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in good taste: subspace coffee house

If you are a fan of K-pop and the Koreans’ adventurous sense of style, you’ll absolutely love the new Subspace Coffee House in Ortigas.

Owned by Wilmer Lopez and Thor Balanon, the duo behind the hip home and lifestyle store Space Encounters, Subspace was created with two things in mind: 1) to have a setting where their clients can see how their funky vintage pieces can be used for commercial applications, and 2) to have a venue where they, especially Thor, can celebrate their love for coffee, design, and K-pop.

Their trip to Seoul last year inspired their design for the coffee shop. Similar to Korean fashion, the interior of Subspace is cute, edgy, nostalgic, geeky and quirky all at the same time. Their colorful pieces from Space Encounters like the Papa Bear loveseat and the Wishbone chairs are arranged in an industrial setting of plain white paint, unfinished concrete surfaces, retractable iron grilles, and exposed pipes and ducting. K-pop and Korean vintage posters are mixed with mid-century accessories, and space science details.

It’s interesting that instead of using them as chairs, the Wishbone were hanging above the dining area (photo above)! Thor explained that they were supposed to demonstrate anti-gravity. Clever!

Subspace also features Korean films and concerts. But instead of installing a TV, they simply installed a small projector and used a portion of one wall as their screen.

Of course, it wouldn’t be coffee shop without coffee! Thor suggested for us to try their Sweet Purple Potato Latte (flavored coffee popular in Korea), Iced Lemon Green Tea, Nebula Coffee Jelly, a couple of cupcakes, and samples of their chocolates. Everything was delicious!

Their Sweet Purple Potato Latte (which I call ube coffee for short) is my favorite. It was perfect for that rainy afternoon. Lilli and Green Guide loved the green tea. We enjoyed everything! Too bad Ana, our “coffee connoisseur”, wasn’t able to join us.

Subspace Coffee House is now open! Visit them at Unit 103, GF Grand Emerald Tower, F. Ortigas Jr. Road, Ortigas Center, Pasig. Also checkout their facebook page here for more photos of their food items.

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objects of design + sale alert!: gus* furniture

Simplicity doesn’t always spell b-o-r-i-n-g. In fact, the concept of modernism, the design philosophy behind the mid-century furniture pieces that are making a comeback, is based on the idea that the simpler, the plainer, the better, and that beautiful designs are straightforward, efficient and honest (with reference to the material).

Simplicity of form and practical function are the main inspiration of Gus* Design Group, a modern furniture company based in Canada.

“We are inspired by simple forms and honest materials. We use them as the springboard for everything we create. From the simple two-by-four and construction I-Beam, to the useful miter box, we delight in the simplicity of everyday objects. The result is furniture, accent pieces, and accessories that mix the elegant with the industrial. Mirroring the great modernist of yesterday, we strive to combine great design and practical purpose.”

Gus* also supports sustainable practices, being a member of the Sustainable Furnishings Council and a certified company of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) which ensures that all wood products come from well-managed forest.

I’m a fan of simple and no-nonsense designs. They’re easy to dress up, to dress down, and to pair with a wide variety of styles, much like the little black dress or crisp white button-down shirt in your wardrobe.

Some of my favorites from Gus* are the Atwood Sectional (top photo) with its clean, tailored look,

the Annex Storage with its basic shape and a nice pairing of warm walnut wood with cool stainless steel legs,

the Upcycle Ottoman which uses repurposed fair trade coffee bags,

and the nostalgic School Chair and School Stool which are modern versions of the elementary school chair using bent-ply seat and back.

Gus* Furniture is now available in Manila! And the great news is that they’re having a SALE starting today, July 14, until August 16 (see details in their ad at the righ side bar)!!! This is a good deal for those of you who might be in the process of renovating your home or furnishing a condo.

Visit them at the G/F The Residences at Greenbelt Retail, Esperanza St., Ayala Center, Makati City. They will also have an exhibit on July 16 – 29, 2011 at Greenbelt 5 Exhibit Area (near Superga). For inquiries see contact details below:

Phone: 621-8171, 566-9293

Email: gus@livingspace.com.ph

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gusphilippines

10a alabama st.: resurrection furniture

Our rainy Saturday last weekend was spent visiting two new creative spots in Manila.

