Home Designs Master | Valentina Expressions

Through The Looking-Glass | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

05 Sep 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #DecoratingWithGlass, #DecoratingWithMirrors, #EuropeanHomeStyle, #HomeFashion, #MirrorDecor, Mirrors

Has ever happened to you to see people in the street as if they had just woke up, didn’t have time to go through the daily ablutions and catapulted themselves into a new day? It has happened to me. I think those people are afraid of mirrors and the revelation they could experience if they see their image reflected through the “looking-glass”.

Fashion, always aiming to new experiences, has determined the style of an era, its colors, shapes and forms, sometimes through the invention of many accessories of minor importance. Some of the accessories considered “amusements”, were in high demand, highly paid and sometimes reputed indispensable.
All those secondary accessories that fashion has created through the centuries, we still find them attractive today and have transferred them into our homes. Mirror is one those accessories.
From the 12th century to 17th century mirrors took a stage in women fashion. With the invention of the glass soon followed the invention of mirrors too. By applying a heavy coat of aluminum or silver to the backside of one sheet of flat plate glass, the reflective surface was invented.

(Above: The book “Le Bon Genre” was published 1817 .
Vyvyan Holland, Hand Coloured Fashion Plates 1770 to 1899, p. 51).

The most preferred mirrors were the hand mirrors and the pocket mirrors. Women carried mirrors on gold chain as necklaces, or tied to their waist and even attached to the middle of their hand fans. Made of highly decorative materials as ivory, or tortoise-shell frames, embellished with engravings on silver with a gold tone, mirrors taught women the art of vanity and coquetry.
Looking at oneself in the mirror became such an important practice of vanity that mirrors became larger, oversized and made to hung on walls to get the full effect of the entire body. And that is how kings and queens, castles and aristocratic homes decorated at least one of the many rooms as the “Room of Mirrors” generally used for grand gala and dancing halls delighting us with their beauty to these days.

Many artistic craft shops were born through the centuries to keep up with the demand of several fashion accessories, some of which have unfortunately disappeared to give way to mass productions.
In Europe it is very common to hear people since a young age speaking of beauty: “bello” – “che bello” – “come e’ bello” – “che bellezza” – “che finezza” – all adjectives that show how appreciative people are about beauty or fine things and how much they like to fill their own life with these objects.

(Photo: Genova Royal Palace Museum -Museo di Palazzo Reale on TripAdvisor)

The purpose of mirrors is to reflect and to double any image.

They should be placed anywhere they can reflect and double the beauty, therefore carefully think of their placement when you hang mirrors on the walls. If placed in a corner they make the opposite corner look larger, especially if in the opposite corner there is a light source nearby, the lighting reflected in the mirror will illuminate the room in such a way that the space will appear visually larger.

As a designer, I can create the unexpected by placing mirrors in strategic places and I am not afraid of placing them in uncommon areas. By grouping many together, regardless of shapes and forms, I can recreate the large window effect in rooms with only one small window, thus reflecting the natural light coming from that one window.

To turn the area under a staircase into a lively area, I can place mirrors with lighting shining into with the aids of plants disguising the fixtures. In the summer time, when the fire is off, a fireplace is beautiful with a mirror insert and lights inside. The fireplace will no longer be a black hole, but a transformed tri-dimensional space.

Tall mirrors placed vertically on the walls can also reflect heat. Sun reflected in mirrors produces heat and then fire, be careful not to burn the house down.
Composition of mirror with frames of all shapes, sizes and color look stunning together and they are so dressy.

The “looking-glass” will tell the truth about ourselves. Before I speak to an audience, I go to my favorite mirrors and question it. I see how I look, what aspect of myself to improve, what gestures to do or not to do.
Let the looking-glass be your friend, it will keep all your secrets and it will tell you all your mistakes, then it is up to you to fix them.

In most cultures there is a common belief that when breaking a mirror, seven years of bad luck await for you and if you believe, it will happen.

