Monday, November 1, 2010

Odessa






Odessa yatch

By Erin Ferucci
Celebrity Lifestyle Designer

One of the latest yachts, Odessa, was featured in the November 2009 issue of Showboats International. This yacht is owned by Giorgio Armani.


Odessa, with her black hull and silver metallic superstructure, she is striking—a sleek, sexy runway model in formal attire. Odessa has an entirely different feel inside and out. A raised bulwark forward makes the bow more imposing and gives the boat a less massive look. It features elegant stainless steel ornamental details within recessed sections of the upper bulwarks.


Salon

Two facts make this project remarkable: One is that, until commissioning the construction of the boat, Odessa’s owner had never owned a large yacht. Second, nearly the entire project was driven by the furniture, which was designed and supplied by Armani/Casa.

It is this trim, residential style that defines Odessa’s interior. Like the exterior, the design is a departure from every Christensen ever delivered. It is a highly sophisticated look that carries through the boat and includes movable furniture but stonework as well. The woods used are rich and dark: Makassar ebony for some of the furniture and black walnut for the soles and bulkheads.

Bedroom

Stones are glorious, translucent varieties of onyx that are supplemented in many areas with glass that lines bulkheads and countertops. The modern style of the interior is carried through to the furnishings the exterior as well. In addition to the design of the exterior furniture itself, the exterior changes include the arrangements of all exterior decks, most notably the uppermost deck, which has a rectangular spa tub and a redesigned bar.

Dining Room

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Dream Destination: St. Barts

By Erin Ferucci
Celebrity Lifestyle Designer


Imagine the perfect island retreat. That is what this Danish couple has created for themselves in this open air contemporary villa in the hills of Camaruche in St. Barts.
The fashion and interiors of the this home are a wonderful melange of modern meets Bohemian. It is easy to forget that this is an island. Every element of this design had to brought to the island. It is an amazing undertaking, but beatifully executed. It's not like you can just run down to the local hardware store and pick out tile. This level of design requires strategic planning at the highest level. Look at this impeccable open air white shower. Imagine bringing your perfect size eight bikini clad body into this shower, you skin a lovely shade of sun kissed mocha from the Caribbean sun, white sand between your toes! It's so stunning you want to be stunning to shower in it!

St. Barts is amazing. The cuisine is superior, there truly is nothing like eating in St. Barts. The coastline is amazing and unfettered by moored boats. The turtle population makes it illegal to drop anchor in Marigot Bay.
The couple who live here head Day Birger et Mikkelsen, a Danish fashion and interiors company the blends modern chic with carefree and whimsical Bohemian textiles. This villa is a 6,400 sq. foot homage to their design aesthetic.

I love the simplicity of this kitchen and the way the black and white theme is carried throughout the indoor and outdoor living spaces.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Jalan, Jalan Miami

By Erin Ferucci
Celebrity Lifestyle Designer

Every designer has secrets that make their job easier. Often it's a secret source, a place you know you can shop and find amazing things that aren't available anywhere else. A designer guards their sources and never gives away a secret. It would be a sin! But I'm feeling a little sinful! And sometimes a shop is so wonderful, you just have to SHARE! When looking for the perfect island furniture and accessories I love taking a trip to Jalan, Jalan in Miami. It is my favorite secret source!If you walk into their beautiful showroom, you’ll know what I mean. I walk into their showroom and I want to do everything Island! The colors, the patterns, everything is fresh and beautiful. It's global shopping with an emphasis on "Island Chic". I go to Miami, just so I can shop there. It's so wonderful I can't help shopping for myself while I'm there. Bruce Platt is the owner, he is a wonderful person and his taste is just impeccable. Designers working in the Bahamas
and The Virgin Islands frequent Jalan, Jalan because it is such a unique and special place. They have a warehouse that is an island designer's dream. I can't say enough about how fabluous Jalan, Jalan is. I wish Miami was not so far away!







Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Island Organic Chic

By Erin Ferucci
Celebrity Lifestyle Designer

I love organic, unique pieces. These one of kind tables are crafted from vintage fabric woodcuts. Before the advent of the printing press the common method for creating printed fabric was to stamp the fabric with a carved woodcut. An artisan would painstakingly carve a design into a block of wood, then the "stencil" would be dipped in dye and placed on the fabric.

Although this method is considered rare now, it is still a practice that is sometimes used in the islands to create one of a kind fabrics. I love that these amazing tables are fashioned from the original woodcuts. Each piece is unique and seeped in history.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Simplicity: Island Chic

By Erin Ferucci
Celebrity Lifestyle Designer

When an azure ocean is your backdrop simplicity is key to any successful design.Coastal Living is featuring this beautifully elegant seaside home in their current issue. The owner, Jim Delemeter, is an emergency room doctor who was inspired by the work of Luis Barragan, a Mexican architect renowned for creating minimal masterpieces out of concrete. The simple elegance of the sculpted concrete walls has a variety of design benefits. It creates a neutral background which allows the blues and greens of the surrounding environment to be unhampered. The concrete also provides a practical solution to weatherproofing, the steel enforced concrete walls have proven capable of withstanding even hurricane winds. The interior designer for the home, created a beautiful, warm home atmosphere through a use of a minimalist array of neutral textiles. photo credits: lisa romerein

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

I'd Rather Be on An Island

By Erin Ferucci
Celebrity Lifestyle Designer

I'd rather be on an island. Is it just me? First there was the rush of the holidays. Then the pressure to make and keep New Year's Resolutions and just when you think you can catch your breath from the onslaught of expectations placed on you by the ever present media machine....the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition shows up in the mailbox! I'd rather be on an island. When you live on an island you don't feel pressured to stand in line at Target to buy wrapping paper for the holidays, you wrap gifts in coconut husks, or hide them in gianormous conch shell! Talk about reduce, reuse and recycle!
When you live on an island you don't feel pressured to make New Year's Resolutions. Everyday as you watch the sunset over the ocean you are automatically reminded of the fleeting beauty of life, so you make every moment count. When you live on an island, the new Victoria Secret doesn't arrive in your mailbox in the dead of February, it strolls past your villa every day of the week. It doesn't pressure you into being some ideal, it just exists. I'd rather be on an island!

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

My Private Tour of Donna Karan's Island Estate

By Erin Ferucci
Celebrity Lifestyle Designer

There are some things that just defy description...there are simply no words. Over the holidays I spent a lot of time in Parrot Cay in Turks and Cacaos completing a job for a client.
Turks and Cacaos is an amazing enclave of spectacular island villas owned by a small group of uber celebrities and the wildly successful. The homes on the island are the penultimate of island sophisticated chic. And the high priestess of it all, living in the island castle of any one's dreams is Donna Karan.
You can't even imagine. And I can't even describe...but I have to. It was that....ugh....there are no words. I can just tell you it was so beautiful and so elegant that it made me emotional. And the smell...the smell...I will never forget the smell. It smelled like money, fresh, clean, ocean scented money.
Every element of the home is designed to pay homage to simple elegance. It's designed to the perfect haven for bare foot decadence. It is divine. These photos are from Architectural Digest and while they are beautiful, you can't even imagine how much better it is in person. The magnitude of the beauty, the sheer assault on the senses...have I mentioned the smell?

This is the playground for success beyond measure, the reward for talent unrestrained. The day of my private tour coincided with the departure of one of Hollywood's elite actors and his family, who had been enjoying a brief stay. I can't even repeat the amount of money it takes to rent the villa for one night, a number that I guarantee would catch your breath, but I assure you it's worth every penny.