Valentina

Tète-à-Tète | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

21 Feb 2012 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #ChairDesign, #CustomDesignedFurniture, #HeartConeChair, #HistoryOfFurniture, #tèteàtètechair, #TrendyChairs, Victorian Style

February is a cold month in most parts of the world, fortunately is warmed up with the fuzzy theme of love. Thinking of love, the tète-à-tète chair comes to mind.

(Stone tète-à-tète chair via Pinterest)

Typical and essential piece of décor for gardens and interiors, the tète-à-tète chair marked an era when a man could only court a woman by looking not by touching and under the vigilant eyes of her relatives. It was designed for coziness, close enough to look at each other in the eyes, occasional brushing elbows could slip out, but the armrest in the middle divided the two sexes keeping them at a certain distance.

Actually, the chair didn’t serve only lovers. Gossipers also used it while sitting together. Sitting face-to-face was favorable to discretely passing in each other’s ears all the juicy details of someone else’s life, or of a person present in the room unaware of being the subject of interest. The tète-à-tète chair allowed women to sit comfortably with fashionable belled up dresses with cumbersome crinoline underneath.

(Above photo found on https://www.etsy.com/listing/500135605/sonia-messer-tete-a-tete)

(Above photo, French Victorian seat, found on: http://www.newel.com/products.php)

Fast forward a couple of centuries and we see some new versions of the tète-à-tète chair. I have to admit warmth and coziness are gone, but they are attractive in their own unique modernity. The black and white of the Eli-Fly Chair is very graphic, the lines are slim, sensuous and lonely. The two chairs can face each other at a distance, or can be set closer to make caressing a little easier. But it seems to me this is a type of chair the people in “need of their space” would buy.

(Eli-Fly-Lounge-Chairs by Deisree)

More modern versions of the tète-à-tète chair are also available for the garden in wrought iron or wood. I have seen a pretty set painted in blue in one of the historical establishments in California. They wrap them around trees, where people can relax with a book and courtship under a magnolia tree might be possible again.

I absolutely adore the Heart Cone Chair designed by Verner Panton in 1959 and reissued by renowned furniture company Vitra.
Price of the Heart Cone Chair: $3,670. Precious!
It would fit beautifully in any décor and in any empty corner. Red is imposing, calls for attention, but this chairs brings passion.
“Most people spend their lives in dreary beige conformity, mortally afraid of using colors,” Panton said, in the mid-1950s. I could not agree more.

What does this chair have to do with the tète-à-tète chair of Victorian time? Nothing. The heart is already there, it needs two people to sit in each other’s lap and the tète-à-tète picture is complete.

Let me support you in finding your uniqueness in décor and style, but don’t forget to leave your name down below. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola has been a lifetime designer in fashion and interiors. Her extensive knowledge of colors and materials led her in both directions successfully. She is well-known for designing custom furniture. She cares to make spacious and functional pieces, but she doesn’t forget to introduce the element of surprise, sinuous lines, attractive shapes and color in the style fit for each of her special clients.
She is the author of ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors, her forthcoming book on the subject of colors, due to be released in the Spring 2012. Check out her first two books on

©Come Mia Nonna: http://goo.gl/T0eL36
©Sin of A Queen: http://goo.gl/JA4WMO

On Time For Valentine’s Day | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

15 Feb 2012 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #ChocolateCoveredGrape, #ChocolateCoveredJalapeño, #ComeMiaNonnaReturnToSimplicity, #SinsOfAQueen, #ValentinaDayFood, #ValentineDay

Chocolate almonds

Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone.

A celebration of heat and passion, Valentine’s Day, comes in February one of the coldest month of the year. For some people there will not be anybody to cuddle with. I agree with some of them who think expectations and pressure to perform well are high on this day. I suggest celebrating Leap Year an alternative to Valentine’s Day. It would be so easy for unattached people to shift their attention from Valentine’s Day to an unusual celebration that comes only every four years.

(http://www.today.com/style/10-fun-valentines-day-gifts-your-friends-1C854429

I remember one year I gathered all my nice single people and celebrated entering into Lent time. After that event, some of them got married, some are still living together and in the meantime, ten years have gone by. Did I want to be a matchmaker? No, but my choice of friends was so selected that I slipped right into that role.
So far I have read about Valentine’s Day in “all sauces and soups” sort of speaking, from table settings, to bedroom romance.

