Valentina

Sweet Dreams | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

02 Jun 2010 4 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #BedroomInteriors, #BedroomStyle, #DecoratingBedroom, #HomeFashion, #ValentinaCirasolaDesigner, Colors

Boy, did I sleep through the month of May, or was I having too much fun celebrating May, the national month of sleep? I wished that was the case. Actually, I was very busy with presentations and planning people’s home to build in the next few months, that I forgot to write this piece of information on time.

(https://omf.net.au/Products/Detail/2079)

Sleep is not static, movement is a natural part of sleep.
“When we are upright, our lower back and neck have a natural curve held in place by our postural muscles. In sleep, these muscles relax and we must depend on our mattress for support” , says Dr. Eric Grigsby, nationally recognized pain management physician.
European companies have been very attentive to inadequate sleep and to address the issues of back pain and discomfort during the night. They have developed bed systems with a unique blend of ortho-engineering and mattresses that will help resolving problems of sleepless nights. There is one particular bed Dux Bed that comes to my mind. It is made of thousands of springs contouring the body to help the spine rest in a natural position. The bed works while the muscles take a break. Swedish steel springs provide better contouring for the body, reducing pressure points which can help improve circulation.

(Photo above http://neurostis.com/dux-bed)

A mattress should do a few, but very important things:
It should suit the individual instead of one-size-fits-all.
It should provide an excellent support no matter how soft or firm the mattress is.
It should be comfortable and resilient for its entire life.
It should be motionless, not full of bounce and its components should not have sag formations.
A mattress intended for a couple should be tailored with a dual-adjusted mechanism for lumbar support and personal comfort zones.
Let’s not forget the feature of lower humidity and comfortable sleeping temperatures.

Aside from the bed technology, we should think of getting relief from the comfort of bedding and environment as part of your sleeping treatment.
Italian linens are renowned for beauty, lusciousness and how their delicate textiles treat our skin. Most Italian linens are made of a blend of cotton and linen.
Cotton being a breathable fabric is used in the interior face to touch the skin and all the other fibers including silk are used on the exterior faces for beauty. The good cotton is not about thread count, but about the quality of the longer fibers used in the weaving process.
Linen yarn has a fresh feel, a silky shine and high resistance. Linen can absorb water up to 20% of its weight without the body feeling any humidity, thus it is most appropriate in warmer climate.

(Frette bedding)

Frette is one of the Italian brand that comes to mind for its superior linens, bedding and elegant sleep wear. As I always say: “If you can’t roll in bed with an Italian lover, you can at least roll in Italian sheets”. When it comes to personal comfort, soul nourishment and health, quality matters.

I am here to help with any challenges you might have with your sleep, or your sleeping environment.

Please forward this article to anyone you think might be interested in reading it and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Thank you. Ciao.
Valentina
Interior Designer since 1990.

http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola, in her career has helped a variegated group of fun people realizing their dreams with homes, offices, interiors and exteriors.
Check her books available on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

House As A Reflected Image Of Yourself | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

17 May 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #FurnitureDesign, #Interior, Avaliving, Fashion, Home Fashion, Style

Have you ever asked yourself why some homes designed by architect or designers look so much like showrooms, instead of reflecting the personality of the people living in the home? And why after having spent a boatload of money in the remodeling, the inhabitants of the house might not feel totally comfortable?

Designing a home is the same as having a custom dress designed for our body. A fashion designer or tailor will take in consideration the physical structure of the client, his/her beauty, the color of hair, eyes, and skin; will consider the personality of the client, his/her body language, texture, and proportions. It is just the same when designing a home. A designer should take into consideration all the characteristics of the client’s body. Therefore, that affirmation designers often know how to satisfy their client’s needs, it will never be true, unless a careful study of the client’s body has been made.

(Anne-Marie Gräfin Stadion by anonymous (18th c.)

Let’s see why a house should be the reflected image of yourself?
A man with a rectangular shape, tall and slim, will feel comfortable in a house with high ceilings, doors, and windows proportionally tall and rectangular furnishing with little or no curves.
A woman with a curvilinear body and a small waist will gravitate her choice of lamps and accessories around diagonal lines or A-Lines and her choice of furniture, door handles and architectural details most likely will have a few curves.
A person with an extroverted personality who makes easy friendship will feel comfortable among vivacious colors.
A person with an authoritative job will prefer the “shaded” colors, colors non-better defined, one of them being the “greige” which is the combination of gray with beige. The shaded colors are also described as calming colors.