Let me help you with all your decorating or remodeling dilemmas, or needs.
Together we can go further and my designing adventure can continue on.
Love to hear your comments. Ciao,
Valentina

http://www.valentinadesigns.com

As seen on Affluent Living:

Valentina Cirasola, the principal designer and owner of Valentina Interior & Designs is a trained designer and has been in business since 1990. She works on consultation and produces design concepts for remodeling and new home designs; décor restyling and home fashion. “Vogue Italy” magazine and many prominent publications in California featured Valentina’s work. She also has made two appearances on T.V. Comcast Channel 15.
Check out her books on Amazon and Barnes&Nobles
©Sin of A Queen: http://goo.gl/JA4WMO
©Come Mia Nonna: http://goo.gl/T0eL36

Curvaceous As A Woman | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

31 Aug 2010 Leave a comment

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #ColorfulKitchens, #CurvedFurniture, #InteriorDesign, #kitchenDesign, #KitchenRemodeling, #MixedKitchenStyle, #RoundKitchenCabinets

Many times I wonder why people think cabinets intended for kitchens and baths must be just square boxes lined up like soldiers either on the walls or on the floor. Cabinets are utilitarian items and must serve a purpose of storing lot of cooking arsenal, food and products. Their functionality determines their bulky status, we know that, but we can at least improve their look by using certain strategies.
Mixing expensive wood on few panels with less expensive wood is a way to save and improve; mixing colors adds interest and movement. Using recycled wood, or hammered metal doors here and there will give your guests something to talk about. Counter tops don’t have to be all the same colors and the same materials and islands don’t have to be a box either. Once I saw an old Queen Ann dining table made into an island with the cooktop in the center of the table.

Kitchen and bath cabinets I see around are so uniform, so even, so square, so boxy and so boring! They are as common as they can be.
I didn’t have to become a designer to like different things, shapes and forms. I became a designer just because my thinking is different and I can offer so many solutions to the people I want to serve.
Let me tell you, curves in home furnishing and cabinetry have never gone out of fashion, just like curvaceous women have always existed in history, in paintings and even more so in modern times. In fact plastic surgery enhancing those parts of a woman God forgot to add, or just about, is producing more curvaceous women than ever before.

Curved lines in kitchen cabinetry create rhythm and flow other than saving floor space, as we all know those 2 or 3 inches make a difference on a floor plan. Curved corners bring so much harmony in the stark look of any cabinetry. Look at this elegant kitchen curio cabinet I designed for one of my client.

Think of a kitchen space as a whole, don’t look at the price of the curved cabinetry. Choose warm color wood species, add warm colors in the hard surfaces material and walls; open up some cabinets by adding glass door front with interior glass shelves and lighting; mix closed cabinets with open shelves and just wait to see how pleasurable the kitchen will be.
Curves in bathroom cabinetry make an easier flow with fewer points of danger. Curved cabinetry fit well in contemporary décor as well as in traditional style.

Producing custom-made curved cabinetry has many advantages and no disadvantages that I can list, contrary to what most people think. The cost to produce curves is higher than boxy, squared cabinets, I agree, but originality is priceless, in this world of “common looks and common places”. Would you not like to enter your kitchen or bathroom and say to yourself: “Yes, this is me!”. I think you would, especially when guided by a designer that will follow your dreams and allow that to happen. Today, being original is a way to preserve your personality and your soul.

Furthermore, consider that home fashion décor doesn’t change every three months as fashion does, so it makes sense investing once in a good cabinetry material made with superior craftsmanship that will last more than a decade, thus stretching your money for a long period of time.

This cabinet made of hare wood is original in design, fills up a dead corner intelligently, parades its beauty every day and it is there to stay for years to come with much of my client’s satisfaction who doesn’t have to spend more money to redesign the space in two years again.

