ITRE lighting reminds me that it will be spring. Eventually.

Frost-damaged coconut palm in St. Pete. Photo by Tranquilometro.

This has been a cold winter. I know, I know, there's something like eight feet of snow piled up in Philadelphia right now and that can't be any fun. If it's any consolation, it's been absurdly cold down here too. It's ordinarily at least 20 degrees warmer than it's been averaging since January. We've had freezes for the first time that I can remember in nearly 10 years of living in St. Pete. Everything looks dead. The dying palms trees are scratching against the breezes and everything's brown. It's unusual to say the least. Ordinarily, it warms up after a day or two when we get a cold snap. Not so this year. I don't think it's hit 70 degrees in more than two months.

Today's weather.

After two months of being cooped up indoors and wearing sweaters (nothing's heated here) I am more than ready for next month and the return of warmer weather. I hope at any rate. I'm looking forward to lingering outside when it's well after dark and just being. One of my great joys is to have friends over and to sit around the table on my patio and talk.

If I'm feeling punchy after this, I cannot imagine how folks in more norther climes are feeling about now. Well, it's never too early to start thinking about spring. In order to jump start that, the folks at ITRE have three new outdoor lighting options to consider as you mull over the idea of lingering on your own patios.

First up is the Sit-Up, designed my Kostas Sytrariotis. It's a light that's also a seat. An individual Sit-Up looks like this.

Where they get cool is that groups of Sit-Ups can be combined to make a circle,

Or something free form.

Each unit is 43-3/4" x 21-3/4" and they are 17" tall. They use fluorescent light and are inherently energy efficient. Glowing seating would be a hit, that's for sure.

Next up is the Kioto, designed by Andrea Crovato for ITRE.

The Kioto is made from grey aluminum with a white glass diffuser, it uses either fluorescent or LED bulbs and is wet-rated. Throw in the fact that it can be ceiling or wall mounted and you have one flexible fixture.

But that's nothing when it comes to flexibility. Here's my favorite.

It's the Great JJ Outdoor. This fully-functioning, articulated architect's lamp was designed by Centro Stile for ITRE. It can stretch to nearly 14 feet high and the effect can't be anything but surreal. Imagine a lawn with five of these or so arranged randomly. Wow. The Great JJ Outdoor is available in matte black, matter grey and matte white. Stunning. Don't you think?

ITRE was founded in Murano in 1975 and has been producing well-designed and well made lighting ever since. How could it be anything but? Around here, we translate Fatto in Italia as "Good" in English.

Check out the rest of ITRE's offerings on their website, they do some really great stuff.

Bums and couture

I snapped this shot of a crazed bum in front of the Fashion Week tent in Bryant Park on Thursday morning last week and it sums up the high/ low of New York perfectly. The sign behind him drives home the point even further.

So the next time you're in London...

The next time you're in London, be in first or business class and be waiting for a British Airways connection.

These images are taken from the lounges in Heathrow's new Terminal Five. These stunning rooms were designed by London-based Davies & Baron and the effect on the whole is that of a luxury hotel. "Airport" doesn't figure into it in the least.

There are a total of six lounges in the new Terminal Five. The Galleries Arrival Lounge -- which is reserved for the airline's First and Club World passengers and Executive Club members with Gold status - features a special hydrotherapy area with 94 shower rooms that include jet showers, steam showers and luxury massage showers. All of the showers include Hansgrohe's Pharo Lift 2 shower panels. In addition, fittings from the Axor Massaud bathroom collection are used in the luxurious spa of the Galleries Arrival Lounge.

As an added benefit, every fixture in this new lounge area has been fitted with Hansgrohe's EcoSmart technology. EcoSmart is an integrated flow restrictor that limits water consumption to 7 liters a minute.

So as you can well imagine, luxury lounges such as these would take away the bitter taste left by transatlantic air travel. Or any air travel for that matter.

About the last thing I'd ever expect during a layover is a close encounter with a spa shower. Based on the looks of this new lounge area at Heathrow, I'd actually plan a long connection. These lounges are practically a destination unto themselves. Anybody been there and have a traveler's tale to tell? Anybody want to volunteer to check them out?

Johnny Grey speaks

On the heels of my post about Johnny Grey yesterday, Johnny sent me the following:

An invitation to review the Post Culinary Kitchen

When you have designed approximately five hundred kitchens or something like that, and I have been designing kitchens for too long to mention, then what keeps you going? I can answer in one word. Curiosity.  Never being quite content with what you do and always feeling you need to know more is not an anxiety condition but a necessity for mental health and belief in the future. It is also a truth to say that there is always more to find out.

Now that the kitchen has become a multi-purpose, de-constructed space, does anybody know what it really is anymore? Are there any rules and where is it going? These questions pre-occupy me. I have coined the phrase the Post-Culinary kitchen to explore the kitchen current state and start a dialogue with colleagues, householders, anyone who lives in their kitchen and yes, bloggers too.

Wikipedia defines ‘Post-modern’ as an aesthetic, literary, political or social philosophy, an attempt to describe a condition, or a state of being, or something concerned with changes to institutions and conditions. It describes it as a "cultural and intellectual phenomenon", especially since the 1920s' new movements in the arts. It is a good a place to start as any for discussions on the future of the kitchen.

If anyone interested in coming to hear me talk over the next month or so I am hosting an event just outside San Francisco, in Morago. That event takes place on Saturday, February 20th. There's a second event in Birmingham, UK on March 23rd at the KBB show. Please come and join me – both events are free.

For the San Francisco event please contact Jessica Weighley – see below. For KBB Birmingham, buy a ticket to attend the show.

Two Exclusive Johnny Grey Events Please join Johnny for one or both events!

February 20th, 2010
11am to 1:30pm

If anyone interested in coming to hear me talk about over the next month or so I am hosting an event just outside San Francisco, in Morago on Saturday 13t  and in Birmingham UK on March 23rd at the KBB show. Please come and join me – both events are free.

For the San Francisco event please contact Jessica Weighley – see below. For KBB Birmingham buy a ticket to attend the show.

Two Exclusive Johnny Grey Events Please join Johnny for one or both events!

February 20th, 2010: 11am to 1:30pm
Workshop and talk:
The Moraga Barn
925 Country Club Drive, Moraga California

Kitchen Design Workshop: Your opportunity to review an existing or proposed kitchen design with the "world's best kitchen designer," Johnny Grey. Grey and his West Coast design team will be on hand to answer your design questions; bring your plans and ideas and make the most of this exclusive event.
Please RSVP to confirm a specific time; walk-ins will be accommodated as possible.
Lecture: Johnny will be discussing his most recent thoughts on the "post-culinary kitchen". The current generation allies itself with a new way of looking at the sociology of the kitchen. It is transforming itself into a new room; the demise of the living room into a media oriented space means that for many households the kitchen is a defacto family room. When families get together through food and conversation many other benefits ensue!
Light refreshments will be served. Limited seating available;
Please RSVP to: jessica@johnnygrey.com
Johnny Grey Studios
2311 Filmore Street
San Francisco, CA USA 94115
JohnnyGrey.com

The light fixture at the top of the page is by Ingo Maurer, another one of my design heroes. According to Johnny, Maurer's Shattered China light fixtures sum up the idea of a deconstructed kitchen perfectly. Here here! says Paul

Where's Liz Taylor when you need her?

The only thing missing is Liz Taylor and Richard Burton engaged in some heavy petting.

From Design Mobel.