Super-sexy faucets by Brizo

When we redid our kitchen a couple of years ago, the perfect  finishing touch was the beautiful Talo faucet from Brizo.

Brizo makes lots of other beautiful faucets, and I’m going to share some of them with you, as well as the stories behind their designs.

Judd Lord is the chief of design for Brizo. Judd began his career at Delta Faucet Company over seventeen years ago. His career with Delta and Brizo has been punctuated by a number of highlights, including:

• In 2000, he was appointed Manager of Industrial Design with the challenge to establish Delta Faucet as a design and innovation forward company.
• In 2004, he was instrumental in laying out the groundwork for the Brizo portfolio, personally designing several of the initial marquee product suites in the fashion-forward brand.
• In 2006, he was made Director of Industrial Design. He continues to oversee creative direction for both the Brizo and Delta brands.

Judd's passion for design and his ability to make an emotional connection with the consumer through product design has lead to hundreds of design patents and numerous design awards. And some super-sexy faucets too!! Here are some of my favourites, with the product descriptions from Judd…

RSVP

Designed during the tremendous upswing of Glam influence in interior spaces and product design. As such, research had us to looking into all things Deco and Nouveau. The spout was directly inspired by this black and white fashion print by Erté:

You can see how the designer used the elegant female form in the curves of its vertical section and the spout itself draws inspiration from the outstretched arm of the model with the material flowing back down to the ground.

The epitome of the Glam movement at that time was all about indulgence and luxury and nothing captured this feeling better than crystal, hence the decision to partner with Swarovski, who themselves were going through a resurgence, to produce the piece de résistance for RSVP.

Vesi

One of the charter products for the then new Brizo brand, it too was looking to capitalize on the Deco influences of the day. Designed to take on a slightly more prominent feel through its geometry, Vesi was designed to make a statement without over doing it. The signature piece of the suite, the channel spout, was painstakingly designed to capture the aesthetic of water gently folding over itself as it travels down the length of the spout.

This water aesthetic was inspired by a small stream in Minnesota close to a cabin I had vacationed at for several years during the period of the design of this suite. The stream necked down and the banks coaxed the water into this loose criss-cross pattern. The Vesi channel spout does its best to recreate the same calming visual effect with its spout.

Belo

This elegant and fluid sculpture really came from a wanting of a beautiful form above all else…to design something typically not seen in a kitchen faucet. It’s sweeping, elongated reverse arc form that took on a stylized profile of a swan defies the conventional aesthetic of the standard kitchen fixture.

The addition of the sightline dipping around the base of the model stretching back up to the handle which carries the detail through in a gentle twist leads the eye around the entire piece.

Virage

Virage was designed at the peak of the Glam trend, mid 2000s. Both Art Deco and Art Nouveau design cues were strong and exerting influence in every style category, from the ultra-traditional to modern.

During this time we made a couple trend spotting trips to Europe, one to London and one to Paris. What we came away with were a lot of images capturing many of the architectural elements of these cities. A common theme identified was all the detailed and decorative iron work, especially in Paris. This ironwork became most intriguing to us.

Trevi

I can’t really speak to much to this as we imported this already designed from our then-sister company Damixa. I believe it was designed by the Phoenix Design group in Stuttgart, Germany. We wanted it in the line-up due to its unique V-body architecture and its crisp, clean modern lines which we knew would play well in the growing urban/loft residential environments.

And here’s one of the newest additions to the Brizo line-up, with the description from the Brizo web site…

Charlotte

The transitional Charlotte bath collection features flowing lines and classical elegance throughout a full suite. Bold symmetry, fused with rich details, provides an aura of instant sophistication to any bath.

The inspiration for the collection lies in the Art Deco movement, which is well known for its bold linear symmetry, lavish designs, and opulent style. The scalloped handles on the lavatory faucets add a layering detail often seen in ornate art deco buildings and sculptures.

The Charlotte collection serves as the platform for the launch of the new Brizo Cocoa Bronze^TM finish, which features warm, dark bronze tones. The finish adds to the luxury of the Charlotte collection's transitional design and is the perfect complement to the suite's polished nickel accents. {I haven’t seen this finish in person, but it looks GORGEOUS in pictures!}

"A trend we continue to see is a warmer color palette that can be used on fixtures ranging from traditional to modern," said Judd Lord, director of industrial design for the Brizo brand. "The Cocoa Bronze finish was specifically introduced so that any Brizo design can project an air of warmth and friendliness to the space, ultimately complementing the overall environment."