Any space of the house designed on the occupant’s personal need should take in consideration the height of chairs, counters, dimensions of bathtubs and relate them to the person’s height to assure an easier usage and functionality. I would never decorate a home with oversized furniture if a petite, small person lives there and vice versa.

If we want to take the concept of personalizing a home a step further, walls, upholstered furniture, flooring should also be selected in relation of the color of eyes, hair and skin texture of the persons living in the house.

In a personalized home, a “private corner” for each person should be planned. It is not true that open spaces are always that good. At times we want to be alone with ourselves and it doesn’t mean we love the people in the house any less. The private moment once a day is necessary and the “appointment with ourselves” cannot be happening where there are open space and a lot of activities going on.

(Photo below: Henri Matisse – Woman seated in an armchair)

Gentry Design magazine, a prominent publication in California for designers and creative people featured me again this month.
The kitchen in the picture below is the reflection of my client’s personality and an example of how successfully I have interpreted their body’s proportions in relation to their space. The house they bought was built in the late ‘70s, but the client is a young couple. I had to modernize the house with many contemporary amenities, appliances, and electronics. They are minimalist, love neutral colors and love to meditate. They are tall and slender, the reason why I decided to leave the space open and free of kitchen top cabinets. Their height, the tall ceilings, and tall top cabinets would have looked like a bunch of soldiers lined up. It explains why the kitchen and surrounding areas are all painted in a light golden cream, furniture has been lightly antiqued and there aren’t many dust collectors lying around, only the necessary accessories. Lighting fixtures are also slender and rectangular, placed all in strategic locations to help them in their activities. Simplicity has been the key to this décor, as the couple loves to wear designer clothes with simple, but elegant lines, no frills.

(Kitchen interior by ©Valentina Interiors & Designs)

I would like to conclude that we should strive to produce a personalized home, where each space and décor reflects who we are and not exclusively the fashion and trends of the moment. Houses photographed in design magazines are beautiful, well made, some are very intelligent, but they are not ”our homes”. If we copy them, or worse, if we take bits and pieces and transfer those ideas into our spaces, they might not fit the dimension of our body and might not agree with our soul, as all the dresses parading on a fashion runway don’t always end up covering our bodies.

Please forward this article to anyone you think might be interested in reading it and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Thank you. Ciao,
Valentina
Interior Designer since 1990
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior & Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She marries well fashion and interior in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles. Get your copy of one of her books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Ciao Mamma | Valentina Cirasola | Designer

09 May 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: #1940VogueMagazine, #EuropeanFashion, #InteriorDesign, #ItalianLifeStyle, #ItalianStyle, Fashion

The Mother – a Queen of every household. My mom sure was The Queen and a lot more! She was our friend and confidant, the angel of our home. Today, I think she was named Angela not by mistake, I think there is a correlation between her name and who she was in her life. Her blond hair was like a golden aura around her face, her blue eyes were so transparent, one could see inside of her soul. Some of her friends thought her eyes reflected the bluish-green water of Adriatic sea in Italy, where we lived.

She was a simple person with a big heart and strong believes. She had empathy and was always ready to help others.
In her early life as a young lady, she was forced into learning to sew, but she would have preferred to go to school to become a psychologist. She was into people, could understand their problems and always gave her helping hand to resolve some rough situations people could not resolve on their own.

“Put a passion in everything you do and make the best of what you have” she kept telling us. This is what she did when she was forced in that trade, but after a while, she became such an expert in the field of sewing that she turned it into a lifetime business. And boy she was good! Her dress designs were in a high demand. She produced only exclusive, one of kind garment for the élite clientele.

(Above Simplicity magazine)

She found her inspiration in magazines like Mademoiselle and Simplicity and made those patterns much better. “Simplicity is the key of elegance” she kept saying. I learned that so well, that I made it the motto of my life. Actually, to that, I added mine: “When life is simple and easy, God answers”.

WWII was a time of scarcity, but for my mom was a time of increased creativity.
She made original dresses out of scrap fabrics. I remember her telling me stories of improvisation and studying better ways to get the most of everything, food, clothing and all the necessary elements of living.

During the war-time, she was photographed many times in one blue-white polka dots dress, which was turned over many times around. One time she had added white-collar and white cuffs, the next time she took off the white details and added red buttons and a red belt. “Make the best of what’s available to you”.

My mom was good at creating fashionable hats also with scraps of materials. Hats of the ’40s were so elegant and feminine.

