Thank you Express!
A very big thank you to the team over at the Washington Post Express (especially you Beth!) for including us in the ‘Hot, Functional Focal Points: Fireplaces Made Chic’ story that ran on January 28th.
The piece not only features our amazing clients, but you can even get a peek inside the home of Vastu owner, Jason Claire. To read the story, click here. If you missed last Friday’s edition of the Express, click here to check it out.
NEW! Organic wool rugs
We’re very excited to be able to offer our customers a new line of organic wool rugs! The rugs are constructed of New Zealand wool yarns and made here in the U.S. The great thing about wool is it’s flame resistant, hypo-allergenic, sustainable, and a soil repellent. The other fantastic thing about this collection is that you can order a rug in the exact size that you need. Buyers can choose from natural wool colored rugs… Read more
Niche Modern Oculo Pendant
Designer spotlight: Harry Bertoia
Harry Bertoia, 1915-1978
Birthplace: Italy
Knoll Products: Bertoia side chair, Bertoia Diamond lounge, Bertoia Large Diamond lounge, Bertoia Bird lounge chair and ottoman, Bertoia bench, child’s Diamond chair
Italian sculptor, university lecturer and furniture designer Harry Bertoia displayed a unique stroke of genius with his patented Diamond Chair for Knoll International in 1952. Bertoia was an inventor of form and an enricher of furniture design with his introduction of a new material: he turned industrial wire rods into a design icon. Educated at Detroit Technical High School, the Detroit School of Arts and Crafts and Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Bertoia taught metal crafts at Cranbrook. He worked with Charles Eames to develop his signature molded plywood chairs. Eero Saarinen commissioned him to design a metal sculptured screen for the General Motors Technical Center in Detroit. His awards include the craftsmanship medal from the American Institute of Architects, as well as AIA’s Gold Medal.
(image and bio via knoll.com)
DIY medicine cabinet update
Remember those wallpaper remnants we mentioned? Well, we had a client who purchased a couple feet of the Designers Guild Porden ‘Gold’ wallpaper and recovered her medicine cabinet. She loves the finished product and so do we. Take a look!
New art exhibit featuring Cherie Lester and Emilie Keim
Vastu is pleased to welcome artists Cherie Lester and Emilie Keim.
The recent works of Cherie Lester are inspired by her many years of study of architectural elements. These new abstract paintings are part of her continuing series of textural, mixed media, decollaged works on paper, wood and fabric. Comforting and strong, these pieces offer strength and solidity, with wisps of whimsy.
Emilie Keim works with urban landscape and row-homes of the neighborhoods around her. Read more
Flickr finds: Pretty pendants
Designer spotlight: Don Chadwick
Don Chadwick, 1936-
Birthplace: Los Angeles
Knoll Products: Chadwick chair, Spark lounge chair, Spark side chair
Herman Miller Products: Aeron work chair, Aeron side chair, Aeron work stool
In the last few decades, Don Chadwick has pioneered the use of modern materials, molding processes and mechanisms leading to cutting-edge products that have raised the standard for their market. A native of Southern California, Don Chadwick received his principal training in design at the University of California, Los Angeles. He then worked for architect Victor Gruen before establishing his own practice in 1964. In 1974, Chadwick designed Chadwick Modular Seating. In collaboration with William Stumpf he designed the Equa 1 flexing-plastic chair (1984). Then in 1994, the landmark Aeron chair catapulted Chadwick to national attention; the Industrial Designers Society of America and Business Week Magazine awarded Design of the Decade to the Aeron chair in 1999. Chadwick has received numerous awards over the past three and a half decades.
(image via hermanmiller.com and bio via knoll.com)
Tight seat or loose seat? That’s the question…
Sofas, sectionals and chairs are available in 4 different styles as it relates to tight or loose cushions. We’re often chatting with Vastu customers about the difference, so we thought we’d bring the conversation to the blog.
#1 Tight seat / tight back
This style of sofa, sectional, or chair has no loose cushions. The look of a tight seat/tight back piece is, generally, more modern than the other options as the piece has very clean lines (no cushions that move and shift around a little). While many people find this style of seating comfortable, this isn’t the go-to style for a piece you plan to do a lot of lounging on. Here’s an example of a tight seat/tight back sofa…
#2 Tight seat / loose back
Eames Molded Plastic Chairs
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