We first headed to New Manila in Quezon City to check out 10A Alabama St., an old bungalow which is now home to three creative spaces: the showroom of Resurrection Furniture & Found Objects Gallery, the art gallery of RAW, and the tea bar of Hausbesetzer Laboratory.

Resurrection Furniture

Architect Leah Sanchez and interior designer Binggoy de Ocampo, both from UP Diliman, are the creative minds behind eco-friendly Resurrection Furniture. True to their store’s name, the two designers give a new life to “dead” objects—old and damaged furniture, salvaged wood, and “junk” of all sorts—by refurbishing them back to life or upcycling them into new functional pieces. I admire them for seeing the beauty in the things that many would consider ugly or garbage.

We love the wood dining chairs, the console table made from unfinished salvaged wood, the white armchairs, and the card catalog. Oh, I want the card catalogue!

Aside from furniture, lighting and small decorative objects, the shop also has a collection of small sculptural pieces by artist Ling Quisumbing. The pieces are mostly an assemblage of found objects such as used pencils and scrap wood.

Even their price tags and calling cards are upcycled. They are made from old library catalog cards. Their calling card even has a note encouraging the person to find another use for it, maybe as a bookmark or even as a greeting card.

To know more about Resurrection Furniture, visit their website here and their facebook page here.

Tomorrow, we’ll be sharing the rest of  10A Alabama St. with Robert Alejandro’s RAW art gallery and Jetro Rafael’s Hausbesetzer Laboratory.

sneak peek: i-design in silang, cavite

Last Saturday, I accompanied a client to Silang, Cavite to order a couple of furniture pieces from a supplier. While driving along Tagaytay Road, a white store with a white couch displayed in front of it immediately caught our attention. This store, I-Design, is something different from the usual sight of hardwood furniture makers that line the road. My client suggested to check it out on our way back.

Thankfully, my brain was cooperating that afternoon and I immediately recognized and remembered the name of the lady who appeared to be the owner of the store. Irene Enriquez, both the owner and the designer for I-Design, is a designer that I got to interview more than a year ago when CondoLiving featured her Renaissance condo.

Apparently, the store is very new, around three weeks old since it first opened. Like Irene’s condo, the store looks clean, simple, and sophisticated. Most of their pieces, made of wrought iron and woven plastic strips, are outdoor furniture that can also pass as furnishings for the interiors. The store also carries wood pieces plus various accessories that Irene sourced abroad.

To get in touch with them, you can find their contact details in their website here.

*photos courtesy of irene

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diy: elle’s secretary

Paint is probably a decorator’s/designer’s best friend, especially when projects are in a tight budget. Most designers (me included) would tell you that the best tip that they can give is to maximize the use of  color through paint if you want to make a huge impact at a low cost.

For decorating fan Elle Uy of switcheroom, this old beat-up secretary, which she bought from sulit.com,  is a beauty. In spite of its cracks, dents, and wobbly drawers, she saw the furniture’s pretty shape. After painting it with a  dainty color combination of soft pink and gray, the secretary takes on a more youthful appearance.

You can find the step-by-step transformation of her secretary plus the rest of her diy projects here. [Thanks Elle] -ardel

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cebunext 2011: going local and global

For many years, Cebu has proven itself as a global leader in setting trends in furniture design. Through the use of indigenous materials and biomorphic forms to create sleek contemporary pieces, Cebuano designers have successfully combined local craftsmanship, cultural heritage, and modern design sensibilities to come up with the next big thing.

What’s the next big thing in furniture design? Going local and global!

For the past couple of years, revisiting ancestral roots and taking inspiration from other cultures have been part of forecasts for both fashion and interior design. However, I think it was only last year when this has been more evident in mainstream furniture and textile design.

CebuNext 2011 featured designs that were developed by returning to the “roots”, with culture, history and nature being the main sources of design inspiration. Here are some of the possible trends to watch out for:

1) SUPERSIZING NATURE

Detalia Aurora’s Shellf and Gaia table

Kenneth Cobonpue’s hedge-like Harry rocking stool

2) HANDMADE & HOMEGROWN

Atelier’s high-back barrel chair with solihiya weaving & hanging candle holder in wood and abaca rope

Kenneth Cobonpue’s Little People Screen (top image) : handmade using salago fiber on hand-bowed metal

3) GREEN FURNITURE, LITERALLY.

