Aug 06

Regional Design Fun!

By pattisays In art and interior design, artistic expression, beach, context of interior design, creativity, custom design interior design, decorative arts, design tips, design trends, drama of color, fanciful design, folkart, historical interior design, inspiration, interior design, interior design trends, lifestyle, painted furniture, Regional design, Santa Fe, New Mexico, travel and design, trends /

So many regions, so little time!!!! All the design directions available based upon where you are and what you love – just think!! Regional design provides a strong connection to the surrounding environs. From selecting artwork to color schemes, decorative accessories and even room scents, creating regionally specific interiors is a fun way to go. Often reserved for second homes, the novelty of focusing on the design theme specific to the region does not always reflect real life.

Real life is usually comprised of a variety of experiences, tastes, acquired objects, interests etc…designing around a specific regional theme is more deliberately focused and therefore not as eclectic as a person’s true life experiences and resulting accumulation of possessions and reflection of varied interests.

Seaside design would incorporate decorative accessories, fabrics and colors to represent the surroundings such as nautical themes and the elements of the natural scene incorporating seashells, seascapes, etc…

Therefore, the primary place of residence in such a locale would reflect that context but not necessarily be completely designed around it. The second home would have the novelty of centering the design exclusively on that seaside theme.

Here is a stunning example of the Americana By the Sea Bungalow! A spritz or burning of Votivo’s White Ocean Sands in this scene – oh heck – why? Just open the windows and breathe in the salty sea air!!!

While in the metropolitan Washington area, one can’t help but notice the architectural influence of colonial times and the interiors which reflect the same.

Steeped in the history of our relatively young country and the pre-colonial decorative arts that came across the water to the New World, the antiques, reproductions and embellishments are telling.

This whimsical casita in Santa Fe illustrates the colorful folk-art of both old and New Mexico, bold paint colors, graphic transitions, and the enchanting architecture of adobe charm. As a second home, the extravagance of collecting and displaying in a fanciful setting is a fun, on-going project!

A corner cabinet by acclaimed folk-art painter Barbara Peabody makes a bold statement housing additional collectibles from Old and New Mexico. A giclee print of a fabulous watercolor by Susan Weeks – the art of decoratively detailed cowboy boots.

Where do YOU live? What themes from your area do you incorporate in your interior design? Get out there are soak it in, gather ideas, start collections, buy local and have fun!!!!!!

Jul 31

Design Inspirations in the City Different

By pattisays In architecture, art and interior design, artistic expression, bar, bars and restaurants, commercial interior design, context of interior design, creativity, custom design interior design, decorative arts, design, design competition, dining and design, exterior - outdoor design, floral designs, food and interior design, handcraft, inspiration, interior design, interior design trends, Mexico, mosaic tile, nostalgia and design, restaurant restrooms, Santa Fe, New Mexico, summer, travel and design, trends, window dressings /

Do YOU know the way to Santa Fe, to play off of a song by another title? Up the hill and beneath a brilliant blue sky, the thunder clouds scatter with dramatic splendor. Past the cedar dotted landscape with punctuation of piñon the seasonal monsoonal green is blanketing the desert. A thrilling view passing swiftly, outside the window, like a series of paintings capturing surreal scenes – always picturesque.

It’s July in The Land of Enchantment and a weekend getaway, in Santa Fe, promises stimulating design treats and artistic inspiration! Every visit is familiar – yet new. Around every corner, there is detail and color, decoration and un-selfconscious art.

Just when you think the Santa Fe market is saturated with myriad fabulous dining options, Paloma hits the ground running, on Guadalupe Street, to shake things up a bit!

The joy of experiencing the very new restaurant of an amazing friend was exhilarating! Marja Martin, la propietaria of this great new venue Paloma, brings limitless talent, outstanding vision and distinctive creativity to everything she touches.

The quite well-seeded Santa Fe dining scene is recipient of her newest endeavor. Already a well-established and well loved caterer, her artistic sensitivity and smart culinary concepts – that have been her signature – now result in a presentation of stunning unpretentious decor and exceptional flavors. She’s giving patrons bold flavors and creative combinations inspired by true dining experiences, with our many-faceted Mexican neighbor’s to the south. The result is fun and transporting, in its authenticity.

Walking home, to the lovely casita of dear friends, the gates and doorways, patterns and particulars – uniquely New Mexican in their expression of design offer photographic treats. It’s magic. It’s exciting. It should be on everyone’s list to take the time to explore.

