In Conversation with JC Scott

JC Scott

As seen in SNAP Victoria, September 2009

JC Scott is one of the most distinctive designers in Victoria and has been for over twenty-five years. His studio in Fan Tan Alley is home to a range of design concepts from hospitality and commercial design to high-end residential, JC Scott Design Associates tackles them and guides their clients through the entire process. JC Scott’s aesthetics are true to the Vancouver Island look – moments from of all of the best styles throughout history with an emphasis on West-Coast design. His interiors are always warm and comfortable and his exteriors are consistently well-done; embracing their surroundings while maintaining a unique presence in the community. The more I read about JC Scott, I learned how many common interests we share.

Please read on to learn more about this local talent.

Iván Meade - What is your favourite design find?

JC Scott – Today it is Eco-Lux, I am seeking and finding sustainable luxury. For me that luxury is stylish raw food restaurants like Pure, in NYC & Grezzo, in Boston. and products like Judson Beaumont’s use of pine beetle lumber which we are now featuring as trim wood for a beach home.

Bon Rouge Bistro

Iván Meade - Why is it important to you?

JC Scott – Beauty and the environment are what matter most. Beauty has the power to transform; the environment is our greatest challenge.

Pescatores Restaurant

Iván Meade - How does this item reflect upon your personal design philosophy?

JC Scott –. I feel designers have a dual responsibility to our clients and to the planet through our manipulations of the built environment.

Bon Rouge Bistro [Photograph by Owainski ]

Iván Meade – What was your first experience with design?

JC Scott – I designed my way through university starting with simple crafts and evolving to silver jewellery and graphic design. My brother and I were two of the first hippie craftsmen to sell our work in a public market in Canada. I left university debt free and committed to design with a degree in architectural history.

The Point

Iván Meade – Who or what has influenced your style?

JC Scott – Everyone who mattered in design influenced me including but not limited to; Pericles, Bernini, Borromini, Vasari, Soane, Webb, MacIntosh, Sullivan, Wright, Corbusier, Lautner, Erickson, Calatrava, Stark, Hadid and Rashid. The Futurists and Surrealists also mattered as did all the Taoists.

The Marina Restaurant

Iván Meade – How would you describe your style?

JC Scott – My style is totally personal and constantly evolving, the only thread is that I always bring some element from the last project to the next, but only I know what it is. I am a facilitator rather than a didactic; I listen, I process and then I produce works specifically tailored to the site, to my clients and to the required design solution. My only constants are quality, personal comfort, holistic wellness and dedication to the planet.

The Point – Residence

Iván Meade – What designers of past and present do you admire most?

JC Scott – The designers I admire most are based on my motto “Redefining Tradition” so it includes the classicists; Sir John Soane for being the first classical modernist, Michael Graves for rebranding it as Post Modernism and Renzo Piano and Carlo Scarpa for keeping the knowledge of classical proportion alive. I admire classical form and try to follow it in my own work, however on the West Coast, organic architectural forms have a natural predominance.

Cape Santa Maria, Beach House - Bahamas

Iván Meade – What do you consider to be your greatest strength and your greatest weakness?

JC Scott – My greatest design strength is my ability, learned through focused and determined Zen studies to adopt the discipline of becoming the empty vessel, ready to listen, to experience and to be filled by my clients needs and desires with an absence of self; my greatest weakness is that I like to fill that vessel with champagne and good wine when we are finished.

Shoal Point Residence

Iván Meade – I read that you began your career in Victoria as an artist and graphic designer. Do you still partake in these types of job opportunities?

JC Scott – I still draw, make collages and encourage the arts whenever I can. I always get involved in the graphics for all our commercial projects and still design the odd sign, logo or graphic. Harmony and design integrity are key to success and I see no difference in fundamental principles when I am designing a ring or a resort, a sign or a spa. Form follows function, needs analysis precedes concept development, good planning makes much better results. Quality rules, details matter and proper finish is the only finish allowed to leave through the doors of my studio.

The Edge – In Home Spa

Iván Meade – Where can my readers and I see some of your artwork?

JC Scott – At my home if you are invited. It is my poetry, my personal solitude. I also show at my Annual Erotic Art For Fools Exhibition in Chinatown in the spring.

Painters Lodge

Iván Meade – What is/was your favourite medium to work with?

JC Scott – Graphite on paper, I find it to be a pure, simple and perfect medium.

The Point Residence

Iván Meade – What is/was your favourite subject matter?

JC Scott – Landscape and dreamscape; both are my solace.

The Point Residence

Iván Meade – What aspects of graphic design do/did you take part in? (Stationery design, signage, websites, branding, packaging etc. or strictly logo work)

JC Scott – Every graphic form has caught my attention; my most famous work was the second Greenpeace poster ‘Stop the Slaughter’ depicting a seal pup in a blue circle with that text below the image. Brigitte Bardot wore the graphic on a T shirt, Paul Watson wore the graphic as a protest button and celebrity environmentalism was born.

Pescatores Restaurant

Iván Meade – What books are currently on your bedside or coffee table?

JC Scott – I am featured in Spectacular Homes of the West Coast but I am reading Good to Great by Jim Collins and The Presence Process by Michael Brown.

Shoal Point Residence

Iván Meade – What are you excited about right now in the world of design?

