Room(s) With A View (or two)

TBT #6.  Interior Design:  Jenny Vorhoff at Studio Riga.

In the city where buildings are packed like sardines, some apartments have views that make up for everyone else’s dark brick facade hiding behind a drawn window shade.  At this penthouse in the Jean Nouvel building at 100 Eleventh Ave, whether I looked outside or in, my eyes were more than satisfied.

Advertisement

TBT #3. The Bold and the Beautiful.

TBT #3.  Architect:  Anik Pearson.

Dramatic.  Dynamic.  Dreamy.

 

 

 

Itchin’ for a kitchen?

This modern kitchen made me want to paint the walls of my kitchen bright yellow.  (It’s a good thing I didn’t do it because our kitchen has a long exposed brick wall & redish wood cabinets that would look horrible with bright yellow!)  How could you have a grumpy morning in such a bright happy looking kitchen?  I don’t think it’s possible.  It was designed by Elizabeth Aurandt of Mercer Interior.  Elizabeth is not only a talented Interior Designer, but she is also quite an intuitive stylist.  Throughout our shoot, I tried to convince her to venture into the world of prop styling.  She’s a busy lady…we’ll see if she can fit it on her plate!

You call this work?

Some shoot days feel like work but some truly feel like play.  When I arrived at the Hudson Valley home of Interior Designer Sisse Jonassen, it was obvious that I was in for some serious play time.  I couldn’t get out of the car fast enough to see the inside & when I went inside, I didn’t ever want to leave!  I love every bit of the house from the exposed ceiling beams to the wide plank floors, from the found art to the fine art.  My photos and Sisse’s story were just featured on Design*Sponge – according to the comments on the post, she now has a big fan club!  Who’s the leader of that club?  Me.

Brooklyn Home Co, again!

There’s nothing I don’t love about The Brooklyn Home Company. The People? Check! Their Style? Check! The Locations (Brooklyn!)? Check! I only wish they could build and design their spaces even faster than they already do (which is pretty fast) so I could shoot with them more often. Looking for a new home? Go buy one of their newly renovated spaces, now on the market- you’ll be very happy.

Mansion In May

Every 2 years a vacant mansion is taken over by the designer showhouse, Mansion In May.  This was the 2nd year I was hired to photograph the entire mansion – so my 3 (amazing!) assistants and I set out for the 3 day shoot wherein we shot 35 rooms and the landscaped grounds of the Fawn Hill Farm.  It is so exciting to see the choices that the designers make without the influence of a homeowner sitting on their shoulder.  They can be bold.  They can be creative.  However, it can be a bit tricky to capture as each room is often drastically different from its adjacent rooms.  Some spaces are slick and modern while next door is a dark and traditional styled space.  Some are covered in soft pastels while others are clothed in primary colors.  It is my job to capture the individual personality of each room without having its neighbor peeking around the corner!

We are crumbs

Rome is humbling. We are all merely crumbs. I remember having a similar experience 9 years ago at the Grand Canyon- it’s a wonderful feeling.

iPhone snap at the (perfect) Pantheon.

Red.

Though this space is not located in Montclair- the designer, Rachael Grochowski of RHG A+D, is based out of Montclair.  These communal spaces at a large residential complex in NJ were both fun & challenging to shoot.  Red is a powerful color.  So often public communal spaces are muted shades of tan, grey, or green.  Rachael’s red is bold!  I’ve shot five of Rachael’s projects & there’s often a touch of red somewhere and it works beautifully.  Even her logo is red!

Montclair? Maybe.

I’ve spent a lot of time shooting in New Jersey these past few weeks.  A handful of shoots have been in Montclair, a town that kind of feels like an extension of New York City (they even have a Red Mango!).  Everyone I’ve met that lives there, both my clients & my clients clients, formerly lived in NYC & never thought they would end up in Jersey.  Four years ago I vowed I would never leave Manhattan, and 6 months later we moved to Brooklyn.  Earlier this year, I recall vowing that as long as I’m on the east coast, I will live in Brooklyn.  I’ve recently stopped vowing because you never know what the future holds.  Maybe, just maybe, Montclair could be in our cards…but you didn’t hear that from me.

Architecture & Interior Design by Stacy Millman of SKM Design.  SKM Website coming soon!

Men at the Mall.

This summer I found myself begrudgingly at The Short Hills Mall in New Jersey.  While longing to leave (as I am not a fan of shopping, nonetheless at the mall!), I spotted these men.  Why were they at the mall?  Something tells me they have female counterparts shopping while they sit as if they are in the waiting room of a doctor’s office waiting for someone to come tell them the diagnosis.  My men at the mall diagnosis:

Husband: Bored & Poor. Wife: Who cares!  She’s got a whole new wardrobe!