KARATE CHOP

 Designer Celerie Kemble does the chop.

Do you karate chop your pillows? In an effort to "fluff up" a pancake thin down pillow, many people resort to the "karate chop"; puffing the pillow and then chopping down the middle leaving a large V indentation.  The karate chop seems to evoke the wrath of some in the design community. In a recent interview, designer Michael Smith said something to the effect that a karate chopped pillow should be punishable by jail time! There is even a Facebook Fan page "Don't you hate it when you karate chop your pillow in half!!" (258 fans).

While I'm not a big fan of the full-blown "chop," I don't think it's an offense that should require jail time. As with most things, moderation seems to produce the best results. A tiny indentation on the top of the pillow leaves a shallow, subtle scoop, producing a fluffy, inviting pillow.  And so, the debate goes on-what do you think of the Karate Chop?

  Super Chop!

Desinger Carlton Varney karate chops his pillows

Modified karate chop from Eric Kohler

and Miles Redd...

NEEDLE IN A HAYSTACK

Hot House Floral

Choosing fabrics is a part of the design process that people look forward to most.  It's a chance to express yourself through a room filled with colors and textures of your choosing.  Certainly, there are days when the fabric choices for a room comes together with relative ease, but more often than not, it takes a certain amount of patience, fortitude and luck to find the right mix of colors, textures and styles.

I'm currently working on a project for a young Manhattan family with three children under the age of seven. They wanted a living room that read young and modern but didn't want to sacrifice style for comfort. Plans were drawn for two separate seating areas with two sofas and several upholstered chairs. My client fell in love with Celerie Kemble's Hot House Flowers, a modern, large scale floral that is smart and contemporary with a soothing palette of silver blues, beiges, browns and blacks. We decided to use the fabric on two club chairs and using the colors in the print as an anchor, we chose a palette rich in neutrals and texture.

 This smart Kravet love seat will be upholstered in a handsome chevron print with a double row of polished brass nailheads running up the sofas arms.

The room's large windows will look fantastic surrounded by Kravet Couture's Velvet Gate linen and velvet fabric.

The Schumacher chocolate velvet was both a luxurious and practical choice for the modern Robert sofa from Hickory Chair.  The dark velvet will keep little fingerprints and errant dog hair nearly invisible.

My favorite piece is the sophisticated Oly Benjamin chair covered in cobblestone leather. The smaller scale is perfect for apartment living.

The room was coming together nicely.  All that was left was the ottoman, which would be positioned between the club chairs and chevron print loveseat and used as a coffee table. But the two yards of fabric needed proved to be elusive-we wanted a print that would compliment the floral and not overtake the sporty chevron print.

We came very close with:

 Manuel Canovas Tate in Noir

Kelly Wearstler Katana by Groundworks

But everything was just a little off.  A little bleary eyed but still optimistic, we found our needle in the haystack on the second floor of Clarence House with the beautiful linen print in ink and beige with a free flowing, natural design-perfect for the room.

Alfonso in Ink