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Italian Kitchen

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In a country house in Italy I was able to transform an old kitchen into a modern one, still maintaining a Country atmosphere and with a reasonable budget for Interior Decoration.
Before: Two small stoves from the 60's still hooked to a gas cylinder,
a wasted corner, an old cabinet, no counter space.
A very tired and not functional kitchen!
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After
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I redesigned the working area of the kitchen and even if a sink under the window would have been ideal, I wanted to stay on budget and I maintained the existing water supply line.
A gas line was installed and a 5 burners gas top (and oven underneath) was ordered, a local stone countertop (not a granite, but a stone with fossils trapped inside and the most beautiful cream colour) was cut to measure.
I chose not to have a standard size kitchen counter but I ordered a deeper than usual one to have more working space and more storage.
Custom order wood cabinets with a dark, rich red stain (being wood it will be easy to repaint when another colour will become more appealing) were installed and the new dishwasher was also paneled.
In a kitchen, the most difficult part of a house to design, every inch counts and the function of every area is most important. I was able to insert two large and deep drawers for pots and pans, a shallow drawer under the oven to store lids (always a challenge to keep in order) and a narrower, but still deep, pull out recycling system on the side of the sink.
To paint the walls the colour of old style butter was chosen.
I like to create vignettes, so I decided to put art on the wall and use old white ceramic containers for salt, spices, tools and I displayed cooking books on a shelf designed to finish one side of the counter. The soup tureen is Richard Ginori from 1930.
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The kitchen serves also as informal breakfast, brunch area.  The table and chairs are Swedish, made of teak, from the 60's.   The china cabinet is from the 20's and it was repainted in a light cream colour with deep red accents, the family pictures found a place on the milk glass doors.
The den beyond the kitchen has the same colour but one wall was painted a deep red, to create continuity.
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Lots of action here...as you can see I decided not to use upper cabinets, but only a shelf to display art and objects, in this case a collection of old white milk jugs and a Sheffield teapot.
I placed art also above the sink: an oil painting and precious kids' drawings.
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A single, but deep, sink in the kitchen was enough since the old stainless steel double sink, useful to wash vegetables or big pots, was installed in the small room behind the curtain, where there is also the fridge and lots of pantry space.
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On a wall a collection of old Spode plates with images of wild game.
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A very happy country kitchen, functional but still full of memories of the past.
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James Bond's Bedroom

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If you really want to know...in the last 007 movie the suite at the Grand Hotel Bolivar in Panama was furnished by B&B Italia.

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Even the most British spy prefers Italian design! Daniel Craig in "Quantum of Solace'" when in a bedroom  loves the refined comfort of an historical brand of Italian Design.
When the movie reached the  theatres in the B&B Milan's showroom they reconstructed the identical bedroom suite ...on display for a whole month.

"Talamo" Bed has a structure in solid wood and panels of engineered wood and leather upholstery.
Clean lines and luxury materials.
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"Musa" chair, frame in solid wood, leather upholstery
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"Max" table, an icon of the Maxalto collection. The supporting structure with x-shaped legs is
available in different finishes, bronze, chrome, nickel and black.
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"Teti" chair in two versions
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all designed by the Milanese Architect Antonio Citterio for Maxalto collection - B&B Italia
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Sweet and Old Lace

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From fashion to Interior design, the romantic and transparent decor for a style at the same time light and traditional.
"Prada pizzo S"... laces everywhere was one choice for a recent Prada collection
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"Lily Lace" chair designed by Droor Benshetrit and produced by BBB Emmebonacina, seduction and purity, already at Museum of Arts and Design in New York

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 Light comes through laces.  Elegant when the light is off and precious when the light is on.
By Gualtiero Sacchi for Viabizzuno
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 "Antonietta" by Alessandra Pasetti for Pianca. Thin like a lace doilies this small metal enameled table,
sewn with a laser.

