Karim Rashid

Karim Rashid is an Egyptian born Industrial designer living in New York.  He dabbles in everything from Interior Design, Product Design, Fashion Design etc.  Everything he designs whether it's in clothing, product or interiors has a futuristic flair to it.  I came across his name while searching the internet years ago.  From then I feel in love.  

You're probably familiar with the Kone Vacuum by Dirt Devil?  He designed that.  Or how about the Method soaps you can buy at Target or any drugstore?  He designed that packaging as well.  To date he has had some 3000 objects put into production.  Time magazine called him the "Most Famous Industrial Designer in All the Americas".

Kone Vac and Method Soaps

"Kurve Restaurant" New York City, 2008

"Market Restaurant/Bar"... Atlanta, GA

"Semiramis" Hotel/ Athens

Aren't these amazing? Karim is an amazing, iconic and unique designer to say the least. You should visit his website http://www.karimrashid.com/ to see all his extraordinary designs! Have a great week!

~Lauren
Chic Antique

New London Style

This is where I belong...in New London Style. It was London's diverse cultural melting pot that created this 'vintage eclectic twist with minimal modernism' style of Interior Design.

I was looking through a "New London Style" book and was amazed at how drawn I was to every aspect of this style. It's said that "The rule is, there are no rules" when it comes to New London Style. Mix recycled retro pieces with polished industrial flooring, Victorian chairs upholstered in bold prints, the possibilities are endless. There's vast room for your own creative flair. Instead of searching for high end pricey pieces, this style is more recognized for pieces that are more personal to you. Eclecticism at its best.

Hand printed wall papers, Decorating with graphic prints, and bold upholstered vintage pieces of furniture are just some of the ways to a New London Style space.

Nothing matches, but it "goes". Each piece/print, stands well on its own.

Mixing old with new. Although the furniture and accessories may be old, they are refinished with a modernized pink color scheme contrasted against the dark gray chair.

Whoa! Loud pops of modern color contrasted with rich wood grain furniture, clear plastic desks and retro Eero Saarinen inspired round chairs.

Modern, Vintage, Eclectic, Unique, Creative and Inspiring..........

Those were some images from a New London Style book. Kind of reminds you of Chic Antique, right? Well we have a lot of pieces here that would work in a New London Style below:

Eclectic Owl Lamps

Vintage Wall paper. Looks great in a frame, on a piece of furniture or covering a wall!

Distressed bright white antique shelving.

Graphic print upholstered side chair.

 You can add your personal touch to a New England Style room by having a custom piece done by Chic Antique in any way you fancy! =)



Have a great week~ Lauren

Every day is a Creative day!

At Chic Antique, you never know what colors you'll be painting with or what pieces of furniture customers will be drawn to.  Every day is different, creative, fun and inspiring!  Today I got to paint an antique end table and revive it with a fun teal color.

A couple came in from Paris to look around and was impressed with all we had, while a few others came in looking for pieces for their new apartment.  It's always fun to meet new people and share their love for design while helping them at the same time.

Here is the end table I was working on.  It's almost finished!

Here is another piece we've been working on for the Store. Can you guess what it'll look like when we're finished? What color will it be? Will we use any other materials besides paint? Fabric, glass, wall paper? You'll have to wait and see! Stay tuned to see what we do =)

~Lauren
Chic Antique

~Feng shui~

I was reminded today of how important Feng Shui in a home can be so I decided to do a brief post on Feng Shui in the bedroom. Feng Shui, which literally translates to "wind-water", originiated in China back in 4000 BC and was widely used to orient spiritual structures. Today Feng Shui is practiced not only by Chinese but Westerners as well, using it predominantly in homes and businesses.

If you're planning on practicing Feng Shui in your home, I'd say the bedroom would be the best place to start. A bedroom should emit peace a tranquility and feel like your sanctuary. It's a place where you spend at least eight to ten hours of your day sleeping, getting ready and relaxing.

Here's a quick how-to for Feng Shui in the bedroom.

1. Don't have a t.v. or workout equipment present in the bedroom.

2. Good air quality

3. Have several levels of lighting

4. Color!-neutrals are best with pops of color for excitement

5. Choose artwork carefully. Have images that you want to see happening in your life, pieces that inspire you or at least uplift your mood.