Here it is something simple, healthy, fast and easy, good for Valentine’s Day or any other celebration. It will take me less than an hour and it will be perfect.

Olive Oil Roasted Almonds
This is a nice complement to a cheese variety.
Place the almonds in a baking pan. Grate the peel of an orange.
Add a couple of spoons of extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt to your liking and coat the almonds well.
Bake at 350˚ F. for about 10-12 minutes. Serve in a nice bowl.
Almonds can also be savoury, roasted with rosemary and garlic, or herbs de Provence and they can be made sweet with brown sugar, or honey.

Grape Covered in Chocolate
For a spin on a classic romantic strawberries covered in chocolate.
Wash and pat dry seedless grape.
In a saucepan combine 4 oz. of milk 2 tablespoons of butter and 4 oz. of dark semi-sweet chocolate.
Stir over low heat until the chocolate is melted completely.
Dip each grape in the chocolate holding it by the stem.

Sit them on a cooling rack. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or until chocolate is firm.
Use the same chocolate to cover Jalapeño (photo at the top). Serve them together with the grape to get the sweet and the spicy hot, I guarantee you will add some extra heat to your romance.

I will present to my friends simple bites, some small tartlets with wild mushrooms, stuffed mussels
(from my book http://outskirtspress.com/SinsOfAQueen) and some extravagant cheeses.

I have just enough time to get the prosecco, the table and myself ready for some friends to come over.

I hope you will have a wonderful time celebrating the day of love, but please don’t wait for Valentine’s Day to express your love to someone. Ciao,
Valentina
www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking.
She especially loves to design all those rooms with a “make me feel good” tag attached, such as kitchens and wine grottos, outdoor kitchens and outdoor rooms, great rooms and entertainment rooms. She is a public speaker and a mentor. She is also the author of two Italian regional cuisine books, available here in this site on the Books page, on Amazon, Barnes & Nobles and in various locations.
http://outskirtspress.com/ComeMiaNonna

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnq8baaAq0M

http://outskirtspress.com/SinsOfAQueen

Funky Sofas | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

07 Feb 2012 2 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #AnumalPrintSofa, #CustomDesignedFurniture, #DecoratingTips, #FunkySofa, #FurnitureDesign, #RoundSofa

This month I am searching for a sofa, would love to have a funky one for me, but for right now I need to get on with my search and find one exceptional for a client. Funky shapes and vivid colors attract me. Will they attract the client too? She is young and seems to be receptive to new ideas. I can surprise her, stand back and observe her reaction, or I can play safe presenting her all traditional shapes and perhaps get an indifferent face reaction.

Actually in my design world, nothing is left to the chance and nothing is a guessing game. So much thought and planning goes into a design concept. Sometimes a client takes months to come out with a decision, it is almost like a light bulb comes on suddenly for a surge of electricity and sometimes the decision comes so quickly that I have to put a break and let them ponder for a short while.

The cleverness of a designer is to avoid the first scenario from happening, risking of losing the availability of one particular item and have to start the search all over again, putting in the trash precious time and effort already spent. The best strategy that will help the designer understanding a new client, whose habits, likes and dislikes might not be totally known is called “talking and asking”. That’s right, I talk and ask a lot of questions, instead of roaming in the dark. After that is rock and roll designing and composing the project together with the client.

Avanti Lounge – https://www.avantifinefurniture.com

Lunar Mini Round-http://furniture-times.com/lunar-mini-round-lounge-sofa/

Rug Sofa by:Tonio de Roover – http://freshome.com/2008/03/04/the-carpet-sofa

Cow Sofa-Rodolfo Rocchetti of Tappezzeria Rocchetti

Ballon Sofa-Feel Seating System designed by Animi Causa

Tiger Sofa- Rodolfo Rocchetti from Tappezzeria Rocchetti

The selection of even one piece of furniture must be coordinated with the existing pieces and colors in the room. For a designer with a clinical eye it should not be a hard thing to do. Introducing a new color, or a new piece of furniture is like putting together a group of friends, they all must get along, otherwise there will be trouble in the air. Conversely an empty room is a blank canvas for anyone and the road to freedom of choice.

In my client’s home, the room I am designing is an empty canvas, kids and adults will be using this room, that’s why is important to remember to buy for various tastes and style preferences. The new sofa in this room will not be the primary seat, it will be a corner filler, a conversation piece, or a mood piece just to play around. Based on my conversation with her, I know I can dare with something fun, funky and colorful. I can’t wait for her reaction. The last three lounge pieces in red and orange are from Scandinavian Designs, way under $1,000. The others are Italian or European made.