Don’t be afraid of using expensive woods on small cabinetry, it beautifies the space with only a small amount of dollars.
Tell me about your storage challenges, I will resolve it with style, beauty and save you money at the same time. That is my goal.
Valentina
http://www.Valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola, the principal designer and owner of Valentina Interior & Designs is a trained designer and has been in business since 1990. She works on consultation and produces design concepts for remodeling, upgrading, new home construction, décor restyling and home fashion. Valentina was featured in Italy on: “Vogue” magazine and many prominent publications in California. She also has made two appearances on T.V. Comcast Channel 15.
Valentina is also the author of two Italian regional cookbooks and the forthcoming author of the book on ©RED-A Voyage Into Colors. Find them on:
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

How We Were So Green and Did Not Know It | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

12 Aug 2010 6 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #EcoFreindlyInteriorDesigns, #EcoFriendlyDesigns, #EcoFriendlyHomeDecor, #EcoFriendlyHomeImprovement, #SustainableDesigns

Growing up in Italy, I remember looking at the hot water boiler over the sink in the kitchen, one boiler in the bathroom over the tub and another one again over the sink of the service bathroom and thinking how ugly it was to stare at them. In my mind as a child, it would have been better to have one big boiler hidden in a closet serving the whole house, as wealthy people had it. Wrong! One of the building green idea is to let water travel a short distance and save on electricity.

In the morning, as soon as we were all awake and up, all the windows were opened to allow fresh air in the house through the morning while the house was being cleaned. Bed sheets came off the bed and were shaken, mattress was beaten to get the “bed bugs” out, technically called dust mites. It is a good idea to vacuüm the mattress every day as you vacuüm the floor to get rid of dust particles hidden in the mattress that can cause asthma problem.

The kitchen was a sanctuary. First of all it was spotless, cleaned only with natural products, like “Savon De Marseille”. During cooking all the windows were open to let the cooking vapor, steam and grease smell escape out. Many times the kitchen were built outside the house perimeter. It was called the hot kitchen, a place only used to cook, the eating happened inside the house. (Photo left found on: http://www.rosemari.fr/categorie-produit/la-maison)

It was amazing to watch food preparation and wondering if all that it was discarded would have gone into my stomach instead. I was too young to understand that wasting food was not an option. Food was not pre-made, everybody made fresh food at home every day using every bit of food that could have been used. I remember all the egg shells, coffee and tea ground, discarded vegetable leaves and stems, fruit peels and much more went into the compote pile to make fertile ground for our home grown food. Fish heads, tales and bones along with discarded peel of onions, carrots and celery became fish stock. Eatable flowers rolled in sugar became candies. Apples and various spices became vinegars and tomatoes were turned into a sauce conserved for the winter. We never had leftover food (freshly made food is good for your health and look) and there was almost nothing going into the garbage, like plastics, packages, metals and sorts of things we see in garbage today.
Kitchen and bath furniture were made of real wood without formaldehyde and lasted for generations. Note I have called it “kitchen and bath furniture”.

Many items of clothing, at least the manageable types were washed by hands to give them a longer life.

(Photo Wikimedia: Immanuel Giel)

This contributed to a less spending and more savings. We bought only a few pieces of clothes needed to match with the existent pieces. All laundry was hung in the sun to dry. A few hours later they were ready and they smell so fresh and clean! Today, living in America, I still hang my clothes to dry in my laundry yard and I have never owned a dryer, with the shocking disbelieve of my neighbors who think I come from Mars.
We didn’t need energy-efficient appliances then, but we do today and we want to save money.
Our floors were made of stones and still are, stone floors are healthy, breathable, wash and wear. A bit of water and soap, voila’ the floor is clean.

During my growing up, we only turned on the lights in the rooms we were using and turned off all lights in the rest of the house. We still do that, electricity is so expensive in Europe.
Do you think that was living in an old world? Perhaps, but we didn’t have to care about saving the environment, because we didn’t abuse it in the first place and we saved all kinds of money, because there wasn’t much to waste. At the same time, we didn’t even know we were already contributing to saving the environment. Today we must revert to that way of living. How much money are you loosing for not being green and beautiful?

