Ahhhhh, movies and interior design.  Does it get any better than this??  It’s a tough job out there saving lives, but alas, someone’s gotta do it…and it might as well be me…

    Please do share any of your favorite movie interiors here with us all – and I’ll blame it on you that I need to check out some more cinema for “work.”  And in the meantime, you can always indulge in some more favorites from Architectural Digest, Elle Décor, Dwell, House Beautiful and Apartment Therapy, among others.  

     

  • Cherishing on Chairish.com

    I’m not really sure when one technically “earns” the right to a home makeover, but I’m going to call it for the Faust family after nine years.  (Does a marriage, three cities to call home, a bambino, and two new jobs help my cause?)  

    Let’s start with the living room for now (baby steps, baby steps):

    IMG_0781

    So serene…and orderly…and white!   (Those poor couches, I can see them shudder every time our toddler son’s eyes light up in preparation to scale them.) 

    As perfect as this space once was for us, it doesn’t seem to quite capture the new, older, edgier, chaotic, willing-to-throw-caution-to-the-wind version of our little family…and as our mothers always told us, making sure we present ourselves in an honest light is super important, right?  While this pitch still technically needs to clear the family congress around here (where we vote one to one and I get the tie-breaker “in case” of a deadlock), visions of home décor sugarplums are already dancing in my head.   

    The goal:  clean California design with a dollop of glamor and an appreciation for the cheeky edginess of modern design…or in other words, a cutting edge yet livable design aesthetic.

    First step:  creating a new layout that works with this space that I’m convinced was just some evil attempt by the original architect to have the last laugh.  Think a long rectangular room running from the second you step into the house until you hit the hallway leading to the bedrooms broken up on both sides by French doors on the one hand (which we originally decided to treat as middle children and ignore by plunking a couch right in front of them) and a fireplace on the other.  Awwwesome.  (Sorry, what I meant to say was, “OMG, what a cool challenge!”)

    Second step:  consult the Oracle / aka Pinterest for some inspiration. 

    Oooh, I’ll take a little helping of that casual glamor via Kelly Behun:

    Faust Family Redo 2

    And add a dab of elegant eclecticism:

    Faust Family Redo 4

    A dollop of California rustic:

    Faust Family Redo 3

    And just one more little one of those, please:

    Faust Family Redo 5

    And a lot of Mid Century fun:

    Faust Family Redo Blog 1

    And you get…????

    Answer:  a heart palpitation when considering (a) how the heck you’re going to integrate all of these styles into a cohesive whole and (b) what your grand operatic vision will run you. 

    So what is one to do? 

    Why, head to my newest obsession, Chairish.com, of course. 

    Straight from the horse’s mouth:

    Chairish is an online consignment marketplace for design obsessed people to buy and sell exceptional pre-owned home furnishings.  Our mission is to make the world more beautiful, one room at a time and save people money in the process.

    I’m now thinking I myself might be the inspiration behind this site?!  Okay, if they’re not going to credit me, at least I can reap the benefits with aaaamazing, inspiring finds which hopefully won’t break the bank.  Check out a few such things that caught my eye during my last scouring session (note: while some of these might break my bank, they might not yours so I’ll include them here as well since I had so much fun window shopping them):

    [widgetkit id=575]

     

    While each and every one of these pieces won’t make their way into the Faust Family Operation Update, I’m sweating a little less knowing that Chairish has my back on this…and that like a good friend, it will always be there when I need it.  And that, my fellow design obsessors, is why I’m cherishing Chairish these days. 

    Pictures from here, here, here, here, and here.