Now those are some pretty sexy faucets! Which one do you like best? I’m really liking the new cocoa bronze finish and the lines of Charlotte. But really, they’re ALL pretty fab!

If you’re looking for the perfect way to organize and record your home’s paint colours, click here to see how you can win your very own personal My Color Keeper paint colour fan deck.

Fab Furniture Friday with refinished wood

Not every rescued piece of furniture needs to be painted to bring it back to life. Sometimes, it just takes a whole lot of elbow grease to restore the natural beauty of the wood. Like these pieces of fab furniture, starting with this dresser by Jennie featured over at design*sponge. She started with this…

And transformed it into this..

Well, OK, it’s partly painted – but don’t the mahogany drawers look amazing framed by the grey paint?

Here’s another design*sponge find by Matt (partly painted too). He took this old dresser…

And created this amazing piece – aren’t the herringbone drawers and leather pulls genius?!

Some lucky people find awesome vintage card catalogues, like this one that Susan at Maple and Magnolia found on Kijiji:

She sanded it all down…

And now she has this beauty:

And here’s an interesting spin on a vintage card catalogue – summerswann at Craftster transformed this $7 find:

…into a coffee table!

I don’t know about you, but I’m on the hunt for a vintage card catalogue now!

If you have a piece of furniture that you’ve built, repaired, refinished, repurposed, reinvented, or otherwise done something fabulous to, send me some pictures and the story behind it, and I’ll feature it in a future Fab Furniture Friday post.

And if you’re looking for the perfect way to organize and record your home’s paint colours, click here to see how you can win your very own personal My Color Keeper paint colour fan deck.

Happy weekend!

My Color Keeper + a giveaway

A couple of weeks ago, I came across a product called My Color Keeper. I wrote to the company and asked if it would be possible to get a sample, and within a week I received two Color Keepers in the mail. I think it’s a great little product, and want to share it with you in case you haven’t heard of it.

My Color Keeper is essentially your own little personalized fan deck. It allows you to keep a record of the colours you've used throughout your home, both indoors and outdoors. The concept is pretty simple and straightforward.

1. Open the screw holding the deck together and remove the cards. Apply a paint colour to as many cards as you need (up to twelve per deck) and allow to dry.
2. Flip the card over and record all the information about the paint colour – what rooms(s) you used it in, if you used it indoors or outdoors, the brand, the colour name and number, the sheen, where you purchased the paint, the painter’s name (if you hired a painter), and any special formula information.
3. Return the cards to the screw, re-attach the deck, and there you go – your very own personal fan deck with a record of all the paint colours in your home.

There’s also a card that will hold a business card from your paint store, painter, decorator, or contractor. My Color Keeper is small enough to fit into your purse or pocket, so you can bring it with you when you’re shopping for furniture and fabrics.

If you’re interested in picking up a Color Keeper, contact YHDistributors to find a retailer near you in Canada.

Phone : 888-933-5999
E-mail: yhdistributors@bellnet.ca

If you’re in Ottawa, you can get a Color Keeper at Hampton Paint (a Benjamin Moore dealer) located in the Hampton Plaza at Carling & Kirkwood. And seeing as I have two Color Keepers, I think I’ll give one away to one of my readers. Just leave a comment below and tell me what your favourite paint colour is (brand and colour name). I’ll use random.org to pick a winner on October 26th.

Thing-a-ma-boob 2011

For all of you fabulous ladies out there…

If only we could go into our pink kitchen…

…whip up a few batches of cancer-curing pink cupcakes…

…share them with family and friends in our pink dining room…

…and dream sweet dreams in our pink bedroom in a world without cancer…

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Chances are, you or someone you know has had breast cancer. Let’s slam the door in cancer’s face!

And take good care of your boobies! Go to these web sites to learn how… (click the logos)

Image sources: (1) iVillage (2) Sweet and Saucy Shop (3) Houzz (4) Gary McBournie via House Beautiful (5) Moises Esquenazi

Fab Furniture Friday with schue love

After a little hiatus last week, I’m back with a great Fab Furniture Friday makeover to share with you. Natasha Schue writes the blog schue love – it’s all about fashion & food & home decor. When I saw the hutch makeover that Natasha did, I knew it would be perfect for Fab Furniture Friday :-)

This is the hutch before. There’s really nothing wrong with it – it’s actually quite a nice piece.

