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We are so glad to be back for this week’s edition of Which One? Wednesday. Both of these very different homes were photographed recently for Michael Greenberg & Associates.
Now, I’m definitely a modern home kind of girl. No question about it. And I love this first interior on the left. This home, as I understand, was designed in part as a show piece for a spirited art collection, and it is tremendously successful as such. It also brings the landscape in from the outside, which is one of my weaknesses for the modern aesthetic.
Rustic, to me, hearkens thoughts of Vermont and Maine and skiing (which I do not do at all) and snowboarding (which I do not do well). So maybe I’m most drawn to the space on the right because it is still winter here in New England. And there are so many good books around. I swoon over libraries as you may know. Right now, I just want some morning light, a good book, and to be curled up on that couch until spring.
Which space would you like to inhabit if just for a moment?
If you’re new here, (or you just don’t remember because it’s been so long), on Wednesdays I open up the comments for you to tell me which view from a recent photo shoot you prefer. And why. I love hearing what you have to say. You can peruse past Which One? features here.
This luxurious, subterranean wine cave, designed by Andrew Bartolotta AIA of Beinfield Architecture, won an award in the months I’ve been off the internet grid. The Connecticut AIA bestowed the coveted Encompassing the Art Award for Architecture on this project at the end of 2012.
I can’t help but imagine the award had something to do with the wall of brightly colored cylinders that are actually repurposed snare drum cases. That’s clearly my favorite design element because if it’s uniqueness, but also because the LED lighting glows through the acrylic adding a playful sparkle to what could easily be a much more serious room.
All I need is a tasting table and a cocktail dress…
A lot of people go to work every single day to offices that are vanilla. Just bland and uninspiring. (That expression’s not really fair to vanilla, is it?) A cubicle in a vast sea of beige or grey.
Well, be jealous. It’s a totally energizing and creatively fueled atmosphere over at the new offices of Madison|Mott, a marketing, advertising and design powerhouse located in Westport, Connecticut. And I can tell you after spending the day there for the shoot, the office design definitely reflects the spirit of the organization. So congratulations to all those involved in the process, including interior designers Tricia Izzo and Carolyn Kron of Shelter Interiors LLC.
These uptown/downtown offices belong to the 2 top dogs over at Madison|Mott. They had a lot of involvement in the design of their individual spaces, which are on point with their own brand:
“We’re weird. Good weird. Simply put, we’re different than other firms, and proud of it. We unabashedly embrace modern day digital advances while upholding the tenets of classic marketing and advertising, to our clients’ advantage. We’re techie and traditional, we’re chic and punk, we’re Madison and Mott. We do all kinds of stuff, including: IDENTITY/BRANDING, PRINT, WEBSITES, MOBILE & SOCIAL.” from the Madison|Mott website
So for today’s Which One? Wednesday, instead of asking which photo you like better, I’d like to know which space you’d rather be immersed in every day to get your creativity flowing. I’m clearly more of a downtown kind of girl, and I am really drawn to the bright, bold colors on the right, but I have to admit, the glamour of that office on the left is calling to me. I’m torn. It’s an Audrey versus Vader kind of decision… Use the force.
If you’re new here, on Wednesdays I open up the comments for you to tell me which view from a recent photo shoot you prefer. And why. I love hearing what you have to say. You can peruse past Which One? features here.
FYI: This is not my kitchen.
The other night I caught up on Girls and set fire to my kitchen.
All I could think was thank goodness I disabled my smoke detector because if the alarm was blaring while all this was going on I would have lost my shit. The irony is not lost here.
And before anyone goes postal on me for not having a smoke detector, where I cook my food without ever leaving it unattended, please let me explain. I live in a very small, 3 room apartment. The rooms are on top of one another. I have 1 set of speakers that you can hear in all 3 rooms. But I have THREE smoke detectors. Three. And when I boil water, the super loud vent over my stove turns on automatically and can’t be shut off without tripping the circuit breaker. But the smoke detector, now that goes off whenever I try to do anything other than boil water. Like 15 minutes into a 5 hour roast turkey (tequila/chipotle infused, apricot glazed). Or 5 minutes into sautéed anything. And let’s not even discuss my oven-baked eggplant parmesan. And I remind you: 2 other smoke detectors. So. We’re done here.
I am completely petrified about setting the whole building’s alarm off. I should be petrified of burning my house down. But the mortification of everyone pointing at me while we have all been forced out of our homes brings me back to the horrible days of being chosen last in gym class and being called brillo head every afternoon on the school bus. One of my builder colleagues has assured me that the entire building doesn’t alarm unless the sprinklers go off. And if the sprinklers go off, maybe I have bigger problems.
Anyway, I did a series of stupid things out of laziness that I’m not going to tell you about here because I hate getting yelled at and I promise not to do them again. And then there were flames. And the fire went something like this:
OH SHIT, grease fire! contained in the pan… ummm what did they teach me NOT to do with a grease fire in the 3rd grade? no water. OH SHIIIIIT BIGGER FLAMES. still contained in the pan? noooo! stovetop too… I’m totally going to burn the pretty new building down and everyone’s going to hate me! I have no idea how to use a fire extinguisher without having to read directions. And who the hell can find their baking soda at a time like this? Thank God Dug’s not here because I’d be in big trouble. How the hell has this never happened to me before?
*shifts pan to other burner, turns off flame, moves toward under sink extinguisher, watches flame die out, checks eyebrows for intactedness, takes deep breath, serves over-cooked veal, sits down to eat, Chewie lifts head*
Yes, I eat veal. No, I don’t want you to tell me what they do to it.
I’m terribly grateful it all worked out, but it got me thinking. Have you ever had a kitchen fire? What was it like? And I’m all about prevention, but do you have any tips for what to do if it happens?
CawfeeGuy and CawfeeMate are currently in the middle of an overwhelming kitchen renovation. When I posted the Shelter Interiors Kitchen recently, CawfeeGuy reminded me that I was taunting him since his kitchen was completely dismantled, and as a result his life has been in a disarray. In addition, his lovingly designed NYC oasis will be a mere fraction of the size of the beautiful New England cottage kitchen I was forcing him to judge. *sigh* Since I am such a supportive and empathetic friend, today’s Which One? is another dream kitchen.
You may have seen one of these shots before, and if you have, don’t cheat, because you’ll know which I like best. But since your opinions have, at times, been so different than what I expected, I thought I’d run this even larger Beinfield designed kitchen by you.
I am a huge fan of the polished concrete floors. And the floating steel stair off to the right, flanked by a sheet of glass on one side and metal chain maille (which you can’t really see from these views) on the other.
In case CawfeeGuy is still reading, I am going to deal the final punishing blow. Designers often put together beautiful kitchens in homes because they are expected and necessary for retail value and magazine shoots. Sometimes there’s nothing but diet cola and take-out cartons in the sub zero. Just so you know, this family cooks in this kitchen. I’ve heard the matriarch is even, dare I say, a fabulous baker. *gasp*
So, lovelies, which one?
Hire Michele
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On the Nightstand