JC Scott – Transforming furnishings excite me, I have just researched the latest available furniture that moves with you. It is what I will feature in our new showroom. As a society I feel that we all have too much stuff so anything that can perform more than one task or aid in our ergonomics gets my attention.

Shoal Point Residence

Iván Meade – I saw on your website that you are involved in Arte de Loreto which appears to be a retailer of original Mexican furniture and art. As you may know, I am from Mexico myself; could you tell me more about Arte de Loreto and your involvement?

JC Scott – Loreto Bay on the shore of the Baja Peninsula is planned as the world’s largest eco resort community, and I was honoured to be a founding designer and we are building a vacation home and gallery there for myself and my partner, the artist Anita Rydygier. It has been stalled by the recent economic downturn but remains close to my heart as a model project. We promote and sell environmental furnishings and fine art on line plus offering custom vacation home design services. We are very pleased with our most recent completed vacation home at Loreto with a swimming pool shaped like a whale and funky furnishings by Straight Line Designs which have no straight lines at all!

Arte de Loreto - México

Iván Meade – What project has given you the most satisfaction?

JC Scott – The Point, an all glass house at Ten Mile Point for the well remembered Michael Williams’ and Painter’s Lodge, a total retooling and rebuild of a venerable lodge for Bob Wright in Campbell River are tied as being two great projects for stimulating and challenging clients, located in fabulous settings. This is where I find the most satisfaction, by taking on seemingly impossible mandates, like “I want you to design for me an all glass house, with no visible structure, in a seismic zone, which is able to withstand hurricane force winds, which will be ultra modern in style and where I want to furnish the home with only my antiques.” Working with challenges like this at fabulous sites and producing results which meet the demands and result in personal comfort give me great satisfaction. I also enjoy the challenge of creating successful restaurants because 4 of 5 do not last past five years, yet we have a perfect track record which I intend to maintain.

Shoal Point Residence

Iván Meade – What would be your dream project?

JC Scott – An entertainment complex at the space station, because I retired from nightclub design after doing both the Commodore Ballroom, Western Canada’s largest club and the Sticky Wicket, Canada’s most successful pub but one can always dream of new frontiers. Short of the weightless atmosphere of the space station I would love to do a Euro-style hospitality complex here in Canada if the laws allowed me. This would be a facility which would run 24 hours a day; first as a small artists’ café, then from noon to midnight as a pub, bistro and restaurant, then from six to two as an adult lounge and finally from midnight to closing as a full-on dance club. I have experienced these places in Italy and Germany, and people of all ages and financial means attend them so why are we so hung-up that we will welcome the world to our Olympics with all the fun of Puritans at a witch burning? It is often frustrating for me to compare my imagination with what we are actually allowed to do as designers here in North America. I don’t want to hurt anyone, I simply want to have fun!

Shoal Point Residence

Iván Meade – What is your next design venture?

JC Scott – We have just begun planning a heritage Oak Bay coach house renovation and swimming pool complex addition for a famous mansion with fabulous views for delightful clients, for the public we are opening a new Fan Tan Alley Design Gallery showroom and a webstore.

Shoal Point

Iván Meade – Lastly, you have already created a stunning body of work in your own signature style. What would you like your legacy to be?

JC Scott – Happy, satisfied clients, living in comfort on a healthy planet.

I invite you to discover JC Scott work at his website

JC SCOTT BLOG

Ivan Meade is a local designer and principal of Meade Design Group, a multidisciplinary interior and graphic design studio in the heart of downtown Victoria – www.themeadegroup.com

Eye Candy of the Week – Gisele & Lamar Feeders

 

Gisele Feeder

 

Lamar Feeder

 

 

PRODUCT
Gisele Feeder & Lamar Feeder

 

DISTRIBUTOR

KevyK Designs

 

DESIGNER

KevyK Designs

 

MATERIAL

+ Red Travertine

+ Honey Onyx

+ Mystical Marble

+ Carrara Marble [ Our Favourite ]

+ Black Rock

 

SIZE

Gisele Feeder

X-Small - 8" D x 3" H; holds 2½ cups
Small - 9" D x 4" H; holds 5 cups
Medium - 9" D x 7" H; holds 5 cups
Large - 12" D x 12" H; holds 10 cups

 

Lamar Feeder

Small - 7" W x 7" L x 4" H; holds 2 ½ cups

 

DESCRIPTION

Everyday the power of Twitter surprises me more.  A couple of days ago KevyK Designs started following me and I had to check them out.  To  my surprise I found cool, stylish and unique products.  Thanks to the TP – Twitter Power.

 

“Each stone feeder is exquisitely hand carved and polished to a smooth and seamless finish by highly skilled craftsman. Each feeder has its own unique characteristics, warmth and rich colors which no two are alike.

The end result is a collection of the most exclusive and artistic pet dinnerware available.

A removable stainless steel water/ food bowl finished in satin is used to compliment the beautiful marble, onyx and travertine. Durable 0.7mm thick stainless bowls are dishwasher safe and easy to clean.”  - KevyK Designs

 

YUMMY FACTOR
Your dog will say they are as good as a T-Bone!

 

WHO WILL ENJOY THESE DISHES AT YOUR HOME?  TELL US ABOUT YOUR PETS.

 

.