It’s as though history and current trends collide to create a patchwork of texture and color all to stimulate the senses. Exotic flavors and international everything all presented in the confines and context of this extraordinary place.

Interior design and exterior design bombarding from every pocket including this provocative little prose to ponder at Sonder. Get out there are feed your senses!

Jul 08

Everyone Needs a Little Country Sometime

By pattisays In architecture, artistic expression, beauty behold it, color trends, context of interior design, country living, creativity, custom design interior design, decorative arts, design, design tips, design trends, DIY design, exterior - outdoor design, fireplaces, floral arrangements, floral designs, furniture finds, Garden, handcraft, inspiration, interior design, interior design trends, landscape design, lifestyle, natural designs, nostalgia and design, party themes, personal expression, re-purpose, Refresh, remodeling, rural design, stone, summer, timeless colors, window dressings /

I would like to share a treat of a house in a magical setting along a quiet waterway in the lush rural lake community of Edgerton, Wisconsin. A most talented friend has created a riverside home from a modest rambler. What was a dated structure with limited interior appointments, low ceilings, tiny high windows, and ordinary fixtures is now a soft, sophisticated, space outfitted with treasures gathered in the countryside, filled with history, character and antique charm.

Hands on and knowing exactly what she wanted to achieve, she began collecting interesting fixtures and hardware, furniture pieces and finishes. She hired a remodeling contractor, but worked closely with him and his architect to detail every facet of this home. Unwilling to compromise certain features, she enlarged all window openings, reconfigured the entry, gutted the kitchen, redesigned the bathrooms, ripped out the ceiling exposing structure – increasing volume exponentially – and added a garage.

Exposed beams, new white-washed tongue and groove boards applied to raised ceiling, a found wooden column used for structural support, new crown molding, bead-board wainscoting, re-designed fireplace surround, and creatively concealed storage closets, have re-shaped the entire character of this interior so dramatically that all who entered, not having yet seen this incredible transformation, were awed.

Hearing their comments as they passed through the spaces was amusing in their commonality. Everyone was amazed at the amount of work done, creative elements incorporated, fun finds she had collected to transform this modest house into this cozy cottage. Her two cats have wonderful vantage points to watch the activities in the rooms below as guests gathered to celebrate the weekend’s family wedding festivities.

Daylight streams through windows and floribunda gardens around the house are now communing beautifully with the interior.

Ever-so-soft blues, with whites of every shade, create a soft backdrop to collections of fine china to vintage scales and myriad eclectic antiques.

Outside a recently completed multi-tiered pond emits soft trickling background sound which wafts inside through the many open windows. Not to be reticent about being hands-on, this tenacious designer personally packed 23 loads of boulders and large stones into her truck, off-loaded and placed around the periphery of the pond. She planted tiny creeping vegetation among the stones, water plants, multiple trees and perennials to establish instant-gratification landscaping in her expansive backyard, which is a lush verdant botanical expression that grows abundantly right down to meet the river.

A great get-acquainted bonding of disparate family and friends occurred when we collected buckets of roadside flowers to make arrangements for the reception venue.

Wild bouquets punctuated with spectacular domestic flowers from the gardens surrounding the cottage provided fun activity and contributed to the charm of the scene.

Everyone needs a little country sometime.

Jun 24

DIY – Inspiration is All Around!

By pattisays In Albuquerque, New Mexico, art and interior design, art as gift ideas, artistic expression, beauty behold it, Centerpieces, creative process, creativity, decorative arts, design process, Design Team, design tips, design trends, designs in nature, DIY design, dried flowers, fanciful design, floral arrangement, floral arrangements, floral designs, handcraft, inspiration from nature, interior design, interior design trends, lifestyle, natural integrity of the materials, naturalist, nature, personal expression, re-purpose, silk flowers, table dressings, table top, tumbleweeds /

DIY is so in vogue. Where it used to be chic to hire someone to do everything in your world, now practicality rules! The savings and fun of doing things yourself is huge. There are so many inspirations on-line. Ideas overflow-ith and the possibilities are endless.

Where do you get YOUR inspiration? It’s all around us. I had been contemplating a shower/wedding gift. I always prefer to find something unique rather than picking from a registry at Nordstrom’s or William Sonoma…but this one was a challenge.