She faced a lot of adversities in life that made her a tough human being, but she never complained. She thought that out of every adversity there is always something good to learn and found the way to turn any negative experience into a positive one. I am so grateful for this precious teaching.
Her love for life was exceptional.

In the early part of my career, I became a fashion designer, even though she kept repeating: “The needle is very small but very heavy. Go to school and learn a profession instead”. I could not help being attracted by her amazing creations. With a few elegant movements and a few folding and draping of fabrics onto mannequins, she would make any piece of cloth come alive into a beautiful dress. I must thank her for my love of colors, fabrics, and fashion, all the things I took from her and made a successful career for myself. I must thank her for the well-decorated home we lived in, simple and functional, but full of people who brought us much love. Simplicity is the rule I live by. I must thank her for showing me what really matters the most in life and for teaching how any hardship can be turned into a positive experience.

Today, in my career of interior designer, I do well just because my mom taught me how to be into people, how to listen to their problems and how to resolve them. After 20 years of serving a variegated group of people, I am still having a load of fun.
Long live mamma in our hearts and in the hearts of all the people you touched.
Valentina
Interior Designer
in business since 1990 and loving it!

Fashion Services
https://valentinadesigns.com/services#fashion-services

Valentina Cirasola is a trained Fashion and Interior Designer, born in Italy in a family of artists. Style surrounded her since the beginning of her life. Her many years of experience led her to offer consultations in both specializations and now she can remodel homes as well as personal images. She is passionate about colors and encourages her clients to express their individual style in their homes and with the clothes they wear. To better help people all over the world, she offers consultations online. She is the author of three books. Get your copy of Valentina’s book on colors: ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors on

Amazon: http://goo.gl/qNxXrB

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

Conversation With A Client | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

17 Apr 2010 2 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #DecoratingWithStones, #Granite, #InteriorDesign, #Marble, #RomeRemodeling, #ValentinaInteriorsDesigns

Dear Valentina,
In magazines, marble seems to be the first choice for the master bathroom. I like the traditional look of white or crème marble, but it is more maintenance. I have Corian now with no maintenance. It is great. But I want to be more upscale, age well and the “in look” for resale.
I saw honed beige travertine vanity and floor tile to match. I think honed shows more finger prints. Isn’t travertine softer than marble?
I looked at marble. Seems it’s hard to match the counter top with the floor tiles. Several places had pre-cut counter top slabs but no matching floor tile. Should the vanity match the floor? Can you do granite vanity with marble floors? I have a sample porcelain tile that looks like limestone at home.
I like it, but can I mix it with marble or a quartz countertop. Should I go all natural stone, or all porcelain and quartz?

What is the trend for upscale bathrooms? The bathroom I’m replacing, was remodeled in 1990, but It looks 1980’s. So what look would age well? More important: what’s best for resale. My 2 other bathrooms are light color wood cabinets with white Corian. Do I need to carry the white color to all the bathrooms? Is it important that all the bathrooms be similar? Should the cabinets all be light or can one be dark? For a formal look, would chrome or polished nickel look better?

Has building green really caught on? Then quartz would be in? Do you think quartz will be the replacement for granite? The granite look has been around for a long time, so when does it change? I think all granite kitchens are too heavy-looking. I looked at caesarstone, silestone, and zodiac.
I think quartz maybe more appropriate in the kitchen. But is it the next look?
The big question: what is upscale, ages well and good for resale in a pale color for a master bathroom?
Thanks for you advice.
Wendy

Dear Wendy,
I would like to say one simple thing to show you how people think when in the process of buying a home:
Resale value is something people have in their mind, but it exist only to a certain extend. Why?
People buy homes mainly because of location, school district and square footage, followed by all the amenities such as how many bedrooms, closets, how many baths, how many kitchens, how many cars can fit into a garage, balconies, terraces, butler pantry, home automation, high-tech solutions, interior elevators, European doors, home theatre, wine cellars, home office, back yard, landscaping, lighting, and to an infinity of items.
People don’t buy homes because of colors in the bathrooms, or any other rooms, ever!
Having said that, any choice you make right now to improve your bathroom thinking it will sell better, 99% of the time, will be remodeled again by the new owner. New home owners will always try to add their own style to the home previously owned by somebody else. It’s our way to mark our territory.
So, please take my advice: remodel the bathroom(s) for your own pleasure and in your own style, enjoy it while you are living there and don’t worry about who is coming after you.

