Former Furniture

This is a creative place dedicated to sharing design needs, answering furniture inquiries, giving industry advice, revealing before and after renovations, telling Former Furniture success stories, etc. It is meant to be informative, fun, and engaging—giving users a chance to learn and enjoy the design process. Regular news clippings, interesting topics of conversation, unique design ideas, tutorials, and more will also be posted. Please feel free to contact us with any questions, thoughts or suggestions. We are always here to listen and help in any way possible!

When designing a room, it’s always easier to start out with a floor plan. It is very important to map out where you want each piece of furniture to go before you order anything. Make sure that you draw the plan to scale, usually it is easiest to use 1/4″= 1′-0″ scale, so buy a scale ruler and start drafting away. There are all sorts of pre fabricated stencils that you can purchase that will give you the size of items like a full bed or queen bed etc. Place the drawings on the paper and see where everything fits best. Then if your feeling really ambitious you can color in your floor plan to get an idea of how your fabrics are all going to look in the room together. This can be very fun so draft away and have a good time with it. It might take a few tries to get it right but keep drafting and see what creative concepts you can come up with!

I recently stumbled across this amazing website for an Italian company called SICIS The Art Mosaic Factory!  They are creating extraordinary mosaics for interiors on walls, bathtubs, lighting fixtures and floors.  SICIS The Art Mosaic Factory has taken a timeless art form and added a contemporary twist!   You won’t be disappointed!

Audrey 4 Bathtub by SICIS The Art Mosaic Factory

Sultan 02 Bathtub by SICIS The Art Mosaic Factory

Pin Up Collection by SICIS The Art Mosaic Factory

SICIS The Art Mosaic Factory Colibri Collection

Atmosphera Collection Light Fixtures by SICIS The Art Mosaic Factory

Visit SICIS The Art Mosaic Factory at there website: www.sicis.it/

In the anticipation of the first day of spring, we are celebrating full force with flowers galore!  Flower power has been around long before the 60’s arrived, and the design industry has taken Grandma’s victorian roses to a whole new level of contemporary chic!  Add your favorite funky flowers to your furniture, floors, walls and accessories!

Floral Wallpapered Rooms

Blue Floral Classic Room

Blue & Orange Cozy Cabin

Edgy Purple Fantasy

Floral Furniture

Pottery Barn Brooks Chair Upholstered in Serafina Fabric

Fabulous Floral Sofa

Romance Table by Contraforma

Floral Pillows

Rose Print Velvet Cushions by Graham and Greene

Yellow Roses Pillow by Pier 1 Imports

Blue Floral Pillow by Pier 1 Imports

Floral Accessories

Floral Painted Door Knobs by Graham and Greene

White Shell Flower Door Knob by Graham and Greene

Leaf Pattern Wall Art by Brocade Home

We are feeling a wee bit GREEN in honor of St. Patrick’s Day!  Green is the color of balance, growth and harmony.  Green is the most restful color and symbolizes nature, fertility and life.  There are cool and warm shades of green used everywhere in design from the bedroom to health spas to Elvis’s Jungle Room!

Yellow-Green Relaxation in the Bedroom

We will soon be embarking on the daunting task of designing a Tween Girl’s bedroom in Cape Cod, Mass.  Our concept for this space is based on a lavender room seen in the March 2010 issue of House Beautiful Magazine.  This fostered our new obsession with all things purple!  Purple rooms of various shades were a late trend in 2009 and have proven their staying power into early 2010!  Here is a peak at the photographs that inspired us and a few more to hopefully inspire you too!

House Beautiful Magazine March 2010

A glamorous light lavender with a hint of grey is a perfect combination!

Adding a few vivid accents into a subtle shaded room is just the right amount of color!

This is just the right way to fill your room with solid basics while surrounding the room with a colorful print!

We are thrilled that once again West Week is arriving soon!  Held annually at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, West Week is an internationally recognized design trade event that hosts industry keynote speakers, book signings, introductions to new products and showroom programs.  This is the perfect opportunity to get a sneak peak at what is up and coming and on the rise in design!  This event recognizes everything from furniture design, textiles, color trends, flooring and lighting.  West Week will be held March 24 & 25 2010 at the Pacific Design Center (located on the corner of San Vicente Blvd. and Melrose Ave).  Make sure to stop by and check it out!

For more information please click on the following link: http://www.pacificdesigncenter.com/#/programs-events/

Red is our favorite color so we thought we’d give some helpful tips of ways to incorporate the tone into your space as an accent.   Keep in mind that too much red is overpowering but not enough red is underwhelming.  Check out the images below for inspiration and enjoy!

Currently, there is a movement towards selecting a paint color for the inside of your home that is relaxing and soothing.  We are seeing people prefer paint colors that range from light pink to more earthy tones such as browns, tans and greens.  This collection of shades reflects the “green” movement that has become common in today’s world.

Other popular colors include black, white and various grays.  Whereas whites portray the feeling of fresh and clean, blacks and grays reflect natural elements such as stone and minerals.  Even if you think these colors are a snoozer, keep in mind that you can use them as an accent in your home to brighten up the space and/or create drama, depth, imagination, fun, nature, etc.

When selecting your color palette and visiting your local store, please remember there are tons of eco-friendly paints available on the market that have low odor and zero VOC.

Thinking about getting a new fridge? Well, if you are, there are some new trends in that department that will make your kitchen look more clean, modern and functional.  The most popular trend is to install undercounter refrigerator draws for wine, food and frozen goods.  In fact, in about half of the kitchens designed today, 50% incorporate these types of refrigeration systems.  You can install them into your center island, pantry or counter.  They are perfect for both adults and kids to use! Check out the picture below to get some design hints.

Undercounter Refrigeration

Clients often ask us “where does your design inspiration come from?” On a current project we are doing for a home on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, the fabric below was the sole source of inspiration.  We selected this fabric because we loved the colors and material.  The color palette reminded us of coral, beige and moss which compliment a beach setting beautifully.  The material is light and airy which gives a fresh and clean feel.  It’s amazing how one fabric can create the building blocks for an entire room!

Lulu DK Watermelon Stripes Fabric