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 "Miss Lacy" by Philippe Starck for Driade. Retro style in stainless steel, polished by hand to make
 it sparkle like a jewel. Romantic and feminine as its name.
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 "La Nonna" by Romolo Stanca for Nonesiste. Realized in one piece of glass with glued on decorations, evokes familiar memories.
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 "Siena" by Corrado Dotti is a china pattern which plays with irony and ends being
an object of  refined elegance.
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 "Crinoline" by Patricia Urquiola for B&B Italia.
Urquiola was born in Spain but graduated at Milan Polytechnic University with a thesis mentored by Achille Castiglioni.   Since then she is living and working in Milan and is now one of the big names of the world of design.
The chair below shows she can be the queen of laces for her ability to design patterns of extraordinary elegance for every material she uses.
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Another Post on her will follow soon.
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A home with a story to tell

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An apartment in Milan in a '50 building re-decorated by Architect Daniele Rotondo.  The minimalist approach of the era was left intact but the Interior Decoration added eccentric ideas. The result is contemporary lines, furniture from different centuries, layers of styles, shapes, colours.
Black and white chair by Creazioni, the shape is baroque but the upholstery is obviously Pop.
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Dining room, octagonal shape, with wallpaper by Manuel Canovas  used "like it was an English candy box" the architect says. Behind antique doors is storage for linens and china. Ceiling light by Flos.  Note the chairs reupholstered in silk of different colours.
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 Soft cream walls, ceiling light by Lolli & Memmoli and on the right a 17th century trumeau with portraits of ancestors (or "recent" ancestor?)
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The kitchen was totally redone and it is now a functional volume with white wood and an insert in tempered glass. Oak table designed by Rotondo framed by family pictures telling many stories.
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Orange chairs "La Marie" by Starck for Kartell, crystal chandelier "Vladimiro" by Lolli & Memmoli
In the center a disappearing sliding door "Essential" by Le Porte di Scrigno
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Contemporary the decoration in the children bathroom, with Pop references,  sinks "Verso" by Catalano on concrete counter; wall hung bidet and toilet "Link" by Flaminia
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...but classic and traditional the details in the Master bathroom with marble walls and floor and a curtain with a detail from Michelangelo's Cappella Sistina.
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Intimacy feelings created for the Master Bedroom with shades of colours inspired by the Orient.  The wallpaper with gold vertical lines creates a luxurious background . The table lamp by Flair is made of Plexiglas, made of concrete is instead the Moroccan table.
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 The daughter room with the plastic chandelier is an explosion of colours.
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Same for another living area with bold colours attracting attention
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More subtle colours for the Interior Decoration in the main living room: on an antique family heirloom rug a table by Flair from the '70 in stainless steel and mirror.
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A bookcase by INeOUT, minimalist style like the Asmir Sofa by Milano Interni, silk, velvet, gauze pillows with yellow, orange, burgundy and purple in harmony with the colour scheme of the whole apartment .
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                                             A very original style, warm and eccentric Interior Decoration.


Photography by Margherita del Piano
 Related Posts:
A White House
A Timeless House in Tuscany
A House on Como Lake
A Loft in Milan
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French Country Antiques II

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                 What a beautiful evening I spent browsing at the opening of
         Sherry Killam and Mamie Angus' annual show of French Country Antiques.

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They are actually much more beautiful in real life! We should blame the photographer (in the mirror) but wait... actually he graciously obliged to our request, so many thanks are due.

If you live in Vancouver area, even if at opening night a great deal of items has left from the front door...
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...there will be still an excellent selection of furniture, objects, linens, mirrors, chandeliers and much more all carefully chosen in France with impeccable taste, shipped to Vancouver and displayed with the usual superb style in a warehouse at
33 East 3rd street (throughout April, check French Country Antiques for details)


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                                           Once a year event, not to be missed.

Related Posts
French Country Antiques I
French Country Antiques II
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My Style

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I was tagged by Maria from "Colour Me Happy" and challenged to choose only one image
(pretty difficult task) that could represent my style.
This is my choice of a room reflecting what I would love to accomplish as an Interior Decorator.
The designer is one of my favorites: countess Muriel Brandolini d'Adda, who says she can't draw, she has no clue about a floor plan but instinct is her guide.
She also said in an interview :"If I had to describe my style I would have to stop working".
Whimsical but not precious, often things are not matching, nothing is boring, always a collision of colours and textures.
A cocktail of nationalities made her the artist she is today: Vietnamese, Venezuelan and French, plus married for many years to an Italian count (did you think for a moment I was not mentioning Italy this time?)... her whole life is reflected in her style.
                           Eclectic supreme!

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What I love about this room is the feeling of intimacy and the mystery of what can be behind the divider, the choice of soothing, calming colours with the golden accent in the middle, the contrast between the antique chairs and the contemporary table and the texture of the rug in juxtaposition with the smooth shiny satin.
As much as I love art on the walls, this room does not need art because every piece is art itself.
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