Recently, my inspiration came from taking a morning walk through the desert.

The decorative graphic on the invitation was a floral arrangement of soft pastels and antlers. Yes, antlers. This bride-to-be is a hunter. A long, lanky, beautiful, feminine, crack shot! I’ve known her since she was a toddler. I had been picturing that graphic in my mind in an effort to divine some special gift that related to that theme…something uniquely memorable and lasting.

As I walked through the rough desert grasses and around piles of dead tumbleweeds I regarded them with a new-found appreciation. They had such an interesting structural framework that I realized that they clearly resembled antlers.

They became the springboard for a floral arrangement that would replicate the theme of the invitation and, with that, I began selecting them and carefully carrying their rotund prickly selves back to the car.

Next step – what else will make this a successful rendition of the theme I was trying to emulate? Off to the craft stores! I selected delicate, creamy-white wooden roses, soft pink mini silk roses and some fill from both Michael’s and Hobby Lobby. The PERFECT ceramic vessel presented itself in an soft, oval shape glazed in a powder blue, but with edges and character that offered attractive, desirable, intentional imperfection.

As I have mentioned in past stories, a successful designer has a good team. Building a team to realize your dreams is the key to that success and I called on my very special and exquisitely talented floral designer to assemble my gatherings into the image of my intent. Melba has made my dreams come true for years. She gets into my head and interprets my words and elements to create a finished product that has hit the nail on the head over and over again.

I pulled out the many materials that I had purchased. She evaluated each, talked to me about my concept, and studied the combinations that were laid out on the table.

This piece exceeded my expectations. The fine branches of the tumbleweeds were the delicate punctuation amidst the flowers.

When she actually ordered real, bleached deer antlers that became the statuary of the piece, I was thrilled! Not only was the finished arrangement perfection, I didn’t think it was realistic to expect to get real antlers and incorporate them into this design in such short notice. She had less than 2 weeks! It was spectacular.

DIY inspiration is all around – even in dead, dried tumbleweeds. Creativity begins with a concept and progresses with the fun of making it uniquely yours. Team DIY!

Jun 10

Touch IT – Feel IT – Tangible Textures!

By pattisays In artistic expression, creative process, creativity, decorative arts, design, design process, design tips, hiring an interior designer, inspiration, interior design, organization, re-upholstery, upholstery, wall texture, weavings, window dressings /

I am so all appreciative of texture and color and sheen and lack thereof…that I KNOW that it is impossible to make any decision about fabrics or any other textile for that matter, rugs, weavings…via a monitor or screen. We are all becoming so dependent upon the instantaneous access of information through the internet – finding sources on-line and virtually ALL of our purchases – that we are forgetting the tactile necessity of determining value, applicability, and certainly true visual appeal with tangible samples.

Yes, we can order memo samples and those of us in practice for the past few decades KNOW that we have to order samples every now and again – that is IF we have our own source library or a number of showrooms close at hand to do the instant gratification portion of the search.

Most clients LOVE to come to the library and see the many options, play with the samples and participate in the design of their project. It is a one-stop experience that sets the stage. We then have all the many distributors and showrooms, mills and factories from which we can order additional materials. But the resource library of tactile samples of fabrics, flooring, wall-coverings, flooring, rugs is exciting.

There are those who prefer fewer choices – just show me a couple of options and I’ll be fine. Quite the opposite of the one who wants you to prepare a dozen scenarios for their consideration. Yes, they pay for that luxury, but the ones who appreciate the hunt -who appreciate the searching through samples to compile their favorites – THEY are the ones who really get into the Creative Process ( see recent post on this very subject).

Living on an island – as we often feel we are – we HAVE to compile a significant source library in order to have the samples available for on-sight instant compilation for a project. Yet having all the resources close at hand, as in the showrooms of larger cities, we still have to drive there to do the work. I must say, I am spoiled with such a comprehensive source library at my studio where I go any time of day and do research to gather myriad samples to satisfy a project’s needs.

It’s taken decades to evolve. It takes a lot of concentration to keep it in order and up-to-date. That is invaluable. This isn’t to say that after spending several hours searching, culling, sorting and weighing possibilities against for-sure options, that I don’t have to occasionally call the many mills and distributors and ask for special pieces that have eluded me on my search. I might have gathered several coordinating/contrasting and fabulous samples, but lack that one blue and white striped pattern that I have visualized since the inception. It is then that I reach out and say – “I can’t find the right blue and white stripe – please send me what you have for upholstery weight.” And the samples begin to arrive and usually the missing link in the design puzzle will be found – sooner or later. IT is out there.