About the stones:
Marble is always more attractive, elegant, sophisticated and at times more expensive than granite, or anything else. It does add value to the bathroom and therefore makes it “upscale”. But “Upscale” is a perception, is an image sent to the eye. Anything can be upscale, even corian and avonite, depending on how people use stones and how they mix them together. I can arrange unexpressive stones in a gorgeous design and make it upscale.
Travertino filled or not filled is a lime stone, therefore brittle, but nonetheless durable. In Italy we have used it since the Roman times, buildings are still there and have been under the weather for centuries.
Vanity and floor are two different entities, you can match it, or you can do something totally different, there is no rule, whatever strikes your fancy.

Bathrooms don’t need to be similar and no color need to be carried from bathroom to bathroom, otherwise why would we make a distinction between Master Bath, Powder Room and Guest Baths?

You asked me if dark cabinetry are better for resale value. I like to know who makes up these rules. The only so-called “rule” to follow is:
lighter counter top, dark cabinet and darker counter top, lighter cabinet. This is what people do, but let me assure you, it is not my rule. There is never going to be a replacement for granite, people like it! It is easy to care for and maintaining, it is natural and durable, plenty available in plenty colors and in a variety of prices. Also granite can be found in so many fun finishes: polished, honed, tumbled, leather effect and many more.
I am finding that many of my clients appreciate the leather effect on granite and use it as an accent stone. They might use it only for a kitchen island, or for a small counter in powder rooms, or as a top for a piece of furniture. This finish is a bit more expensive than any other finishes, but if used wisely will add so much more value and beauty to a remodeling project.

Granite can be used as flooring, counter tops, window sills, table tops, door knobs, lighting switchplates, landscaping and many more, applications are endless.

I particularly don’t like the granite with a compact look filled with speckles, it has no life and it is boring. I like the granite with lot of movement and open fields. The lines must be book matched when joining the seems to make a continuous design, then you will see nature in a playful mood!
When spending money on any stone, make it attractive and a conversational piece.
You mentioned the caesarstone, silestone, and zodiac. Fine stones too, with attractive colors and mostly contemporary colors. They are man-made and there is nothing wrong with them, but they are not less expensive than granite, as most people think. Silestone is nothing but crushed marble chips fused together with silicon.

“Building Green” is real among those people who understand the concept and can afford it. Unfortunately, prices of the “eco-friendly material” are still way too expensive and discourage people from using them.

For a formal look, some people even use gold polished or satin chrome, or crystal. The hardware finishes must follow the style of your bathroom.
You might fall in love, as I did, with a total glass blue faucet, as in my photograph. This faucet can be placed in a formal, elegant and extravagant bath. It is such a beauty! The hardware is polished chrome and glass. This is formal enough to me, even though it has a modern style. (Photo: James McKelvey)

What if, let’s suppose your formal look is Old Europe? You will never use chrome hardware, but oil rubbed bronze instead, to emulate antiquity.
It all depends what formal means to you. Define formal, you will have the answer.
I want to conclude by saying that, in the perfect design world, there are no rules, thank God. It is all about YOU, the client !!!
What you like, what makes you feel good and what you can afford are all the rules! Nothing is written in “Stone”.

I am always available to resolve any design challenges. Love to hear your comments, or your friends’ comments, if you like to forward this article to someone else.
Designed regards,
Valentina
Interior Designer
in business since 1990 and loving it!
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior and Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She marries well fashion and interior in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles.
Author of the forthcoming book on the subject of colors, ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors. Stay tuned!
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Valentina Interiors And Designs Has Been Featured Again! | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

06 Apr 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #HomeDesign, #HomeRemodeling, #InteriorDesign, #ValentinaInteriorsDesigns, Avaliving

Hello World,
It is so rewarding to come to work on Monday morning from a short Easter weekend holiday and finding my name published all over the Internet. Avaliving, a site for designers offering their services on line, today has published my interview with them.
http://www.avaliving.com/article.php?aid=1617

As a designer, I have been part of Ava’s family since about three years ago. The scope of Avaliving’s site is to give a larger exposure to those designers participating in its programs.
My profession as a designer has really changed in the last eight/nine years. To be able to stay on the market and in a profitable business, I had to adapt to new ways of thinking and accept the new ways clients shop. It is not imaginable anymore to raise a sign outside the studio/office and think clients will come. Designers must have a presence in the local market made of referrals to sustain the business in a continuous flow and a larger presence on line, a new and most important way to sell services. It really doesn’t matter what kind of design business one might have, if a designer is in the service business, she/he is in the marketing business of selling designer services. This is the new twist, we can’t expect to be sitting behind a fashionable desk, in a well decorated office and expect clients to multiply.
I have transformed my business and my mindset with advices, solutions and strategies from expert marketers to achieve my dreams and help my clients in realizing their dreams.

