Big Bar Lake

My Associate Interior Designer and CAD Technician extrodinaire, Carole Root, has just come back from a fishing weekend at a cabin set on Big Bar Lake.  Big Bar Lake is situated in the High Country Region (or as it is commonly referred to as "The Cariboo") of British Columbia and is located north of Clinton and west of 70 Mile House.  It is some of the most beautiful countryside I have set my eyes on. The weather was perfect autumn days when the colors are magnificent, crisp and clear.  I can almost smell the lake and the freshness of the air when I look at these pictures.  How wonderful to be out in nature, truly away from it all.  Below are some of the pictures Carole took with her new camera, a  Canon Rebel XSI.  I hope these pictures are as much a feast for your eyes as they are for mine.  Thanks Carole.  Enjoy..........

Big Bar Lake Sunrise (that is the moon still visible in the sky)

Big Bar Creek

Aspen

Bull Rush

Bush

Grass

Gray Bird
Post Script Oct 30 2008   Gray bird photo is actually a Gray Jay otherwise known as a Whiskey Jack. What's in a name? Well our First Nations people knew this creature as "wiss-ka-tjon" or "wis-ka-chon". In the old-time lumbering days the Jay would visit the lumberjacks in the northern forests of Canada. In turn, the lumberjacks shared their grub with it and came to call it "Whiskey-Jack". Now the bird's modern "common" name is "Gray Jay" or "Canada Jay"(and its scientific name is Perisoreus Canadensis).

Jack Pine

Trout & Rod

Big Bar Lake Sunset

Patricia Gray writes about Interior Design inspirations, emerging trends, and the world of Design. 
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Black and White or White and Black?

I adore these coffee tables made in fabric, PU or leather. The monochrome effect is striking in an understated way, the pattern is inspired by natural objects which have been placed ingeniously around the base, providing a style which would look stunning in a variety of different hone or office interior design styles.

The Buono-coffee table was launched and exhibited by PimPen.Co.Ltd at the 100% Design Exhibition in September this year and is designed to be both a coffee table and a stool. This piece look incredibly comfortable as a stool, just perfect for perching on informally! I can also see this table being used as a foot stool, a contemporary twist on the traditional pouffe in many homes.

The circular insert lends itself beautifully for placing a mug of coffee during the day or a glass of wine at informal gatherings or a quiet night in by the fire! The practicality of incorporating this piece of modern furniture into homes I believe are endless, although they have been made as part of the Buono collection of seating they would look equally striking coordinated with people’s existing furniture suites, more particularly if they are also in plain black or white fabric or leather.

Chic and sophisticated the Buono-coffee table has an unfussiness which I really enjoy, stylish yet functional and exceptionally pleasing to the eye with no harsh rigid lines one’s attention remain focused on the coffee table. For me, either colour way, black and white or white and black is reminiscent of Ying and Yang, balance and harmony.

Image source: www.100percentdesign.co.uk

The Ultimate in Recycling?

This has bench has got to be one of the most innovative designs in ultimate re-cycling! The “334” bench is made strangely enough from 334 old newspapers which have been folded and stacked next to one another on three parallel bars of metal. The design shape and number of newspapers provides the bench with enough strength to hold five people.

Not only is the “334” bench extremely economical and an excellent way to re-cycle it has a design shape which is simplistic yet proportional, suiting all manner of interior design styles.

Created by Oscar Lhermitte, product design student at the central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, the “334” bench is part of his 'X Days Project', the concept behind the “334” bench has been used to inspire people into recycling and creating their own unique and fascinating pieces of furniture and useful objects without using glues or screws!

I think this type of effective and practical re-cycling should be encouraged in schools as part of 'going green' campaigns. I suppose for those who wish to be annoyingly pedantic one could only use the newspapers one reads! Saving a daily newspaper, a bench could be successfully completed within a year and the colour supplements could be created into coordinating coffee tables!

I'll be interested to know how well this fantastic idea catches on and whether it will only people who read certain newspapers actually give it a go! Of course there is bound to be the dilemma of where to store a years worth of newspapers somewhere dry while or maybe it should be an ongoing project which gradually evolves over the days and weeks!

Image source: www.woohome.com

Tom Raffield- Ash Pendant No.1

Tom Raffield, co-founder of Sixisis, has created his own company from which he has used the most beautiful local English Ash to create this unique sculptural light shade.

A piece of true craftsmanship which looks as stunning during the daylight hours when natural light permeates through the coils and woven twists as it does when the energy saving soft glow giant light bulb, which Tom supplies with every commission, is switched on. The visual effects highlight the natural colouring of the wood magnificently while offering a soft, subtle lighting effects.


Tom is renowned for his designs using sustainable woods. To create the light shade he steams green, unseasoned wood to provide him with the flexibility to bend, coil and weave the strips into this fabulous design. His low energy manufacturing methods are truly remarkable, he uses only water and local wood, any wood waste goes to a local smoke house to cure fresh salmon and mackerel.

I really like this piece of practical sculptural art. This particular piece has a 60cm diameter, however, different sizes will be made on request, contact@tomraffield.com

I believe Tom has costed his work at low prices, Ash Pendant No.1 is only £250, making he work very affordable as well as genuinely unique.

As Tom has called this Ash Pendant No.1 I sincerely hope he is going to produce numbers two and three very soon!

