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style shopping: kish

Kish, home furnishings store by designer and tastemaker, Ito Kish, probably has the most playful yet very sophisticated mix of furniture and accessories here in Manila. If you’re looking for a statement piece for your home, whether it’s something traditional or something modern, you’re sure to find something you’ll like here.

The store’s merchandise are sourced both locally and abroad. The local pieces that they carry are mostly from Cebu. In fact, Kish is the exclusive distributor of the VS furniture line from Cebuano designer, Vito Selma.

With an extensive background in visual merchandising, Ito is very particular about maintaining a well-put together and well-accessorized store. I appreciate his special attention to detail, filling every corner of the store with something beautiful and interesting. Also, a lot of people who are familiar with Kish, myself included, look forward to the store’s eye-catching (and sometimes, thought-provoking) window displays.

At the recently concluded Manila FAME 2012 show (March 14-17), Ito went into a new phase in his career and took on the challenge as a furniture designer. He debuted his very first furniture collection Gregoria (named after his mother), which explored the ubiquitous baluster or turned wooden spindle. Though this is his first attempt at designing furniture, it is not surprising that he immediately captured the attention of the judges for Katha Awards, and earned himself two awards: one for Best Booth Design, and another award for Best Product Design for his two-seater chair Gregoria. This is an impressive start for him, to say the least.

If you missed the Manila FAME show but would like to see Ito’s collection, the Gregoria chair and the rest of the baluster-inspired furniture pieces will be in Kish starting tomorrow, March 19, Monday.

Kish is located along N. Garcia St., Makati City.

condoliving’s design lectures

For those of you who will still be here in Manila tomorrow, two of our favorite interior designers, Wilmer Lopez of Space Encounters and Subspace Coffee House, and Jigs Adefuin of Adefuin Design Studio and Ador Interiors (watch out for our feature on his chic new office), will have a design lecture tomorrow, October 29, at PSID’s exhibit venue in SM North.

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psid’s jack ‘en poy (part 2)

(Above) Bamboozled (bamboo) by Teresa Bettina Gomez, Aivan Magno, Lourdes Reyes.

Finally, here’s the second installment of PSID’s Jack ‘en Poy exhibit! I hope the first part was enough to convince most of you to go and visit their mock-ups in SM North. But for those who haven’t been there yet, you still have a week! Jack ‘en Poy runs until the end of October at the former Super Sale Club, SM City North EDSA, Quezon City.

The second half of of the exhibit features designs that explored the unconventional use of bamboo/reeds, rubber, metal, wood, clay/earth, concrete, and stone:

Lastico (rubber) by Danelle Chan, Anne <arquez, Marie Sy, Edito Cauilan, and Brian Mendoza.

Wonder Grass (bamboo/reeds) by Leona Tan, Leah Marcelo, Normina Hicana, and Justine Villanueva.

Chiclette (rubber) by Karla Lora, Redz Dayot, Kimberly Fuentes, Shane Tomeldan, and Raizah Bangahan.

Pavo Real de Hierro (metal) by Juna Dianelo, Patricia Dizon, Camille Masiglat, Jesserie Enemoto, and Rico Urbano.

Boho Glam (metal) by Leandy Reyes, Katrina Recomite, Alvin Amansec, and Keshia Amuan.

Flight of Imagination (wood) by Meiji Castillo, Kathleen Go, Genevieve de Vera, and Zharmaine Leanzon.

Three to Tango (clay/earth) by Patricia Monfort, Abigail Sy, and Brian Zaldivar.

Glamorous and Green (clay/earth) by Pia Jimenez, Marie Antoinette Medina, Raleene Cabrera, Jennifer Cederstam, and Julienne Templonuevo.

Le Boudoir Rose (concrete/cement) by Jane Simon, Anton Castillo, Che Igdanes, David Mendoza, and Irene Chiong.

Tangible Dream (concrete/cement) by Sher Ho, John Daniel Garcia, Celiza Sim, Jinky Chan, and Charles Yulo.