In Conversation with Tocar Interior Design

Susan Bednar Long & Christina Sullivan

 

Tocar Interior Design was founded by Susan Bednar Long and Christina Sullivan in New York in 1998 and have since become a very successful firm, including being named one of “America’s Top Young Designers” by House Beautiful magazine and Traditional Home. These talented ladies focus on touching the lives of their high-end residential and commercial clients, just as their name implies (Tocar means “to touch” in Spanish). Both Susan and Christina have a history in the field of fashion which is quite evident in their designs; they enjoy the finer things and pay close attention to the details.

Tocar Interior Design produces spaces that are consistently elegant with a well-thought-out approach to combining different styles of furnishings. This methodology has been successfully applied to a vast range of client tastes and applications throughout the Tocar Interior Design portfolio.

Please read on to learn more about this talented design team…

 

Iván Meade – What was your first experience with design?

Susan Bednar Long – As a child of about 7 years old, I would draw elaborate floor plans on paper and do pen and ink sketches of elevations of homes that I imagined.

Christina Sullivan - My first experience with design was grade school.  My sister and I would put on neighbourhood variety shows during summer break while channelling “Captain & Tennille” for multiple performances of “Shop Around”.  We would design the costumes and sets by using old patio furniture, kitchen utensils and our mother’s drapes.  The entire neighbourhood would be involved in this Sullivan production.

My favorite "home" was an underground space accessed through a giant round pine bush in my backyard.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – Who or what has influenced your style?

Susan Bednar Long – Bliss Blass's interiors and his masculine, tailored style. More specifically, how he mixed formal American antiques in a modern, graphic way at his former country home in Connecticut.

Christina Sullivan -  Travel, Music, fashion and old Hollywood have all influenced my style a great deal.  From the designs of Edith Head to the streets of Paris anything that was visual appealing was always attractive. All of the above influences the way I design today.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – How would you describe your style?

Susan Bednar Long – Modern traditional. It's definitely a push and pull between both depending on the project and the inspiration.

Christina Sullivan - My style is modern traditional, depending on the project I gravitate towards one or the other.  I constantly find inspiration in TH Robsjohn Gibbings and mid century modern design. Every time I view furniture pieces from that time period,  it appears that the furniture was created through a combination of modern design while extracting elements from a more traditional past. This is the way I design when completing interiors.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – What designers of past and present do you admire most?

Susan Bednar  Long – I love Stephen Gambrel's work now - it's so classic American and I love the complex, neutral hues of his beautiful rooms. Also, Dorothy Draper was one of the main reasons I entered the field of Interior Design. My dad gave me a book about her when I was younger because I loved interiors and design so much. Her work was so graphic and bold and fantasy-like. It was so inspiring to me at a young age.

Christina Sullivan - I admire Billy Baldwin, David Hicks, Dorothy Draper, Chanel and Yves St.Laurent.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – What do you consider to be your greatest strength and your greatest weakness?

Susan Bednar Long – Greatest strength is my ability to be both highly creative and highly organized. It's a rare thing to have both. Greatest weakness is that I hold everyone else to the same standard.

Christina Sullivan - My greatest strength is the ability to create a vision for our clients and complete the project in a reasonable time line through a series or organized installations and follow-ups.   My greatest weakness is the disappointment when others do not follow-through with the same ideology.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – What books are currently on your bedside or coffee table?

Susan Bednar Long – Coffee table: Weekend Retreats by Susanna Salk; Passion for Parties by Carolyn Roehm. Bedside: God in the White House by Randall Balmer; What to Expect Your 1st Year (baby book).

Christina Sullivan - I must edit because there are so many, “The Russian Concubine” by Kate Furnvall, “Edward Wormley, The Other Faces of Modernism”, a vintage copy of House Beautiful, July 1936 and a vintage 1962 edition of “House & Gardens, Interior Decoration”.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – What are you excited about right now in the world of design?

Susan Bednar Long – That the world's design is more accessible to us with the internet, international publications, blogs, etc. It's great to see what is happening all over the world and be able to actually incorporate it in our design work here.

Christina Sullivan - Great photography mixed with art and the ability to research new artist via the web.  Also design blogs are a wonderful source of inspiration as well.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – You both have a strong background with the fashion industry; what design cues do you take from the runway to incorporate into your interiors?

Susan Bednar Long – I don’t have much runway experience, more retail store and showroom design experience. There I learned the importance of visual merchandising and creating "moments" as the Ralph Lauren Creative Services group would call them. It's these tricks of the trade to make spaces complete, layered and give it that personality that sets it apart from most interiors.

Christina Sullivan - When viewing what’s on the runway, classically tailored looks that are modern and fresh like Ralph Lauren collections are always an inspiration to our interiors.  The overall feel of a look can influence the interiors through color and texture.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – What would be your dream project?

Susan Bednar Long – Doing a modern interior within an old Venetian Palazzo. I think the most exciting interiors have that mix of old/new, modern/traditional. It would allow us to shop in Europe, travel frequently to Venice (where I got married 5 years ago) and use wonderful craftsman from Italy to restore the space. I can't thing of anything better!

Christina Sullivan - To design the interiors of a Mega Yacht and Private Jet and give the clients the “Tocar” stamp.  How exciting to create interiors that literally will travel all of over the world.   That’s Amazing! and of course Extremely FUN!

