Written by:  Mary Kathryn Timoney

Plutocracy- plu·toc·ra·cy 

2. a government or state in which the wealthy class rules. 

Plutocracy is rule by the wealthy, or power provided by wealth…” - wikipedia 

Before the equal voting rights movement managed to end it in the early 20th century, many countries used a system where rich persons had more votes than poor. A factory owner may for instance have had 2000 votes while a worker had one, or if they were very poor no right to vote at all. Even artificial persons such as companies had voting rights. In the US, it would take until 1945 before persons living on welfare and persons in personal bankruptcy would get voting rights.”

So, how does this relate to design? 

Not so long ago, choices for items that were “designer inspired” were few and far between for those of us on a budget.  Over the past few years, our choices have been increased exponentially. Wherein we only had “one vote” when it came to finding high design, i.e. that lucky find at a flea market or garage sale where the seller had no idea of the item’s value, we now how numerous “votes” broadening our opportunities.

Today we see designers’ collections at outlets such as Target, Pottery Barn, and Restoration Hardware, as well as affordable items that are inspired by very expensive pieces.

Given today’s economy, even the finest designers and shelter magazines are regularly giving tips on how to include luxury in our homes on a budget.  Here is an example from an article in “Traditional Home” Magazine. 

How are you weaving luxury into your designs during a recession?

Joe: It's all in the editing I think. We learned early on that good design doesn't mean that everything needs to be expensive. We try to infuse a "high-low" element in all of our designs. Thrift store finds or auction house steals get re-imagined while at the same time we invest in a few choice pieces that the client (or us) just "have to have." Luxury is what you make of it. To one person it might mean having a silk velvet sofa. To another it might be as simple as that perfect throw pillow that brings all the colors in a room together.

Parrish: Our clients seem to be the happiest when they are comfortable with their family and friends . . . in these hard times, that is a luxury. So we make them feel as comfortable with our designs.

http://www.traditionalhome.com/design_decorating/marketplace/20YoungDesigners_ss9.html

And from “House Beautiful”…

http://www.housebeautiful.com/decorating/ideas/easy-home-decorating-0610

12 Easy Decorating Ideas You Can Do in a Day 

Small decor changes make a big impact in a home's look. Here are fast and inexpensive quick fixes from five interior designers.

Display Children's Art

Display drawings in a colorful frame, or in a white frame with a colored mat. Hang them in an otherwise unimaginative space. They're full of spirit — and meaningful. —Eric Cohler

Paint the Lampshades

Buy an inexpensive paper shade and paint it red — Farrow & Ball's Blazer is a gorgeous scarlet. A red shade makes the light incredibly romantic and flattering. —Joe Nye 

Bring on the Branches

Put branches in a container. You could even then go to Home Depot and get a small spotlight to light them from below. It casts fantastic shadows into empty corners. —Jean Larette 

Accessorize with Books

Stack art, design, gardening, travel books — whatever you collect — on a table. Books are my favorite accessory because they're so personal — they reflect your interests. —Joe Nye

Written by:  Robin Pittman

Cooperative

Function:  Adjective

1)  working or acting together willingly for a common purpose or benefit. 

2)  demonstrating a willingness to cooperate. 

3)  pertaining to economic cooperation 

4)  involving or denoting an educational program comprising both classroom study and on-the-job or technical Function:  Noun

5) a jointly owned enterprise engaging in the production or distribution of goods or the supplying of services, operated by its members for their mutual benefit, typically organized by consumers or farmers. 

6) Also called co-op , cooperative apartment. 

a. a building owned and managed by a corporation in which shares  are sold, entitling the shareholders to occupy individual units in the building. 

b. an apartment in such a building.

By now we’ve all seen the farming co-ops popping up around town where groups join to tend to the garden, and quite literally – reap what they sow. Taking home vegetables you have grown yourself must be such a rewarding feeling!

I think of kitchen design being somewhat of a “design cooperative”.   The combined efforts of myself, the interior designer, the architect, the contractor, the homeowner, and the rest of the team involved in the development of the kitchen project – we are all “working or acting together willingly for a common purpose or benefit”.   Clearly that common purpose is to exceed our client’s expectations with the final installation of their new kitchen!  We all work together on materials selections, the implementation of the client’s needs and wants, as well as the technical details and specifications that make every aspect of the design come together cohesively.  

