Modern Design with a Hint of Traditional

To the untrained eye, "modern furniture" stands in stark contrast against pieces that many refer to as "traditional" or "classic." Modern furniture is often considered simplistic - even futuristic in terms of its design. If you take a closer look, however, you're likely to notice elements of traditional design within modern furniture.

Modern manufacturers and designers like Knoll, Kartell, Herman Miller and Julian Chinchester have a knack for creating pieces that are contemporary and sophisticated, yet work in a home decorated in a traditional style.

A fine example of "modern meets traditional" is designer Philippe Starck's Louis Ghost Chair . Known for his diverse design and architectural background, Starck's creation represents an intersection of classic baroque style and innovative modern design. In form, the Louis Ghost Chair resembles a traditional wooden arm chair. While the shape of the chair is clearly traditional, the innovative choice of a transparent polycarbonate as the medium, is clearly modern (pun intended).

English designer Julian Chinchester describes his line of furniture as "contemporary design inspired by tradition," with most of his pieces falling into the "transitional" category. Transitional is essentially a style of furniture that fits somewhere in between traditional and modern. Chinchester's high end line has a cozy yet luxurious look, mixing traditional form with contemporary styling including a collection of mirrored furniture.

Other manufacturers like Knoll use traditional materials with more modern shapes. Knoll has a line of tables designed by Eero Saarinen in the late 1950s, available in a luxurious marble finish. Marble is predominantly used today as an accent, either on countertops or in bathrooms. You rarely see contemporary furniture today made from marble.

When decorating your space, it's OK to stray away from one particular aesthetic. Given the traditional influence present in a good deal of modern furniture, these two styles naturally mesh quite well together. Just make sure that you don't overdo it. Clutter is never a good look in a room, no matter how nice the furniture is.

18th Century Furniture The Style Lives

You can see examples everywhere of the neoclassical style in art, sculpture, architecture and furniture. The Classic 18th Century style furniture, from concept through construction and the creations of talented artisans with dreams of greatness, poured their hearts out in the determination that they might adorn the homes of their clientele with the beauty, refinement and grace of furniture fit for royalty.

Famous furniture and cabinet makers such as; Thomas Chippendale, George Hepplewhite, Duncan Phyfe and Thomas Sheraton to name a very few, all toiled to great lengths to create a style of furniture that bolstered the 18Th Century Furniture's popularity in a time of turbulence.

Even today, many styles we consider modern, mimic the structure and style conceived by those great masters of a period in time so long ago.

For many years, those of the esoteric, who share the knowledge and love of antiquities, compete fiercely to out bid one another to win the prize of these signed period pieces. Many bid in the hundreds of thousands of dollars to showcase these wonderful antiques in their homes, offices and galleries.

Thankfully, today you can marvel at these magnificent pieces of historical significance in museums, government buildings and if you are fortunate, private galleries.

Land Buying Mistakes

Since 1998 I have been in the land developing business. My agency coordinates every aspect of the home site development from land clearing to building permits to final inspections. Over those ten plus years I can say "Not much can go wrong that I haven't Witnessed."
Every project that I have coordinated has had it's own little quirks and negative features.

In this blog, I want to point out the three most important details that exist when purchasing land. Always keep these in mind when you begin your search for that piece of the rock. These are details that you alone must seek the answers to;

1.) Always contact your building and zoning department to make certain that your selected lot is a build able lot. Too many times have I been involved with land owners buying property (in some cases have owned that property for years) that is not a buildable lot.

2.) Contact the Power Company that will be providing service to your new home. Give them your parcel identification number (PIN). They may ask for more information. Provide as much as you possibly can. Ask as many questions of them until you get your answer. In some cases, especially out in the country, providing power to your parcel of land can run into the thousands.

3.) If you have selected a piece of land that requires a septic tank and drain field for sewage disposal, BE Certain that you can obtain septic approval. In most cases you can call the health department in your county. They may be able to answer your question if provide them with your parcel ID number, which should include the (section, township and range.) You may contact a septic tank installer in that area and ask them, they might know that answer. If they don't, then you must have a perc test performed on your proposed property. This will help not only in identifying the type of system, but the cost for installation when searching for pricing from septic system installers. The land seller may share in the cost. In every case be certain that you receive a clear answer...No guessing allowed. Without septic approval, you'll have to move on to another parcel of land to purchase.

These three points are the most important factors to concentrate on ahead of buying land. There are many other factors that must be addressed. I will be pointing those out to you in future posts.

For more information you can view my website at http://www.alandadvocate.com/