Ash pendant No.1 was recently unveiled at Liberty of London and is currently available to see at the Re Design Lighten Up travelling Exhibition which began in September this year.

Image source: www.tomraffield.com

In Conversation with Patricia Gray

The following interview was graciously done by Ivan Meade who is an Interior Designer in Victoria BC.  He writes the 
Blog Meade Design Group.  I was so pleased and surprised when a beautiful orchid arrived by special delivery at my door
following Ivan's posting of his interview with me.  The note on the orchid said "Thank-you so much for the Interview" Ivan Meade. 
I am so honored to be interviewed by Ivan.  He has done interviews with other Designers that I admire.  Some of the interviews
you can read on his Blog are with:
Barbara Barry
Vicente Wolf
Thomas O'Brien
Kenneth Brown

In Conversation with Patricia Gray

Patricia Gray

Patricia Gray is an award winning, highly recognized interior designer from Vancouver, Canada, who finds time in her
busy schedule to update her interior design blog almost daily! and I know how hard this is. Her blog features her inspiration,
including other designers and architects that she admires not to mention sneak peeks of her stunning work. She has been
published in Architectural Digest, House and Home, Style at Home, Western Living along with other notable magazines.

Iván Meade - What was your first experience with design?
Patricia Gray - When I was 5 years old I remember rearranging the furniture in the Living Room.

Laurel Residence

Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván – A client of mine sent me a link of your blog a couple of days after I launched my own blog last November – I have
to say that I still have a lot to learn . What does it mean for you to blog your ideas in design, your travel experiences and
basically open your personal life to the web?
Patricia – I started Blogging basically as a personal journal to record and catalog my inspirations. I thought it would be a
good forum to express myself outside of my professional practice as an Interior Designer. It has now taken on a life of its own.

Iván - What has been the best experience of being a design blogger?
Patricia – The other bloggers I have met all over the world. It is quite a network. I have made friends in Morocco, Houston,
New York. My readers are from all over the world and are very sophisticated and savvy. They keep me on my toes.
Sketch by Patricia Gray

Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván – Your interiors definitely celebrate restraint and order. To what/whom do you owe this influence?
Patricia – My Professor, Terry Kutcher ,when I was a student in Design School inspired in me a love for design.
He was meticulous in criticizing all my designs and floor plans. I learn to edit, to be selective, and to create rooms that had
a focal point and were unique.  I was also very influenced in my formative years of study by the fabulous Michael Taylor, who
was at the time creating designs that were new and innovative and were totally suited to the times.

Gastown Project
Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván – There is an European influence in your timeless interiors, they are not just beautiful and contemporary, but they are
also very livable. How do you archive that?
Patricia – Part of the European influence I think comes from the time I spent studying Interior Design in Paris. It is very
important for me to create spaces that are comfortable, functional, and beautiful. I make sure that when you enter a room
you feel comfortable, when you sit down you have an experience with the space you are in and that you have beautiful things
to feast your eyes on.  Editing is an important part of the process for me, because if you have too many things in a room, you
don’t appreciate any one thing in particular. Also important in editing is the details. They have to be executed to perfection.

Gastown Project
Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván - It’s the big installation day. What could have gone wrong did go wrong. How does Patricia Gray deal with that?
Patricia - You deal with one thing at a time. It is also important to work with a good team that are each experts in their
field.

Gastown Project
Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván – The popularity of the design shows on TV has brought interior design into homes all across our country. If you had a
show, how would you educate the viewers about interior design?
Patricia - That’s a big question. Design is a process and involves many steps to get to the end. I think that a lot of the detail
of this process is left out in the current shows. In a 30 minute show a home is completely finished. I think it would be educational
to follow a project week by week to completion.

Laurel Residence
Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván – A decor fad you hope never to see again?
Patricia – Well, I hoped that I would not see a revival of the 80’s, but it is upon us now. I am now really starting to appreciate
it again in a fresh new way. For example the resurgence we are seeing in the use of wallpaper. I still have clients that cringe
when I say the word wallpaper because they lived through it and the horrors of having to remove it from walls that were not
properly prepared for it.  We go through phases in design and I think we become saturated, so we change and move on, then
a new generation comes along and loves the things of the past and breathes a new life into it.

South Granville Project
Project Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván – You recently returned from a design course in Italy, what was that experience like and what is next on your design
journey ?
Patricia – I spent a month in Italy studying Contemporary Italian Architecture. It was an amazing experience. I lived in a dorm
and rode a bicycle to classes in the most Beautiful Medieval walled city. The Italians have an appreciation for Design that is in
their blood. It permeates everything in their lives. For my next experience I want to spend some time in Belgium. Some of the
top design in the world right now is coming from this country.

Laurel Residence
Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván - Any words of wisdom?
Patricia – Take your time to make purchase decisions for your home. Buy fewer thing of better quality. Have only things
around you that you love!!

Yaletown Project
Photograph courtesy of Patricia Gray

Iván - Lastly, you have already created a stunning body of work with many mediums and styles, what would you like your
legacy to be?
Patricia – That I created spaces that were memorable, stimulating to be in, and stand the test of time.

To see more work of Patricia Gray please visit:

www.patriciagrayinc.com
www.patriciagrayinc.blogspot.com

Posted by MEADE DESIGN GROUP