6. Placement of your bed is very important. Have your bed easily approachable on both sides with a night stand on each side. Place your bed with the headboard firmly against the wall and out of direct view of your bedroom door.

7. Keep all bedroom and closet doors closed while you're sleeping.

Keep Chic Antique in mind when Feng Shui-ing your room~! We have the perfect antique pieces with great pops of color to uplift your space.

Stay tuned for more posts!
~Lauren

Summer Time Sparkle!

I believe that there is a little part in every person who loves things that sparkle, shine, glow in the dark or is a vibrant neon bright color. Not everyone likes to admit it, but I will be the first to shamelessly admit that I LOVE things that sparkle!

In recent years, the fashion industry has been using a gratutious amount of Swarovski Crystals on garments, shoes, jewelry, handbags and hair accessories. You name it, someone has probably found a way to put a little bit of bling on it.

I have to admit, I've seen a few crazy things in this reguard (Like the $70,000 crystal encrusted toilet!) and while it might look pretty neat, I doubt many people would want something that extravagant in their home (unless maybe you want your home to be a night club?)
There are some nice ways to decorate at home using Swarovski Crystals, and they can really add a nice hint of glamour without breaking your budget. What is even better, if you want a fun DIY project, you guessed it, you can do it yourself!
There are a variety of websites offering "Swarovski Crystals" if you want the real thing, do your research. There are plenty of comparable crystal products that are reasonably priced. The two projects I have in mind for all you lucky readers today are a pillow project and a bathroom project.
Here is an example of a nicely embellished Pillow

This is actually very simple to do. For starters, you can either take an existing pillow, or make a new one (if you're into sewing). You will want the crystals with "hotfix" which means that the adhesive is already on the back of the crystals, so you will just need to place them, put a cloth over them and apply heat (an iron will work for this).

The bathroom project will be a little bit more involving, but has the potential to be very rewarding if you have the patience to create it. Here is an idea for adding some glam to your bathroom:

You can create any design you want to give a little sparkle to the bathroom. This would even look really nice on the mirror too!
The application process is a little bit different for this since you will not be applying like you would on a porous surface. There are special adhesive materials that will allow you to create your design and then adhere it to the desired surface.

Here is a link that should help get you started in the right direction!

http://www.create-your-style.com/Content.Node/Get-Started.en.php

Happy sparkling!!

~~~~Alex~~~~

Chic Antique Studio

Have you seen the Chic Antique Studio yet? It's where all the creative magic happens! Aside from the Chic Antique Store where we showcase finished furniture, we have a studio next door. The studio is filled with different pieces of unfinished furniture each week that is waiting for your ideas. All you have to do is come in, take a look around and let us know exactly what you want done. ~*Remember, local delivery is free*~

Chic Antique, the Store!

Have a sunny week!

~Lauren
Chic Antique

~4th of July Fun!~

Happy Fourth of July everyone!!! The Fourth of July is the perfect Holiday to show your pride for America. Whether you're showing your pride through fashion, food or decor, you simply cannot go wrong!

Aren't these Jeffrey Campbell shoes (above) amazing? They inspired me to go further than just wearing a t-shirt with the american flag on it to show my love for America! I surfed the internet for different ideas for a casual yet chic 4th of July outfit and decided to make a collage!

This outfit is casual, yet chic, and patriotic without it being overkill. The jewelry and "shattered" nail polish adds an edgy touch to the playfulness of the outfit. If anything, this outfit can inspire you to mix and match pieces you have in your own closet to create the perfect 4th of July outfit!

(Shorts,Top,Jewelry-Forever 21, Blazer-H&m, Shoes-Aldo, Sunglasses-Ray ban, Nail polish-OPI)

As well as dressing patriotic, you can entertain guests with these fun and easy "Pretzel Sparklers"!

You can find the recipe by clicking here. It's basically melting chocolate, dipping the pretzel rod into it, coating it with sprinkles and letting it dry!! So fun and easy...and deliciousssss!

I hope you have a fashionably fun & safe Holiday and celebrate it with friends and family.

~Lauren
Chic Antique