I am an Italian expatriate by choice, not by necessity. I knew since I was a little girl my place was supposed to be in the World and not just in Bari, Italy, my home town where I was born, studied, worked and lived all my life. I made the decision to move when the time was right.

©Valentina Cirasola

I carry with me the educational baggage of an Italian with the beauty and style I have been used to caress and admire. I bring the same into people’s homes, give my clients the power to design with me and at the end I leave them with affordable, comfortable luxury.

I said in my interview with Avaliving that my life is a continuous evolvement of colorful events. That’s because I am a curious person and I get interested and involved in everything.

People who know me say I am a great cook. Food is fuel for my brain. I don’t care what kind of petrol I put in my car, but I care about what kind of food I put in my stomach. In fact, I love food so much, I have written my first designer cookbook and published it: ©Come Mia Nonna-A Return To Simplicity.
Robert T., a friend and business associate of www.wine-fi.com says:
“Valentina – an International Professional Interior Designer is now giving you an opportunity to redesign your palate”.

Check out my first book, it is making people happy, I was told:
http://outskirtspress.com/ComeMiaNonna

OR

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

**********

Life is simply good!

Please forward this article to anyone you think might be interested in reading it and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Thank you.
Designed regards,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking. She operates in the USA and Europe. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles, but especially loves to design kitchens and wine grottos.

Ava Living | My Profile | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

23 Feb 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #DecoratingTips, #HomeFashion, #HomeRemodeling, #ValentinaInteriorsDesigns, Avaliving

Ava Living is an online site for designers who are willing to offer services at a distance and willing to think outside the box in a non traditional way. I am often featured on Ava’s first page and often write blogs and articles on various subjects. Check out my work:
Ava Living | My Profile

As an Interior Designer, I deal with one of the most fundamental areas: the home. Home is where you return to relax; a place that props you up in time of crisis. It is the center of everything and a lot of the answers to questions of life are there.
As a designer, I resolve your challenges, my style is your style, you will be involved in my process of designing your spaces and at the end of the project, I will leave you with a comfortable, functional space that will nurture your soul and vital forces. Your spaces will be Pure – Elegant – Original.
I am passionate about my work and everything creative in life. I have founded my business since 1990.
Being Italian born and raised, my design work has been influenced by Classicism and stylish, timeless designs. I will create your everyday living with a certain luxury without taking away a comfortable living.
I am always at you disposition for any questions and I am in service with love.

Please forward this article to anyone you think might be interested in reading it and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Thank you.
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior and Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She combines well fashion and interior in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles, but especially she loves to design kitchens and wine grottos. Author of the book: ©Come Mia Nonna–A Return to Simplicity.
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Silk Stockings | Valentina Cirasola | Designer

20 Feb 2010 6 Comments

by Valentina in Friday Fashion Tags: #CydCharisse, #EuropeanFashion, #FrenchFashion, #ItalianLifeStyle, #ParisSilkStocking, #SilkShoes, #SilkStocking

The other day, I was visiting a friend at her home. We were sitting across from each other shooting the breeze, talking about this and that and a bit of all.
She noticed my shoes and complimented me on how good I can put things together, but the surprise was underneath. I lifted my pant legs and showed her my silk stocking in golden olive color.

The look in her face was clearly puzzled as if she was asking: What are you wearing? She was surprised to know that I was wearing silk stockings and was even more surprised to learn that my pair of stockings belonged to my mother fifteen years ago. I have had them for that long and who knows how long my mother had that pair of stockings before I subtracted it from her.
Stockings are not the invention of the last century, au contraire.
(Photo left: Cervin Rive Gauche 100% silk lace top hold-ups, £41.99
Available in noir (black), white, gazelle or ivory)

They came about when in the late 1600 fashion dictated that men and women would be equally effeminate in their attires, thus competing with each others in elegance and style. It was a must to complete every outfit with silk stocking, red or pink, or sky blue and light yellow for the most refined people. Silk stockings became so popular that Colbert, French Secretary Of State, ordered the building near Paris of a royal manufacture with about 200 looms to produce the silk stockings in a variety of colors. He also founded a professional school where silk stockings became a new subject to study, therefore making it a new branch of fashion until our days.