One could compare kitchen design to gardening...the initial design meetings are equivalent to planting the seeds, the following meetings for design development would be the watering/fertilizing – watching the plans “grow”, the fabrication and installation stage equal the harvesting of the plants, and finally the end product – the client enjoying their beautiful new kitchen would be like sitting down to a delicious meal created from these beautiful vegetables grown from your own hard work!

Written by:  Diane Baumeister

nonconformist

Function:  noun

1) One who does not conform to, or refuses to be bound by, accepted beliefs, customs, or practices.  

And so we have here a word that is near and dear to my heart...

The Bauhaus school in Dessau, Germany, was probably the most important school of art, design, and perhaps architecture of the 20th century. Its avant garde designs made a radical break with the antique past and pushed German furniture design firmly into the Modernist camp.

The school, the "Staatliches Bauhaus", existed from 1919 to 1933. The term is based on the verb "to build" and the best translation is probably "Architecture House". The Bauhaus movement artisans emphasised function over form, decoration was discarded in favour of fairly strict use of clean lines, a characteristic of much modernist furniture.

The nonconformist chair and adjustable table by Eileen Gray

Written by:  Patricia Danzig

Monument- mon·u·ment

Function:  Noun

1)  something erected in memory of a person, event, etc., as a building, pillar, or statue: the Washington Monument. 

2)  any building, megalith, etc., surviving from a past age, and regarded as of historical or archaeological importance. 

There have been so many contributions to our great country by so many men and women who have dedicated their lives to making it such a wonderful place to live.  The memory of them lives on when an architect builds a monument to them and some of the worlds best have participated in contributing to this.

The creation of a monument involves art, history, architecture, and politics and government.  The story of the creation of the Jefferson Memorial involved  President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, an architect who died in the midst of design, city ordinances and National Mall planning, World War II protests, and design conflict.  The final design incorporated the architectural style of Thomas Jefferson, thus adding to the powerful  tribute of a monument's focus on the man and his works. 

Shown below are some of our nations spectacular monuments. 

 The Lincoln Memorial:

 The Jefferson Memorial:

Some monuments are a memory of a war, like the Pacific National Monument:

Mother Earth

By Laurie Lehrich

Mother Earth: a common metaphorical expression for the Earth and its biosphere as the giver and sustainer of life

When I think about my own mom and design, I sometimes think these two couldn’t be further apart.  My mom, a bookkeeper by trade, was a young woman during WWII and went to work instead of finishing school while the men were off at war.  She didn’t know much about architecture or design as I recall, and didn’t really know how to ‘accessorize’.  In retrospect, our modest home was a hodgepodge of furnishings and items that were simply perfunctory, perhaps with a few sentimental items mixed in.  Our home was embellished with a lot of “kid made” decorations and art projects to fill in the voids.  

What she lacked in a sophisticated design palette, she made up for in encouraging our creativity by keeping us in a seemingly endless supply of Crayolas, Elmer’s glue, and construction paper.  Further, she continually pointed out how we could embellish our “artwork” by the use things around the yard, the nearby woods, or beach.  Flowers, twigs, stones, seashells, and a myriad of other “finds” on our walks could be consumed into our art.  She proudly displayed our creative efforts as fine works, and encouraged us to keep expressing our individual selves without reservation.  

Thanks Mom, for all those boxes of sharp new Crayola-64s with the “built in” sharpener.  Simple pleasures and broad smiles to be sure.  (I bet you smiled when you saw the picture!)

As an adult and a design professional, I realize now that my mom’s influence comes back to me in many unexpected ways.  Some that I bet would surprise her as well.

Because of my mom, I have a huge appreciation for Mother Nature as an influence on both architecture and design and I look to the great outdoors for inspiration more often than not.  I love natural materials; colors and textures that bring the elements outside in.

My own bathroom reflects natural elements.  The serenity of this space, for me, comes from the representation of earth and water in the color and material selections.

A view of the interior shows the highly polished “watery” slate floors that bridge the interior to the exterior without visual interruption.  Note that the corner windows have no vertical mullions at the bend for an unobstructed view to outside.

Written by: Dawn White

Nest

Function: noun 

1.  A bed or receptacle prepared by an animal and especially a bird for its eggs and young; a receptacle resembling a bird's nest

2.  A place of rest, retreat, or lodging 

3.  A group of objects made to fit close together or one within another

I am aware that I can take only a fraction of the credit, but my greatest designs will forever and always be my three kids whom I affectionately refer to as my baby birds.  That began when the very first would quietly open her mouth and ever so slightly tilt back her head when she was hungry- of course if nothing was inserted within a moment or two it would no longer be a quiet gesture.  Interestingly enough that was the one and only personality trait that all three shared in their early days.  

