Rich Starley Interior Design Studio
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(562) 987-3787      Rich @RichStarleyIDS.com

Creating an Outdoor Living Space

6/8/2015

 

Being that we live in California, we're lucky to be able to live outside almost year round. One of the things I strive to do in my designs, especially if I'm involved in a project early on, is to encourage my clients to create an outdoor living space as part of their new home.
PictureDesign by Rich Starley Interior Design Studio
The areas that we design can have a wide variety in the way they are executed. To create a full on indoor-outdoor feel we would create a loggia, an outdoor covered living space like this one we designed for a client in Pasa Del Mar.

PictureDesign by Rich Starley Interior Design Studio
Another way of developing an outdoor living space is to develop the space entirely outdoors. Then provide umbrellas or optional awnings to give sun shading like this uncovered outdoor patio we created for a client in Newport Coast.

Outdoor Furniture
Features for an outdoor living space can include an outdoor fireplace, kitchen, or outdoor barbecue area. New technology developments mean we can now have a TV outdoors along with a music system incorporated into an outdoor living space.

Most important though is comfortable seating and a place to eat. For the last 5 years I have represented a line of outdoor furniture by Summer Classics. I encourage you to take a look at their website www.summerclassics.com The furniture below is from Summer Classics'  Sedona series. This is just one of many venders I represent when it comes to outdoor furniture.
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In addition to the great resources I have for outdoor furniture, my Designer Fabric Lines now carry outdoor fabrics which are hard to tell from the regular indoor fabrics. The applications go from draperies, to furniture upholstery, and more. The range has grown tremendously in the last 5 years.

Hardscape, Softscape, and Water Conservation
PictureDesign by Rich Starley Interior Design Studio
In any outdoor living space you have your hardscape surrounded by softscape, which is your planting materials and/or lawn.

Now that we are becoming more conscious of our environment and more water conscious, a great way to finish any outdoor living space is to use a variety of potted plants. These require considerably less water and can be changed seasonally. Drought tolerant planting can also be used.

When it comes to hardscape for an exterior, we have a tremendous variety of materials like natural stone, concrete or concrete products for pavers and for hard surface materials. There are concrete tiles as well as some ceramics which are suitable for outdoors. Then we have natural materials like compacted granite, gravel and of course natural rocks. Don't forget, we haven't even talked about the products we have for wood decks and/or patios which we can discuss if you are interested in that kind of material for your outdoor living space.

PictureDesign by Rich Starley Interior Design Studio
Noted in this design, we literally brought the inside material outside  to give the client a truly indoor-outdoor feel. We also included a vary unusual water feature that was produced from one solid slab of granite.

A variety of natural materials can be used for walkways, paths and seating areas. For someone who really wants the look of grass, but not the expense of the water bill, there are great looking artificial turfs too.


Time to Update Your Exterior Space
I encourage my readers to take a look at the Summer Classics website and contact me to design a new outdoor living space or update the one you have. Please make a point to  call us at the Design Center so we can come and take a look at your space and give you our suggestions. (562) 987-3738.

As always your comments and questions are very welcome.

Drapery

4/29/2014

1 Comment

 
Over the past few months, we've been producing a series of blogs that illustrate the process of creating exceptional interior design, from start to finish. We're getting closer toward the end of this series, with only a few posts left! In the following, we discover the process Rich uses to select the perfect drapery for his client. Read on and let us know what you think!

In choosing a drapery product, there are several aspects to be considered. The first is privacy; does the window covering need to provide semi-privacy or complete privacy. The second aspect is function, and this determines how the window covering operates. This could include blinds (which are typically raised horizontally or vertically, traverse draperies (drawn by a cord), or hand drawn draperies (led by a baton). Draperies might also be driven by electricity and be part of a whole house automation system.

The other important aspect to take into consideration is the type and style of products – this will be determined by how we respond to the first aspect: privacy.