Kenneth Cobonpue’s planters

Nature’s legacy’s planters and planter-stool

4) NOSTALGIA MANIA

Vito Selma, in spite of being in Italy, LOOKed back to his Philippine roots and came up with these interesting pieces: Jasmine table (a play on Philippine’s national flower, Sampaguita) and Pinas nesting table, a collaboration with Spanish designer Maijo Moll with the Philippine map etched onto the table top.

Vito also won Best Booth!

Some of the featured designers of the Kagikan project (a separate post on them tomorrow) re-interpreted traditional/period style furniture forms and indigenous motifs to come up with new yet very familiar designs.

5) ALL BRANCHED OUT

For some reason, the tree form/branch pattern has been a recurring element in many of the booths. We’ll probably be seeing more of this in different applications this year.

manila now 2011 (part 2)

As we’ve mentioned in the previous post, we saw a number of impressive displays at Manila Now. They weren’t just “booths”; they were like mini-stores with makeshift ceilings and enclosures. It was nice to see the effort that exhibitors have put in to promote Filipino talent. Here are the rest of this year’s standouts:
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Space Encounters (official Facebook page)

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Far East Furniture (www.far-east-furniture.com)

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Diretso (www.diretso.com)

manila now 2011 (part 1)

Last Saturday, before we went on our CebuNext trip – slash – Design Folder company outing, Ana and I dropped by the Manila Now Philippine International Furniture Show at the SMX Convention Center. This was my first time to visit a Manila Now show and I wasn’t disappointed. Some exhibitors really went all out on their booths to showcase their pieces. Others had simple booths but really interesting furniture. And there was a very noticeable style trend which I will get into in a few days. For now, here are just some of the exhibit standouts:

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More Than A Chair (www.morethanachair.com/)

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Venzon Manufacturing Corporation (www.venzonmfg.com)

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Prizmic & Brill (www.prizmicbrill.com)

We’ve barely scratched the surface. Watch out for Part 2 of our Manila Now feature for more interesting furniture pieces and booth designs.

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sneak peek: cebunext 2011

Next week, we’re going back to Cebu to visit this year’s CebuNext furniture show! Like Manila Now, CebuNext will also center on the theme of sustainable design. Because their last year’s exhibit already showcased the materials and processes that make Cebu a leader in creating sustainable designs, they are shifting their focus on another side of green design–cultural roots and influences as motivations for creating designs that have a strong regard for the environment, the people, and the society.

With the theme  ’crossing cultures’, CebuNext will include a feature on five Filipino designers who are based abroad. The exhibit is an examination of how the influence of global ethnicities has developed the Cebuano’s design identity, conveying how an exploration of one’s roots from within the Philippines and throughout the world would bring fresh perspectives and an uncommon design point of view. (Source)

Here’s a preview of the pieces from featured designers Danielle Latorre Cruz, Martha Cech, Wataru Sakuma, Stanley Ruiz, and Jinggoy Buensuceso:

Aside from the exhibit, we’re also excited for our first vacation of the year! We finally decided to free up our last day and enjoy the beach in Mactan! df

*images via cebunext

sneak peek: manila now 2011

March is here in just a few days! Aside from marking the start of summer, March is also the season of furniture and construction shows. Next week, there will be two overlapping furniture shows in the country: Manila Now and CebuNext. The Design Folder girls will be attending both exhibits!

Manila Now 2011, organized by the Philippine International Furniture Show (PFIS), will come first, happening on March 03-06. With exhibitors from Pampanga, Manila, Cavite, Davao, Iloilo, Baguio and even Cebu, the furniture exhibit will focus on the green theme–using sustainable indigenous and recycled materials as well as exploring organic and culturally-motivated design concepts.

Here’s a sneak peek of the pieces that will go on display.

Personally, I’m looking forward to the new collection of my favorites: Triboa Bay, Azcor, Locsin, Prizmic & Brill, and Industria.

Manila Now will be held at the SMX Convention Center. The show will be  exclusive to trade visitors from March 03 to 04, and will be open to the public on March 05 to 06.

*Photos of furniture pieces by Paolo Feliciano {thanks paolo!}