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – What project has given you the most satisfaction?

Susan Bednar Long – Our recently completed London townhouse. We had to do it really fast within 6 months from start of design to installation. It was designed for existing Clients - a family of 7 that were moving from the US to London. The townhouse is beautifully formal, about 6000 square feet on 5 levels. It was a great challenge - not only for the timeline but to give the formal English space an American sensibility while maintaining its existing level of elegance.

Christina Sullivan - We recently completed a 1910 limestone townhouse on the upper eastside, NYC.   The architecture alone was extremely beautiful and our clients art collection extraordinary.  We completed this in two phases are per our clients request and the end result was superb.  Each room had a purpose and we not only created beautiful interiors but they were functional for a young family of 6 as well.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – What is your next design venture?

Susan Bednar Long – The interiors of a beautiful Georgian style stone mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut and a French brick estate also in Greenwich.

Christina Sullivan - We have just started a wonderful Georgian style stone house in Greenwich CT.  The interiors are going to be chic, sophisticated and friendly.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

Iván Meade – Lastly, you have already created a stunning body of work with many mediums and styles. What would you like your legacy to be?

Susan Bednar  Long – A Designer that consistently created beautifully classic, understatedly elegant interiors specific to her Client’s individual style.

Christina Sullivan - I would like my legacy to be that I designed sophisticated, elegant modern traditional interiors that are timeless.

 

Interior by Tocar - Interior Design

 

I invite you to visit Tocar – Interior Design site and enjoy their stunning work.

 

Koo and Poppet Invades The Studio

On Wednesday we had a very pleasant visit from our Sarita and the Little Sadie the youngest member of Meade Design Group. Sarita surprised us with a bag full of treats.

Sarita, Little Sadie and Echito

The packages were moving by themselves so we were wondering what they could be…

Koo and Poppet Packages

Echito could not wait to open her package she was tugging the ribbon right away…

Echito opening her package

Surprise! Designer Poppet “Echito Pepito” was inside!

Echito with Echito Pepito

Iván, as always, was the patient one (lol) posing for a picture with his package…

Iván holding one of the packages

And here are all the fierce creatures sitting in a row in their new digs. Sarita used the studio fabrics to give life to her creations for the studio. (So they will coordinate –lol)

Mies, Nilly, Willy, Echito Pepito

They even have little personalities…

MIES likes CMYK and dislikes Times New Roman Font

WILLY likes piña coladas and dislikes paper jams

NILLY likes little cakes and dislikes diets

ECHITO PEPITO likes puuuuuuumpkins and dislikes 70’s shake carpet

Willy and Mies where having so much fun creating mischeif at the studio that they decided to stay. Echito Pepito wanted to go shopping so she went with Echito to Lululemon. Meanwhile, Nilly was craving some little cakes and went home with Ivan and ate a nice marzipan cake for dinner. (After all, they both dislike diets and love love naps!)

Awwwwwwwwwwww! Ivancito having nappies with Nilly

We invite you to visit Koo & Poppet on:

KOO & POPPET BLOG

ETSY

Best Bedroom Decorating Contest

This morning I received a press release from ALL THE BEST about a great contest which is going to be lots of fun. I just had to share it with my readers. Usually people complain in Vancouver Island, British Columbia that we don’t have opportunities to showcase our work internationally. Well, here is a great opportunity to appear in one of the most successful blogs in the blogosphere.

I already have a couple of rooms in mind that I am going to submit to participate in the contest. Please read the details below for your chance to win a very luxurious prize.

ALL THE BEST BLOG and SFERRA are hosting a ‘Best Bedroom Decorating Contest’ on www.allthebestblog.com.

Judges include: Ronda Carman, Michael Devine, Amanda Nesbit, Vicente Wolf, Todd Romano, Amanda Nesbit, Kelly Wreastler & Nathan Turner.

The grand prize winner will receive a complete set of Celeste Sheets by SFERRA, spun from the finest Egyptian cotton ($550 value). The second place winner will receive a pure cashmere Dorsey Throw by SFERRA ($400 value). The third place winner will receive a Marquetry Throw by Kelly Wearstler for SFERRA ($255 value).

First, Second and Third place winners, as well as three honourable mentions, will be published on ALL THE BEST BLOG.

Log on to www.allthebestblog.com every week to
see a selection of entries and check out the competition. You can read all the rules at

www.allthebestbedrooms.blogspot.com

Interior by Kelly Wreastler

WHO IS ELIGIBLE:

Both interior designers and design enthusiasts have an opportunity to enter the ALL THE BEST BLOG 'Best Bedroom Contest'.

HOW TO ENTER:
Submit clear, unpublished photographs (up to a maximum of five photos) of one bedroom designed by you to (allthebestcontest@gmail.com). It can be your own personal bedroom or a bedroom designed by you for a client, just as long as it is your OWN work.

Photograph every angle of the room, including close-ups of the bed and special details.

Images should be no larger than 1MB and in jpg format. Provide your full name and address.

Contest entry period begins on August 21, 2009, and ends at 11:59 p.m., E.T. on September 25, 2009. Winners will be announced on October 5, 2009.

