- Trish
Your Grand Design
Do you love beautiful things?
Lately I've been binge watching a series called Grand Designs, a British series that has now also extended to Australia, New Zealand and Sweden.
If you click on the above pic it will take you to an interview with Kevin McCloud, the host of Grand Designs, talking about the show. FYI, you can watch Grand Designs on Netflix and there are also some of the episodes on YouTube.
Just from the fact that its been running for so long, 20+ years! is testament to the fact that people find it .... what?
Inspiring
Innovative
Imaginative
Intriguing
Ingenious
Individual
Unique
Artistic
Innovative architecture and interior design enhance our lives by providing us with a means of self expression. Surrounding ourselves with things that are visually pleasing to our own eyes creates the sanctuary we all crave.
I think the big draw with Grand Designs is being able to witness how other people create beautiful spaces and finding the parts that resonate within ourselves.
For me, I may yearn for that architectural design but mostly it is all about enjoying and appreciating the art and beauty and the uniqueness of design in each.
Architecture only seized my imagination about twelve years ago when I visited Frank Lloyd Wright's world famous 'Falling Water' in Pennsylvania. I was awestruck.
If you are interested in learning more about Falling Water, here is a very interesting
When that tour finished we discovered that a few miles away was another Frank Lloyd Wright home that was privately owned by Lord Peter Palumbo but open to the public. Kentuck Knob which was one of FLW's Usonian homes built for the Hagans (of Hagan Daaz Icecream). We went straight to it and fell in love. Click on the pic to learn more.
It was amazing to me, who loves high ceilings and that sense of open spaces, that the ceilings in both of these FLW homes were both relatively low.
The trick I think was that these worked to draw your eye to the expanse of nature surrounding you through all the large glass panels. He was truly a genius in his field.
Here in New Mexico there are two homes designed by FLW, both are privately owned so no tours or I would be there in a flash.
This first one is known as the Pottery House, you can click on the pic for a short video by Zillow. The commentary is not accurate though when he speaks about the tragedy in FLW's life. It wasn't his first wife who were murdered, it was his 'mistress', her two children and four other people at Taliesin (pronounced tally-ess-in), that Frank Lloyd Wright built as the home for he and his mistress. The butler did it. He was literally an axe murderer.
Click here for the tragic story
Back to the beauty aspect: here in New Mexico, adobe houses, even stucco houses as a more economical replica, are the norm. The Pottery House is a fine example of just how beautiful adobe houses can be.
The other house, the Arthur Friedman house, aka The Fir House, unfortunately, does not show up very much on the internet. I guess when you decide to buy a FLW house, you have to deal with the fact that it is an attraction, so you have to guard your privacy fiercely.
That was quite a digression on my part, but I really enjoyed finding the links so that you too can enjoy and/or revisit the wonder of Frank Lloyd Wright.
We all want a home that is a reflection of ourselves but not many of us have the budget or time to do anything as grandiose as a 'grand design'.
And that's where interior design is our savior.
The colors, the layout, the art we select to make our home uniquely our own.
Of course we take pride in creating our very own beautiful spaces, but it's not about impressing others, although they may well be impressed, it's about expressing ourselves in our very own sanctuary.
As a famous interior designer, Alex Vervoordt said, it's 'a way of life - living with beautiful things'.
Getting back to the beginning of this 'ramble', about the TV series, Grand Designs, if you are a fan, let me know, cause that means we are our kind of people.
Cheers,
Trish