Since a few years ago, I am part of the “green concept design” helping people understanding how to build and design with the environment in mind. Talk to me about your needs, I am here to help you saving money and save the environment, the only HOUSE we have. Do you have questions? Please, leave a comment below. I will answer all of your questions within 24 hours. Ciao,
Valentina

http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola, the principal designer and owner is a trained designer and has been in business since 1990. She works on consultation and produces design concepts for remodeling, upgrading, new home design, décor restyling and home fashion.
“Vogue Italy” magazine and many prominent publications in California featured Valentina’s work . She also has made s few appearances on T.V. Comcast Channel 15. Check out her books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

To Balance A Bedroom | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

09 Aug 2010 2 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #Bedroom, #BedroomColors, #BedroomDecorating, #BedroomInteriors, #BedroomStyle

A week ago a consumer found my company on Avaliving, a site where designers help consumers resolving their design challenges with brief suggestions. Based on the suggestions received, consumers have a faculty to hire a particular designer through Avaliving’s program.
We work through photographs that consumers send to us, description of the existent situation of the room to discuss and description of their desires and needs.
The challenge of this particular customer was to find a better solution for the master bedroom, a rectangular room looking over a lake.

Looking at the pictures I received from the consumer, I realized the feet of the bed were pointing at the entrance doors. That is not a good thing to do in any culture of this world. The energy of the bedroom will become a really bad one when pointing feet at the entry. Even a person without any Feng Shui knowledge would know that.

My suggestion was to set the bed in a diagonal in the corner of the room facing the French door to get more enjoyment out of the view of the lake.
Setting a bed in the corner has the disadvantage of taking up lot of the space in the room, but there are other benefits in return, one being looking at a beautiful view for instance, if there is one. Another advantage is to free the spaces on both side of the bed and instead of having two night stands in the traditional way, there is an opportunity to create a short and interesting built-in unit behind the bed, made in a beautiful wood species hosting lighting for reading, music speakers, plants or flowers, photographs, accessories and candles, or it would be just a place where to rest keys, small changes and cellular phones.

One other way to decorate a bed that has been set in diagonal in one corner of the room is to fill the background with a beautiful overhanging canopy in sheer fabrics, tall plants and a game of lighting coming from behind the bed.

If there is no view to enjoy, create a fireplace. There is nothing more suiting than the crackling of the fire, while reading a book, or conversing with the partner.
Make sure under the bed there is no storage hiding to allow the flow of positive energy through the room and under the bed.

©Valentina Cirasola

At the feet of the bed, it would be appropriate to set a bench where to leave a purse or some clothes of the day. In different times there used to be a trunk at the feet of the bed with lot of the owner’s possession inside, gold, clothes, money and valuable housewares, always ready to go. Some people still do it today.

One or two slipper chairs were also furniture used at the feet of the bed, especially in women’s boudoir. The slipper chair with a very straight back and a small seat was created to slip shoes on and off, not to sit on for a long time. The ample and clumsy women dresses required very comfortable chairs to sit on like the “fauteuil” , “bergere” and “recamier”.

©Valentina Cirasola

Being the contrarian that I am, I never will suggest to take T.V. out of the bedroom. T.V. is a window to the world, watching the “tele” in bed in the arms of the partner is a good thing. It makes two people come together at the end of a working day and it is good for conversation, whether sharing laughter while watching a comic film, or political comments. Oh, by the way, having problems falling asleep sometimes? Turn the tele on something not too engaging, set the T.V. timer and in fifteen minutes you will be sleeping, guaranteed!
T.V. lowers the metabolism and puts you in a state of relaxation.

Many designers suggest that the bedroom should be luxurious like a hotel; a sanctuary like a chapel, silent, evocative, spiritual and T.V. don’t belong in bedrooms. Hotels have a T.V. right across from the bed, why should we not have it in our bedroom? Come on! People are human and real people like to do things humans do. Watching T.V. in bed is one of them. The important thing to remember is to conceal the T.V. in a cabinet to keep the electromagnetism in there.