In Conversation with Joe Ruggiero

Joe Ruggiero

I had the opportunity to meet Joe Ruggiero during a designer presentation at our local Lúxe store (then known as Norwalk) and was very impressed with not only the products he was showcasing, but his graciousness and his kind words of encouragement; he genuinely is a design celebrity who has not let fame get to his head. Joe prides himself on his ability to make good design available to, and affordable for, all walks of life for nearly thirty years.

Joe has been involved in nearly every facet of interior design and decoration: designing furniture collections (with Miles Talbot, Norwalk and Caperton), fabric collections (with Sunbrella), outdoor furniture collections (with Woodard and Terra), maintaining a blog Joe Ruggiero’s Blog, as an author (Found Objects), as a television host for HGTV (“Homes across America” and several design specials), a spokesperson (Kohler, Glidden, and Ethan Allen), an Editor-in-Chief (Hachette’s Home Magazine) and of course, his interior design work with Ruggiero and Associates. He also began his career in the design industry as an Advertising Director for Westpoint Pepperell (one of the world’s largest textile manufacturers), and continued in advertising at Ethan Allen for 15 years. Later, Joe became the Chief Design Consultant for the well known PBS series “This Old House” and the design correspondent for “Good Morning America” for two years. He was also the recipient of the International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA) “Star of the Year” award in 1995.

Joe Ruggiero’s familiar name and face has helped and will continue to help consumers make the right design choices for years to come. And so it should, his pieces, insight and palettes are stylish, versatile and classic.

Please read on to learn more about this admirable talent.

Iván Meade – What was your first experience with design?

Joe Ruggiero – When I was a child. I would constantly move pillows and accessories around the house!

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – Who or what has influenced your style?

Joe Ruggiero – Hubert de Givenchy. I had the pleasure of working with him and visiting his homes in France. What a talent!

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – How would you describe your style?

Joe Ruggiero – "a nod to the past and a look to the future...Transitional."

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – What designers of past and present do you admire most?

Joe Ruggiero – The work of Jean Michel Frank and John Saladino

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – What do you consider to be your greatest strength and your greatest weakness?

Joe Ruggiero – To be able to design for today's lifestyles and predict color trends. I trust everyone until proven otherwise.

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – How has your experience in advertising benefited your design career?

Joe Ruggiero – It has helped me market my designs and vision.

Joe Ruggiero – Domino Collection for Woodard

Iván Meade – You are such a pleasant, sociable and likeable individual which I’m sure is very advantageous to your career in media. Do you have any more television or other personable media projects in the works?

Joe Ruggiero – Thank You. I am working on a PBS series called: AMERICA'S BEST.

Joe Ruggiero - Bergen Chair for Miles Talbott

Iván Meade – What has been your favourite career so far?

Joe Ruggiero – What I am doing now, designing products for the home. It has taken many careers to get to this point.

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – What books are currently on your bedside or coffee table?

Joe Ruggiero – L'ESPRIT DES LIEUX Elegance Francaise I am a big Francophile.

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – Your book, Found Objects, is still very current although it was written over twenty years ago. Do you have plans to write again?

Joe Ruggiero – Have several books in mind. Found Objects represents a special period in my life and don't think I can go there again.

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – What are you excited about right now in the world of design?

Joe Ruggiero – Change! I think the way the Home Furnishings business in conducted is in the midst of change and I find that refreshing...so important to hear the signals of change.

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – What project has given you the most satisfaction?

Joe Ruggiero – I am very proud of my television work. 14 years on HGTV and bringing the world of design to television when no one would listen. Now look what is happening for both fashion and interior design.

Interior by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – What would be your dream project?

Joe Ruggiero – Designing and building my dream home. I have it in my head. Need to find the right location.

Interior & Sunbrella Fabrics by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – What is your next design venture?

Joe Ruggiero – My lighting collection as well as my limited editions of my art and photography. I have quite an archive.

Woodard Outdoor Furniture by Joe Ruggiero

Iván Meade – Lastly, you have already created a stunning body of work with varying mediums in your own signature style. What would you like your legacy to be?

Joe Ruggiero – He helped people live in a better way and giving people encouragement to enjoy life.

Eye Candy of the Week – Glass Knots

 

PRODUCT
Glass Knots Sculptures

 

DISTRIBUTOR

Mecox

 

DESIGNER

Chip Scarborough

 

MATERIAL

Glass

 

METHOD

Blown Glass

 

SIZE

6 “ diameter

 

DESCRIPTION

When I saw these sculptures for the first time, I couldn’t stop thinking about them. I really like the sense of movement that these glass knots could bring to any space.  I can see these glass sculptures in any kind of interior from traditional to contemporary. 

 

These glass knots are just fine jewelry for the home. 

 

YUMMY FACTOR
Delicious!

 

WHERE WILL YOU PLACE THESE GLASS SCULPTURES?

 

.

Across The Border – From Kravet Canada

 

inspired.kravet

 

Today we received the first issue of inspired.kravet news from our lovely rep Brenda Marks – It is a very innovative printed newspaper by International fabric company, Kravet.  To our surprise an article inside focusing on Kravet Canada mentioned lil’ ol’ me [Iván Meade] as a designer and business example working on Vancouver Island in a column by Brian Donovan, President of Kravet Canada (page 8).