In this project, Rich’s clients required two components to be considered. The client wants both under drapes made of a sheer fabric, which will be drawn across the windows all day. These will afford them privacy during the day. At night however, the sheer becomes very transparent when the lights inside the house are on. So, we have included over drapes that can be drawn for more complete privacy during the evening
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The type and style of drapery the client selected will be a hand-drawn drapery for both unders (sheers) and overs (regular drapes) and will be operated by a hand baton. 

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In keeping with our core contemporary design, the rods will be iron with a simple iron finial and will be done in a bronze finish.


The under drape will be a beautiful woven check sheer. The over drape is a faux-silk with velvet embroidery.

Now that the fabrics and function are selected by the client, the last thing to do is have the drapery installer come to the house to measure for yardage and get pricing for the client’s beautiful new draperies. Once this is approved, we’ll put them into production with the other furniture, and will have them installed on or before the furniture installation day for a completed look. 

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Lastly, We added one more fabric as an accent pillow fabric to give the client the finished look they desire. 


Our last and final post on this project will be to discuss which particular accessories we’ll incorporate to the project. As always your comments and feedback are greatly appreciated. Please keep in mind that spring is here and if there’s anything IDS can help you with, please give us a call. 

1 Comment

Case Goods

3/10/2014

 
For our case good pieces (in this particular instance, they consist of wood and iron) Rich has selected those that have a clean line, but echo both traditional and contemporary elements.

On a whole, the lineage of the furniture is rooted more in the classic traditional style. But the finishes and the execution run toward a more contemporary direction.

Each of the pieces will be custom sized and custom finished to echo our warm neutral palate that we have executed for our upholstered pieces.
(see the original floor plan here, see the custom furniture pieces here)
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The nice thing about doing custom pieces is that they can truly be modified to fit perfectly into our custom floor plan.

Our cocktail table and end table are custom iron pieces. with a unique finish for the iron that has an usual texture and color quality. The tops of the pieces are made of 3/4” travertine.


<< (design sample of cocktail and end table, with iron finish example, and travertine top sample)



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We will have 2 custom cabinets that we’ll use on our floor plan to go behind the left and right ends of our sectional. These will add beauty and interest to the overall finished look of the room and also provide us a great location for our accent lighting – which is ultimately part of the accessory package (one of our last steps in the completion of this blog series).


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The focal piece for the room will be a unique cabinet that will anchor our TV area, on the far side of the room. The carving on this piece creates a uniqueness about it that is both traditional and contemporary at the same time, and makes a great statement for the overall look of the room.


In terms of our overall production for all furnishings, we will start the manufacturing process around the same time. The goal is to have all the pieces completed in a 10-12 week time frame. By doing this we will deliver a completed room in one installation. This is a thrill for the client – as opposed to having furniture that is piecemealed – the client can live a normal life while the room is being created and they enjoy the gratification of completion when the pieces are all ready together.

At this point in the project, the client has come back  with an additional request for Rich – originally we were going to use their existing draperies that were in the room because they were relatively neutral and would work well with the fabrics the client had approved. However, after seeing how the room is coming together they decided they would like new drapes after all. So in our next post, we’ll be incorporating this and showing your some design ideas for the drapes as well as the fabrics we’ve selected.

As always, we would love your comments, feedback and questions!

selecting the right fabrics

11/9/2013

 
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The process of choosing the right fabric takes several factors into consideration.  Rich fully understands the importance of coordinating the right fabric to be interpreted into a design image in your home.

In simple terms, he may describe two important factors: how the fabric looks, and how the fabric is to be used. And we can break fabric down into 4 main categories:

  • Upholstery weight fabric
  • Drapery weight and bedding
  • Lightweight use
  • Heavy use

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Rich first identifies your needs and lifestyle in terms of the fabrics. He'll work to discover the functions the fabric will serve; how you would like to use the furniture that the fabric is applied to, and what is your lifestyle like. He may ask if you have children, pets, or if you enjoy entertaining a lot? He may even identify fabrics for light control in your home.

It’s an old saying borrowed, but ‘the form follows function’ rule applies to choosing the right fabrics for your design project, and Rich is an expert at creating the right applications for your design project.

Check back later this month for images from a recent project where these fabrics are currently being applied.


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