But Natasha made a good thing even better by painting the hutch black. Now, it looks like this:

Pretty sweet, eh? Love how the black hutch stands out against the light wall, and how the white ceramic ware stands out against the black hutch. And check out this great detail – Natasha dressed up the back of the hutch with beautiful wallpaper.

Love how both the colour and the wallpaper really update the hutch and give it a more modern look and feel. Natasha did a great job styling the hutch as well…

Another great example of how some paint and creativity can transform a piece of furniture into a FAB piece of furniture!

Awesome job, Natasha!

To read more about Natasha’s hutch makeover, click here. And If you have a piece of furniture that you’ve built, repaired, refinished, repurposed, reinvented, or otherwise done something fabulous to, send me some pictures and the story behind it, and I’ll feature it in a future Fab Furniture Friday post.

Happy weekend!

Barn again

One thing I’d love to incorporate into our home is reclaimed barn board. I just love the rough, rustic look of worn wood, weathered to a beautiful silvery grey. So when I saw this room with an awesome barn board ceiling on Kenneth Brown’s Facebook page, it was love at first sight.

I had to find more examples of this fab look. Love this kitchen, especially the combination of the barn board ceiling with the watery blue glass tile backsplash.

Image via Houzz

Sarah Richardson and Tommy Smythe used barn board on the ceiling in this bedroom they designed for her farmhouse on Sarah’s House.

Beautiful soft colour palette in this bathroom – I’m guessing it was inspired by the shades of grey in the barn board on the ceiling.

Image via Tracery

Not the weathered grey barn board of the other ceilings, but this brown barn board ceiling creates a warm & earthy vibe in this space.

Image via Pinterest

Another beautiful brown barn board ceiling in this pretty dining room.

Image via Morgan Design Inc.

And how about this room with the awesome barn board ceiling and custom-made bookshelves designed by Mortise & Tenon Custom Furniture in Los Angeles, California. They salvaged the exterior siding of a 200 year old barn in Virginia and used it to create this amazing ceiling.

I have the beginnings of a little barn board project floating around in my head at the moment. I’ll let you know if I actually go ahead and do it (like I don’t have enough half-finished projects already on the go!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

This year, I have something to be VERY thankful for – we got Jackson back! Whatever you’re thankful for this year, I wish you a very happy turkey day. And happy Columbus Day to my US friends :-)

Image via Better Homes & Gardens

I’ll have another instalment of Fab Furniture Friday for you next week.

WEEEEEHOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jackson is home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At 4:30 this morning, hubby and I both woke up after hearing a bark. Hubby went to the front door, and there was Jackson! He found his way home!!!! We have no idea how he did it – there are some pretty busy roads between Bruce Pit and where we live. If yesterday’s sightings of Jackson were accurate, he would have had to cross a major highway twice to get from where he was last seen to our house. And he had to travel between 8-10kms (possibly more). It’ll always be a mystery, but that doesn’t matter – the little nerdbomb is home!!!!

A huge thank you to all of you who took the time to leave supportive comments, everyone who sent positive thoughts and good karma and said prayers, everyone who spread the word via Facebook & Twitter & blogs, people who called with sighting info, friends who came out on a wet & dreary day to help us search for him… from close friends to complete strangers, so many people had a part in getting Jackson home safe & sound (other than a porcupine quill in his chin). We’re so grateful for everything you all did to help.

I’m looking forward to staying dry and not walking anywhere today, and getting a good, long sleep tonight. And I’m sure Jackson feels the same way!

Once again,

For all of you who left comments on my last post, I’ll be by soon to visit your blogs and say a proper thank you. It might take me a day or two, but I’ll be there!

Jackson is missing

Our Catahoula Leopard Dog, Jackson, went missing this afternoon. My hubby brought him to Bruce Pit on Cedarview in Ottawa around noon, and he ran off with another dog and disappeared. We searched for him till 9:00 tonight with no luck.

He has a microchip and tags on his collar with our contact info. I know it’s a longshot, but maybe someone out there will find Jackson, see this blog post, and help us get him back. And if you could help spread the word and send some positive vibes this way, that would be great.

Jackson is an absolute sweetheart, and I cannot imagine not having him in our lives. I’m beyond heartbroken right, but I’m really trying to be positive.

Thanks,