 

This magazine will be delivered to all the design community with Kravet accounts in North America.  It is kind of cool to be in an article two pages away from a profile on Barbara Barry and all the exciting new products coming from Kravet.

 

If you would like to read the article about your favourite Mexican designer then check out the virtual paper form of this magazine by clicking on the link below: 

 

inspired.kravet news

 

.

In Conversation with Carrier and Company

 

Jesse Carrier & Mara Miller

 

New York based interior design firm Carrier and Company has been beautifying high-end interiors since 2005. The principles, husband and wife team Jesse Carrier and Mara Miller, have over 25 years design experience  between them and have worked with such notable clientele as Vogue, Anna Wintour, Jay  Fielden, Bob Pittman and Jane Rosenthal.

Carrier and Company’s specialty is comfortable interiors that have a country or cabin feeling yet embrace the style of today’s contemporary tastemakers. I love how they describe what they do on their website:

“Connecting people to place is the key to developing a successful interior that is not only beautiful, but a deeply personal reflection of its occupants.”

Using a confident mix of history, contemporary design, comfort and grace we are able to achieve interiors that are chic and timeless — both familiar and fresh at once. A truly personalized interior takes shape when you add to the mix clients' collections, artwork, heirlooms, taste and personality.

Ultimately, interiors are not just spaces for living, but living spaces — and by grounding them in layers of color and texture (some rich, some subtle) we help them to be comfortable and forgiving so their inevitable use and age are advantageous.”

Please read on to learn more about this talented design duo and their firm, Carrier and Company…

Iván Meade – What was your first experience with design?

Jesse Carrier –  An internship @ Aero Studios while it was still a partnership between Thomas O’Brien & Bill Sofield in that incredible  space on Spring St. in SOHO.  I was still a design student at FIT, and could not believe my good fortune, which only got better when the internship turned into a full time job upon graduation.

Mara Miller – All those post-war movies were my first glimpse at really designed residences, whether it was Carey Grant’s cliff side residence in TO CATCH A THIEF or the Irish cottages in THE QUIET MAN – that world was so much more beautiful than the suburban life that I knew.  Thank you, Hollywood!

 

Wilton House

 

Iván Meade – Who or what has influenced your style?

Jesse Carrier – I find that I’m most influenced by my clients.  They all bring such strong and diverse senses of taste and style to the table.  It makes every project unique, and we finish each project with a broader perspective and appreciation.

Mara Miller – It is the foil of location/structure mixed with the clients’ taste and personality that informs me.  More abstractly I love texture and patina – it creates so much atmosphere.  I can’t deny that I love nostalgia – a little fantasy is good!

 

Vogue Lobby

 

Iván Meade – How would you describe your style?

Jesse Carrier – Engaged, timeless, tailored.  Its such a collaborative process, each project is its own style.  Some are traditional, romantic, others are clean and modern, some fall between the two extremes in the “eclectic” category.  We’re all of these styles.

 

Washington CT

 

Iván Meade – What designers of past and present do you admire most?

Jesse Carrier – Frances Elkins, Hugh Newell Jacobsen, Bunny Williams,  Albert Hadley, Billy Baldwin, Jacques Grange, David Hicks….

 

Forge River

 

Iván Meade – What do you consider to be your greatest strength and your greatest weakness?

Jesse Carrier – Strength: Understanding & delivering client’s needs / Weakness: Thrift Shops

Mara Miller – Strength: Pragmatism/ Weakness:  Pragmatism (sometimes I’m a kill-joy)

 

West Village

 

Iván Meade – I love that you had the opportunity to convert a barn to a residence, what an amazing conversation starter for the clients. Did you experience any unusual obstacles with this project?

Jesse Carrier – …only the 500 lb soapstone sink, which we ultimately rehabilitated and left as the bathroom sink!

 

Forge River – Guest Barn

 

Iván Meade – What books are currently on your bedside or coffee table?

Jesse Carrier – Mostly children’s books... its my job to read bedtime stories to our son at night.  I tend to fall asleep before he does.

Mara Miller – I’m devouring Mishna Wolff’s  memoir,  I’m Down.

Forge River

 

Iván Meade – Jesse is also a stylist and contributing editor for both Vogue and Men’s Vogue magazines. What effect has this had on your design sense and your career as a designer? – I imagine it can’t be anything but positive effects!

Jesse Carrier – Editorial work can be a wonderful creative outlet.  It allows for more fun & fantasy that you might otherwise experience in the day to day.  Professionally, it gives a certain amount of credibility to what we do.

Forge River Guest Barn

 

Iván Meade – What are you excited about right now in the world of design?

Jesse Carrier – I’m excited that “green design” is becoming more popular and prevalent.  For a long time, it was impossible to be both “stylish”, and “ecological”.  Now, it seems, there is an abundance of beautifully designed products that are both.

 

New York Apartment

 

Iván Meade – What would be your dream project?

Jesse Carrier – The White House

Mara Miller – Give me a European villa – the shopping, the meals!  Does that make me unpatriotic?

 

Washington CT

 

Iván Meade – What project has given you the most satisfaction?

Jesse Carrier – Our son

Mara Miller – I get excited when I look back on our portfolio and really like what I see.  While working on a project you are “in-the-moment” with the client and the process – we are able to really work together without compromising our design integrity.

