Seeing Design - Interior Design Ideas

February 5, 2012

Architecture of the Amazon

The honeymoon has begun! The first stop on our around-the-world journey has landed us in Manaus, Brazil, the heart of the Amazon. It’s a 2-million person city in the depths of the jungle that can only be accessed by plane or the only highway in town, the Amazon River. Native Brazilians have obviously been living in the rainforest for centuries (more on jungle living later) but the Europeans that came flooding in during the late 1800s for its endless resources, namely the rubber trees, have given this town a very distinct character. The dream was to create “The Paris of the Amazon” with grand plazas, opera houses, and palaces and they succeeded… in their own quirky Amazonian way.

Here a look at Manaus nearly 90 years after the Rubber Boom, in new renaissance of sorts as they race to revitalize the town before their debut as host of World Cup 2014.

Houses crowd around the Amazon river; the lifeblood of town.

The black and white waves of tiles in Sao Sabastiao Square symbolize the meeting of the Rio Negro and the milky waters of the Solimoes rivers that form the Amazon river, just north of Manaus. This is the original example of the design but the motif appears all over town.

The pride and joy of Manaus, the Amazonas Opera House was built in 1882 at the height of the Rubber Boom.

Sparing no expense, Italian designer Crispim do Amaral was commissioned to take on the 701-seat theater. Beyond the Venetian glass blown chandeliers and Rococo furniture shipped from France, he sent the local Brazilian wood across the ocean to be carved by the finest craftsman in Europe to ensure the theater had the best of the best.

The Provincial Palace is made of a bunch of different smaller museums like this rare coin museum. The loose change didn't interest me much but I loved the antique display tables and loads of light flooding the arched windows.

Loved this little corner of the Palace's private quarters for the trompe l'oeil walls and light and dark planks of wood...another nod to the meeting of the waters.

Beyond the museums and landmarks, Manaus' beauty is in a dilapidated state but that's half its charm.

Grand Art Nouveau atriums and regal neoclassical buildings mix with thatch roof for a city full of contrasts.

With Manaus hosting the World Cup in 2014 they are trying to spiff things up with 21st century designs and achievements like the Manaus-Irandubua Bridge--the second longest river bridge in the world and quite the steel stunner at that.

January 2, 2012

Want Our Apartment?

To walk away from your day-to-day life for 16-months, you need to tie up a lot of loose ends but we’re getting there. Quit job—check. Sell car—check. Find new health insurance—check. Rent apartment? This remains the one major missing piece before we take our honeymoon around the world. The hope is to rent our apartment fully furnished because 1. Putting stuff in storage is a pain. 2. Someone is bound to appreciate all my hard decorating work!

For anyone moving to the New York City area temporarily, who doesn’t want the typical box filled with industrial-grade furniture and craves an inviting, thoughtfully designed space, we want you to have this apartment. Everything in our home was chosen with great love and care (ex. we lived in camping chairs until we found our dream couch. When we couldn’t find the right kitchen island, we built it ourselves.) This furniture doesn’t deserve to be covered up with dropcloth; it deserves to someone who could love it as much as we do (or even be half as obsessed).

Condo Specs:
Three-story brownstone building, circa 1900
1,130 Square-foot condo
2 Bedrooms
1 Office/nursery
1 Full bathroom
Original wide-plank pine hardwood floors
Dine-in kitchen w/ large butcher block island
2 Decorative fireplaces
Backyard w/ patio, outdoor seating, grass, garden, trees, grill & fire pit
Dishwasher and stainless steel appliances
Washer and dryer in the building
For full details, see our apartment listing

Here is the abbreviated house tour but for more photos and full makeover backstory, just click on the room name.

The Living Room
The Kitchen
The Master Bedroom

The Bathroom

The Guest RoomSo if you know anyone—a visiting professor, a businessperson on a long-term project, a couple who’s moved across the country and left it all behind, or anyone who would just love our space, please email me at Anne@SeeingDesign.com

December 9, 2011

The All-Out Honeymoon

At a fateful happy hour almost two years ago, friends of Mike and mine told us they were taking a honeymoon around the world. Our jaws dropped to the floor then stuttered out, “What do you mean? Is that even possible?” They were just going to quit their jobs and go. The concept seemed unfathomable but yet affixed itself to our brains from that moment on.

Mike and my love for travel runs deep. With a mother who was a flight attendant all through her 20s and Mike’s parents who were known for their spontaneous ski trips to the Alps, we were taught traveling is an essential part of living. In our five years of dating, we’ve been to nine countries and have constantly been thinking, where next? So when it came to picking a place for our honeymoon, we knew one exotic beach wasn’t going to satisfy this case of wanderlust.

So as of January 2012, Mike and I are starting our one and half year honeymoon around the globe. It’s crazy, we know -but if not now, when?

We’ve since updated this map and extended our trip by six months. The world is a big place!

The Honeymoon Itinerary
The plan is to go the places too far to visit while we have a job and too rugged to do when we’re old. That means neighboring Central America and cushy Europe, we’ll see you at a later date. South America, Africa, Asia, Australia, New Zealand—here we come!

