Dreaming of Summer

Summer is just around the corner – or is this wishful thinking on my part? At this time of year my thoughts turn to thinking of summer and imagining the warmth and taking time to relax outside. So my attention was rightfully piqued when I saw these beautiful pieces of furniture. I always look for a theme when I am captivated by images, and these pieces have canopies over them, thereby eliminating the need for an umbrella. I like the fact in design that ‘form follows function’ and especially when function can be made inherently beautiful.  In other words these loungers are self-contained and functionally-integrated escapes from the sun.

 Hemisphere Lounge Chairs,Cocktail and Side Tables, Orbit with Canopy - Richard Frinier for Dedon

  
Daydream Daybeds, Cocktail and Side Tables - Richard Frinier for Dedon

I can just imagine sitting in the warmth in these beautifully designed and functionally-integrated pieces of furniture.
What about you? Are you dreaming about summer?

PATRICIA GRAY INC is an award winning interior design firm writing about lifestyle and
WHAT'S HOT in the world of interior design, architecture, lifestyle, and travel.
2011 © Patricia Gray | Interior Design Blog™

25 Top Patio Chairs

Why is well designed outdoor furniture so hard to come by????????? Everywhere I look I am visually assaulted by poorly designed and equally stinky, (as in smell) off-gassing furniture manufactured in China. I have through diligent searching found some truly amazing, beautiful to look at, and environmentally friendly outdoor furniture that is not manufactured in China. FYI Knoll practices Sustainable Design. All Knoll Space seating is GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified® for low-emitting products.

First the UGLY........

Okay that's enough of that, now for the sublime...................

These chairs are so beautiful and sculptural and are appropriately call "The Clover Chair"

A truly classic and timeless design by Knoll - the Bertoria Chair and
the appropriately named Paperclip Table

I am partial to the Bertoria chair in white powder coated finish with a white vinyl chair pad.
It also works equally well indoors.

This is a design by the prolific Philippe Starck called One Cafe

The One Cafe also comes in black/ivory and a bar stool is available
with slip cover options in white cotton.

Another design by Philippe Starck called Dr No by Kartell is stackable.
The Dr Na aluminum table is practical, simple and a perfect companion piece.

The Lord Yo Chair (above) designed by Philippe Starck, is a take-off on the classic Lloyd Loom chair.
I like the cotton slipcover. They also come with Leather Slipcovers so you can take them
indoors in the winter for an attractive addition to your kitchen or dining room.

Knoll Noguchi Cyclone Table Kissi-Kissi Table One Cafe Table

Bo Chair Miss Lacy Chair Toy Chair

Now for a few divine settings to get you in the mood for those lazy, hazy days of summer

Sigh

What makes a perfect outdoor setting for you?
Please leave a comment and let me know.

Patricia Gray writes about 'WHAT'S HOT 'in the world of Interior Design, new and emerging trends, modern design,
architecture, and travel, as well as how your surroundings can influence the world around you.
© Patricia Gray Interior Design Blog, 2009

Passion - That is the Key

 

"Passion - that is the key in Interior / Exterior: the urge to beautify and capture reality and to inspire others."

This is an excerpt taken from the book: INEX by Wolterinck.  It is one of my favourite books as it features the interiors of homes and shows how the surrounding gardens have been designed to compliment the interiors, creating a total lifestyle concept. This concept is especially more relevant at this time of year when the weather is warm and invites us to spend more time outdoors, thereby extending our useable living spaces.  In 1986 Marcel Wolterinck opened a flower shop in the village of Lauren, Holland. His concern for perfection and versatility later resulted in his own furniture range and his passion developed for incorporating the interior of the home with the gardens. 

The above pictures are part of the garden that surrounds an updated 70's house.  Both the garden and the house breathe an Oriental atmosphere.  The garden by the bamboo planting around the house, and a Japanese touch is provided by the oak fence which turns gray when weathered.  The garden fountain is lead produced by W, and the table in the upper left is a work of art in bronze by the Dutch Sculptor, Huub Kortekaas.  The garden chairs are teak and metal.

  

This Provencal Villa (above and below) is situated in St. Tropez. where the emphasis is placed on the exterior life.  This is expressed in an outdoor room and outdoor terraces.  How very pleasant to sit at the large, wooden table with a zinc base underneath the pergola overgrown with Wisteria.  The presence of an outdoor kitchen provides an additional dimension to being outdoors and can be used as an exterior fireplace lit on summer evenings. The planting is a combination of old and new.  An age-old olive tree dominates the view (below) and is surrounded by a row of box trees and a wealth of plants such as Santolina, Pittosporum, Senecio, Helichrysum, Laurus nobilis, lavender, thyme, and Westringia fruticosa, all creating a subtle interplay of greens and grays and a perfect match for the various local types of stone. 

 

 
 

Paradise in Algrave: This beautiful villa (above) is located in Portugal.  Wolternick arranged the seating areas surrounding the villa like rooms.  The floor lamps, tables, and chairs with cloth upholstery have been assigned a permanent place in these comfortable outdoor areas.  Taste and rhythm also apply to the exterior kitchen with its fireplace to grill dishes.  Meals can be prepared on the worktop that flanks the fireplace on either side.  At right angles with the fireplace is a bold U-shaped zinc table surrounded by delicate director's chairs.

 
 

The above photos are part of a 20-hectare estate in Bremen, northwestern Germany.  The 16th century farmhouse on the estate is surrounded by ancient trees and hedges.  The farmhouse court, where horses once stood, was all stone, but was given an intimate character by Wolterinck by means of 60 year old beech hedges, walls, and trained box trees.  The garden has many exotic varieties of plants.  "The people who used to live on estates like these traveled extensively and brought back with them plants from distant places.  This is how many exotic varieties ended up here, like Brugmansia, Hibiscus trees, Agapanthus, lemon trees, figs and Plumbagos.  In summer these are put outside in pots, in autumn they find shelter in the orangery". The teak bench from the Lister Collection in the top right picture is in the style of the English Architect, Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869–1944) who collaborated with Gertrude Jekyll the renowned English artist and gardener.

What is your most favourite garden?
What makes a garden special to you?
Please let me know by leaving a comment.

Photos and excerpts from: INEX Wolterinck
Photography: Sigurd Kranendonk

 Patricia Gray writes about 'WHAT'S HOT 'in the world of Interior Design, new and emerging trends, modern design,
architecture, and travel, as well as how your surroundings can influence the world around you.
© Patricia Gray Interior Design Blog, 2009