RoomLover

Kathryn Ireland

2009-01-22T21:37:00.008-07:00

Kathryn M. Ireland
Textiles & Design
Santa Monica, CA

www.kathrynireland.com

This portfolio is full of great examples of using color against white walls.

Fabrics are quilted, or else (because of their flat weaves) look as if they're candidates for being quilted. This, along with the not-overly-ornate furniture, makes the rooms look clean, casual and comfortable.

Drapes are mostly hung straight, letting maximum light into the rooms.

My favorite feature of these rooms is the height and mass of the lamps, which are taller and larger than what I usually see when browsing designer portfolios.

Ann Brown

2009-01-21T23:31:00.008-07:00

Ann Brown Interiors
San Francisco, CA

www.annbrowninteriors.com

Ann's portfolio is large, and some of the designs are older, which makes them valuable for studying to see what still works today. With kitchens especially, I like to do this.

In the bedrooms, the focus is on fabrics. The beds are heavily dressed.

I like the living rooms with simple window coverings best, but there are other examples in her portfolio where the window treatments are more elaborate.

Eric Cohler

2009-01-20T15:25:00.003-07:00

Eric Cohler Design
New York, NY

www.ericcohler.com

Briger + Briger

2009-01-20T07:00:00.002-07:00

Briger + Briger

brigerbriger-design.com

In this portfolio, what you'll find is symmetry. Me, when I'm browsing on eBay or Craigslist, sometimes I just search for the word "pair". Pair of what? Doesn't always matter. I just want to see what's out there. I get the feeling these guys shop the same way.

Another thing you'll notice is all the white walls. Almost all the rooms, in fact, have white or slightly off-white walls. These rooms are great examples of how to have colorful rooms, even if you leave the walls white.

And then there's all the sunshine, one of my favorite design elements. This is one of the sunniest collections of rooms I've seen.

Slipcovered books.

The bedroom that was inspiration for how I arranged the furniture in my own bedroom.

Cris and Paul Briger have a book available:

Jed Johnson

2009-01-19T14:06:00.001-07:00

Jed Johnson Associates, Inc.
New York, NY

www.jedjohnson.com

Jed Johnson was killed in a plane crash in 1996, but his firm still bears his name. When I think of the firm today, I mostly think of the designs by Arthur Dunnam that I've seen in magazines. It's not discernable, when you view the rooms in the online portfolio, which of the firms designer's is responsible for each design.

Johnson is one of the few designers I've ever met in person. He was a friend of a friend of mine, and he came to my home once. (Stood in my very own living room. Way cool.)

David Netto

2009-01-18T23:11:00.005-07:00

David Netto Design
New York, NY

www.davidnettodesign.com

David Netto's portfolio is the first one I think to browse through, whenever I want to look at arrangements of items on surfaces. I consider him a virtuoso. I especially like the arrangements that include books, and the ones with layered, framed prints such as the one below.

In this living room, I like the way the pictures beside the doorway are aligned on the left.

Netto has a collection of nursery furniture.

I have a book containing these photos, that was already unbound when I purchased it used. I have always thought of framing them, but never have because the odd page size means they would require custom framing, which would be expensive. Besides, I don't have any place in my home where I'm using black & white photos. But now that I think of it, my sister uses them everywhere -- so maybe this is a good gift idea.

There are no words for how much I love this wall of pictures.

Netto is a contributor to this book:

Michael Smith

2009-01-16T00:08:00.012-07:00

Michael S Smith Inc
Santa Monica, CA

www.michaelsmithinc.com

I learned today that Michael Smith has been chosen to decorate the White House living areas for Barack Obama and his family. Pretty thrilling. I came here to update my existing post for him, and realized he and many other designers are on my personal list, but I've never gotten around to adding them here. Let's remedy that for Michael Smith.

As I browse through the rooms in his portfolio, my first thought is that the chairs in these rooms look comfortable, and the beds. I imagine staying as a guest in some of these bedrooms.

The second feature that stands out to me is how often some large-pattern fabric, or work of art, draws my focus. I like that; I get tired of seeing rooms full of nothing but two-tone silhouette textiles and wallpapers.

Last year, I bought a bookcase similar to the one in the picture below. Smaller scale, but the same color wood, and two glass doors with knobs in the middle -- and because I can't figure out how to arrange anything all by myself, I went looking for pictures of similar things to pattern mine after, and this is what I landed on. So for that reason, I really like this picture.

Smith has a couple of books available, too:

Rebecca Bradley

2009-01-13T12:36:00.002-07:00

Rebecca Bradley Interior Design
San Francisco, CA

www.rebeccabradley.com

These rooms are bright, with pale colors. There are enough objects on surfaces to make the rooms look lived in.