I agree with all the designers that a working space does not belong in the bedroom and if there is a home office there, make sure by nighttime is completely closed and off-limits.

The bedroom should have indirect lighting all on dimmers to set the mood, except for reading lighting, which should be closer to your book and please do not exchange books for T.V. To balance a bedroom is also to share your reading with your partner. Ciao,
Valentina

http://www.valentinadesigns.com

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer since 1990 and a former Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She blends well fashion and interior in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles. Fashion designing has been her first career choice that made her happy in her own fashion company for fifteen years before settling in the interior designing business. Check out her books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Elegance | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

24 Jul 2010 2 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #Elegance, #HomeDecor, #HomeFashion, #HomePersonalStyle, #HomeStyle, Avaliving

In a world of an exulted cult of the appearances, people tend to live in vanity, exaggerations and in the desire to impress others at all costs. Often people’s aim is to overdo and to over say, not only in fashion but in every expression of life.

Elegance is not showy. Elegance is style, awareness, and moderation.
Elegance is a balanced mix of good taste and precise choices. It translates in the right search for substance and attention to details. Elegance is sober and sobriety is elegant. Both are pleasing and comfortable, functional and beautiful.
Sobriety is not a sacrifice. I would describe it as the ability to choose only what is needed, especially when it comes to fashion as an interpretation of self, other than home fashion.

Some people think elegance is a gift and others think it is an innate talent. It could be somewhat true. There are people who know how to express and communicate with their look better than others. On the other hand, nobody is condemned to be vulgar, bulky and annoying, or just trust his/her own instinct. Elegance, sobriety, and simplicity are all things we can learn and cultivate and once we learn them, they can simplify our lives.

Einstein said: “To be simple, is to be brilliant” e someone else said: “Simplicity is the key of elegance”. Totally agree, in fact, I am the queen of simplicity.

Style and elegance are not easy to define. Style refers to forms, appearances, and character. Everyone has a style that can be beautiful or not pleasing at all, according to what our eyes project.
Let’s talk about home style, just to take an example. Baroque style is an elegant style, but ancient and not practical for the times we live in. If we mix Baroque style in the simplicity of contemporary furnishing, it can result in a dynamic décor and it will describe a person with a variegated and polyhedral character. But not everybody can make combinations of this sort, well thought out that looks good too.
(Photo Baroque chair below: http://foter.com/explore/baroque-living-room-furniture)

Elegance never goes out of style, that is if we don’t follow trends to the letter.
Another example can be the European fascination with the color black as a screaming trend in kitchen design. Come on! How would you like to eat tasty mussels (black shells) in a pasta specialty served on black plates, with a black drinking glass set, surrounded by black kitchen cabinetry?

As a designer, my goal is to accentuate the personality of the people living in the house I am contracted to design, making sure their spaces serve their needs and have an originality too. My spaces are not made with a cookie cutter. My spaces are timeless, they cannot be recognized as made in 2008 or 1998 and yet I am a person very much projected in the future, but I don’t feel I must follow trends dictated by any industry.
I take only the best part of the trends, the rest I invent it myself and that is “my trend”.

How can you, in a few simple words, explain this concept? Any home can be simply elegant and stylish, I am here just for that. My help is simply available to style your home in a livable elegance.
Please forward this article to someone you think might be interested in reading it, or in receiving the same tips. Comments are welcomed. Thank you.
Valentina

http://www.valentinadesigns.com

As seen on Affluent Living:

********

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer since 1990 and a former Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe. She blends well fashion and interior in any of her design work. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles. Fashion designing has been the first career choice that made her happy in her own fashion company for fifteen years before settling in the interior designing business. Find her books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
Barnes&Nobles: http://goo.gl/q7dQ3w

Unwind, Ferragosto Is Coming | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

11 Jul 2010 4 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #DecoratingForSummer, #ItalianCustoms, #ItalianFerragosto, #ItalianLifeStyle, #SummerHome, #VacationTime

The word Ferragosto comes from the Latin word Feriae Augusti, the pagan feast in the year 18 A.D. made in honor of the Roman Emperor Octavian Augustus.
On the 1st of August the Romans celebrated the harvest of grain, cereals and the fertility of the earth. This festivity would last until the end of August.

