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Displaying a passion for cutting edge design along with equal passion for the environment, Urban Hardwoods creates 1 of a kind furniture pieces from salvaged trees.  In business for more than 10 years, Urban Hardwoods rescues trees lost to disease and transforms them into beautiful furniture.  This company sets the pace and leads the way in urban tree salvage. Along the way approximately 3,000 salvaged trees from Seattle homeowners became tables and other furniture.

Urban Hardwoods^® was recently named one of the 2008 Top 10 Green Building Products Manufacturers in the United States by Sustainable Industries magazine. Winning products were selected based on environmental performance, value, market impact, design aesthetic and LEED compatibility.

Urban Hardwoods is proud to announce the March 2 opening of its newest retail furniture showroom located at 553 Pacific Avenue, San Francisco, CA.  The Jackson Square store  displays an array of modern solid wood furniture with the spotlight on dining tables. The furniture is made in Seattle from massive slabs of pacific madrone, sycamore, walnut, elm, and other trees that spent their lifetimes in Seattle. Each piece unique, each with a story to tell.

Tags: decorating, Furniture, interior design, recycle, salvaged trees, Seattle
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As a designer I often remark, “It’s all in the details”.  And what do I mean? My clients want a personal, individual design, something that represents their likes, style, preferences. 

Specifically, in these images I show the use of monograms to add a distinctive element or signature to the piece of furniture. The versatility of monograms inspires me to use them on pillows, chair backs, as shown, tile, floor coverings, and so on.  The opportunities are abundant and my clients enjoy placing such a unique stamp and design element  in their home.

Chair backs as seen on these chairs from Hickory Chair show the special look I can achieve in a design with a monogram.  Send your feedback about how you used a monogram to personalize something in your home.

Tags: decorating, design detail, Furniture, interior design, monogram, Seattle
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After seeing the bold colors of red and gold during the Olympics, more of the same continued at Fashion Week.  No surprise to see the 2009 color trends reflect the synergy of commerce and culture.  The bold and saturated hues remind us of summer and beaches while connecting us to influences and themes of other places such as Russia, East Asia and Latin America.  As Thomas Friedman expresses, the world is flat. 

Interpreted for your home, orange becomes an appealing color for interiors but is not crayon orange but toned down with a touch of yellow and called ‘tiger-eye’.  Likewise red receives a hint of orange and becomes tropical and lush.  In a room setting this ‘Moorish’ red is enhanced by complements of tangy lemon accents.

From Project Runway to Fashion Week, vivid blues and purples are combined with neutrals.  Blue promotes optimism and it’s grounded with nature’s neutrals; think natural fiber, wool, and wood.  This combination of fresh blues with gorgeous gray grounds the palette and promotes stability – a perfect combination for a master bedroom suite. 

The Green movement is mainstream so certainly green is a star whether on the runway or in the home. Spring inspired daffodil yellow pairs with a muddier gold green and adds freshness to the interior.  An old friend, olive green, becomes a sophisticated companion.  One color that combines with all of the above colors is slate grey providing a visual ‘weight’ to the overall color scheme. 

 

Finally, I believe color is LOCAL. Explore your locality, see how the colors are nuanced at your local markets and store display windows.  Spin the color wheel with local hues for a timely update

Tags: color, decorating, fashion, forecast, Green Design, home, interior design, paint, Seattle, style, taste
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Named after their great-grandfather’s road construction business, Texan sisters Susan and Katharine Hable founded the NY textiles company Hable Construction in 1999. Katharine, a born saleswoman with professional experience working at Kate Spade and Polo Ralph Lauren; and Susan, an artist inspired by nature and the handmade aesthetic, decided a business partnership would be a harmonious marriage of the siblings’ talents.

Adhering closely to their original vision is the practice of keeping the designs hand-drawn by Susan, and reproduced by skilled artisans who treat their work as a careful craft, employing traditional screenprinting procedures in an old New England factory. Furthering this principle, the company partnered with a Hungarian women’s cooperative in 2001 to produce a line of wool-felt products utilizing a traditional hammer and chisel applique technique. Outside of the wool-felt production, all Hable products are proudly made in the U.S.  The colorful canvas and cotton/linen fabrics are printed by hand in an old New England factory.

espresso bead/chocolate checker coasters

The online store features such fun items as these coasters along with aprons, kids toys and accessories.  Check out the website www.hableconstruction.com for a store in your city or use the convenient online store.

If you have comments, please add them to this post.

Tags: Accessories, artisan, decorating, design, home, interior design, redecorate, resource, Seattle, style
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The next stage is a critical one for it involves the introduction of vases, candle holders, obelisks, boxes, ginger jars and clocks.  All of these objects offer opportunities to add accent colors, style influences, personal taste or memorabilia from heirlooms.  A rule of thumb is to vary sizes of objects by height and width.  The relationship must in proportion to the other objects. One approach involves use of the same color for a group of accessory items.

 

As I design I use odd numbered groups and begin arranging them on tables. Then I step back and gauge the impact. I find my eye informs me if the proportion is awkward. Another question I ask myself, “Is the group too much, wrong size, not in harmony?”

 

Here are some objects to consider for use when accessorizing.  All of them are from Global Views, a great resource that I found a few years ago.  I especially like the diversity of product as well as the range of prices.

 

VASES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DECORATIVE ITEMS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CANDLE HOLDERS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The final stage entails editing.  Vases can be rotated by season and used with our without flowers. Refresh the look of a room with alternates. On special occasions use the crystal vase, and then return the solid colored vase. Remember, not every gift requires display. Restraint adds more not less.  Step back and ask yourself if there is one thing or more that is excess.

 

The words of Coco Chanel, the fashion designer, are suitable for accessory display too.  Her comment goes like this, “Before you leave the house, take off the last thing you put on.”

 

I would enjoy your comments, questions, ideas and to learn what accessories or heirlooms you use to accessorize your home to make it uniquely yours.

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: Accessories, candle holder, decorating, entertain, heirloom, home, interior design, Seattle, style, vases
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