A Barcelona Beauty

How could you even possibly think of passing up such a beautiful historical apartment in Barcelona. Well when you have a baby on the way and there's a possibility of being evicted due to redevelopment you might question it! Well question it they did, but Cecilia Tham and Yoel Karaso of Habitan Architects fell in love with the original ornate molding and stunning tile work and they figured out how to make it work. The design of the kitchen and bathroom were created more furniture like and not fitted into any walls, so in case this upheaval happened, they would be able to take all their valuable elements with them. Such a genius idea!

I bet the acoustics in this place are crazy! Look at the height of those doors and that gorgeous ceiling...WOW!
A bathtub and sink combo how incredible is this!

Oh my goodness! I am obsessed with that tile! And those light filled windows with the blue shutters are incredible! I hope they never have to leave!

I love all these raw elements and I'm going to say it one last time...I'm obssessed with the tile:-)

Thanks Dwell for such a wonderful feature! Check out the entire article here.

CaBoom Product 4: The Peace Project

One of my all time favorites from the CaBoom Show was the Peace Project by Granada Tiles. This collaboration with local artists is a great way to give back to this wonderful world we live in. I love this bit from Granada Tile Site:

"Peace has many dimensions and can only be achieved when many people join their individual efforts (symbolized by 4” x 4” tiles) together creatively."

Here is some work from a couple of the contributing artists.

"Peace Tree"
Carol Caley
Carol Caley Design Associates
studio9999@aol.com

The Peace tree is made up of hands reaching toward one
another from around the world, seeking harmony with
other people and with the earth.

Designated Charity: Heifer Int'l (www.heifer.org)

"Lillith Peace"
Thimo Pimentel

I have chosen the white dove to represent Peace,
the caribbean blue for the sky, a natural background
for the confraternity around the globe, the green
for the laurel leaves and the flora and the way we
must chose to protect and restore the environment,
and yellow representing the earth inside a circle
representing the world as a whole.

Designated Charity: The Susana de Moya Foundation
(www.sdmfoundation.org)


Anyone can submit their designs and I encourage all you artists to do so! Artists receive 5% of each order, and another 5% is sent to the charity the artist designates. You could design the next Fez Tile or Burgos Tile:-)

Fez Tile

Burgos Tile

3...2...1...INTELLIGENTSIA TAKES OFF!

I'll be honest...it's Friday and I'm definitely ready for the weekend. I needed that extra boost today so on my way home from an appointment I rode on over to check out the new Intelligentsia Venice on Abbot Kinney. Man I love their coffee!


After all the hype I couldn't wait to see the interior of this new take on the "coffee shop". Well, let me just say it's not the same Bohemian Modern feel of Intelligentsia Silverlake with that oh so beautiful blue and white ceramic tile and plywood shelving. This space designed by MASS Architecture is more like a turbo jet ready for take off. It's designed to get you in and out. There are so many lines and shapes creating so much energy, and I was a little confused about all the mixtures of wood. The walnut stations are gorgeous, but the honey colored counters and the tigerwood seating threw me off a bit. Please do read about the concept behind this store, it's very interesting. I'm not going to judge just yet as I feel they will work out the kinks. I really appreciate that they are thinking outside the box and I will definitely visit often. Here's a peek....photos via nicely85 and Eater La.

the hangar :-) and the stations

the lovely entrance.

Here are some gorgeous shots of the Intelligentsia Silverlake Coffeebar designed by Barbara Bestor Architecture.
photos via Barbara Bestor Architecture.

David Hicks Floor Tile

There has recently been a gusto in the patterned floor tile trend and who better to see on the floor than David Hicks.  His classic motifs have been reproduced as floor tiles by his son Ashley Hicks for Studium NYC and are selling for $75/sf.

If you you want this patterened effect for less look over at Star of Morocco,

Alhambra Tile $3.99/sf

Fez Tile $3.99/sf

 Moorish Tile $7.49/sf

There are many more beautiful Moroccan designs over at Sahara Designs located in San Diego, CA.