STYLISH ART DECO IN JACK RABBIT

A restaurant's interior stylized in art deco is opened in Jakarta. It has numerous antiques as decoration ornaments to lift up the atmosphere, gives you the sense of old and vintage feel. Thonet bentwood chair in black chosen to complete the concept. Bold color of black bringing the elegance combined with contemporary feel. 

Photos: Michael Moty courtesy of Freemagz

VALENTINE HEART GREEN

I am a lil bored by the usual theme of Valentine's Day. 

So here I create the green scheme for the celebration.

INDONESIAN HERITAGE: THE FOUNDING FATHER'S DESIGNS

Indonesian founding father, Soekarno, is an engineer graduated from Technische Hoogeschool Bandoeng or now known as Institut Teknologi Bandung – Bandung Institute of Technology. Besides as a president, he is also known as an artist, art lover and an architect also furniture designer. His designs are various from a house to a mosque. He and Oei Tjeng Hien in Bengkulu, Sumatra, in 1938 as explained by Yuke Ardhiati in her book ‘Bung Karno the Architect’, joined together to start furniture business under the label ‘Mebel Soekamerindoe’.

Soekarno’s furniture designs are placed on several palaces in Indonesia like Istana Negara in Jakarta, Istana Bogor located in Bogor, a small city near Jakarta, Istana Cipanas also in Bogor and Istana Tampak Siring in Bali. His designs also placed in Hotel Indonesia, Jakarta, and Hotel Samudra Beach in Pelabuhan Ratu, Sukabumi, West Java. In producing his designs, Soekarno is helped by some cabinet makers, like Chris Broekhuyzen, an art deco artist in Bandung.

‘I made myself the design of my office desk of one solid Indonesian teak.’

His designs are recognized have lotus shape, simple, clean and bodyship impression. Some of them have art deco touch combined with splash of Indonesian traditional, individualist and modernist. His collection also reflecting the romanticism with Biedermeyer style.

OSCAR 2011 NOMINEES FOR YOUR HOME DECORATION

With the Academy Awards nominations announced, it's time to look at how some of this year's contenders for best movie measure up design- and decor-wise. You can catch up some ideas of their set decorations. Today I'm bringin only the three movies that I think will inspire us. I think credit must be given to Karen O'Hara for Alice in Wonderland, Guy Dyas in Inception and Tora Peterson in Black Swan. 

ALICE IN WONDERLAND

INCEPTION

BLACK SWAN

courtesy  of IMDB, curbed, Oscar, Vanity Fair

RABBIT HEART

The upcoming Chinese new year is a rabbit gold. 

So here are some ideas inspired by rabbit for the new year.

CHINOISERIE SCHEME FOR THE UPCOMING CHINESE NEW YEAR

Celebrating Chinese New Year...
Here is my chinoiserie moodboard for your home decoration.

IMELDA AKMAL ARCHITECTURAL WRITER AWARD, BOOK LAUNCHING, EXHIBITION & TALKSHOW

Time: 11 February · 14:00 - 18:00

Location:  Citiwalk, Jakarta

Created by: Imelda Akmal Architectural Writer.

1. Awarding Ceremonial of  3 Design Competition Home Idea Series: Healthy Economical Home, Green Small Home, Tropical Energy Saving Home.
2. Exhibition of the winners' and nominees' design presentations.
3. A panel of jury commentary. 
4. Architectural and Design Seminar.
5. Launching of the latest 3 books, Home Idea Series, from Imelda Akmal Architectural Writer.
6. IAAW book corner. Special books of IAAW discount during the event. 

Imelda Akmal is one of well known architectural, interior design writers in Indonesia. Imelda started her writing career in 1993, after earning a diploma in architecture from Trisakti University in Jakarta. Instead of applying for a position at an architect firm, she joined the staff of Femina, a local women’s magazine, as a columnist.

In 1996, Imelda quit her job as a columnist and started writing her own books. Together with her spouse and co-worker, photographer Sonny Sanjaya, Imelda published her first book, titled Menata Rumah Mungil (Decorating Small Homes).  The book was a big hit and has been reprinted 13 times over the last 10 years. It also gives Imelda Akmal a trademark — the small homes designer.Imelda Akmal loves to write about architecture itself — referring to herself as an architecture writer — and has published more than 70 architecture and interior books. 50 Indonesian Architect + Emergings is Imelda’s third book that looks into the development of Indonesian architecture. Her two previous books, Indonesian Architecture Now and Indonesian Architecture Now (II) published in 2005 and 2008 respectively, highlighted the latest contemporary works by Indonesian architects and aimed to give international exposure to local architects.

