Interior Design Sense

Alia Bengana is a French architect from Algiers currently based in Paris who kindly sent us photos of a few of her unpublished projects to share with our readers. This first project is the complete refurbishment and division of a 195 square metre Parisian apartment into 2 separate apartments. This is great – I dig the mid-century/modern/vintage feel, that marble bathroom is heavenly and helloooooooo herringbone floor!

When it comes time to do the laundry in a house or apartment complex with multiple tenants living with or near one another, the idea that they might toss all of their clothing into one machine might never occur to them. According to designer Anthony Yu, its because of this situation that we waste a lot more water than we really should be each time laundry day comes around. The solution is one of multiple tanks and a smart machine brain which knows just how much H2O you need per load.

Why would I toss my shirts in with another random person’s pants if I don’t have to? With the Lavadora laundry machine, you’ve got not just more than one separate compartment for clothes, you’ve got a smart machine with an electronic brain which can tell how much clothing you’ve got in and how much water it needs to pump out. This machine also has the ability to filter and re-use water and has a fabulously easy-to-use interface to keep your clothes washing activities as simple as possible

Designer: Anthony Yu

When it comes time to do the laundry in a house or apartment complex with multiple tenants living with or near one another, the idea that they might toss all of their clothing into one machine might never occur to them. According to designer Anthony Yu, its because of this situation that we waste a lot more water than we really should be each time laundry day comes around. The solution is one of multiple tanks and a smart machine brain which knows just how much H2O you need per load.

Why would I toss my shirts in with another random person’s pants if I don’t have to? With the Lavadora laundry machine, you’ve got not just more than one separate compartment for clothes, you’ve got a smart machine with an electronic brain which can tell how much clothing you’ve got in and how much water it needs to pump out. This machine also has the ability to filter and re-use water and has a fabulously easy-to-use interface to keep your clothes washing activities as simple as possible

Designer: Anthony Yu

Love this little apartment in an art deco complex in Potts Point, Sydney. Stylish black and white with wonderful wooden floors slap bang in the middle of the Macleay St action. Lunch at Fratelli Paradiso anyone? Yum! As much as I love those floors I wonder if a graphic rug wouldn’t help? Maybe the Bazaar rug from Freedom. (Smooth segue!) Perhaps in the bedroom if you can’t face covering those boards in the living area. Link for the apartment sale here and don’t forget our Freedom rug giveaway finishes last thing Saturday. You can enter here.

P.S. I won’t be blogging tomorrow. I have a hot date with my Faded Empire website. A solid day of ironing out the bugs and fine tuning for the launch next week. But I’ll be back Saturday with 3 days of Easter reading guides. Yay! Lots of new blogs to discover!)

If you’ve ever had to take your bike up stairs at the subway or to your apartment, you know it can be grueling and awkward.  Lift is a clever bicycle accessory that makes carrying your bike easy as pie. the lightweight, durable strap is as easy to set up as it is to break down. You can even throw it in the washer when it gets dirty. So simple it makes you wonder “why didn’t I think of that!?”

Designer: Samantha Del Rosario

I have been siiiiiiiiiick all weekend and have zero energy to do all the things I need to get done – including blogging. So I thought instead of spending lots of time scouring blogland for my weekly favs, I would instead share this awesome Swedish apartment with you today. Hope you’re all having a better weekend than I am, one not involving an entire box of tissue and coughing up a couple lungs.

Love it. I adore the way the black anchors all the white. The built in furniture is a stroke of genius as far as space planning in a narrow apartment goes and I also love the way they used extra space, i.e. the sunroom and the bedroom built in, to buffer the Spanish heat. I’m moving in!

South Yarra, Melbourne. One townhouse, one apartment. Both by Melbourne architectural and development firm Neometro. Strong sense of place and space. Rugged, almost industrial use with concrete juxtaposed with understated luxury. It’s about buildings wearing in not wearing out. Real estate stalking on a Saturday. Links here and here while they last.

Back in ’09 I blogged a project of New York based interior designer Frances Herrera. She recently sent along a new project (that I absolutely fell in love with) that is near and dear to her heart. 

This home is located in Forest Hills, Queens, New York. This project is my pride and joy as it’s the home I share with my husband. When we purchased the apartment, it was in serious need of a makeover. Being a pre-war apartment, It has lots of charm and character along with lots of years of “wear and tear” and needed some updating. The renovation took  3 months which included replacing doors and moldings, sanding and custom staining floors, installing new ceiling lighting, painting and lots of other odds and ends. The overall result is a contemporary, serene environment, that feels peaceful, fresh and inspiring. It’s a perfect neutral canvas where I can showcase my art, collected objects, and test out accessories and looks for my residential design projects.
My most favorite aspect of my home, which is the main reason why we purchased the space,  is the southern exposure which fills the apartment with beautiful light that is critical for me as an interior designer. I can never have a bad day in the space, it’s my ultimate sanctuary!

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Remember the fabulous art noveau meets midcentury Scandinavian Tenbosch House? Want more? The interiors were by Michel Penneman. How about his art collector’s apartment? More midcentury classics and gallery walls to die for and I spy my new furniture crush, another Vico Magistretti Maralunga piece. This time the sofa. I think I could just about move straight in. Sigh.