Of course with colorful silk stockings, the need, or let’s say the desire to have colorful shoes was born. The shoes were also made of silk, with medium-high heels, embellished with large buckles, roses and rosettes, ribbons and shimmering beads, but the color of the shoes had to be contrasting to the silk stockings.
Human fantasy has no limits, since then a variety of silk stockings were created. Pearls decorated silk stockings of the 1700 and silk embroiders decorated the silk stocking of the 1800. In the ’30s women dresses became much shorter and for the first time the knees were in full view, therefore much more attention was given to colored stockings. Women soon preferred the nude look of the legs, the simple skin color silk stockings lasted until WWII, when the silk fabric was needed to fabricate parachutes for our men fighting in the war. So it happened that the manufactures discovered the nylon, a product made from petroleum and much more fragile than the silk.

Remember I said I possessed my mother’s silk stockings since fifteen years ago and I don’t know how long she had it before I took them? Well, my nylons have never lasted more fifteen days, until I discovered to keep them in the freezer and not in the drawers of my dresser. The cold of the freezer apparently stretches the life of the nylons only a little longer.
I am thinking silk stockings should come back in fashion, they are eco-friendly, will save your money, feel absolutely luxurious and they add luminosity to women’ legs.

(http://www.allposters.com)

I can help decorating with fun posters of pin-up girls in silk stockings to add a playful look to any room, especially music rooms, studios, entries, bathrooms, home gym. Try a little eccentricity here and there when decorating your home to add a punch of fantasy and character, because the banal décor gets old and tiresome after a while.

A good reading is the book: “A Pair of Silk Stockings”. It is an eclectic collection of long-neglected short stories by great women writers best known for their novels. The book includes The Watsons by Jane Austen, The Half Brothers by Elizabeth Gaskell, A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin, The Red Room by L.M. Montgomery, Bliss by Katherine Mansfield, The Parvenue by Mary Shelley, The Legacy by Virginia Woolf, and The Wronged Woman by Winifred Holtby. Find it on Amazon, $13.00.

In the 1957 film Silk Stockings Cyd Charisse was so gracefully beautiful and the music so throbbing. Her endless legs were perfect for the silk stockings.

Please forward this article to anyone you think might be interested in reading it and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Thank you.
In service and with love. Ciao,
Valentina

Open this link and scroll down the page to find my Fashion Services

https://valentinadesigns.com/services

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior and Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She marries well fashion and interior in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn ugly spaces into castles. Fashion designing has been her first career choice that made her happy in her own company for fifteen years.
Author of the book: ©Come Mia Nonna–A Return to Simplicity
Book website: outskirtspress.com/ComeMiaNonna
Author of the forthcoming book on the subject of colors: ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors.

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

Every Trick Is Permitted At Carnival, Just Need The Right Mask | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

11 Feb 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #ColorScheme, #EuropeanFashion, #HowToDecorateTips, #InteriorDesign, #ItalianCulture, #ItalianLifeStyle, #VeniceCarnivalMasks, #VeniceStyle

In Europe around this time of the year we celebrate Carnevale, or Mardi Gras. The Christian calendar marks Carnevale as the period between the Epiphany and the first day of Lent, this being the day when all the fatty food must end until Easter Day. In Austria and Bavaria, Carnevale called Fashing starts the day of the Epiphany, in Cologne it starts at 11:11 of Nov.11.

At Mardi Gras, the day before Lent, we Europeans consume a variety of meat dish, food high in calories and proteins, lot of fried food and stuffed food, but on the Lent day and for forty consecutive days, until Easter, the diet must be light and lean.
In Carnevale time every trick is expected and accepted. I remember the sugar, or the white flour being thrown at the passerby in the streets, especially if they were wearing a dark coat. Getting mad was out of the question, next street corner it would have happened again. In the history of time, Carnevale has been a magic time of divertissement, debauchery, costume parties, eating, unrestrained sex, and a time during which life challenges were momentarily forgotten.

The etymology of the word Carnevale could be deriving from the Latin “carrus navalis” or from the Medieval “carnem levare” which it means to eliminate the meat from the diet for 40 days as the Lent requires. On Ash Wednesday, Christian people must spread ashes on the forehead as a sign of repentance.
During Carnevale it is a must to wear masks to disguise one’s identity, but the usage of masks is not a novelty of today, it goes back to Paleolithic time, when the chief of tribes wore masks during spiritual, or magical propitiatory rituals to invoke riches, or to get rid of maleficent spirits. Romans celebrated their Gods with Carnevale festivities. The use of masks concealed their licentious behaviors and their social status, allowing old and young, rich and poor, nobles, servants, slaves and prostitutes to mingle and dance together until dawn.

