Modern Ideas

Italy has really expanded in the right direction in the past few years and these pictures from the recent Salone del Mobile in Malano show what they are up to. I have had personal dealings with Jesse and have see them progressively become one Italy's top modern furniture manufacturers, and their latest adventure will include some specialty stores identified by their trademark "J". As you would expect from any furniture showroom Jesse really put forth a complete modern home interior design concept with all rooms included. The showroom in Milan is 800 sqm and features elements in dark oak, brushed pine, and walnut veneers accentuated by lacquered surfaces and textured fabrics confirming the collection continuous evolution.

Modern Furniture

Gufram Mozza began production of design objects in 1966. Their creative furniture ideas have found their products into collections at the MOMA New York, Musuem of Modern Art in Denver and in the permanent exhibition of Italian design in Milan. My readers will immediately pick up on some of the shapes such as the "lips couch" which has found its way onto numerous blogs in the past. I wanted to share a few more images to pay homage to their creative design ideas

Interesting Polyurethane Foam Furniture

New Age Danish Modern Furniture

Home Furniture

Urbia is a unique concept from OBRA Architects that takes urban living to new heights. Urbia is an amazing furniture system designed to convert a small apartment into a well designed place. This concept focuses on specialized space planning that takes into account the layout of an apartment and creates a custom design for it. As you look at the images you will see how the small apartment came together. Each piece is no bigger than 2' x 8' so that it can fit right through the front door. All the pieces are crafted off-site and then brought to the apartment for assembly. The passion behind Urbia is to make the most of urban living. For people living in cities such as Paris, New York, Buenos Aires and Tokyo, there is no reason that the living space cannot be as exciting as the cafes, restaurants and life of the city










Most of us have lived in an apartment or loft where space is very limited. Creating a small office or a small desk in these types of spaces can be challenging. Further, this situation may not be permanent as you may be saving up for a bigger place. "Trovato" is Office Max's "office in a box" solution designed for people living in small space. An ottoman provides seating for the small desk which can be easily stored underneath. The ottoman is also a file cabinet that can be accessed by removing the cushion

Home Architecture

this stunning Malibu home embodies many of today's accepted design practices. Construction materials consist of environmentally friendly and recycled materials. The house is vertically stacked in a hillside in Malibu, California with an amazing view of the Pacific Ocean. The home minimizes energy use through large solar protected windows which limit the need for artificial lighting. The roof harbors photovoltaic solar panels to harvest the sun's energy. Ground level concrete floors act as heat sinks pulling energy in during the day and then releasing it at night. Motion sensors ensure that lights are not on while a room is not in use. The results are amazing in that the home is contributing power back to the local grid. This Malibu home has 3,300 square feet, 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms












A lot of us may not know much about Malaysia, but this modern home will attest to the country's interest in architecture. This house was a project under taken by Arkitek Axis in Kuala Lumpur, a city north of Singapore. The house plans consist of a 3 story construction plan that is surrounded by water landscaping and a lush pool area. Central to the design is how the bottom level connects to the outdoor areas creating a sensible way in which the family will interact with the house's outdoor surroundings