There are curves, and patterns. Pale carpets, and rugs with geometric designs. The furniture pieces aren't perpendicular to each other. That's picture-taking, but still, it makes the rooms come across as inviting.

There are furniture pieces that look antique, or vintage -- or even if they're not, they look like they might have been, because they don't look new. Like, you could name a time period, name a style. You could say oh, that's French. Or oh, that's English, that table is English.

There are large art works on the walls, but with breathing space.

Nancy Boszhardt

2009-01-02T00:03:00.008-07:00

Nancy Boszhardt Inc.
New York, NY

www.nancyboszhardt.com

Of all the designers mentioned here at RoomLover, I'd have to say Nancy Boszhardt is my personal favorite. There is not a single room in her portfolio that I don't long to spend time in.

The rooms here look as comfortable as they are beautiful.

Lauren Liess

2008-12-29T00:41:00.008-07:00

Pure Style
Northern Virginia

www.thepurestyle.com

Browsing around tonight, I discovered Lauren Liess's design website and found a lot to like in her portfolio. She is my new favorite of all the designers whose work I think of as "achievable".

In my own bedroom, there's a small white cabinet with drawers beside the bed. I'm going to try setting a mirror on it, as she shows here:

I hope it looks as good when I do it.

Tom Scheerer

2008-12-26T08:00:00.003-07:00

Tom Scheerer Inc.
New York, NY

www.tomscheerer.com

My notes, taken during a tour of Tom Scheerer's portfolio:

Well, the very first photo is an arrangement of pictures in a style that I like -- meaning under glass, thinly framed, with white or off-white matting. It's a look I like in my own home, and so I always respond to it.

The surfaces are crowded -- not super-crowded, but you know, they have stuff on them. Surfaces look like they're in use. There's a collection of hats; are there other collections? Well, collections of ceramics, collections of small plants, miniature cactus, not sure what those are…. Is this just masses of things? A collection of hurricane candles. There's a collection of birds, paintings of birds.

In fact, there are a lot of paintings of natural items here. I want to say, it's that all of the framed art is a study of something. Not saying that they're all still lives, or anything like that. Just that the art is studious.

Colors are -- it's that the colors are all over the place. Is any color out of bounds? Black maybe. No, there's a room with black walls; it's not out of bounds at all. Okay, this designer is comfortable with neutrals, comfortable with color, with antiques and mid-century. I see a couple of draped beds. Are all the beds draped? No, there's a pair of twin beds, a couple of pairs. I see that done a couple of times. Yeah, I am going to say draped beds, or if nothing else, beds that are capable of being draped. Substantial beds.

Chandeliers -- there are a couple of fairly traditional chandeliers mixed. Wood tones, could you say anything on that? I think you could say not all the furniture is made out of wood. The furniture is made out of lots of different things: glass, wood, plastic, metal, bent wood. Furniture pieces with textured surfaces. And the mixing is important. The furniture is not just wood and upholstery. The rooms look like diverse furnishings have come to a party -- it looks good.

The prints: There's solids, two-tone print, three colors together, a three-tone print, we're talking about multi-colored prints here. Two or three-tone prints, perhaps multiple of those in a room. We're talking about white -- not just the walls, but white furniture -- which I always feel is significant because given my own tastes, I always feel that a white piece of furniture has no place in my own home, so when I see someone that's using white I notice it. It says something to me about modern-ness.

There's a lot here I like. The studious art, and the mix of materials, are at the top of the list.

Laura Kirar

2008-12-24T13:45:00.012-07:00

TRU Design
New York, NY

www.trudesign.com

My first impression is that in all the photos, the lighting is important. The wall sconces, or the ceiling fixtures, or the table lamps, are in focus in every single picture. And I don't know if that's a reflection on the designer herself, or a reflection on her interior photographer. I think it has to be both, a little bit. You imagine someone saying yes, the rooms are nice, but my God, look at the lighting. It's like lamps with rooms around them. And the rooms are nice too.

So what about the design? How would I characterize this designer? Solid colors, newness, straight lines, straight edges, rectangles. The only real softness here is from a couple of upholstered pieces with button-tufting. I see bentwood in two different homes. Dark woods? No, not exclusively.

There are single pieces of art -- large pieces. By no means pictures hanging everywhere. Surfaces are almost empty. No clutter. A bowl, a vase of flowers. Small stuff. A stack of books. It is hard for me to imagine people living in these rooms.

Pillows are in solid colors and stripes. The overall look is contemporary.

Vicente Wolf

2008-12-24T13:32:00.004-07:00

Home Decorator Website

Vicente Wolf was one of the first designers whose work I learned to recognize: Solid colors, lots of white, and large mirrors.