Searching for furniture pieces is part of my every day work. Please let me know if I can help you or anyone you know in this task. Brighten your home with something out of the ordinary, even if you have a traditional décor, it will break the routine and feed the soul. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola has been a lifetime designer in fashion and interiors.
Her extensive knowledge of colors and materials led her in both directions successfully. She is well-know for designing custom furniture. She cares to make spacious and functional pieces, but she doesn’t forget to introduce the element of surprise, sinuous lines, attractive shapes and colors in the style fit for each of her special clients. She is the author of ©RED – A Voyage Into Colors, her forthcoming book on the subject of colors due to be released in the spring 2012.
Check out her books on

Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Natural Shells For Elegant Décor | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

30 Jan 2012 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #BotticelliPrimavera, #DecoratingTips, #DecoratingWithShells, #HistoryOfShells, #ItalianPainting, #ItalianTableSetting, #ShellSaltPepper, Shells

Looking through resources for my interior designing need, I found beautiful accessories for the table at One King’s Lane. Two sets of salt and pepper vessels made of seashells on silver really struck my fancy.
They are dainty, the coloration is beautiful, and I am thinking a voiles or chiffon tablecloth will be perfect to stage a table. Each plate will have a shell as place card holder, one large shell for bread, a mother of pearl champagne bucket and some nautilus votive scattered on the table should set an inviting dinner scene.

Looking at the shape of the shells comes to mind their original function: to conceal a living matter inside of them and to keep the secret of the marine abysses. When we go to the seaside to catch shells, it’s almost a compulsory gesture to bring a shell to the ear. We hear the sea waves moving and we immediately imagine stories of navigation and far away lands. We think it is all so mysterious because a romantic explanation at time is better than a scientific one, but in reality the shape of the shell and the limestone material that makes it, promote the echoing sound of the sea. (photos of shell items from One King’s Lane)

The relation between shells and sea is very strong as it is associated with the feminine element of fertility, in fact the word shell comes from the Latin word conchilium meaning to conceal in a shell. Venus, the goddess of love was generated from the sea inside of a shell. Italian painter Botticelli painted her in his masterpiece of the XIV century (photo below). We are born in water too in our mother’s womb, our shell. In other words the source of life is to be found in the water and the woman is its vehicle.

Shells keep the secrets of oceans and earth, shipwrecks, lives lost, earthquakes, moon influence, sun’s scorching heat and people’s touches transferring feelings and sicknesses with their hands. Some people think once shells have found a new place in a house décor will communicate to the household all the secrets they keep, bringing in the good and the bad luck, regardless of their beauty. Legend? I don’t know, but I heard it from an astrologer.

In history shells became an important symbol to mark properties, to indicate social casts, family crests and coats of arms. The shell became the symbol of the Italian Renaissance, a rebirth in the fields of arts, architecture, music, literature and scientific discoveries after the dark age of the Medieval era. In Europe shell symbols are found on important building as churches, cathedrals and political establishments.

I was attracted by the colors of these superb tableware and the elegant simplicity they enclose. Knowing the history and legends attached to shells would make an interesting conversation topic with the guests.

Let me help you decorating and staging your next dinner party with unusual object d’art. Please leave your name in the box below. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola transforms and creates spaces realizing people’s dreams in homes, offices, interiors and exteriors. She infuses your everyday living with a certain luxury without taking away a comfortable living.  As an interior designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking she loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles, but especially loves to design kitchens and wine grottos.

She is the author of RED-A Voyage Into Colors, the forthcoming book on the subject of colors, in publication at this time. Check out her two published books on Italian regional cuisine, available on this site on the Books page and on Amazon.
http://outskirtspress.com/ComeMiaNonna

http://outskirtspress.com/SinsOfAQueen

Hunted and Saved | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

20 Jan 2012 2 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #DecoratingTips, #FurnitureDesign, #FurnitureMakeover, #FurniturePainting, #HistoryOfFurniture, #RestoringFurniture, Découpage

For a few days now, I have been going around the house looking to give a second life to some old pieces. Strong of the experience I had a few years ago, I am ready to repeat the artistic experience with a new piece. Sundays are perfect days to go bargain hunting around garage sales and flea markets. I love flea markets! In one of those excursions, I found a few old pieces of furniture and ventured through the refinishing process.

