Tag: featured

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Achieving the Bright White-Blue Zone in Interior Design

By: Angelo Adamo, Principal Director for Design Elemental Studio

Rendering of Design Elemental Studio’s Show Home – Tour available early Summer 2022 (by associate designer Koralia Giori)

There are specific moments in life which you preserve as memories.  These memories are stored as vital snapshots that form our unique personalities.

To begin the process of today’s modern interior design, you need to discover the value of these snapshots and how they affect your response to color, texture, and scent.

Somehow, we have lost our ability reconnect to our senses because of information overload from social media.  However, my method called Human Sense Connectivity enables us to reconsider our connections. 

Athletes achieve optimal success when they enter a “zone” which is when there is synergy between motion and memories.  The objective to achieving the “zone” is finding your trigger points.  Athletes relentlessly practice and rehearse their trigger points and to remember a scheduled process that coaches prepare for optimal performances.

Surprisingly, I use this same method of finding your zone with interior design.  Finding your zone with design is to realize the correlation between reality and your trigger points. Colors, texture, and scent are primarily the senses that emotionally influence your design decisions.

Human Sense Connectivity is the zone between your snapshots and reality. This method is a new version of interior design that allows a more purposeful living environment.

One of my favourite beaches in South Australia – Port Elliot

I grew up near a beautiful beach called Grange Beach in Adelaide, South Australia.  I would exercise almost daily at Grange Beach when I was a teenager.  All my aspirations and determination were built during these moments.  I vividly remember the bright white-blue colors of the sky that have become my vital snapshots.  This is my way of connecting with home in Adelaide and it assures me with the emotions of comfort and solitude.

Designing your space using memories and trigger points are methods for a more purposeful interior.  There are visual and meditative techniques that I use to tap into the zone. However, this does not prevent you from creating a high-end luxury interior but rather a guide to your finish and material selections. Your style of design is dictated by your fashion sense and cultured background.  The connections between materials and objects are controlled by familiarity and personal attractions.

The future of interior design is not only about the sustainability of building but to feel connected to your environment.  Finding clarity within your space provides support and direction to a modern lifestyle that is going to become more holistic and authentic. 

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FINDING CALM… IN YOUR HOME

On a cold evening, I had a lengthy conversation with my wife about how to stay focused during hard times.  We agreed that it’s easy to get overwhelmed by so many external forces that we have no control over… like this current pandemic that’s literally halted the world. 

Being confined helps us to better understand the purpose of our homes. We now see that our interiors are not only for living but an essential space to find calm.

Calm is not like a passion where clarity, drive, and determination are the fundamentals for succeeding.  Calm is finding a space to trust that reflects your personal memories of strength and wellbeing.

Calm is by far holds greater importance during times of despair.  Calm is remembering the peaceful moments that attribute to your happiness and positive outlook. 

One of my fondest memories with my wife Katharine in Italy – Designing with accent colors of yellow is important to me to find calm at home.

My calm moments are the times I spent growing up in Australia. My connection to nature and to family celebrations are the building blocks to my memories associated to specific colors like this aqua sea blue color.

My regular morning walks at Grange Beach – my home in South Australia. My relationship with weathered wood and white trim comes from memories of this jetty.

My theory of Human Sense Connectivity explores the relationship between memories and external influences (see previous blog on Human Sense Connectivity).  Therefore, the initial stage of design should focus on personal experiences and lifestyle.

The first steps to finding meaning within your interiors are to start isolating your thoughts and start filtering the memories that have had a positive impact.  These flashbacks become the roadmap to your style and design direction.

If you are fortunate to design your home from the initial programming phase, it is important to accumulate enough details that will help you move forward into the next phase. The preliminary design phase begins the filtering process of materials and to start emphasizing the balance of color and contrast of texture.

Having room to breathe does not mean you need more square footage. You need to prioritize the efficiencies of each room and how your organize objects and furniture. I typically visualize each space before I decide on a design direction. Having floor plans and elevations are a great source to help visualize.

Kitchen rending of Design Elemental Studio’s Show Home in Northern Michigan. Larger windows and bi-fold sliding glass doors are a key feature to the indoor and outdoor living spaces.

Having a courtyard is the new backyard. I grew up in Australia but my family was from Italy. I remember the courtyards in Italy that allowed for neighbors to gather and for children to play. My concept of this courtyard will be accessed by the kitchen and dining room for entertainment.

I will be using large slab porcelain tile for the flooring in the entertainment spaces and hardwood flooring in the living spaces. The tile will then flow into the outside courtyards to obtain consistency between spaces. The holistic combination of stone and wood represents nature and a connection to the environment. The horizontal surfaces are reflective and neutral. A wood ceiling provides a balance to the neutral tones.

First impression is everything, so having a strong looking corridor and a front entrance will then be the catalyst of the remaining spaces.

Bathrooms are very personal. Tile plays such an important factor to the design which is why Design Elemental Studio has an exclusive range of porcelain tile available for our homes.

A relaxing and sophisticated use of materials gives this space a charm that will never outdate.

Changing the way we think about our interiors

Designing your space is a process and requires a mentor who can retrieve information from your memories to build a more meaningful and impactful solution to your home. It’s not just about the aesthetic appeal but how you find calm amongst a hectic and consuming world. This is a new approach to design and an assertive process to build a sustainable and efficient luxury lifestyle.

My daughter and I spending time with our Aussie family in Florence, Italy 2019