 

Gracie Gardens

 

Iván Meade – What is your next design venture?

Jesse Carrier – The 2009 Hampton Designer Showhouse.  It should be a lot of fun!

 

The Den – Hampton Designer Showhouse

 

Iván Meade – Lastly, you have already created a stunning body of work with many mediums and styles. What would you like your legacy to be?

Jesse Carrier – Legacy?  We’re much to focused on the here and the now to think about what we might leave behind some day.  We’re just along for the ride, and excited to see where the path will eventually lead.

 

I invite you to visit the work of this talented team:

 

.

Eye Candy of the Week – Tap Collection by British Designer Kelly Hoppen

 

 

PRODUCT
Tap Collection by Kelly Hoppen

DISTRIBUTOR

Kelly Hoppen Shop

 

DESIGNER

Kelly Hoppen

MATERIAL

Chrome

DESCRIPTION

 

Kelly Hoppen has recently been awarded with an MBE from Queen Elizabeth II for services to Interior Design.  Her pure aesthetic and contemporary approach to design has lead her to create her own line of furnishings, paints, area rugs, and home accessories. In this case, we present our eye candy of the week - her stunning tap collection.

 

“With Kelly’s trademark attention to pure design and simple, clean lines, the main features of these pieces are minimalist leavers with concealed valves.  The sprouts have a cool “springboard” look and a combination of pure rectangular and circular shapes.  Kelly’s thoughts behind the range were to combine her love of symmetry and balance with geometrical approach.”

www.kellyhoppen.com

YUMMY FACTOR
Scrumptious!

 

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THIS TAP COLLECTION ?

 

.

In Conversation with Stuart Stark

Stuart Stark

 

As seen in SNAP, August 2009

 

Charles Rupert Designs is the international source for traditional and contemporary wallpapers. They produce brilliant reproductions of classic designs by William Morris, in addition to their archival papers that have been tailored to blend perfectly into Arts and Crafts or Victorian style homes – the papers are also a stunning contrast when applied in a modern interior. Charles Rupert Designs not only recreates the original look and feel of the wallpaper but they also create some matching fabrics; both come in documentary colourings as well as fresh new colourways for modern interiors. Wallpapers are printed on vintage presses in England to enhance historical accuracy and texture. The company focuses on quality, refined aesthetics, eco-standards and great service.

 

 

The Canadian company, which has grown to be represented in over thirty international showrooms, recently celebrated two milestones: their 20^th year in business here in Victoria, BC, Canada, along with the announcement that they will be selling their product through the Vancouver Tritex Showroom – another achievement for this local company. Tritex is used by all designers and represented throughout the West Coast. Charles Rupert Designs and their products have graced the pages of Elle, Domino, World of Interiors and Style at Home magazines among others, and they have also been featured on the popular blog Apartment Therapy and HGTV’s Pure Design.

 

Arboretum - Designed by Ingram Taylor in 1897 

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

We wanted to sit down with Stuart Stark, Design Director and co-owner of Charles Rupert Designs, to discuss his company and products in more detail to share this great source with our readers. Please read on to learn more, and visit the website: www.charlesrupertdesigns.com to see their beautiful portfolio of wallpapers and fabrics.

 

Iván Meade - What is your favourite design find?

Stuart Stark – A pair of brocatelle silk curtains dating from the late 1870's that I spotted hanging as window coverings in an antique shop. The owners kindly allowed me to borrow them to scan the design as they were not for sale.  I translated the fabric design into a wallpaper design for our Historic Wallpapers Collection. I later researched them, and discovered it was a design by Bruce Talbert, an English furniture, wallpaper and textile designer who was working at the same time as William Morris.  Talbert had also made the design as a wallpaper.

 

 

Wentworth – Bruce Talbert c1880 

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván - Why is it important/inspirational to you?

 

Stuart Stark – Good design is all around us, all you have to do is develop your 'eye' to recognize it.

 

Vine -  Designed by William Morris in 1873

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván - How does this item reflect upon your personal design philosophy?

 

Stuart Stark – Good design never goes out of style. You can mix wallpaper from the 1890's with mid-century furniture classics like Arne Jacobsen's 'egg' chair from 1958 with stunning results if you choose your pieces carefully and with consideration for their contemporary look. We have used these pieces together in room set images for our 'Garden Collection' of wallpapers.

 

Lily & Poppy - English design c 1902

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván Meade –  Charles Rupert recently announced a partnership with Tritex fabrics. What does this exciting announcement mean for your company and its clients?

 

Stuart Stark – We are very pleased to be represented through the Tritex Fabrics Showroom in Vancouver, where designers from the lower mainland will be able to view and get samples of our wallpapers and fabrics.  People like to see and feel the actual product, and they can do this at Tritex. With Charles Rupert Designs being a Canadian company, the Vancouver market is important to us, and we are pleased to be in Vancouver now in addition to Toronto, where we have been successfully represented for a few years.

 

Mandalay -  Designed c 1904

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván Meade –  Could you please describe the process of creating a wallpaper from start to finish? I have always been curious about all of the steps involved from design to production.

 

Stuart Stark – First, as Design Director for the company, I start with a general theme for a Collection - such as our 'Garden Collection' - and then I start assembling appropriate designs that fit the criteria.  Many more designs are considered than will be able to be printed, and a balance of designs and patterns is finally chosen that makes a coherent 'Collection' and gives designers and homeowners a good choice of possibilities for their interiors. 