During the festivities of Carnevale, Romans celebrated Bacchus, the God of wines, with rivers of wines and long hours of dances all in the streets of Rome, hence the name Bacchanalia. The gladiators entertained the public and the king of the festivities, elected by the people for only the duration of the feasts, organized public games to which everybody could participate.

(Click on each photo to view it larger).

In Italy, masks for Carnevale have been used in theatre plays, especially in Goldoni’s comedies, a famous Venetian writer of the 1700 and in the Commedia Dell’Arte in the second half of the 16th century, based on improvisation on stage. Plays of Commedia dell’Arte are still fascinating and alive in the arts and in the memories of theatre lovers.

Carnevale in Venice, renowned all over the world, is a magical and mysterious event that takes place every year around February, it calls for unruly behavior and the masks are breath-taking. Browsing in costumes through the narrow streets of a foggy Venice is like walking in the 16th century. Everybody is disguised, people laughing, chatting, a glass of wine here, a dance there. Carnevale in Venice is what it was and still is.

Paintings of Venice Carnevale scenes, or paintings of masks can be included into today’s home décor very easily. Think about a room in a total white color scheme with very colorful paintings on the walls as the Geraldine Arata’s art work. She knows how to capture on canvas the mystery of Venice and the complicity of secretive lovers. Her oil paintings are beautifully executed, colorful and unconventional.

(Defiance – Geraldine Arata)

Another example could be a room painted in grey gun-metal faux finish with a modern style décor and Geraldine’s colorful mask paintings just laid casually against the walls, or hung on a wall washed with light. Loose white chiffon draperies swinging in the windows as a sweet melody in Venice would carry two lovers in each other arms.

Find Geraldine Arata at:
www.aratafineartgallery.com

As an Italian born designer and a lover of Commedia dell’Arte, I can help recreating the mystery of Venice, its flamboyance and Bohemian atmosphere into today’s home décor and I can help placing this particular art in a special home. It takes a sunny eye to see the sun light.

Please forward this article to anyone you think might be interested in reading it and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Thank you. Ciao,
Valentina

www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior and Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She combines well fashion and interior in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to create the unusual. Author of the forthcoming book on the subject of Colors.
Author of the book: ©Come Mia Nonna–A Return to Simplicity
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles:http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Color Pink On Stage For Valentine’s Day | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

06 Feb 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #DecoratingWithPink, #EuropeanFashion, #HomeDecorating, #HomeStyle, #HowToDecorateTips, #InteriorDesign, #PinkColor

The color Pink is a color that I am not particularly fond of, but I have learned to appreciate it in some situations. Pink is sweeter than red. It reminds me of the cotton candy and bubble gum I never ate, they just looked too sweet; it reminds me of strawberry ice cream I delighted myself during many Italian summers. Girls between the ages of 10 and 15 years old absolutely adore pink.

We generally associate pink with the femininity and everything delicate. In the mind of some people, pink indicates the weaker sex. Go figure! From time to time, Pink is also seen in men’s fashion, but it is short-lived and it goes in and out of style. I love to see men with some interesting pink garment on!

Both red and pink denote love, but while red stirs up hot passion, pink is romantic. The pink gentle and delicate vibrations have a proven soothing effect on one’s behavior. You could almost say that pink literally fills the heart with love! However, we must be careful, when too much pink is used in an interior space, it can create a floating effect and the illusion of living in a padded and protected environment.

If using Feng Shui theory the best use for pink (Fire color) is in the Earth Element area of one’s space, as it is connected to Love and Marriage. Earth is a productive cycle of the Feng Shui’s five elements.

In designing a room, the Fire energy can be simulated by painting an accent wall in a delicate pink, or by adding some pink in the accessories. The “hot version” of pink is Magenta Pink, which we are seeing more and more often, as it brings a fiery energy, especially when coupled with orange, also a Fire Element color. A beautiful way to bring pink color into one’s personal or business space is to place a bowl of rose quartz crystals, as these rock crystals carry strong natural and healing love vibrations.

Powder room, or creative offices are the perfect spaces to decorate in pink. Use it sparingly in a girl’s bedroom. Combining pink with extravagant colors will show we are not afraid of colors and criticism, but we must know how to do it right.

