Entry to latest project
to complete,looking forward to posting images. Love strong/entry door ways!
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Holmby Hills project preview
Friday, July 27, 2012
There is a beauty in simplicity
I love creating a living
space with careful attention to subtle details within a clean, uncomplicated
design. This creates a perfect backdrop for the nuances to truly shine and
steal the show. Sharp lines and metallic accents are softened with the right
textiles and fabrics, and earthy or neutral tones ground the design without
muting it.
Taking a familiar or vintage shape, such as a curved bench,
and dressing it up with a modern fabric is the perfect way to blend old and new
for a unique look. Tying together different time periods through design can
conjure up nostalgia and yet be avant-garde simultaneously, and it’s a
beautiful way to mix your favorite flavors. Pairing classic 1960’s style with
industrial accessories and hardware can work surprisingly well: crisp lines and
finished concrete add stability to the design, while plush cushions and
shimmering textiles add softness and elegance. When working with opposites,
whether masculine and feminine or vintage and modern, hitting the perfect
balance is an essential part of all of my designs.
Setting the mood
Playing with different lighting effects can significantly alter the mood and feel of any room, and I love using that to my advantage. I tend to select bold pieces that are elegant, modern yet classical, so as to compliment the rest of the room in a timeless manor. Ceiling-mounted lighting can be great when a lot of light is needed to brighten up a space, or to change the direction of a room while well-placed wall sconces and table lamps are fabulous for setting a particular mood.
The latest trends in chandeliers have taken on a classic lighting idea and reinvented it with gorgeous results. I love Windfall lighting and always have, for it is innovative, powerful and seductive features, which I have loved using in projects over the years. Rather than deal with exposed wiring, which can be distracting and unsightly, crystals are suspended below inconspicuous spotlights mounted on the ceiling. The crystals and metallic accents in their designs have a way with catching the light beautifully, creating incredible prisms’ throughout the room at all times of the day. When all is said and down, it’s the lasting impression a room leaves with ones guests!
Bar 21 Montage House
The owners vision was quite extraordinary and yet by no means indicative or common for what you find along the coast of New Port or Laguna. When I was hired to take over the home and create the Interior Life Style, I had my work cut out for me.
The owners are very eccentric in style and manor, but I knew the home was going to be sold, so I wanted to re-interpret their concept to something more elegant, timeless and meaningful to a new buyer. Which meant I needed to break down all the hard cold surfaces and help the home to find balance, sophistication and most of all, accentuate the zen like quality that was hiding below all the rough surfaces.
When I approached the bar area, with the open air environment. I immediately felt this would set the precedence and uniqueness of the home, simply by the first impression of all those that entered.
I left all the original cement walls as completed by the developer, but felt it was very important to captivate both the female and male audience. To do this, I decided to incorporate both an Industrial vibe by design of the shelving unit with the floating glass shelves and stainless steel structure… and yet bring in the subtle texture and materials of a more vintage room, paying homage to “Good old Men’s Smoking Room”. Which then became about beautiful unique leathers for the strapping under the glass shelves, the custom Metallic Italian Leather for the beautiful leather swivel chairs, that I designed specifically for the room. Even shopping the style of buckle that I would incorporate onto the chair was very important to me and came from a small dress shop in Manhattan. The fur hides were another important element to add more textures. The coffee table and console were again Custom Designed and created by me specifically for this room. Which meant a great deal of time and energy into the proportions, materials, feel and finishes.
Through out the house you will see a great deal of different materials chosen by me for the window treatments, for me, it is always was very important to break from standards and comfort zones of design and incorporate my signature dichotomy in design, which was the use of seemingly very classical materials and patterns, typically reserved for much more traditional styled homes. This to me is always the unexpected feature that most can not put their finger on, which also makes my projects stand out.
Finally, when it was time to invite the guest to the bar. (referring to the alcohol list)..(of course the most important aspect of the entire room and my favorite thing to do), was to pick the contents of the bar. This is where my years of designing for extremely successful men and knowing their taste gives me great advantage to knowing just how to capture their attention.
-Shelley Starr
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Projects
When starting a project, a color rendering is imperative for a client to see and understand both concept and vision and most of all, ensure their expectation. This room has been in the works for 5 months and will come to life at the end of the month. Always just as exciting for me the designer, as it is for the client to see their home come to life!
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