From there, artwork is created for each design from archival documents from our own archives. Minor adjustments may have to be made to recognize modern printing requirements, but great care is taken to reflect the original designs.  Colouring comes next, and wherever possible, a document (original) colourway is included in the Collection, but new colourways  that will be compatible with today's interiors are included as well.

After the artwork and colours are completed, printing rollers are commissioned from our artwork, and then I supervise the printing on vintage wallpaper machines. This requires working very closely with the printers to ensure that my vision for the design and colouring of a particular pattern is able to be printed. There are  many variables that are possible during the printing process.  As an example, you can dramatically change the look and feel of the design by the thickness or transparency of the inks that are specified .

After the printing is done, there is the design and specification for the making of Showroom books, with attendant room set photographs to be staged and photographs taken.  Finally the Collection heads out to the Showrooms, where I often visit and talk to designers about the Collection and how it can be used in their interior design projects.

 

Larkspur - Designed by William Morris in 1872

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván Meade –  Charles Rupert Designs also offers fabrics in the same patterns and colourways, how does the process of creating wallpaper differ from that of creating fabric?

 

Stuart Stark – Printing or weaving fabric designs is an entirely different process than printing wallpaper.  Printed fabrics often require changing the size or scale of the design to fit standard fabric printing requirements. 

 

Pink and Rose - Designed by William Morris in 1890

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván Meade –  The wallpapers and fabrics always match perfectly. Are there any situations where a pattern or colouring will not work for both applications? If so, how do you get around the issue?

 

Stuart Stark – Not all wallpaper designs work well as designs for furnishing fabrics, so you have to choose your designs carefully.  Colours take differently on fabric than on paper and have to be printed in reverse order on fabric (as opposed to printing on paper) in order to prevent shrinkage during the printing process and the resulting misalignment of colours. Additionally, the absorbent quality of a cotton fabric, for example, means that colours that look bright on paper for example can be duller on fabric, so that adjustments need to be made to the density of the fabric printing inks if you want them to match the colours on the wallpaper.

 

Wild Tulip - Designed by William Morris in 1884

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván Meade –  Your company has a great Eco-Standard, which is becoming more and more in demand. Could you please give us more information on what makes your fabrics and papers environmentally friendly?

 

Stuart Stark – Twenty years ago, we decided that as a matter of course, we would not sell vinyl wall coverings, or synthetic fabrics. That goal has stood us in good stead over the years.  Our wallpapers are real paper, and use traditional wheat paste or cellulose paste to apply them to the wall. Both of these pastes have no VOC's (compared to many standard adhesives used in the vinyl wall covering industry which do have VOC's.)  The paper is from managed European forests and produced by a mechanical wood pulp method - as compared to a chemical wood pulp method - which uses less water in the process.  The printing inks are water based and do not contain heavy metals.

Our Eco-wallpapers are popular with people who have allergies, or people who want to know that they can recycle them when they may wish to redecorate many years from now.  Paper - as opposed to vinyl - is also gently flexible when hanging on walls in older houses that may not be perfectly flat.  When hanging paper, it can be smoothed over slight bulges on the wall with no difficulty.

 

Wild Tulip - Cotton Fabric 

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván Meade –  What is your favourite design or collection?

 

Stuart Stark – Since I chose all the designs, I like them all!  They all have different appeal for different design projects from historic to contemporary.  But one wallpaper - "Arboretum" in our 'Garden Collection' - has a special attraction for many people.  It was designed in 1897 by Ingram Taylor, an English designer, who also designed stained glass and stencil decoration, as well as some interior features for the Titanic, but fortunately most of his designs had a longer life!  Depending on which colourway is used, and in what room this design is used, it can look either very contemporary, or immensely historic.  I like the adaptability and flexibility of this design, with its clean lines and bold patterning.

 

Arboretum - Designed by Ingram Taylor in 1897

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván Meade –  What do you think makes these designs so timeless?

 

Stuart Stark – Good design never goes out of style.  You have to sort through the considerable chaff of mediocre designs that are merely available and somewhat fashionable for a particular time period, and pick out the "high-style" kernels of designs that will stand the test of time. Whether designs come from the Georgian, Victorian, Art Nouveau, the Art Deco, or mid-century modern periods,  each design movement contributes special designs - whether wallpaper, furniture or fashion - that are recognizable to that period and illuminate design history. Those are the timeless designs.

 

 

Bird & Anemone - Designed by William Morris in 1882

© 2009 Charles Rupert Designs

 

Iván - Can you tell me what your next design venture is?

 

Stuart Stark – I am working on a third wallpaper collection for Charles Rupert Designs, hopefully for 2010. I have been gathering archival wallpaper samples as sources and inspiration and hope to start artwork for it in the fall. I am also working on the restoration of three heritage buildings in the Victoria area.

 

I invite you to discover Stuart Stark’s work for Charles Rupert in their website

 

www.charlesrupertdesigns.com

 

Ivan Meade is a local designer and principal of Meade Design Group, a multidisciplinary interior and graphic design studio in the heart of downtown Victoria –www.themeadegroup.com