There are a few things you need to do before you tackle a refinishing of a piece of furniture. First, you don’t know where the piece has been before you and how the previous owner used it, unless someone tells you the history. Disinfect, clean it really well and keep it in an open and well-ventilated place for a few days to eliminate previous odors. While you are deciding on the transformation of the piece, the new design, color, pattern or the overall new look, I would suggest taking pictures of the piece and visiting some reputable antique dealer who will tell you just by looking at the photograph if it is a valuable piece or not. If it is a value piece you might want to leave it as is, just give it a good clean, otherwise if it gets restyled into a new life, the piece will lose its antique/historical value.

The refinishing process is very easy. Strip old paints and varnishes with a coarse sand paper by using a sanding machine or plain elbow grease, which I like better as it is another way to exercise muscles. The plain wood grain will surface again in all its beauty. At this point you can decide to leave it natural to emphasize the wood grain and apply only transparent varnishes, or you can paint it in your favorite colors. My photographs show painted examples, découpage and antique finishes.

Painted Line Chest by ©Valentina Cirasola

Painted Line Chest – Detail – by ©Valentina Cirasola

Dust off the remaining of the sanding with a soft cloth; make it really clean, you must not feel any grain under your fingertips. Apply a coat of primer paint to cover all the imperfections, wait until it dries well, sand it lightly with a less coarse sanding paper, and dust it off again. The surface must be really clean every time another coat of paint goes on.

Apply the first coat of the paint color of your choice. Let it dry. If the result is good, then the piece is almost done, but if it needs another coat of paint, sand it lightly again, dust it off and apply a second coat.

(Venetian Chest paint by Douglas Greenberg)

Most of my pieces have been speckled at the end. With a small brush I splashed a dark varnish here and there for interest. Highlighting all the details is the fun parts. The style of the piece of furniture will dictate whether the highlights will be antique or contemporary style.

Découpage is always done as the last detail. The only items needed are a flat brush, a découpage glue and an image, nothing to it.
If you like to draw an image free hand, that step is also done after the piece has received the last coat of paint. Trace the image with a carbon paper; with a brush go over the line drawing and paint your image with the selected colors. This is the easiest way to apply a design. Stenciling a design over the top coat is another way, but this takes a good skill. Seal the découpage, stencil work or any drawing with a non-yellowing water base varnish.

Venetian Painted Chest by ©Valentina Cirasola

(Painted sky blue chest photos ©Valentina Cirasola)

Now it is time to apply the jewelry. Get your fantasy in motion, use anything and everything for drawer pulls, or door knobs. One of my cabinets has a pair of hearings as drawer pulls. Others are a mix of style, colors and textures. Arts and craft store sell wood knobs and pulls, which can be painted in any style you like; that will satisfy your artistic vein, other than saving you money.

There are professional artists on the market who make excellent money in producing elaborate faux finishes. I know this process as I have described might sound simplistic. If you don’t have velleity of taking your refinished piece to the Guggenheim exhibition and you just want to give a second life to something old with interesting shapes, then don’t make the refinishing process complicated. Follow these simple steps and you will produce an attractive piece just like those in my photographs.

A few years ago I helped a person in France restyling her piece. She contacted me through Facebook, asked me questions about the furniture she wanted to refurbish, liked my answers and hired me to assist her in the production. I did not move one inch from my desk, our communications developed through Skype calls and emails. She purchased the knobs from my selection photographed in a store. Her French piece turned out beautiful. If you are stuck, let me help you or anyone you know in restoring your piece, it doesn’t matter where in the world you are. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola has been in business as a designer since 1990. She has helped a variegated group of fun people realizing their dreams with homes, offices, interiors and exteriors. She is a designer well-known to bring originality to people’s homes. As an Italian designer and true to her origins, she provides only the best workmanship and design solutions.

She is the author of ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors, her forthcoming book on the subject of colors.
She is also a published author of two regional Italian cuisine books. Find her books on

Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0

Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Getting Ready For Carnevale | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

16 Jan 2012 4 Comments

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #CarnevaleCostumes, #CarnevaleFood, #HistoryOfFood, #ItalianCarnevale, #ItalianFood, #WinterCelebrations

Photo ©Valentina Cirasola

Carnevale is a special winter celebration that happens forty days before Easter and ends with Mardi Gras. The day after Ash Wednesday is time for repentance for the week or two of festivities with fat food, gluttony, dances, at times debauchery and divertissements of various natures. In some parts of the world like Rio de Janeiro, New Orléans and Italy people work all year round in making elaborate costumes they will wear on Mardi Gras, as Carnevale is a giant party for children and adults. Everybody must wear a mask to hide behind it and be mischievous. The theory behind the mask is that whatever is done under the mask covering the face is not valid and it doesn’t count.