But the value of the well-organized and well stocked library is an invaluable tool. Yes, it is a tool – THE primary tool for a designer after their own imagination’s creativity. It fills the blanks of that creativity with actual materials that complete the design. And having a resource library on-site in our own studio saves much time and offers a plethora of options, materials, finishes, inspiration and those priceless tangible sample at our fingertips that MAKE an interior design.

Mar 12

Stylists and Designers Prove Rugs Are Not Limited to Floors

By pattisays In art and interior design, artistic expression, decorative arts, design tips, Fiber art, folkart, handmade, interior design, Organic art, practical design, re-purpose, travel and design, weavings, weavings /

Rugs on walls can be fabulous! I came across an article the other day that reminded me of my own history embracing this attention-grabbing design feature.

As I prepared for college and excitedly ran about gathering cool things to outfit my dorm room, I found this spectacular piece of felted embroidery. It was so spectacular and I so LOVED the colors that it became the focal point of my side of the room. Nothing says soften and warm-it-up than textiles on painted cinder block! Can I find a photo of that wonderful space from decades past? Not yet, but I pulled down the “rug” from its stashed hiding place way up on a closet shelf and have at least this to share.

It was a hippy dippy time for style and design. Even those of us a bit younger and not really hippies in the true sense of the free-love and wild abandoned lifestyle, we surely wanted to participate on the periphery with our fashion and interior design. Remember? Indian bedspreads for curtains and clothes, Mexican wedding shirts, beaded room dividers…all that and more. Pier One “shopped the world so we didn’t have to!!”

As far as my world of design and what textile wall-hangings had to do with interiors, it was more about quilts than rugs. The east coast was riddled with generations of seamstresses who perfected and perpetuated the art of patchwork. Once a necessity of frugal re-purposing, an art-form was born and evolved into magnificently detailed free-hand-stitched, award-winning, collectible masterpieces. I remember a textile exhibit at the DAR in Washington, D.C. that had incredible examples of fine fragile work carefully preserved and presented to honor this amazing artistic expression and its place in history. http://eyeonelegance.dar.org/

As is true in our world of fast-paced technology, ultimately more expeditious and modern machinery aided the artist in guiding the needles and now computer-generated digital methods of quilting and patchwork stitch at amazing rates of speed and detail.

Although weavers exist in all corners of the world, it was not a traditional art-form in our area. We would see exotic examples in homes of well-traveled adventurers. I came across this article from apartment therapy of some fun examples of rugs as wall-hangings and it sparked my memory of these thoughts on the subject.

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/why-stylists-use-rugs-as-wall-hangings-and-you-should-too-212602

Fast forward in my history to my arrival in New Mexico – the sunny southwest where Native American weavers reign. I was instantly exposed to wonderful woven art pieces from exotic places like the soft earthen shades of the intricate Two Grey Hills and bright bold graphics of Chimayo. Everyone had examples of master weavers (and some not-so-master but fascinatingly beautiful and interestingly textural all the same), proudly mounted on authentic adobe and towering sheetrock walls of new construction. This sensational example is a powerfully beautiful focal point in the home of great collector clients.

So the take-away from this week’s musings are if you have not tried a rug on your wall – get out there and find a cool piece and get it up there!!! You will be surprised at the effective texture and interest it adds to your eclectic interior!!!

Feb 19

Design Dreams Come True – Custom Collection

By pattisays In artists, custom furniture, decorative arts, furniture finds, hammered metal, handcraft, handmade, metal and wood furniture design, modern cabinets, painted furniture, Uncategorized /

Designing is great fun. But the key to completing the circle that starts with an idea in response to a need (or not) is having that design come to fruition. I am grateful for having a great team of detailed design fabricators who make my dreams come true. And they spoil me. I think many designers will say the same thing. What starts on a cocktail napkin, torn piece of flimsy trace off a roll, a sheet of graph paper or more formally, working drawings, takes shape with the collaboration of designer and fabricators who are not just fabricators, but invaluable contributors to the finished products’ construction and design details. These are the seamstresses, upholsterers, carpenters, iron-workers and all manner of construction trades who bring these creations to fruition!

