Sneak Preview to March's Editorial...

Form vs. Function in Your Home, Where it matters…
By: Laura Green Thome
Not yet released to be published March 1, 2010


Many times I am asked by clients if I had to choose form vs. function, which would I choose? The answers I wish were a simple one! Yet it has so many facets and is so much deeper than one might think. When it comes to your home there are many moving parts and many areas that significantly change annually or seasonally, this makes it completely impossible to always choose one over the other. Remember, when you were young, your grandmother told you never to use never or always. The same is true when it comes to this question! I have included different areas of your home where one matters over the other and my recommendations in each area. Enjoy these photographs done by Blayne Beacham of my personal prep kitchen and Living Room!

Photographed By: Blayne Beacham

 

Let’s start with the heart of the home the kitchen: In your kitchen whether you have an eat-in or a galley you spend a great deal of time there as do your guests and family. Kitchens are definitely about function first and foremost, form being the secondary consideration when designing. That being said the form with which you enhance the function can make all the difference in your home evoking that feeling you are aiming for. I recommend the ‘cooking triangle’ when setting up your sink, refrigerator & cook top/stove. This simple geometric configuration minimizes steps involved in preparation and eases the wear and tear on your body over a lifetime. Larger kitchens are not always better, although they make for great entertaining! Many times when designing a large kitchen the triangle is still used for the preparation area to promote ease for whomever may be cooking. More to come... 

Blogs to Follow...

So in light of all the transformations taking place in business today ~ budget cuts, advertising and their vehicles (Magazines, Journals, Local Papers) have taken some major hits as well.  Blogging and online magazines such as Lonny Mag have been founded to fill the gaps.  Lonny Mag was founded by displaced editors from the fallen Domino Magazine, I applaud their resilience.  What I have continued to find is that it is not the easiest thing to find the great blogs that are out there, so I have put together a list of a few of the blogs that seem to have good content...


http://stylecourt.blogspot.com/
http://thepeakofchic.blogspot.com/
http://highglossblue.blogspot.com/
http://www.thisphotographerslife.com/
http://blog.atlantahomesmag.com/tags/atlanta-homes-lifestyles/
http://materialgirlsblog.com/
http://thegeorgianrevival.wordpress.com/
http://negriphotography.com/
http://www.nestegg.typepad.com/
http://habituallychic.blogspot.com/
http://tobifairley.com/blog/
http://cocokelley.blogspot.com/
http://www.thingsthatinspire.net/
http://brookegiannetti.typepad.com/velvet_and_linen/
www.theartfullifestyle.blogspot.com
http://www.absolutelybeautifulthings.blogspot.com/




Enjoy~more blogs to come...

February's Antidote: Bookshelves

February’s Perfect Antidote: Bookshelves

The Roswell Current February 12, 2010

By: Laura Green Thome

The perfect way to spend time indoors combined with a ‘do it yourself project’ and well weather that is too cold to do anything other than drink hot tea and plan~Bookshelves!!!

I can’t tell you how often I spent hours arranging and rearranging bookshelves while working on projects, thinking… ‘I spent all those studio hours for this?’ Well, it has paid off and I now understand fully how great of an impact bookshelves and the arrangement of such has on a home or space. The simplistic nature of them provides ample backdrop to be a near perfect canvas to set the tone of your home. With the right built in you can seasonally or weekly, depending on your compulsion change the attitude of your space.


I was recently in Houston working on an installation and we were able to completely change the visual impact of the home by reconfiguring the built-in bookcases. Shown Below:

We used a well poised collection of artifacts, objects of art, journals, studies & books to pull together a simple and sophisticated space. Starting with grouping the collected objects according to color palette and size, we then grouped them in an asymmetrical arrangement to balance the room. Each artifact must be balanced by each sub sequential artifact, and book further balanced by another set of books or journals. I love introducing unusual pieces layered on top of a stack of horizontal books. The intrigue and forms made by layering the objects causes a certain amount of illusion causing your eye to be drawn to the niches created. It is almost as if each grouping becomes a vignette itself. While total time spent was almost five hours grouping and arranging bookshelves, the result was breathtaking. The client could not have been more pleased, saying that they would actually enjoy sitting & entertaining in the room now that things seemed so much more inviting and pleasant.



So make a list, look at your bookshelves and built in millwork and get to work this weekend! You will need to first take everything down off the shelves, then dust while you are at it of course! Then group all books and journals according to size and color, after grouping them you will want to start arranging the books in blocks, starting at the centerline first. Once you have established your symmetry or asymmetry, you may start introducing art or objects of art into the mix. You will soon start to get into a pattern resulting in a wonderful, well balanced and pleasing mix of your personal articles that seems to beg others and guests to get to know you better!~Enjoy the process and take your time! ~Laura

Westgate Coming Together Houston, TX

We had a great weekend installation & design development presentation in Houston, TX. What a fabulous city! Great rug shopping with Abraham, food at Central Market http://www.centralmarket.com/

Enjoy watching with us as it all comes together...

Detail at Custom Millwork in Living Room

Detail at Mies Van der Rohe Chairs in Living Room

Detail View from Dining Room into Living Room...

more to come...

Dear Designer, January 2010

Dear Designer, I recently renovated a small space with light walls and am having window treatments made for a pair of French doors. I plan on having full-length panels made floor to ceiling but am curious if I should have grommets or pleats at the top to complete the look? Marge, Roswell



Dear Marge,
I would definately go for the classic pleats in the type of space you are describing. While the grommet look is very on trend right now it really is not a classic treatment for an interior space. My favorite two pleats are a Goblet pleat or a French pleat -- both allow the material to move naturally and give a full body to the drapery panel. I also recommend doing at minimum a width and a half for each panel, as the pleating takes up several inches of width per pleat. You want each panel to look nice and full, not skimpy. The only application for which I really recommend grommets is in an outdoor room such as a lanai or screened room with an outdoor entertaining area. The grommets allow for easy sliding along the rod and keep there from being too many folds in the material, retaining moisture. Let us know how they turn out and send in a picture! -Laura