Pale blues. Furniture that really stands out against the white walls. I want to say, not a lot of tailoring to the furniture. By that I mean, unconstructed upholstery, with not a lot of welted edges. Slipcovers even, but no frills, no ruffles.

Seems like there are a lot of loft spaces in his portfolio online, and loft spaces are what I remember over the years. I don't know why that is -- because people think of him when they have loft spaces to do? Or is that just what he prefers?

I want to say dark woods, but I know that's not always true. I do tend to think of rugs in solid colors, though. Not elaborate patterns.

Jackson Aaron

2008-12-19T09:00:00.003-07:00

Home Decorator Website

Jackson Aaron is the design firm of Lisa Jackson and Catherine Aaron. The rooms in their portfolio have that contemporary style that includes dark brown woods in high contrast with solid fabrics of white, cream, tan, or brown. Except for some accessories, everything looks new.

The edges are crisp on both wood and upholstered furniture. Most pieces have straight lines with little ornament.

The floors in these rooms are chocolate brown woods, covered with natural grass rugs or pale taupe carpets. Draperies hang straight from ceiling to floor, on either side of the windows.

Texture comes either from the rugs, or from accessories like throws, baskets, and furniture made from natural materials other than wood.

Darren Henault

2008-12-18T16:07:00.003-07:00

Home Decorator Website

Although often there is pattern on the floor, from rugs and carpets, and occasionally there is patterned wallpaper, these rooms are mostly decorated in solid colors, with the addition of a single accent print.

In rooms that have multiple upholstered pieces, usually at least one piece is covered in a velvet or chenille fabric. This makes the rooms feel lush and comfortable at the same time.

Many of the rooms feature built-ins -- bookcases, desks, and other cabinetry.
The wood furniture is dark, and feels English to me. Surfaces such as tabletops are uncluttered, and on the walls there is framed art spaced far enough apart that each painting feels significant. The rooms have an overall traditional feel.

David Derbyshire

2008-12-18T15:29:00.002-07:00

Home Decorator Website

David's web site is no longer active.

Needing a redesign

2008-03-09T09:24:00.005-07:00

Sigh. This hasn't been the most successful effort, has it? I mean, I haven't posted in over a month. Which is weird, considering I think about posting all the time. And then, instead, I go work on something else.

I've done plenty of things room-related, like beefing up my collection of images that I can use for research, and experimenting with web page designs, and... and learning CSS, for pete's sake. Which has been hard. And I got distracted by Yahoo Answers, where every once in a while someone asks a thought-provoking question.

And I've been reconsidering the kinds of posts I want to make, here. Originally I thought I'd be talking only about designers, but that's part of what has kept me paralyzed -- I'd want to write about some other topic, and then I'd tell myself no, that's not what this blog is about. So I'm moving on to plan B: I can talk about designers, yes, but I can also talk about shopping, decorating themes, and just share my own thoughts.

That's the new plan. What do you think of it? Is there something else you'd like to see here? Click the COMMENTS link to let me know!

Stephen Shubel

2008-01-31T19:08:00.002-07:00

RoomLover

Kathryn Ireland

Ann Brown

Eric Cohler

Briger + Briger

Jed Johnson

David Netto

Michael Smith

Rebecca Bradley

Nancy Boszhardt

Lauren Liess

Tom Scheerer

Laura Kirar

Vicente Wolf

Jackson Aaron

Darren Henault

David Derbyshire

Needing a redesign

Stephen Shubel

Timothy Corrigan

Madeline Stuart

David Kleinberg

Mark Weaver

Tim Clarke

Suzy León

H Parkin Saunders

Hendrix Allardyce

Fisher Weisman

Stephanie Stokes

Ernest de la Torre

Eve Robinson

Fox Nahem

Jeffrey Alan Marks

Matthew Patrick Smyth

Mlinaric, Henry, Zervudachi

Cathy Kincaid

Barbara Scavullo

Bartolomei and Company

Lars Bolander

Caldwell-Beebe

Selldorf Architects

Schuyler Samperton

Leslie Jones

Lisa Pak

Robert Passal

Ralph Lauren Home

Nantucket Architecture Group, Ltd

Celerie Kemble

Timothy Whealon

Jan Showers

John Barman

Kimberly A Eastburn

The M Group Interiors, Atlanta

Meg Braff

Todd Alexander Romano

Sherrill Canet

Joetta Moulden

Shelley Morris

Fairfax & Sammons

Diana Viñoly

Clodagh

Christopher Maya

Christopher Corcoran

Carol Reed

Bunny Williams

Brian Murphy

BKSK Architects

Wendy Blount

BNO Design

Mell Lawrence Architects

Angela Free

Alex Papachristidis

Alberto Pinto

Aman & Carson

White Webb

Victoria Hagan

Tom Stringer

Todd Klein

Thomas Jayne

Thad Hayes