Rockusina (stone) by Charisse Bantiling, Atheena Garcia, Marianne Panerio, Ivone Guda, and Pauline Tianazon.

Eat ‘To  Bato (stone) by Alethea Bautista, Ann Margaret Estoque, Jennifer Ocampo, Erika Canillas, and Maximo II Dy.

psid’s jack ‘en poy (part 1)

Glass with Class (glass) by Veronica Quesada, Katrina De leon, Kaye Guevarra, Christine Melivo, and Sunshine Samson

The spotlight is on green materials in the ongoing exhibit of the Philippine School of Interior Design’s (PSID) Jack ‘en Poy (the Filipino version of the game rock-paper-scissors). Twenty booths showcase the students’ playful and fantastic designs of home interior spaces developed around the use of natural and/or recyclable building and finishing materials. Jack ‘en Poy runs until the end of October at the former Super Sale Club, SM City North EDSA, Quezon City.

This first installment features the students’ fun and whimsical take on the use of glass, plastic, wood and paper. Enjoy!

Looking Glass by Mark Cardenas, Kendilyn Tan, Mary Jane Tan, and Pauline Teng

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Nouvelle Vie by May Voluntad, Helen Ricana, Pamela Tan, Claris Jornales, Marielen Galang

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Yin and Yang by Mary Rose Campos, Gelsey Cuaresma, Soledad Del Rosario, and Jasmine Baronia

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Out of the Box (paper) by Michael sy, Gayle Ocampo, Love Ocampo, Lissa Briones, Marianne Wamaleda

Paper View (paper) by Peaches de Guzman, Maruanne Monroy, Hannah Zuniga, and Eunice Vibal

i saw design: mapua’s interior design exhibit

Green Guide and I visited Mapua’s Interior Design Exhibit (MIDEX) in A. Venue Mall along Makati Avenue last Saturday. Two of my batchmates from college are members of Mapua’s ID faculty so my expectations were high. Thankfully, I was not disappointed.

There are four booths individually designed by four students that showcased their interpretation of avant-garde.

Lyra Lester Abuck’s “Tunnel Vision” found inspiration in science for her design of a bar.  To create an exaggerated illusion of depth, she applied basic techniques used in perspective drawing into an actual three-dimensional space. Sections of bent plywood in decreasing widths form the walls and the ceiling. The sections were further emphasized by backlighting the channels between them and painting the sections in gradating color, from white to black. Taking inspiration from a chemistry lab, the design of the open shelves at the back of the bar mimics the form of the Periodic Table, while laboratory glassware was used for mixing and serving drinks (which reminded me of this).

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Jeleanne Cribe turned her family’s devastating experience during typhoon Ondoy into her creative muse for her design of a bedroom entitled “Ondoy’s Homecoming”. Curved lines correspond to the movement of the flood waters while the blue light denotes the somber mood during the catastrophe. The elevated bed is reminiscent of their floating furniture during the flood, and the two dropped ceiling accents are stylized versions of their damaged ceilings.

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Instead of designing another boxy interior, Kristella Saclag gave her “Three-point Introspection” living room a new unexpected shape by having faceted walls. Interestingly, the combination of mirror panels, painted sections, and warm cove lighting made the walls look like they were finished in gold. The rest of the details in the room, like the sliding panels that hide the entertainment system, the coffee table, and the ceiling lamp, all follow the faceted form of the walls.

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With the recent implementation of the smoking ban, Ben Francis Nasayao thought of designing a luxe smoking “Lounge Center” with an unexpected twist. While the space looks glamorous, the inspiration behind the design, a smoker’s damaged lungs, is rather disturbing. The decorative panels took the form of damaged bronchial tubes. The colors red, black, and gray were taken from the colors of cigarettes, smoke, ashes, and death (hmmm quite morbid!).

The Interior Design program in Mapua is relatively new but we were impressed with the quality of the design that the students presented. Congratulations to Lyra, Jeleanne, Kristella, and Ben, and to their adviser, Twenty Munoz! MIDEX  runs until October 22.

P.S.

