TRANSOM WINDOWS IN ARCHITECTURE

I have a lot of architectural design minutiae buzzing around in my head right now as I finalize the details of our upcoming house remodel.  One element I really love and am hoping I can incorporate into the new house is transom windows above the interior doorways (we're still figuring out our interior elevations, whether we'll have the ceiling height, etc.)

Any trick that helps spill natural light from brighter areas to more dimly-lit zones is a genius move.  Plus, they add a ton of architectural charm! 

Often times in the design and building process there are so many little details like this that don't cost a whole lot extra to do, but pack a lot of design punch.

Aren't these transoms just so pretty?  They can be done in a very classic way with lots of detailed molding, or in a more modern way with a simpler approach to the trim.

(all photos via here)

A little Monday morning inspiration for you.  And we're off and running!

xo,

LOFT LIVING

This week I'm putting together the design plan for a client who lives in a great re-habbed industrial loft downtown.  

It's amazing to see how downtown LA has come alive, even just in the past 7 years that I've lived here.  For the longest time, for a multitude of social and political reasons (the age of the automobile and rise of suburbia), Angelenos didn't live downtown.  It emptied out at 5pm and was a pretty desolate place.  No restaurants, shops, or good hangouts ... none of the infrastructure to support a community.  

There's been a total resurgence of life and culture downtown in the past few years, and all these derelict boarded up industrial spaces have been converted into some pretty amazing loft living.  I'm excited to tackle this project.  Here's some of my inspiration ...

(all images via)

We're aiming to be done by Christmas, so you'll be seeing more of this project soon.  Happy Monday!

CONSIDERING CEILING BEAMS IN ARCHITECTURE (AND IN MY OWN HOME)

I have a treat for you this week!  One of my recent projects is about to be published in Rue Magazine, so you'll be seeing the pictures and going behind the scenes with me for a breakdown of all my DIY tricks and tutorials at last!  You'll be the first to know as soon as it goes live, I promise.

One of the design riddles I've been puzzling over lately is how to incorporate just a bit of architectural detail into the ceiling design of my 1923 Spanish renovation.  We've decided to do away with any and all crown molding and let the beautiful lines of the Spanish arches and plaster walls speak for themselves.  I keep coming back to this inspiration image again and again.  I love every detail, down to the plaster hood above the stove, which I will definitely be replicating in my kitchen.

(all photos via)

 

 

See how the lack of molding and millwork allows that beautiful arch and the sculptural character of the hood to really shine?  I want to exercise a similar overall restraint in terms of ornamentation in my home's architecture.

 

But in two locations, the living room and the master bedroom, we have a pitched ceiling, and I'm just not crazy about how they look in plain drywall.  This is what I mean ...

In these areas I've been considering doing ceiling beams in a slightly textured, weathered finish.  These spaces below are in keeping with the style of my home and are really beautiful to me ...

 

On the threshold between the kitchen (which has a lower flat ceiling), and the living room (where the ceiling is high and pitched) I'm thinking that an exposed header beam like this will help make the transition to having ceiling beams in the living room ...

If you've been following me for awhile you might remember that I wrote an entire post about always painting dark wood ceilings white!  And for the record, I still feel that way, especially when there's lots of wood paneling going on as well.

 

via

But I think I'm revising my opinion about dark beams against white drywall (done the "right" way in the "right setting.)  I know I eschewed this look in my previous post, but now I'm considering it for my own home!  Go figure.

 

Which is why I insist that design is (and should be!) a constantly and continually unfolding process.  I'm always learning, evolving and refining my understanding of it, and I like it that way.  Of course there are some basic fundamentals that don't really change, but beyond those it's exciting to stretch and discover new territory ... even territory I thought I'd covered already :)

PALM SPRINGS SETTING US RIGHT AGAIN

So as you know, we joined some friends and rented a little mid-century gem in Palm Springs last week over the kids' spring break.  It was an Airbnb rental and to my great pleasure there was NOTHING I would have changed about the aesthetics of our setting.  Every detail, right down to the mid-century lawn furniture and patio planters, was sheer perfection.  

The house itself was done in a very well-edited, all-white palette, with just a few shots of restrained color here and there.  It was completely mid-century modern without being overdone or kitchsy.  The white palette made for SUCH a soothing vacation vibe ... clean, calming, uncluttered, unbusy ... all the things you want to feel when you're away on vacation.  

(This is a link for a house we nearly took but didn't ... and while it looks fun and all, I think you'll see the difference between the two right away.)

But back to our vacation ...

We all took our "down time" very seriously, leaving the house only for provisions, cooking up plenty of delicious goodness for each other, and eating and drinking all meals together in the beautiful back yard.  Never ate out once.  Love that.

You know how it usually takes a couple days to fully unwind when you finally get away on vacation?  We were so good about just chilling that I think full relaxation was in effect easily by day 2 ... I mean, do these people look stressed out to you?

These two little cuties were the only ones working.  Somehow they co-wrote a book together during our stay, even though they pretty much never left the pool ...

Where I confess to spending the majority of my time as well ...

A fire pit made the perfect spot to sit out under the desert sky and watch the full lunar ecplise that transpired one night ... did anyone else catch that!?

What is that magical quality about warm desert nights that makes you want to hang around the table long after the meal is over and just talk story? ...

Marc and I snuck out early one morning while everyone else was sleeping in to ride around the neighborhood and snap photos of our favorite houses ...

Have I ever told you that my guy is an incredibly talented REAL photographer?  Check out his gorgeous portraiture at marcroyce.com (he's so good that I feel kind of silly talking him up on my little blog.  I mean, the man worked in NYC alongside Richard Avedon.  Kind of makes anything I say here seem a bit beside the point :)  BUT either way ... if you like really witty and intelligent urban street photography, his instagram feed is BANANAS!

 Look how cute he is in action :)  I adore this man.

I've always been particularly enamored with all the cool geometric cast concrete block used in mid-century design.  Here's my homage (my collage homage montage, if you will :)

Yup. It was good there in Palm Springs.  We headed home happy, sun-drenched, and fully refreshed for another round :)