Besides the marvelous pink and orange combination, pink and green, or pink and black are the best vibrant combinations. In Feng Shui, a sharp-looking pink and green from medium to dark is an active color combination. It brings together the energy of Fire Element (Pink) and Wood (Green). This combination will sooth and strengthen our human energy.

(Photo credits given to the respective owners of the images in this board)

Pink and black together are a very elegant and beautiful “retro” combination, very much used in the style of the ‘20s and ‘30s. In Feng Shui these colors brings out the energies of Fire (Pink) and Deep Water (Black). Black alone represents a Yin feminine energy; it stands for stability and protection, thus it is needed to ground other colors and to dilute the energy of pink. All shades of pink turn from playful, girlish colors into sophisticated colors when combined with black or gray, or shades of blue from medium to dark.

As a career woman and since I passed the age of 15, I would never wear pink shoes, not at work, not for walking at leisure, not at an elegant affair, not for fun either, but that’s just me! A touch of pink in the wardrobe is welcome, but only a touch. I am here to help you getting in touch with any color in your fashion and in your home. My design services include architectural colors analysis and colors for home fashion. For the benefits of my Clients, my color and design services are also available on-line. Please tell others about it and feel free to forward this article to someone you think will enjoy receiving the same tips. Comments are welcomed. Just leave your name in the box below. 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 turn unattractive spaces into castles. Valentina is knows as a colorist. Her life is a continuous evolvement of colorful events. Author of the forthcoming book on the subject of Colors. Stay tuned! Author of the book: ©Come Mia Nonna–A Return to Simplicity
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Living Life Without Limits | Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

30 Jan 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Books Blog Tags: #ComeMiaNonnaReturnToSimplicity, #ItalianFood, #ItalianLifeStyle, #ItalianTableCustom, #ValentinaCirasolaAuthor, #ValentinaInteriorsDesigns

I am a designer with a passion for cooking, most of the people who know me is aware of that. Writing and publishing a regional Italian cookbook has been the best thing I have done in 2009. I named my book with an Italian title and an English subtitle: ©Come Mia Nonna-A Return To Simplicity. The translation of the Italian title means As My Grandmother, the book, in fact, is dedicated to her, my nonna Pasqua, the person who taught me to love simplicity.

This book represents the quintessential of simplicity while being creative with food. So much so that it has attracted some restaurants in the area where I leave who want to feature some recipes from my book. “It would be really different to organize a book presentation if I host events at the local Italian restaurants in my area”, I thought. The idea is inviting, no author has ever done a book presentation in a restaurant, the idea is a novelty, I like it, let’s do it. After all, I learned to live a life without limits, right?!

On February 24, 2010, Cedro Ristorante Italiano in Menlo Park, CA has graciously offered to host my book presentation event. The dinner will feature food from my book, I will be the commentator, the historian, the story-teller.

The region I wrote about is Puglia, where I was born, on the Adriatic sea. It is a mixture of antiquity and modernity, Baroque architecture, ancient table customs, tasty and healthy food to die for, and the region’s warm people.

Barnes & Noble

The guests at Cedro Ristorante Italiano will have a unique opportunity to taste the delightful food of my land and will appreciate its elegant simplicity. Live music will fill the ambiance. Thank you in advance to all of you at Cedro.

The food of Puglia is in tune with all the needs people have today to stay healthy, eat good food to control the weight, cook fast because we are all busy, and save money at the same time, as the ingredients are inexpensive and can be found in any grocery stores, not only in gourmet specialty stores.

I cannot be happier about the interest that ©Come Mia Nonna-A Return To Simplicity has created. My book had a purpose and a message, I could not pass the opportunity to publish it when I did, it was the right time.

The book was published on Thanksgiving day 2009, that was a super good sign and made the best Thanksgiving I ever had! Thank you my grand Universe.
More book presentation events will happen in different Italian restaurants. Stay tuned! Ciao,
Valentina www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina’s book event: The Flavors Of Puglia Cedro Ristorante Italiano – www.cedroristorante.com 1010 El Camino Real Menlo Park, CA 94025 (on the corner of Merrill St. and Santa Cruz Ave) February 24, 2010, at 5:30-7:30 pm
Seating is limited

Please forward this blog to anyone you think might be interested in reading it and let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Robert Taitano, a friend and business associate of www.wine-fi.com says: “Valentina – an International Professional Interior Designer is now giving you an opportunity to redesign your palate”. Author of the book: ©Come Mia Nonna–A Return to Simplicity
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0

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