For price inquiries on the furniture pieces displayed in the exhibit, you can visit them at the 3F A. Venue Mall, Makati Ave., Makati City or email Ben Nasayao at <nasayaoben@yahoo.com.ph>.

mapua interior design exhibit

How does “avante garde” look like in an interior space? See it for yourself in Mapua Interior Design’s exhibit entitled Pushing the Boundaries.  The exhibit will run from September 24-October 22 at A. Venue Mall in Makati.

space matters: inside a z-loft

A couple of weeks ago, we had the privilege of having the first peek into our high school friends’ z-loft condo residence in Makati. While the floor area (around 70 square meters) is comparable to most high-end condominium units, the vertical clearance above the living area created an illusion of a spacious interior.

At the second level, there’s a nook adjacent to the staircase which was made into a study/home office. While a large desk was already in place, there’s still enough room for a slim vertical chest of drawers beside the desk and a set of bookshelves behind the work space for additional storage.

The bedroom is also spacious. It was able to easily accommodate a queen bed, two large side tables, an arm chair, a console table and a built-in closet.

Congratulations A & A on your new “home”!

design speak: what is design?

I’m glad that I stumbled upon this video! It’s frustrating that we always seem to forget what design is and what it is for. Most of the time, the term is used very loosely, often referring to products, spaces, structures and visuals that are stylish, beautiful, trendy, and marketable. This video from the Design Council of UK gives us a brief and animated explanation of what design is all about.

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home tour: fresh love, fresh space

I’ve always liked visiting homes of young couples and young families. Aside from their fresh and youthful aesthetic point of view, I noticed that young couples also manage to make their homes efficient without looking like a huge closet filled with built-ins.

This condo residence in the South is the new home of a young couple after living with their in-laws for almost two years. They told us that this is their first taste of “independence”. Independence means that they now do everything themselves including all household chores! Good thing that they chose to make their home supportive of an independent lifestyle.

Instead of maintaining the three-bedroom layout of the house, the couple decided to convert one into a den/entertainment room that opens to the living area (below), and the other into the masters’ en suite walk-in closet.

In spite of the relatively compact space, they were able to fit in their open kitchen a washer-dryer (hidden inside the cabinet beside the refrigerator), a dishwasher, and an oven. It also has a glass backsplash which they use as a message board where they write reminders, to-do lists, and even recipes.

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Reflecting the couple’s personalities, this home looks simple, easy, and happy. While the interiors are mostly done in basic white, black and gray, pops of color can be seen everywhere through their paintings and accessories, rendering this home with a fresh and welcoming appeal. df

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q&a: black, white and red

Last night, we got an email from a reader asking for a ideas for her three-bedroom condo space which she intends to style in a black, white, and red color scheme.

Personally, I think that the black, white, and red combination is pretty tricky to execute. If you don’t get the balance right, especially for black and red, your space could either end up looking like a cheesy bachelor’s pad or an interior ready for Halloween.

Good thing is that I’ve recently been browsing through pictures featuring the color scheme. I’m helping my brother and his fiancée with their wedding on December which will use the same color motif. It’s not a popular color scheme for weddings because of the combination of black and red. However, when done right, the palette could possibly lend a modern and elegant setting for the event.

Styling for an event and decorating a home are quite similar because both deal with space. After looking through pictures, here are my suggestions:

1)      Get the proportion right. Individually, black and red are already bold hues. Imagine the impact when you pair them together. To soften their intensity, use a generous helping of white, a small amount of black, and a little touch of red. You can do it the other way around and use more red than black.

2)      Ease the transition. Aside from the right “color proportion”, you can also consider adding a few touches of in-between colors like gray (black+white) and maroon (red+black) to further soften the color palette. For a softer version of the color scheme, you can replace black with charcoal gray, and red with maroon or wine.

3)      Plus one. Pair the black, white and red scheme with another color or a natural finish. A pale turquoise can make the palette look “friendlier” while wood can add warmth to a possibly cold composition.

Hope this helps.

* images via thelennoxx,  sarahkchen, halcyonhousedesign