Imelda moved to Australia to pursue a Master’s degree in business management and work as a freelance interior designer. From there she moved to Singapore. After living in foreign countries for quite long time, Imelda realized something that led her to writing her book about the development of Indonesian architecture.
“Indonesia is a vast country, but no one works to promote our architecture to the international world. So people knew nothing about contemporary Indonesian architecture development.”

Imelda therefore began to develop a concept about her first architectural writing endeavor, Indonesian Architecture Now. In this book, she presented the works of 20 local architects. Aimed at reaching international readers, the book was published in dual language, Indonesian and English. It took five years for Imelda to finish. It eventually became a major success. “Indonesian Architecture Now became a bestseller and was a recommended title for a month at bookstores in Singapore,” Imelda said. “It was a breakthrough. Local architects were most happy because finally their works got international recognition.”

Although Imelda wrote all of her books herself, she has formed a team that helps her write architectural and interior books. Established in 2002, Studio IAAW (Imelda Akmal Architectural Writers) consists of nine female writers who studied architecture. “I don’t know why my staff is all women. Maybe women are more interested in writing than men,” Imelda laughed. “But I require my staff to have an education in architecture because architectural writers need to be capable of appraising and criticizing designs.” The studio is currently handling a number of projects, including monthly interior design books and a series of architectural books. “For architecture books, we are working on a sequel to 50 Indonesian Architects + Emergings.”

source: The Jakarta Post

APPLYING HONEYSUCKLE FOR DECORATION - 2

Last year's Pantone color of the year was turquoise because of its calming effect (much-needed after a tumultuous 2009). This year, they're forecasting a way more vibrant color: Honeysuckle! According to Pantone Color Institute Executive Director Leatrice Eiseman, “In times of stress, we need something to lift our spirits. Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going – perfect to ward off the blues." - courtesy of shine

Here are some ideas of applying honeysuckle in various styles like contemporary, country, and bohemian....

The floral bedspread joins with the cushion cover on the chair to add subtle pattern to the scheme. The floral and toile de Jouy designs are traditional in style yet not too fussy, so they add just a hint of country charm.

The rough wooden finish of the huge wardrobe and the bedhead gives the room a natural, rustic feel. The rattan laundry basket, which doubles as a casual bedside table is also in tune with this mood.

Flashes of hot honeysuckle vines lift the look onto a slightly more exotic plane, adding color without overwhelming the overall air of contemporary cool.

This contemporary room shows how shades of one colour used together can create a successful scheme. The honeysuckle tone on the wall creates a bright but warm feel, while the darker tone stripes  add depth and further colour interest to the scheme.

This strong colour is used all over the walls to make the large room feel warm and cozy. Honeysuckle curtains and white bedlinen provide a touch of light relief. 

The pales blush of honeysuckle creates a light and pretty contemporary bedroom. Pale honeysuckle paint on both walls and floorboards gives a spacious feel making the large room feel especially bright and airy. A lively mint green highlights the window fraes, drawing attention to the attractive bay while offsetting the sugary quality of the honeysuckle. The vibrancy of exotic honeysuckle bedlinen defines the bed as the focal pint of the room.

Pretty honeysuckle and rose prints add a tender touch. The honeysuckle on the walls gives a warm, mid tone background that shows off to advantage the white storage furniture and bedlinen. 

The comfy furnishings that form the centerpiece of this snuggly scheme comprise a selection of different knits as well as soft fleecy fabrics. 

Dashes of hot honeysuckle counteract the iciness of the pale blue walls and the white woodwork, ceiling and duvet cover. They create a striking focal point in this welcoming contemporaray scheme.

pictures courtesy of 101 Bedroom, Stylish Room Solutions by Good Homes magazine BBC

APPLYING HONEYSUCKLE FOR DECORATION - 1

Last year's Pantone color of the year was turquoise because of its calming effect (much-needed after a tumultuous 2009). This year, they're forecasting a way more vibrant color: Honeysuckle! According to Pantone Color Institute Executive Director Leatrice Eiseman, “In times of stress, we need something to lift our spirits. Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going – perfect to ward off the blues."- courtesy of shine

Last year I posted my own version moodboard of honeysuckle. Now I'm trying to explain my idea of applying honeysuckle.

I know for some people honeysuckle can be too girly and intimidating. But here some tip you can apply if you interested in applying honeysuckle.

1. Use contrast and basic colors to neutralize the shocking, vibrant effect of honeysuckle
2. In terms you really don't have the courage to apply it, use honeysuckle in home accesories. Much safer than paint your wall with honeysuckle.

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Pictures courtesy of The Color Book, The Home Decorator's Colour & Texture Sourcebook, 180 Schemes for the home.