Tom Dixon

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Irwin Weiner ASID - It's fine to be an adult and yet want to be like someone else "when I grow up." True confession: It would be fun to come back in my next life as someone like British designer Tom Dixon. My interior design business keeps me round-the-clock manic, and the work of running a service-oriented business focuses each waking hour on channeling creativity to my clients' projects. (And so there's no misunderstanding, I love what I do and my clients are tops.) But IF I had some spare time, I would love to design furniture. I would blend new materials and old ideas into fresh twists that bring life to an interior. I appreciate Tom's work, take my hat off to him, envy him a lot, and hope to win the Lottery someday. If I did hit the jackpot, I'd take a little time off and be like Tom - not that he's got anything to worry about. His niche is very secure.

Some Tom Dixon favorites of mine (click on the photo for more information):

 

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Small Apartment Decorating

Irwin Weiner ASID - French designer Tony Lemale turns a flat French apartment into a zingier whole using bright colors, stenciling, and coordinated furnishings. I'm appreciative of the respect he showed for his client's color preferences, and the way - as the designer - that he pushed his client's envelope and went beyond the scope of her imagination. Good decorators dream bigger and see more possibilities than their clients are able to, and that's only one of the payoffs in interior design. Look at the way Lemale turned architectural weaknesses in the client's bedroom into strengths with paint colors versus remodeling and construction!

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James Bond House

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Irwin Weiner ASID - We're starting the new year off with a salute to modern home architecture, and we're turning our attention today to architect John Lautner and his Elrod House in Palm Springs. The former Frank Lloyd Wright apprentice excavated the 23-acre property site and unearthed amazing boulders which became part of the organic design. Used in countless photo shoots, the house was put on the cinema map in the James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever. So like art to copy life, as this home is a real gem.

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Iconic House: Il Girasole

Irwin Weiner ASID - Let's celebrate all the innovation that has gone into residential architecture! It's astounding how, back in the 1930s, architects Angelo Invernizzi and Ettore Fagiuoli created a house with a mechanism that kept the house moving so that it always faced the sun. Called Il Girasole, The Sunflower, it functions beautifully and takes advantage of breathtaking natural views outside of Verona. While not all historic homes around the world are available for public tours, it's often possible to contact local museums to see if there are institutional tours of these homes and soak up the essence of beautiful design. This award-winning video is a good tour substitute.

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