Several years ago we had a client who was daring in her desire to have a super modern loft. Her history of traditional furnishings and up-bringing was well in place in Washington state, but this opportunity to have a second home, an urban loft, made way for her exercising the juices that offered a new alternative lifestyle and a new “look.”

One of the many key pieces in this fabulous space turned out to be the cornerstone of a new custom collection that we fondly call PATRICIAN DESIGN’S “Hammered Home.”

As I planned the pieces for this fun and hip urban interior, I designed painted pieces, modern tonsus, a Nelson inspired coffee table, red and raw steel glass-topped dining table base, a new take on a drop-leaf desk and colorful mixed media end-table/chests all custom fabricated by my team, but I wanted something more, something that gave rich, detail and dimension, interest and art and this new line of custom furniture was born. The first piece, a nightstand/end table for a dual-purposed guest room/study combined clean-lined wood with steel. So with a quick sketch of the dimensions and form, my desire to have metal legs suspending it off the floor, metal accents but not severe – I thought, hammered?

The wood tone was to be a more milk chocolate than mahogany but tight-grained and true medium brown. The floors were an existing light engineered material and this brown contrasted nicely.

The next opportunity to introduce this combo theme of our “Hammered Home” design came with a young family’s need for a media armoire in the “family” room. Several years ago when “espresso” hit the design scene for the new trend for modern furniture, everyone from Target to Pottery Barn to Robb & Stuckey filled their inventory with the dark coffee bean wood finish. As a designer, I recognized the value of the trend and wanted to accept it, but take it a step further for these very smart and successful, yuppy clients.

In previous blogs, I have clearly stated that all trends are not created equal. some are passing fancies of color combinations that soon become dated or design elements that don’t leave a significant mark to pass the test of time. But the dark chocolate/coffee color enriched that which had so often been blond, light woods and cherry/cinnamon tones of recent popularity and contributed a valid alternate stain theme for wood furniture. The media armoire for a young family’s “family” room, was clean-lined and new. The bling was industrial enough not to be glitzy, but just enough silver-grey metallic to contrast against the dark wood.

The next version of this “Hammered Home” collection came in front of a stacked sandstone wall of bone white, creamy cream, a hint of gold and a tinge of iron rust. We picked the darker rust tone to contrast against the otherwise soft light stone wall colors – the rusty hue suggested a cinnamon colored alder – stain magic! This pair of low profile media cabinets housed all the components and an incredible bundle of wires streaming into the back of the cabinet from all points of the house – and it’s called wi-fi? Really? Due to the color scheme, we decided that a copper metal panel would really meld with the cinnamon-stain of the alder. So we took it a step further to enhance the copper, knock it down a bit and highlight the texture with a blackened rub that nestles into the hollows and allows the bas relief to shine. It is a warm, rich, dimensional textural wonderfulness.

So when a very fun client called last fall wanting a surprise for his wife – nightstands perhaps? I laughed because my husband often says that he’s getting me storm windows for a Valentine’s Day gift…funny – every girl’s dream!! But nightstands are at least in the realm of dreamland!!! So knowing the room and its existing color scheme, I decided upon a satin black with the same hammered blackened copper panels. The combination of the black and blackened copper was sensational. The style was more transitional than the previous clean-lined pieces – but it goes to show that this hammered metal design theme can transcend the styles…

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We LOVE working with this client as he knows that he either has an idea (a new nightstand) that we can create or he calls and asks – what can we create for the next event? Whether birthday, anniversary, Christmas, or Valentine’s Day – we have provided locally hand-loomed textiles wraps, wild embroidery throws, magnificent oil paintings, locally hand-crafted jewelry and more! How fun for him to know that each present is custom and unique, supports local artists and will be a treasure forever. Plus he doesn’t have to shop!!!!!

So we delivered our surprise cabinet last week on Valentine’s Tuesday, I stopped at a quickie store and bought some simple heart stickers – not much larger than a postage stamp, I stuck one in the drawer and one on the shelf of the lower cabinet and thought that whenever she opened this cabinet she will remember that it was her Valentine’s surprise!!! We had a key, took the cabinet to their bedroom, removed the old nightstand, replaced it with the new one…Voila! She came home to a really neat surprise!!! And might there be a matching one in the works?? We can’t say.

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Custom fun – support local artists and make your dreams come true!!!!!