Feriae Augusti, or Ferragosto as it is pronounced in today modern Italian language was intended as “the relaxation of August” from the working year. This festivity would develop with public rituals and banquets, excess of drinking and sex practices to which everyone was permitted to participate, including slaves, maids and the lower class, along with the nobles and emperors. Horse racing, bull fighting and sports events were organized to add to the public entetainment. Even the working animals, such as cows and donkeys were left to relax for the whole month of August and were dressed in the festivity attires with lot of flowers to decorate them. The workers would give good wishes to their employers and would receive a good tip from them.

The festivities would reach its peak on the 15th of August as it still happens today. Through the centuries the Feriae Augusti, or Ferragosto became so eradicated in people’s lives that the Roman Church decided to turn it into a legal festivity and made a holiday rather than suppress it.

Today in Italy and all over the Christian Europe, Ferragosto is celebrated as a religious holiday and as the mid-Summer holiday.
Modern Italians and Europeans treat this holiday as the longest vacation time of the year. Fun, amusement, eating, resting, dancing, socializing and absolutely no work activity is conceived. Therefore, if you are in any import business, when dealing with Italy remember not to place any order of merchandise in July and August. Factories are closed, people are enjoying their vacation and no one is in town.

A few suggestions to beat the heat

In August, being the hottest month of the year, people tend to wear light fabrics, such as linen and cotton. They are the breathable fabrics of all, luscious and delicate textiles that treat our skin in a delicate and gentle way.
People eat very light food to beat the heat, fresh fruit and vegetables to supplement the loss of water through copious perspiration.

Outdoor dining is very common in Italy. People tend to eat late in the evening to catch some cool breeze.
Restaurants and chalets/balere (open air discotheques) are packed until very late at night and promenades pullulate with people.
Nighttime is magic for an intimate dinner, or to pull the small hours of the night talking and joking with friends.

In villas and Summer homes’ backyard vacationers organize their night life. Plain pergolas are easy to build and to dress up with hanging panels of sheer fabrics or inexpensive burlap. The breathable fabric provides privacy and it is sheer enough to let in the soft glow of the moon. A gazebo is an easy item to create. The portable types come in a variety of colors or fabrics and they can be installed in minutes. Like a woman going out for dinner, any patio can be dressed up too for the occasion.

Unwind and decompress, once a year at least, it is important to see life in a different perspective.

I have worked on remodeling single spaces or entire homes while my clients were gone on vacation. They gave me the keys of the house and said goodbye to the messy remodeling. I am so very grateful of the trust people repose in me as a service provider and as a person. My workers and I treasure their properties as they were ours.

Please forward this article to anyone you think might be interested in reading it. Comments are welcomed. Thank you. Ciao,
Valentina

http://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. In her career she has helped a variegated group of fun people realizing their dreams with homes, offices, interiors and exteriors.
Check out her books on

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

Appear At The Balcony, My Love! | Valentina Cirasola | Interior Designer

06 Jun 2010 3 Comments

by Valentina in Home Designs Master Tags: #ItalianArchitecture, #ItalianBalcony, #ItalianCustoms, #ItalianLifeOnBalcony, #ItalianLifeStyle, Balcony, Italian-Life

Letters to Juliet, the latest film with Vanessa Redgrave and Italian actor Fabio Testi that every girlfriend of mine is talking about.
(Verona Balcony photo
http://www.freefoto.com/images/14/14/14_14_82—Romeo-and-Juliet-Balcony–Verona-Italy_web.jpg )

The film is based on “What if you had a second chance to find true love?” and of course there is no better place to talk about love than from Juliet and Romeo’s famous balcony in Verona. Hollywood’s ability to prompt women to dream still amazes me. The Italian sceneries in the film are so beautiful, the golden aura of the Mediterranean projected on ancient walls and stones contributes to the romanticism and fantasy. Juliet and Romeo’s balcony is the focus of the last scene that makes the story ending into “they lived happy forever after”. To a realist like me, it was just a nice few hours at the cinema.
But what prompted me to write this small piece is the balcony, a piece of architecture that pushed me back in time, when I was a young woman, constantly in love with anybody who walked.