Photo taken by Photographer (?) -Pacific Art League

Viareggio in Tuscany, Putignano in Puglia, Rome, beautiful Amalfi on the Italian Tyrrhenian coast and various other cities in Italy organize large parades with huge floats representing political people and notables of the country, actors and actresses, soccer players and social climbers, all being mocked and ridiculed in their roles. Venice is the most sought after Carnevale celebration of the entire Italian peninsula. The atmosphere is ethereal, the city becomes more magic than usual, private parties resonate from every balcony and public parties in the piazza are like Goldoni’s comedy in the XVII century costumes. The roles are not defined but it seems everybody in the street know the script and play the parts well. Venice is full of legends and real stories, every corner can tell an original one.

Frittelle Dolci with Cherry Marmalade by ©Valentina Cirasola

Carnevale is time for fatty food and simple pastries. Depending on the Italian region some of the specialties are frittelle, chiacchiere, cenci, cicerchiata and frappe. It’s OK to eat fried food once a year and these sweets are all fried. Today nobody eats food cook or fried in lard, but a long time ago the original recipes called a good home cured lard.

To keep fried food light and healthy you can either choose to fry with peanut oil that can stand the high temperature or use an Italian fryer equipped with charcoal filter. Food fried this way will take a short time in the oil, will turn out crispy, tender and not greasy. I own one of those Italian frying devices; the house doesn’t even smell like fried food and everything that comes out of there is a real treat.

Other types of fatty food might be the “Casatiello” from Naples, a type of bread stuffed with salami, prosciutto, cheeses and boiled eggs. “Calzone” from Puglia, a type of thin-layered pizza stuffed with grilled leaks, anchovies, sausages and olives. Arancini, rice balls stuffed with mozzarella, prosciutto e peas; Croquettes, potatoes balls stuffed same as the arancini; Pasta Frittata also stuffed with a variety of meats. The variety of Frittata are countless and endless. “Porchetta”, which is an entire pig roasted over an open spit fire is the delight of Carnevale. Most pubs, restaurants and rosticceria (finger food places) will prepare one.

Food connoisseurs will not buy a few slices of cold cuts every time they need to make sandwiches, it’s too expensive! To save money, they instead will buy an entire leg of prosciutto and use the D’Artagnan, a Spanish ham-carving stand to cut the prosciutto very thin and make it last a very long time. During Carnevale time the D’Artagnan gets a lot of usage.

Hamon-Serrano

Both of my books offer many colorful opportunities to try these types of food, except that my food is well thought out for today’s modern need to stay healthy, for enjoyment and not for fattening you up.

This year Carnevale 2012 runs from February 11^th to the 21^st. The day after, Ash Wednesday, in preparation for the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter, some people will go on Lent practice for forty days. This means something must be eliminated from the daily nourishment, or if this is not possible for health reasons, some good deeds towards others, the community, or the society is well accepted.

Book: Sins of Queen by ©Valentina Cirasola

Now you have a month to prepare, to find or sew your costume and once you have it, post it on my blog, we can have a contest.

I am delighted to bring you novelties in food and home décor from my Italian culture. Should you need any help, do not hesitate to leave your name in the box below. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Robert Taitano, a friend and business associate says: “Valentina – an International Professional Interior Designer is now giving you an opportunity to redesign your palate”.
Valentina the author of RED-A Voyage Into Colors, the forthcoming design book on the subject of colors, due to be released soon.
She is also the author of two published regional Italian cuisine books:

http://outskirtspress.com/ComeMiaNonna

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnq8baaAq0M

http://outskirtspress.com/SinsOfAQueen

A New Red Vibration | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

07 Jan 2012 4 Comments

by Valentina in Books Blog Tags: #2012InteriorColors, #2012YearOfDragon, #DesigningWithColors, #REDColor, #RedVoyageIntoColors, #TangerineTango, #ValentinaCirasolaAuthor

We are one week into the new baby year, but I can still wish you a Happy New Year. This year will be exceptional! I am feeling the electricity vibrating all around me. I sense a renewed positivism in people, we will have new election in this country, in Chinese astrology 2012 is the year of the dragon and I am a dragon, but not shooting fire, only good vibrations.
My third book, now in the finishing line, has been accepted for publication on the evening of December 31st, while the previous year was ending and I was celebrating the arrival of 2012. What a better way to start a new year with a new book to be published soon! The title I chose is ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors, just right with this year powerful energy. The book will be on the market in the Spring, please stay tuned for the news of the launch. Red is a book on the subject of colors in our lives and how colors affect us.