Various aspects of life are often referred to in terms associated with winged creatures.  One in particular, “nesting”, is used to describe how mothers-to-be create a suitable environment to shelter their eggs and where they will feed and nurture their young until they take off on their own.   

I can attest to being the most non-maternal of all mothers [in all of history I’m sure] and yet having an uncontrollable urge to tidy up and make ready shortly before each of my deliveries.  So, in honor of my own 3 little birds, Tori (which by complete coincidence means “bird” in Japanese), Jordon & Tylar and all of you who have personally experienced and/or witnessed the nesting phenomena, I thought I’d share some interesting nests. (Feel free to queue up/or sing Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds” before continuing)

Josef Albers (Bauhaus) Nesting Tables & reclaimed White Ash nesting bowls by Sons of Saturn… vibrant & colorful! 

Written by:  Robin Pittman

Mother- Moth-er

Function:  Noun 

1)  a woman who raises a child 

I would like to use this very public forum to say just one thing:

”MOM, YOU WERE RIGHT!!” 

(See – there you go.  Mothers Day gift = check!)

Not only has Mom been right about…well, just about everything important in life, but I find myself doing little things now that I’m “grown up” (in years, anyway) that she used to do when I was a kid that I just did not understand or appreciate at the time.  I used to roll my eyes when Mom would play certain music in the car, and darn it if I don’t own some of the same albums now…Mom and Grandma used to make clothing for myself and my brother, and now I’ve started making clothes for my friends’ children (on a much, MUCH simpler level).

Most specifically, I used to cringe when Mom wanted to do anything that involved shopping for the house, and look what industry I ended up LOVING! As a ten year-old, the idea of spending a Saturday in an antique store or consignment shop was painful, but now that I’m *ahem* not ten, this is precisely my idea of a perfect weekend day.  I love the fluttery feeling of excitement while scouring these shops – I can’t wait to see what kinds of treasures I’ll uncover!  The idea of transforming a piece of furniture that someone thought unworthy of keeping into something fabulous and unique – these days, that gets me just as excited as a rousing game of Four Square did when I was a kid.  Woohoo!  high-gloss paint and new hardware!!

I consider myself so fortunate to have been raised by such creative women in my family.  Mom is great fun to shop with, and hassuch a keen eye for the potential hidden behind a thin layer of dust.  She and my grandmother were both blessed with an amazing talent for painting and sketching (the sketching ability I might have gotten a dose…still waiting on the painting gene to kick in).  Regardless of my lack of painting ability, I am surrounded by artwork created by various members of my family throughout my home.  Simply being surrounded by the products of such creativity coursing through my family is inspiring to me, and gets my wheels spinning on what my next design project might be…

Happy Mothers Day, Mom, and thank you for all the years of dragging me to the places that would eventually inspire my work on a daily basis! You were absolutely, completely right…making a house a home IS great fun. 

Written by:  Rachel Martin

Show Houses

Designed by:  Bob Brown 

Written by:  Heather Paper

Heather

Function: noun

A common Eurasian heath (Calluna vulgaris) of northern and alpine regions that has small crowded sessile leaves and racemes of tiny, usually purplish-pink flowers and is naturalized in the northeastern United States.  

Although “purplish-pink” is the most common color of heather, it can be found in various tints and shades—from magenta and amethyst to lavender and, yes, even mauve. Its naturally cool hue is calming, making it a particularly good choice for the bedroom. The bed and Roman shade in this young girl’s retreat look as if they were pulled right from a field of heather:

Designer:  Amanda Nisbet 

This master bedroom, on the other hand, is based on a lavender hue: 

Designer:  Robin Bell 

But there’s no need to limit heather-like hues to your sleeping quarters. Living spaces are just as appropriate for purplish tones, whether you want to use just a little…

Designer:  Summerour and Westbrook 

…or a lot.

Designer:  Bob Brown 

Come to think of it, maybe it's no coincidence that--in the past--I've had kitchens splashed with aubergine, bedrooms wrapped in dusty plum. With a name like Heather, I'm bound to be attracted to the purplish hue!