Yes, it all happened on the balcony of my mom’s house and when my mom was a young woman, most “seen and being seen” happened on the her mother’s balcony too.

In Italy a balcony is a lived space, an added space to the house, or apartment. We Italians sit on the balcony to admire the view whether we have one or not and if we don’t have a view, we scrutinize our neighbors. We get to know them and all their family problems, somehow the balcony doors are always open. We cultivate small orchards on pots and every possible cooking spice, along with flowers. Colors, colors, colors burst from Italian balconies. Among the few produce planted on balconies, tomatoes take first attention, they are a must in the Italian cuisine.

Balconies in Italy are also used to hang clean laundry to dry in the open air, clothes dryers are not popular at all. Naples is one of the most renowned and characteristic city of Italy for its clothes hanging over the streets, leaving to the imagination of the passers-by observations and comments of who could wear those clothes. With a pulley, clothes span from one balcony to another, serving two different families on both sides of the same street.
Hanging clothes to dry from balconies is a practice most popular in the the South of Italy where climate is warmer and people colorful.

On balconies Italians “mettono tavola” meaning they set an outdoor table and dine al fresco, mostly at night, when they can be refreshed in the cool night air, after a long day of Summer heat. It is an excuse to participating also to the night life of people strolling down below in the street. While all of that goes on in the street, up in the balconies, people carry on with their lives until the small hours of the night, as if nobody sees them. In fact, when the weather is really hot it is not uncommon to get a mattress and sleep on the balcony.

To cut down on their routine tasks, housewives lean on balconies and drop a basket down below to the local family owned grocery shop, or drug store to get the small items needed for today’s cooking. The grocer puts in the basket all she needs and the basket returns upstairs, payment for that merchandise comes later. The basket is always attached with a rope to the rail of the balcony ready to be dropped down at any request. On the other hand, women at home, regardless of the busyness of their lives, always have time to spend a few minutes on the balcony to pass along a recipe, or a gossip with the next balcony neighbors, or at best a taste of their cup of coffee.

On Italian balconies young women, who are learning the art of coquetry, show themselves off to potential boyfriends, almost like showing off what they have to offer. The young girl coming out of their shells and new at this game, do everything in their power to attract the young man’s attention they are interested in. They appear at the balcony at the same exact time the young man is passing by, because they have studied him and learned every move he makes…..Suddenly, something falls down from the girl’s balcony, just when he is passing through……oh Heaven!….he is looking up….

In America we don’t socialize through our balconies. Actually only upscale homes have balconies, but nobody uses them, they are only there for beauty and to pay more taxes as exterior spaces. Some are even fake, no exit to it, only a rail attached to the walls as a suggestion of balcony. Our privacy is precious and guarded with sentinels, but when we go to Italy, funny, we like how everything evolves over there, even when people enter our lives through balconies without permission. My life in America is so different now, without that closeness to the neighbors and their lives. I truly miss my Italian balcony, a fabulous piece of architecture, that has been the protagonist of love stories through centuries.

So, let’s ask ourselves that “What if?”.

Valentina
www.valentinadesigns.com

This article was also published on:
L’Italo-Americano Weekly Newspaper and Italian American Heritage Foundation paper.

*******

Valentina Cirasola is an interior and fashion designer, in business since 1990 helping people with design challenges in both Europe and USA. She helps people realizing their dream spaces in homes, offices, interiors, exteriors, restaurants and more. Check out her books on
Amazon: http://goo.gl/xUZfk0
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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
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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.

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

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
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