I have included a section of colors in astrology, colors for interiors, colors in food and fashion. The beginning part explains what colors really are, how to see them and how to interpret the character of each one. Writing this book has been a labor intense, but also a fun process and in a few months I will see it realized. I will be putting another check mark next to my goals and dreams and a big “DONE”.

This year 2012 is all about colors. Colors will take inspirations from nature, but the exciting part is that we can create a mysterious combination with the undertone of each color and use it in a new way to set the mood, or create high contrasts never done before. Pantone, the leading industry in the subject of colors, for decades has influenced product development in multiple industries, including fashion, film industry, traveling, interior designing, home industrial design, product packaging and graphic design. This year Pantone made Tangerine Tango the color of the year.

Tangerine Tango is a red-orange hue, which will characterize 2012, performing well in spring and all the way through autumn. It is an all-round color most people can wear, exotics in its structure and very friendly to most skin colors. It will perform exceptionally well with green and blue eyes and when paired with brown eyes will highlight the amber cast. It is highly wearable in daytime and evening affairs.
Tangerine Tango in interiors is an energizing color that will lower inhibitions. It is perfect in entryways and foyers, love to see it kitchens or simply in a few kitchen appliances for a surge of energy. It will spice up the rest of the house just with a few pillows, accessories, bedspreads and rugs. Don’t need much of this colors, its warm presence is visibly palpable.

In the past years, red color really irritated me, therefore I kept away from fire-red and wore it extensively only in December through the festivities, but now I feel good toward that red energy in my life. Through this year I will be celebrating my twenty-two years mark in designing business with RED-A Voyage Into Colors my new book on colors and my renewed hopes and goals for my future. All the good reasons for not letting this powerful vibrations passing unobserved. May all your dreams be realized in a colorful life. Let’s Tango! Ciao,
Valentina
Design website: www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer and former Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe since 1990. She blends well fashion with interior and colors the world of her clients. She has been described as “the colorist” and loves to create the unusual.
She is also a published author of two Italian regional cuisine books available on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Waiting For New Year | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

02 Jan 2012 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #ChristmasTableDecoratio, #ChristmasTableSetting, #ItalianCeramics, #ItalianTableSetting, #NewYearEve, #NewYearTableColors, Tablescape

One of the pleasures of entertaining family or friends is the setting of the table process. Food of course should be the focus of the table. A well-decorated table with poorly prepared food does very little for the spirit and I would say for the stomach too.
Once I was asked to describe bad food and my answer was “food haphazardly scrambled together but presented well”.

Having a theme in mind is one of the important elements when styling a table. Creating light, dark, shadow and silhouettes are super ways to illuminate the space around the dining table. Repeat the same trick on the table with the decorations.
(Click on the photo to vie it larger).

If a chandelier is over the table and candles on the table, you might want to create an ambience by turning the chandelier on dimmer and let the candles cast a warm shadow.
Recessed down lighting over the dining table is a bit tricky. If a down lighting is not placed properly, all the people sitting at the dining table will have a dark shadow under the eyes and everyone will look a bit more aged than they really are.

Inside of a theme, select the season, texture and the colors you want to assemble. The solutions are endless as you can imagine. You have the choice of keeping every thing in the same coloration or texture, which gives the table a calming effect. You also have the choice of making a creative or funky arrangement.

Let’s take a few colors as samples.
If you want to create a tablescape with the sea in mind, the underwater world includes all the blues from the darkest ocean to blue sky but also includes all the blue-green tonalities of the underwater garden vegetation.
For a nature inspired table setting, the green beauties will include all the variation of foliage colors to olive greens.
A fall arrangement will have a riot of colors to choose from. You can select the reds with an undertone of orange and pink; the oranges that lean towards pink, the purples with a red base, or you can mix browns bleeding into shades of grays.
If the colors of natural gems inspire you, add some metal texture to the tablescape. Gems and metals are both two elements formed in nature; they combine well with the drinking glasses and fabric cloth, two other kinds of texture.

