30Jan

A New York Townhouse That’s London Style In Many Ways

You know a home is well designed when moving to another country, you enlist the same Interior designer to replicate the best features into your next new abode. The owners of this chic and timeless townhouse in New York City moved from London and having loved their previous home it’s no surprise that they needed to incorporate the best of it. They enlisted Hugh Leslie to do just that.

The townhouse was infused with a modern color palette, comfortable furniture, and creative touches as the Mondrian inspired kitchen cabinets.

The three-dimensional floor in the entryway was one of the requirements of the owners. And I perfectly understand why, as I used the same design in my son’s bathroom.

06Nov

A Sophisticated London Penthouse That You Should See

London Interior design is known for being sophisticated, usually mostly neutrals or boldly colorful, and with great handcraft details. See for yourself. This penthouse exudes exactly those design elements. Subdued but elegant wood work in the form of wall paneling, chevron floors and a refined selection of furniture. The elegant penthouse, designed by De Rosee Sa, is located in Ladbroke Square, a Notting Hill’s garden square. The interior design was inspired by the elegant apartments of Paris with French windows, Juliet balcony, and tall ceilings.

In order to accomplished that De Rosee Sa rebuilt the structure of the apartment and the interior was re-planned to make more of the views.

19Sep

Nina Flohr Sophisticated London Home That Is As Cozy As Is Elegant

When I included a beautiful master bedroom with a canopy bed in my post yesterday, I knew I was going to post the rest of the house today. The London townhouse belongs to Nina Flohr and was designed by Veere Greeney. The home is an excellent interpretation of transitional design, contemporary but clearly rooted in classic Interior Design. I love that this home feels as if it was enveloped in coziness with just the right amount of glam or what I like to call a livable glamour. A touch of lamour is there enough to add some twinkle but it wont overwhelm you and you wont get tired of it. The townhouse once belonged to Nina’s father, Thomas Flohr the founder of VistaJet, an aviation company. Most recently Nina Flohr founded the non-profit Kisawa Sanctuary in Mozambique where she will soon also develop a hotel. The townhouse is featured in this month’s AD where you can read more about it.

The elegant decor in the living room with a monochromatic pallete of dark mustard, yellows and green. Color in Interiors are coming back as I reffered to in this post about Design Trends For Fall 2018.

06Feb

Art Exhibitions And Fashion Events: February Edition

The days are getting 2 minutes longer everyday. I can notice it every late afternoon and that makes me so happy and excited. Soon we’ll be ditching the heavy coats and boots and embracing lighter clothes… Just the thought of it is inspiring. For now I would be content visiting one of these art exhibitions and fashion events during this month of February.

art exhibitions and fashion events via belle vivir blog

New York

New York Fashion Week From Feb 8-14

Fall 2018 fashion shows kick of in New York on February 8th until the 14th. I can’t wait to see what Fashion Designers will present and what the fashionistas wear on the streets. To see the schedule go here. The entire month of February is the month when Fashion Designers present their Fall/Winter Collection in different cities around the world. The fashion marathon goes in this order New York from Feb 8-14, London Fashion Week Feb 16-20, Milan FW Feb 21-27 and Paris FEb 27 to March 6. I wonder how fashion editors and buyers survive…

NY NOW at Javits Center From February 3-7

NY NOW takes place twice a year featuring three collections, Home, Lifestyle and Handmade. It’s the premier market for all that’s new and on trend in specialty retail.

06Oct

Diana: A Style Icon: The People’s Princess

It may sound so trivial to call Princess Diana a Style Icon when you compare that to her most significant legacy, which in the opinion of many, was one of kindness, true love, compassion, tolerance and sacrifice. Above all she was a great mother and her devotion and love for her children and personal suffering may have set the course for the more relaxed and down to earth royal family atmosphere today. I remember my mom telling me how much she was criticized during Prince William’s Christening for comforting her son by letting him suckle her pinky finger. Yes, the world can be that ridiculous sometimes… I still remember the shocking feeling the night Diana died and I how that year we lost so many luminary figures that were a source of great light, Mother Teresa, Gianni Versace, Willem De Kooning and others. Some people believe that when great people die they become stars that shine upon this earth in difficult moments. I just hope that is not the case because judging by these dark days, that would mean losing a lot of the good ones. And we can’t afford that right now.

Princess diana a stile icon

24Aug

Rose Uniacke: Her kitchen two looks

If you have not seen at least one of the refined rooms designed by Rose Uniacke then you’ve been living under a rock. Her perfect balance between the raw and the refined has fashioned her a very acclaimed interior designer. Uniacke studied philosophy and worked for a furniture-restoration workshop where she learned about antiques. The latter experience and the influence of her mother, an antiques dealer as well, honed her style and knowledge of antiques and she became an antiques dealer herself. Good antiques, the right clients and her great sense of style, light and proportions marked the path for her renowned Interior Design firm. I posted about her kitchen a few years ago. The kitchen with high ceilings, the right amount of light and absence of upper cabinets was already beautifully understated but as many other designers do, Uniacke also keeps updating and changing things around her house. In February of this year Vogue magazine showed her London home in which the kitchen has a completely different look. I can’t think of a better place to experiment than our own homes… Rose actually renovated her entire house and converted the basement into a swimming pool, and a hamam… The house also has one of the most beautiful conservatories I’ve seen. The glass-roofed conservatory is the first room you see upon entering the house…marking the serenity found throughout the house…

In the previous kitchen there was an island, a more industrial stove and different overhead lighting. In the latest version, the island was removed, the lighting was replaced and the stove is more modern. Other details like the shelving and paintings were also changed…