Feb 11

Valentine Expressions

By pattisays In art and interior design, art as gift ideas, artistic expression, beauty behold it, colors, decorative arts, design, design tips, DIY design, handcraft, handmade, hearts and design, inspiration, joy, love, red, Valentine's / 5 Comments

You know…we designers design for our clients and ourselves around themes, we design around events, we design around seasons and of course we design around the trends…it all keeps the commerce of products and materials in motion. And at this time of year, we see focus on wine clubs, pajama grams, stuffed teddy bears in enormous sizes, hearts, hearts, hearts…and roses natural red or gilded, it’s Valentine’s Day!!!

But it’s fair to note that all seasons have valid design consideration. Setting the scene, enhancing the moment – either for you, your family or a romantic encounter, the holidays and especially this one, evoke a desire to create a scene that conveys love and romance.

To that end , my blog is brief. Enjoy that which brings you joy. Revel in the happiness that presents itself. Create beauty where you can. And as we are want to say….art and good design can almost always bring a better scene to anyone’s place on this precious planet.

So be it a candy heart with a common message of joy, a product acquired to create a scene, a piece of jewelry to promise, a token to send love, a greeting of friendship, a message to offer support, it is all about connecting.

I decided to paint a bowl for my sweetheart. Yes, I had passed this guy’s booth, encouraged others to partake, had appreciated his talent, but never ventured forth. This year, I enjoyed sitting alongside Victor in the shade, with the waves lapping the beach, and soft music wafting through the air…allowing a moment of focus on an artistic expression, a blank canvas (my bowl) to say Happy Valentine’s Day to MY Valentine.

Here is the finished result.

Connecting. We at PATRICIAN DESIGN support local artists and hope that the next time that you need a gift, want to send a message, or desire a creative addition to your personal space, that you will consider local talent to fulfill that need. OR do it yourself DIY!!!

Wear ART – Shop Local – Support LOCAL artists – Need we say more?

Ok…we provide the greatest FREE gift wrap to get you on your way!!!

XXX000 Happy Valentine’s Day – (it’s Tuesday – better get prepared!!!)

PATRICIAN DESIGN

Jan 29

Hearts Are At The Heart Of It All

By pattisays In art and interior design, art as gift ideas, artistic expression, artists, children, decorative arts, design, design tips, handcraft, handmade, hearts and design, inspiration, interior design, lifestyle, love, Mexico, painters, personal expression, Uncategorized, Valentine's /

Su mundo es corazones. Artist Paola Alonso Rangel is at the heart of Vallarta and literally that is the name of her shop, Corazon Vallarta, where she thrives amidst the bustling activity in the old town, on a busy street corner, with much traffic flowing by both in vehicles and on foot.

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A man carrying a frightening large pane of glass about 6 feet long by 3 feet wide effortlessly and without intimidation marches down the street with taxis and buses bouncing by him. I cringe at the site and the young shop attendant, Nidia, shrugs with a smile and says “It’s Mexico.”

With Valentine’s Day nearing, this exciting little shop offers a wealth of opportunities to find just the right gift to say “be mine!”

Paola’s little Chihuahua, Pecas (Freckles), suns on the front step seemingly oblivious to all the activity swirling by. She is front and center of all that is happening in Corazon Vallarta.

A designer and hands-on artist of nearly everything she sells in her shop, Alonso Rangel is a model of organization and time utilization. She has her machine fine-tuned and knows just what it takes to create, prepare, produce and market her work.

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In the well-lit back room of her little tienda, she has all of her art supplies neatly organized on sturdy shelving sparing not one square inch of available space. Her computer plays soft Spanish songs that, with the fan blowing gently, creates a pleasing atmosphere where she designs and paints with a couple of assistants to assemble and package her work to sell.

As is true of most urban storefronts, the fine grit that is continuously accumulating from the dusty streets and vehicles in passing contributes to the concerns of successful retail presentation. Hers and others in this type of scene perhaps suffer more due to the cobblestones which collect and distribute ongoing layers of the sooty, dusty, fines. So everything is kept painstakingly clean and wrapped in cellophane – just another stage of the process that makes her conscientious practices so impressive.