Tablecloth and napkins must not be necessarily of the same set and colors. Actually if they don’t match is even better, will make the table an interesting canvas to look at.

In my arrangement of the end of the year I did not want the usual red cloth most people use for festivities. Instead, I chose to use dark colors on the table illuminated by metal candle lanterns to emulate the dark winter night, the light of the stars over buildings and the new spiritual light that will infuse the night turning into a new year.

The year 2012 has been described as the year of the Aquarius, not as the ‘60s movies, but as a very spiritual year, a new era of rebirth and enlightenment. Colors will take inspirations from nature, but the exciting part is that we can create a mysterious combination with the undertone of each color and use it in a new way to set the mood, or create high contrast never done before.

This year let me help you projecting your personal image, your home image, or your party tables into new modern, graphic colors that will speak about you and your personality. The current millennium loves colors! Happy New Year, make it great, make it fun. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer and former Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe since 1990. She blends well fashion with interior and colors the world of her clients. She has been described as “the colorist” and loves to create the unusual.
She is the author of ©RED- A Voyage Into Colors the forthcoming book on the subject of colors. She is also a published author of two Italian regional cuisine books available here on this site on the Books page and in various other locations.

Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Keep It Festive | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

29 Dec 2011 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #ChristmasDecorating, #DecoratingAfterChristmas, #DecoratingTips, #DecoratingWithLights

Every year most people get the beautiful Christmas decorations up and functioning soon after Thanksgiving festivity. For more than a month we get used to live with shimmering colored lights, many different colored decorations, scented candles, crystal items and silver flatware. Everything looks so lucent and elegant. We do need all of this as a way to reward us for a year of hard work and to celebrate in style the passage into a new year with renewed hopes, dreams and goals, but as soon as we are into the new year the trees and decorations go down and the shimmering lights are turned off. I keep all of my Christmas decorations until January 6th to celebrate Epiphany Day. This is a Christian commemoration of the Magi or Wise Men’s visit to baby Jesus, which marks the end of all December festivities. Kids get another present, just like Jesus received incense, myrrh and gold from the Magi, the Christmas tree is taken down on that night with all the beautiful lights and decorations, Christmas markets close, holidays are over and officially the year starts.

Epiphany day was a fun day for kids. On that night of January 6th, my parents organized a tree dismantling party and invited other kids with their parents. Our Christmas tree, as most people did, had chocolate decorations hanging among all the other Christmas decorations.
With a draw, one kid at a time had to find the chocolate decorations as a price, whatever object the kid touched first, that was the item he/she had to take down first. If a chocolate decoration was found first, the game moved over to someone else. Another kid’s name was drawn to give everyone the chance to dismantle the tree and to find the chocolate pieces. Kids fought, laughed or exchanged items, according to each of their tempers or level of vices. This game lasted for hours, before all the decorations were down on the floor, but the tree game was the excuse to get the adults together for another eating feast. My mom and her sisters prepared the last treats of the holidays, generally it was panzerotti (small size stuffed calzone), or home-made pizza, potatoes coquettes, or arancini (rice balls), lot of vegetables, sweets, biscotti, pies and prosecco. This custom is now gone forever as Christmas is more of a consumerism event than a celebration of life, light, spirituality, love and New Year’s good intentions.

Whatever you do to take the Christmas decorations down, it remains the fact that at the start of the year the glitters and glamour are gone and that corner where the tree was is now in the dark. Some people suffer the blues after Christmas is over as they settle into winter, cold and short days. What do you do to avoid that? Redecorate, move furniture around or thinking of Spring already? In some parts of the world Spring may not come until late April, that’s a long time to stay depressed. For me it is easy and simple, as I have adopted a simpler life.

I keep some Christmas decorations around for the next three months. I choose to leave out the not so obvious Christmas decorations, but only one special item for each room, one with an attractive shape or color. First thing to do is to illuminate dark corners with some light decorations, hang something with a visual impact from the ceiling, embellish a doorknob, or a lamp. Glass balls or ornaments generally have interesting shapes and nice colors, I like to keep them in bowls on coffee table and furniture mixed in with other textures. I also like the idea of filling lanterns with colored balls and create an arrangement of three. After the holidays nothing will look Christmassy any more. Take a look at the photos to get an idea and perhaps you have some of your own you want to share with me.

