Summer has arrived which is a great excuse to freshen up the décor.
With colorful palettes and natural materials, summer interiors evoke a more casual, inviting feel. Warm summer nights and longer sunny days make entertaining more appealing as well.
Try painting a door, wall or ceiling a fun, bright color.
For these and many other reasons, we recommend a few simple summer decorating ideas:
Add brighter colors to your color scheme, such as lemon yellow, apple green or tangerine orange. Softer pastels work as well. Instead of repainting all the walls, try some accents such as painting your ceiling a bright color.
Have two sets of decorative pillows – one for summer; one for winter. Summer pillows should be fresh and fun, with light florals and other patterns.
Stow away heavy, dark tablecloths. Add a bright table runner for either your coffee or dining room table.
Reframe personal photos in painted white frames with bright, colorful mats.
Use slipcovers or decorative throws to bring out more pops of color and brightness.
Replacing chair and bench cushions are an easy way to refresh a room.
Flowers, plants and fresh fruit bring the outdoors in and make your home smell good – and look beautiful. Fill a simple glass bowl with apples or lemons or place fresh flowers in a sparkling vase every few days.
Create a summer-inspired centerpiece by filling a tray with white sand and seashells.
For a natural ambiance, try eco-friendly materials like bamboo, hemp and jute area rugs.
Replace heavy drapes with sheers or bamboo shades for an open, airy look.
Clean your fireplace well and then place a plant or floral display inside for a decorative touch.
Cover your existing comforter with a fresh new duvet. Or better yet, store your comforter and use a colorful cotton coverlet instead.
Decorating with fresh fruit and flowers adds a pop of color.
Rearrange your furniture. It’s surprising just how spacious a room looks after doing so.
Purchase new and colorful area rugs, which can alter the look of your room by setting the tone and color palette.
Change out simple things like place mats, candles and other accessories.
Less is best. Regardless of the season, it’s always nice to come home to a clean, clutter free house.
Most importantly, get outside and experience the playfulness of summer.
As always, feel free to email me or post to our Facebook page with questions, comments and pictures of your design updates.
One of the most exciting projects our firm has had the opportunity to work on in recent years is The Grand Del Mar, a Five-Star, Five Diamond, 249-room resort just north of San Diego.
This resort features an impressive degree of craftsmanship rarely found in buildings today. In fact over a period of two years, 800-plus workers, contractors and craftspeople labored more than one million hours on this ambitious luxury property.
The 30 types of stone and polished Italian marble used throughout The Grand Del Mar include Gallo Cleopatra, Jerusalem Limestone and Rojo Alicante.
Working with the architectural firm of Altevers & Associates, we took our design cue from turn–of-the-century architectural visionary Addison Mizner, credited with launching the Florida design renaissance in the 1920s. We designed all the interiors, as Altevers created the exterior architecture, often consulting with our team throughout the process on historical details.
With a distinctive Mediterranean motif, the resort’s architecture and design features an exotic mix of Spanish, Portuguese, Moroccan and Venetian elements evoking the grandeur of a historic European hotel.
Mizner viewed architecture as a seamless integration of buildings, décor and landscaping – and this emphasis on melding the indoors and outdoors is apparent at The Grand Del Mar. Interiors and architecture are complemented by lush landscaping – a mix of tropical and indigenous plantings – punctuated by garden fountains, sun-dappled patios and courtyards, terraces and walkways.
The Grand Del Mar features a degree of craftsmanship rarely found in buildings today. Pictured is a 75-foot-long, 22-nozzle fountain lined with gold, royal blue and white marble tiles.
Many guests to The Grand Del Mar are under the impression the resort has existed for decades – which is something I love to hear. We worked very hard to develop a timeless appeal unearthing the finest materials as well as sourcing extremely talented artisans, artists and craftsmen from around the world.
Select interior design highlights include:
Cubic stone hand-carved by a family of four generations in a small town near Verona, Italy. Weighing in at 20 tons, the 30 different types of stone and polished Italian marble include Gallo Cleopatra, Jerusalem limestone and Rojo Alicante.
More than 2,000 pieces of custom-designed furniture and art (mostly oil on canvas by European artists), with 85% of all furnishings custom-designed. Much of the artwork was commissioned, and many of the frames are exact replicas of ones found in the Louvre or the Cluny Museum in Paris, crafted by a frame maker in Italy.
More than 25,000 square feet of handcrafted wood floors, Roman pan tile roofing, hand-painted ceiling frescoes on canvas, burled and gilded wood accents, Venetian-plastered walls, hand-hewn wooden beams.
Over 50 elaborate chandeliers; more than 500 fabrics; vibrant Portuguese glazed tiles; and 20,000 sheets of 23-karat gold – carefully hand applied on ceilings, walls, and wrought iron accents.
The Elizabeth Capella, an ornate onsite chapel with beautiful Jerusalem limestone and Italian marble flooring; Venetian plastered walls; a high, rusticated wood plank-beamed ceiling; and hand-carved walnut pews.
A team of 120 carpenters worked 150,000 hours designing, finishing and installing 16 different wood species – including fine walnut, mahogany, olive, alder, sycamore and maple accents – with 35 different finishes.
Hand-stenciled and painted decorative ceilings, took 24 people three months to complete.
The design of the resort was inspired by turn-of-the-century architectural visionary Addison Mizner, who viewed architecture as a seamless integration of the indoors and outdoors. Pictured is the terrace at Amaya restaurant at The Grand Del Mar.
It is extremely unusual to have such a high degree of craftsmanship and extensive number of fine, hand applied finishes – plaster, stone, millwork, tile, wrought iron, etc. – so prevalent on such a large scale. Quite simply, American resorts aren’t often built like this anymore.
Fortunately for guests at The Grand Del Mar, the resort has introduced a series of architectural tours for the summer, which will describe in detail the design, as well as the fine finishes and materials found throughout the resort. If you visit the resort, please let me know your thoughts and share your photos on our Facebook page.
For more information about the resort and the architecture tours, visit www.TheGrandDelMar.com.