To be honest, our itinerary right now is very rough, though this is what we know: The first leg starts in Brazil for Carnival, then loops down to Uraguay, around Argentina, up Chile and ending in Peru to hike Machu Pichu in May. Then my sister is having her first baby and my best friend is getting married so we’ll be returning to the U.S. for a couple weeks. By June we are off to South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya, and Madagascar, followed by a slow tour through Asia to Tibet, Nepal, China, Japan, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and ending in the South Pacific with Australia, New Zealand, then home by May of 2013.

Though we’ll be tightening up our plan over the next 40 days, we don’t want to let any one route bog us down. You never know what you’ll find out there so you need to keep a little wiggle room for spontaneous inspiration.

SeeingDesign Abroad
When choosing names for this blog, SeeingDesign struck me for its global possibilities. The prospect of actually seeing and chronicling design around the world gave it potential that, when the time was right, I knew I would seize it. So akin to my past coverage of boutique hotels, design shops, architecture, chic finds around the U.S., it’s about to get a whole lot more interesting abroad.

A few SeeingDesign column ideas I’m scheming..
Design in Five: A round up of each country’s most unique, exquisite, exotic, bizarre, and charming products.
Architecture Tours: From huts to high-rises, a visual review of what’s home in farflung places.
Artisan Spotlight: Interviews with different local artisans about their lives and crafts.
Hotel Envy: The review of the best design hotels we stay in and the ones we would die to check-in to.
Market of the Month: A close look at the some of the coolest bazaars and flea markets around the world.

HoneyTrek.com
And for all non-design related adventures —hiking, beaching, dining, volunteering, etc.—Mike and I will be keeping a joint blog called HoneyTrek.com. Travel ideas, advice, mishaps, and musings will abound here. If this sounds like your kind of adventure, please head over to our blog and subscribe to the newsletter: http://HoneyTrek.com/Subscribe

It is going to be one heck of a journey—one of which we’d love you to participate in, from observing, commenting, to offering your suggestions, even requests!

We hope you can join us for the ride…

November 6, 2011

The Unlikely Local Honeymoon

So as some of you know, we have a big honeymoon trip coming up (full details soon) but to tide us over and recoup from the frenzy of wedding planning, a mini-moon was in order. Dreaming of a quick jaunt to Malibu, the Keys, or somewhere sunny, I was bit bummed when a family obligation left us with the ever-familar Pennsylvania as our best option. Visions of the Poconos’ 1970s champagne coup bathtubs and vibrating heart-shape beds were haunting me so I googled “Relais & Châteaux, PA” in hopes that this global boutique hotel network would freakishly have a location in the Keystone state. Lucky us, I found out they have two properties in the region and Milford’s Hotel Fauchère happens to be one of them.
The recently renovated 16-room hotel was founded in 1852 by the master chef of New York City’s first and most famous restaurant, Delmonico’s, and takes its legendary reputation of fine food and hospitality very seriously. The service was beyond impeccable–it was unbelievably thoughtful and wrought with the most charming details.

The wow-service began before we even arrived. We called to let them know we wouldn’t get in until 10pm and asked if they could recommend any places open for a bite. They called around, came up with nothing, but said they would stay open because they wanted the newlyweds to have a gourmet meal upon arrival. We had the entire restaurant to ourselves, enjoying a Delmonico steak and truffle fries, only to be greeted by the owners with a personal welcome and congrats. Wow is right.

After dinner, we went up to our minimalist but luxe room to find milk, cookies, and a bedtime story waiting for us on our nightstand. Beside it was a card with the next day’s weather a hand-drawn with the sun, clouds, and temperature. The cute-factor was off the charts! And the bathroom with radiant floors and claw-foot tub, bedroom with Frette sheets, and Belgian linens weren’t bad either.

The next day we woke up and had breakfast delivered to our bedside. Continental breakfast usually means Cherrios and a fruit cup…oh no, not at the Hotel Fauchère. Homemade vanilla bean yogurt, fresh granola, warm croissants, and grapefruit with sugar blow-torched on top are the complimentary option.

Freakishly, March 18th was a 73-degree day so we asked them about taking a hike to the nearby Raymondskill Falls. They handed us a Picnic at Ascot backpack complete with Christofle hotel silver, plates, and champagne glasses and sent us to Fretta’s Italian food specialty shop (also adorable!) where we picked up olives and prosciutto to go with our bubbly.

Our last night wrapped up with total decadence: a five-course meal with the most delicious dishes like garden potatoes with roasted figs and local sour cherries , duck with herbs and nasturtiums and the perfect wines to match. To explain how attentive the wait staff was, when we asked our South African server a few questions about Cape Town, she gave us her email in case we ever needed any recommendations on a future trip.

Now if you are looking for a honeymoon spot, I wouldn’t try to sell you on Pennsylvania as the most romantic pick on the planet, but for a weekend getaway with full-service charm and pampering, you have to try Hotel Fauchére.