Better Home and Garden

The ornaments will keep my house festive through some cold days while surprising some of my friends. In the meantime, while I am waiting patiently for Spring, I will think of new ways to redecorate and go through the process of cleaning out closets and cabinets. As it happens every January, there will be someone new who wants to take the renovating journey with me as their designer to guide them. It will be a new adventure just right for the new starting year. If you are ready to take that journey with me, do not hesitate to leave your name in the box.
Happy New Year, may all your wishes come true. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior and Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She blends fashion and interior well in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to create the unusual. She is also the author of ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors, the forthcoming book on the subject of colors and the author of two published book on Italian regional cuisine, available on

Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

The Art Of Dainties | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

25 Dec 2011 Leave a comment

by Valentina in The Good Life Tags: #ChristmasFood, #DaintiesAppetizers, #ItalianAppetizers, #ItalianLifeStyle, #ItalianTableCustom

This year for Christmas Eve I will have adults only at my table celebrating the passage into the new light, it will be one of the few times in my life I will not make a sit down dinner. I will prepare an array of fanciful small dainties to be served in various area of my great room.

Putting dainties together will be just like choosing colors and textures for dressing up. It is important to find the right balance of colors and flavors. Need not to have too much salty food, nor too much food of the same kind of textures, protein, vegetable, starches and sweets must be equally distributed and in between palate cleansers are a real treat to put all the taste buds back in place.

Caviar with a variety of crackers and breads will be the opening, accompanied by smoked salmon with capers and sparkling wines.
A large size tray of endive, raw celery and fennel will be a good match with cheeses and will be good to help digesting dairy products.
The highlight of my cheese tray will be the Tête de Moine and the Dubliner, which I recently discovered from one of my dearest friend.
Last summer I made sun-dried tomatoes in my garden, preserved in olive oil, capers, garlic and fennel seed. I will put them next to the cheeses, olives and Italian prosciutto, they are so good on crostini with one of my spreadable cheeses. (Photo Tête de Moine from: Wikimedia)

Tête de Moine

My Italian tradition calls for fried salted cod for Christmas Eve. It is one type of food that never makes it to the table, fried cod is absolutely good piping hot right out of the fryer.
As we say in Italian “cotto e mangiato” cooked and eaten at once; scorching of the palate and fingers are allowed. I own an Italian made fryer equipped with a charcoal filter and a turning tumble canister that makes fried food so light, clean and no fried food smell in the kitchen. I don’t eat fry food during the year, but when I have people over is so fun to eat something different and allow myself to go out of my own strict rules. Besides, my friend will polish everything, I am lucky if I get to taste one or two pieces of fried cod.

I will cook the rice with wild mushrooms in small individual Savarin molds (photo on the right), perfect to create the effect of a large ring when they are turned over in the plate. I will decorate the center hole with some arugula leaves. (From: https://www.fantes.com)

Mussels cooked in garlic, fennel and wine will be in a large bowl for a grand effect. Some of my friends have never eaten mussels this way, they will have a good opportunity to try some brassiere food.

I fancy stuffed grilled eggplants rolled in small packages hiding a surprise mixture of meat, spinach, beaten egg and a small spoon of Parmigiano as a binder. I am thinking, since I have the grill going, I will put on some asparagus and colored peppers too, my friends will not mind.

I will make the zabaione cream myself and my friend will watch. It seems as if many of them tonight will be in a cooking class involuntarily, but it will be much fun to cook together than preparing it all by myself.
I will conclude my food spread with dried nuts, fresh fruit, panettone an Italian Christmas cake and more sparkling wines.

It will be simple home cooking and it will take the whole night.
Many of these recipes are in my books, some of my friends will have a taste for the first time, but many of them are so happy to share my Puglia food with me again.
I am going to start the preparation and welcome everyone with a glass of prosecco.

The night is young and we need to reach midnight doing something fun, laughing, making jokes, telling stories and playing with food. Some of my friends are not into cooking, they will have easy tasks, as I don’t want to risk a food mistake just tonight on Christmas Eve and some will pour all night.

I hope you are having fun too.

We will welcome the new light in the world and celebrate the birth of Jesus.
Merry Christmas, peace in the world. Ciao,
Valentina

www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking. She especially loves to design all those rooms with a “make me feel good” tag attached, such as kitchens and wine grottos, outdoor kitchens and outdoor rooms, great rooms and entertainment rooms. She is a public speaker and a mentor. She is also the author of two Italian regional cuisine books, available here in this site on the Books page and on:
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w