Bowling for Boobs 2010

Last night was the 3rd Annual Bowling for Boobs produced by the fabulous ladies (and gentlemen) at Illuminations and myself. This year was a complete success and a total sell out for the first time! We had 64 teams, 8 incredible sponsors and 32 fabulous donors. Unofficially (because we are still counting) we have raised $17,000 for Susan G. Komen! This is the most we have ever raised in a single event, which brings our total for the past three years to over $45,000! THAT'S RIGHT!!! I cannot express how proud I am of our Atlanta design family, this event has grown to be such a success in such a short period of time and that is all thanks to the support we are given by our fellow designers, reps, vendors, friends, and family. This all started because Elaine and I wanted to do something to stomp out this disease that has affected both of us personally and every year we get a little bit closer thanks to the overwhelming support we have received by this community.

First off, a HUGE thank you to our 64 teams who made this year the most successful and fabulous event we have ever had!

Thank you again to our incredible Sponsors, who make it possible for us to donate 100% of the money raised to Susan G. Komen.

Interior Design Magazine
Illuminations
Athens Pizza
Fontana Arte
Leucos
Murphy's
Mohawk


Thank you to our amazing donors who pulled out all the stops making this the most successful raffle we have ever had!

Knoll
Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams
Tecnosedia
Yoma Textiles
Bradley Hughes
Map Contract
Lux Studio
Cook's Warehouse
R Hughes
Artemide
Flos
Modern Fan
Sutdio Italia
Murphy's
Tech Lighting
Athens Pizza
Fontana Arte
Dex Studios
Corpor Environments
Switch
KitchenAid
Pedini of Atlanta
Segis
Environs
Closet Factory
Touch of Color
Jack's Leather
Park Tavern
Coke Cola
LightBlocks
Hottie Hawgs
Bocado
Design Within Reach
Bjork Antikt



Finally, thank you to my friend Jeff at Impact Design Works for donating this time and incredible talent and creating our invitation and all of our signage.

Lux Part 2

I am feeling coy at the moment. One thing I love about photo shoots are these little moments we create and capture of details, things that make a space special but are sometimes overlooked. Any photographer who has worked with me knows I love vignettes and I LOVE DETAILS! Here are some from Lux thanks to the lovely and talented Sarah Dorio.

Lux Part 1

It has been about a year since we began this project, starting with field measurements, design, construction documents, etc. Lux Studio is owned and operated by our friends Charlie and Claudia and they are fantastic. We love them so much when they approached us about building out their new salon here at StudioPlex we were thrilled! Mark has done work in this area before, with Blue Med Spa but we knew this was going to be very different from that. I am going to do a series of posts that will show you step by step how we got from a loft condo, to a whimsical salon.

Here are the existing conditions. When Charlie & Claudia decided to relocate the salon, Charlie lived in the space for a while. He was a really great neighbor to have, cocktails at 3 in the afternoon, lending me AB Fab DVD's, all sorts of fun things! As we became friends I was really excited to work on the salon and work with Charlie!


This open space will soon become the cutting floor. Challenge #1...lighting.



Soon to be reception and waiting area.



Soon to be Sherry's Box...that's right. Sherry is their white blond firecracker who sits at the front, makes appointments, deals with clients and pretty much rocks the house. We called this space Sherry's box for a while...not the best choice but oh well.

Progress moved along quickly in the beginning, but not quick enough to be honest. Regardless in April we could see our forms and zones starting to take shape.


Sherry's box is starting to take shape!


So is the cutting floor! Here you can start to see Mark's idea for the stylist stations coming together.

One lovely afternoon I walked across the corridor to check on the progress (great perk of a job literally right across the hall, I can check up on them whenever I want!) Framing was complete and it was about time to start painting...then I almost fainted when I saw these pepto pink walls.



Luckily it is just a primer, but I immediatly ran to check our drawings and make sure we didn't specify the wrong color! It was a small heart attack moment for me, but I was assured that there would be no signs of it in the end.

At the end of May things were finally coming together and our early June installation deadline was fast approaching. With the hanging of each fixture and application of each specialty finish we were getting closer and closer and Lux was really taking shape (as was Sherry's box.)






Then finally the day arrived, INSTALLATION DAY!!! The salon was finished, the stylists were ready to move in and their clients were itching to see the new space. It was an all day affair with a little bit of DIY on the part of MWDA...



You will just have to wait for part 2 to see how it turned out!

Pop!

Guess where I get to use this!



So excited!!!

Dear Anonymous

Indulge me for a moment and let us have a discussion about blog comments. I have had this blog for over a year now and genuinely get excited when I get an email alert that I have a new comment on one of my posts. I am all for everyone expressing themselves and some may not agree with what I have to say or what I post, that is just fine. However, what I do have a problem with are comments that borderline on rude just for the sake of leaving a comment. I am not necessarily a law abiding citizen of the "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all" rule, however, I do feel that constructively disagreeing with someone or something is just fine. When if comes to design everyone is different, we all have different tastes, likes and dislikes, which is what keeps things interesting. I don't expect everyone to always like what I do or the work I produce, maybe it isn't for everyone, I am willing to accept that. What I am not willing to except are those who leave rude or inappropriate comments and hide behind a tag of "Anonymous." If you have something to say, say it and don't be ashamed of it. If you are, then chances are you should not be saying it in the first place.

So...Dear Anonymous, I am sorry to hear you do not like the project I completed for Armstrong Atlantic State University (click here), luckily you were not my client (or were you?) While I can respect your comment, I find it interesting that to leave such a comment you are hiding behind anonymity. Best of luck with your passive aggressive form of behavior in the future!

Best of the Web

Thank you so much to Be @ Home for selecting Yummy Scrumptious as one of the "Best of the Web" September Edition! You can click here for their blurb about YS and check out some of the other featured blogs. This is the first time YS has been awarded anything and I am loving it!

Good Drapes

Designers love drapery and let me explain why. We are aware that it can possibly be the most expensive and time consuming part of your project, but what they add to a space it worth the wait. I don't care if you get off the shelf panels (which I have done--no shame in that--Restoration Hardware & Pottery Barn seem to have the best options) with simple in-stock hardware, just get them. I personally prefer a layer of sheers as well, they let in the softest and most ethereal, filtered light. Drapery is not just there to look pretty and block out the sun when you are getting your beauty rest, the does have a specific application from a design theory perspective. Imagine your room of furniture, almost everything, with a few exceptions (floor lamps, armoire, etc.) is about the same height. I would estimate that about 80% of your furniture does not exceed 48" in height--and that's where drapery comes in. What about the other 4' feet of space until you hit the ceiling? (assuming we are talking about 8' foot ceilings) If you a look around, you will see that most of your furniture is right around the same height, think about that in terms of planes. One plane is your floor, the second most obvious is your ceiling, the third (and less obvious) is the top of the majority of your furniture. So what unites these planes? DRAPERY!!! They add a vertical element that unifies a space, something that passes through each layer of your room and pulls it all together. That is why, from a design theory standpoint, they are important. SO GO AND GET SOME!


These were custom made, perfect installation. This is what I use for all drapery vendors as an example of the look I am constantly trying to achieve. Not too much puddle at the bottom, just a nice clean break with a crisp pleat at the top and simple hardware.



Again, custom made, but here in this photo you can see exactly the type of "unification" I am talking about.





Same project, more examples.







The above three images are all from a townhouse model. We used all off the shelf drapery here--I believe it was from Pottery Barn. So you can see, even store bought drapes do their job.