Inspiration

So it all started with this picture... The lovely Meghan Rand sent it over as a daily door for my other blog. Something about the picture sparked my imagination. The cobalt blue against the green just popped in a magical way. A few days later I saw this on a Swedish blog...

Then I saw these images on a travel blog about Shanghai....

Obviously, its undeniable that color is everywhere, especially when you live in an urban setting. However, I think what really caught my eye about these images was that we've been living in such a neutral world of design for the last ten years. Their is no denying that their is a time and a place for neutrals but lately I've been dying for some bright bursts of color to disrupt the beige landscape and frankly I think that time has come. Below is a great image of one of the Ace Hotels latest ventures. I love the bright bursts of color against the black subway tiles. It's both bold and playful all at once.

There's my favorite green once again - this time popping up at an LA burger house (if anyone knows the name of it please let me know - I've got to get better at labeling my pictures). So it looks like I've got my next color scheme picked out now all I need is the business to pay me to do it.

-Whitney

Who says good design has to be expensive?

Have you stopped to notice how often people start their sentences with "in this economy..." It's become such a common occurrence that me and my friends have started a little game where you can use the economy as a scapegoat for any occasion. Jokes aside, I'd like to add one more to the list: "In this economy, you can't afford not to travel in style."

The hospitality sector is finally catching on to the notion that you don't have to spend a fortune to make a space stylish. Travel and Leisure put out a great article this month about some of the beautiful budget hotels popping up around the world. This all points to what I think will be one of the many lessons our country can learn from economic hardship: good design often takes place when we are faced with budgetary obstacles and are forced to be creative.

The Standard Hotel in downtown LA.


The Jane in New York

Mama Casa in Paris

The Ace Hotel in Portland

The Ace Hotel in Palms Springs