28 March 2010

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more

From Houzz:





Lola Bs traditional

This space is undeniably fussy and romantic, from the chandelier to the Hotel de Paris sign. However, the particular shade of blue gives the room a bit of an edge, saving it from saccharine sweetness.
What edge? Maybe this room remembers seeing the edge as it slid into the abyss. I don't care what color these walls are painted, the hokey Hotel de Paris sign and the antique grocer's scale make for one cloying sideboard. Saved from saccharine sweetness? Hardly. This vignette is giving me a cavity.

It does make me wonder though, do Parisians hang fake signs that read New York Hotel or The Inn of Los Angeles in their dining rooms in a failed attempt to appear worldly and sophisticated?

15 comments:

  1. I feel you have a Top 10 List in the making ... Top 10 No-Nos that is.

    Sharon

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  2. Hmmm, you certainly propose some interesting questions. Next time when I'm Paris I am going to check it out for you. Promise! -Brenda-

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  3. I'd have a hard time keeping to ten Sharon.

    Sarah Lloyd over at Kitchen Clarity explores this topic often Brenda. I'll ask her.

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  4. I blame Rachel Ashwell for this.

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  5. So do I. I was trying to work "Scabby Chic" into that post but I couldn't get it to work. Glad we're on the same page.

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  6. Agreed here also! I would rather see REAL garage sale stuff than the silly things that are sold in shops as shabby chic that are new. Without the "real" patina, these items lose any value. Wouldn't that be a scary post? I think people would be after us if we malign the "new but shabby",,, especially TJ Maxx!!

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  7. I knock that crap any chance I get. There are no shortcuts to character. It's as true for people as it for things. I think that would be a terrific subject for our top secret new endeavor Cheryl.

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  8. ahhh good idea Paul! It has something to do with not being able to "buy" character...for a person or an object...but of course we "buy" objects every day and as designers we specify and "buy" items for our clients...but here is the trick I think to good design..., I think it is the provenance you give the "entirety" of the design by incoporating art, luscious fabrics, items already owned, more art:), tarshay finds as well as the "ONE" awesome item you may find that is "perfect" for the space.

    or with kitchen or bath design specifically, it may be the organic materials coupled with classically modern materials that make it work and add the character...and the right accessories of course!

    Oh Gawd...does any of that make sense????

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  9. I know what you're driving at. My whole thing is that my designs have to tell a coherent, logical story. All of the components have to contribute to the narrative or they don't go into the room. I had this conversation with a client this morning about room crown. The house in question is a builder's box with an attempted at a modern floor plan. Her sensibilities are decidedly contemporary and she called this morning because she's thinking about whether or not to put room crown in her now under construction contemporary kitchen remodel. I was pretty emphatic in my no for a couple of reasons. The architecture doesn't call for it since there's no room crown anywhere else int he house for starters. For seconders, a room crown is going to fight with the contemporary feel of her new kitchen. It makes no sense and so there won't be any room crown while I'm still involved in this project.

    It's always about the story, the whole picture, with me.

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  10. ok, so how am I going to get me some paul's perfect cookies??

    Oh, wait. Off subject. Love crown molding..when it fits the job. And in modern design, not usually. However...just did a kitchen for a couple of guys that really have a trad home but loves modern design....kitchen is pretty modern and rest of house had some crown...we took it out and did a flat piece of trim on ceiling and a smaller piece underneath...hard to explain..will post pix when we ever get around to taking them! But, in this case it works really well and they needed something due to ceiling heights. But room crown in one room seems odd under and circumstances if not elsewhere....to me anyway

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  11. Which cookies? I make all kinds although lately I've been on a brownie kick.

    I left out that the room in my story has eight foot ceilings. What you described sounds pretty good and I'd love to see photos of it. What you described is nothing like what my client was asking about. I'm talking Home Depot generic, suburban tract house room crown. I break into a cold sweat when I think about it. Put in some clam shell baseboards at that point and be done with it. Ugh!

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  12. LOL, YOu mean clam bake casing? I called this years ago by accident, well you know I get words screwed up all the time....and coin new phrases in the process..now everyone at the shop calls it that and builders look at us oddly....

    ok twist my arm. I will settle for brownies:)

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  13. That's hilarious. I'm going to start calling it that. It's kinder than what I usually call it --shit.

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  14. I haven't seen anything about "Hotel New York" in a French dining room yet, definitely something to look out for. I did find a French kitchen with the word "kitchen" boldly emblazoned on the backsplash a while ago - http://www.kitchenclarity.com/2010/02/one-word-for-wednesday/ - that sure made my day!

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  15. I saw that last night, brilliant!

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