From colorful wooden puzzles, picture frames, key hangers, boxes and magnets, the expansive home decor and gift collection, on which she collaborates with her brother in Guadalajara, is a treasure of her designs and creativity. All manner of colorful animals with whimsical expressions are the subjects of her puzzles with a bit of flowers and fruit in the mix for a generous variety of choices. Alonso Rangel designs all of the pieces while her brother and his crew with a manufacturing studio in Guadalajara do all the mill-work, brilliantly colorful painting and glossy lacquer finish.

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Other of her work is comprised of original one-of-a-kind creations on canvas and wood, heart-themed all in keeping with her heart-felt passion for corazones.

She efficiently sets-up her own assembly line of stages of production, with Pecas supervising closely, so that her by-hand (hecho a mano) originals are always filling the walls and shelves and being lovingly selected by customers to take home.

Steel heart sculptures, wooden cut-outs, carvings, and more are the multi-media of her continually, seemingly endless creative concepts and body of work!

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Thank you Paola for all of your inspiration – by design!

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Dec 24

The Art & Architecture of Gingerbread Houses

By pattisays In architecture, artistic expression, children, decorative arts, design, design competition, DIY design, fanciful design, food and interior design, fund raising ideas, Gingerbread houses, handcraft, handmade, history, inspiration, joy, nostalgia and design, party themes, personal expression, Uncategorized, winter / 2 Comments

Art and architecture meet all the time. Sculptural forms, building models, buildings themselves, sketches…but at this time of year, the fanciful world of gingerbread houses takes the spotlight and, in this recent scene we encountered, offered a beautiful fund-raiser while at it!!!

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As we pulled away in the pre-dawn hours of the morning…we felt the chill in the air and the glow over the mountain sending us on our way.

We traversed across the terminal and before cutting over left to the escalator, we spied—at the same time—a wondrously tall Christmas tree adorned with airplanes and ribbon…and surrounded by an amazing collection of ginger bread houses on display in some sort of fund-raiser fashion.

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Upon closer inspection, the fantasy became tangible. The individual structures took on a form of expressive life in their individual attention-getting style. Each one was quite unique incorporating rivers and ponds, vehicles and foliage of all manner.

It is a Christmas tradition to create a gingerbread house full of fantasy and fear, hope and salvation. From the simple joy of baking traditions for Christmas, to the many versions of fairy tales that save children from the wicked ones in the woods creating and story-telling surrounding these magical edifices makes gingerbread houses a staple of the winter holidays – all the while offering architectural design and construction projects for all ages. Below, see the Hanukkah version of this adorable house.

I just read a great piece by Tori Avey in which she summarized the history of gingerbread. http://toriavey.com/?s=gingerbread

She references architectural design with the fact that: Elaborately decorated gingerbread became synonymous with all things fancy and elegant in England. The gold leaf that was often used to decorate gingerbread cookies led to the popular expression ‘to take the gilt off of gingerbread.’ The carved, white architectural details found on many colonial American seaside homes is sometimes referred to as ‘gingerbread work’.

Having been raised on the east coast, describing houses with ornate “gingerbread” detailing was part of our vocabulary. I now see it in Rocky Mountain Victorians and California seaside cottages. It always conveys a quaint, welcoming feeling.

Avey further states: Gingerbread houses originated in Germany during the 16th century. The elaborate cookie-walled houses, decorated with foil in addition to gold leaf, became associated with Christmas tradition. Their popularity rose when the Brothers Grimm wrote the story of Hansel and Gretel, in which the main characters stumble upon a house made entirely of treats deep in the forest. It is unclear whether or not gingerbread houses were a result of the popular fairy tale, or vice versa.

Recently the record for world’s largest gingerbread house was broken. The previous record was set by the Mall of America in 2006. The new winning gingerbread house, spanning nearly 40,000 cubic feet, was erected at Traditions Golf Club in Bryan, Texas.

Everything is bigger in Texas!!!

The house required a building permit and was built much like a traditional house. 4,000 gingerbread bricks were used during its construction. To put that in perspective, a recipe for a house this size would include 1,800 pounds of butter and 1,080 ounces of ground ginger. Sounds more like a gingerbread resort!

So as we walked around this wonderful display at the ABQ Sunport and marveled at the colorful creativity, I knew this was the story for today.

The cartoon in the paper that morning also found humor in the subject.

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And to further galvanize that thought, we arrived in San Diego to find Keira proudly presenting their half-eaten, already picked apart gingerbread project in the center of the kitchen table. T’was the joy of gingerbread houses—post construction, eating them!!!

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