What’s New is Old

“In 2018, lines are getting cleaner, spaces are feeling lighter, and everything is designed to be more relaxing.”

— Barry Goralnick, principal of Barry Goralnick.

Photos by Ciro Coelho Photography

Photo courtesy SB Architects

Moving back toward clean lines, consumers are demanding more simplistic and less complicated styles. “In 2018, lines are getting cleaner, spaces are feeling lighter, and everything is designed to be more relaxing,” Goralnick adds.

Troy Dean, the founder and owner of Troy Dean Interiors, says the modern movement was born prior to 2018, but has become more prominent. “Simplifying things and the idea of ‘less is more’ is becoming much more accepted,” he says. “People are beginning to understand the simplicity of architecture.”

Transitioning away from the ultra-modern style, architecture in 2018 has become all about art. In residential development, architects are getting creative with art integration as the lines between art and architecture blur.

“There is no better art than architecture,” Dean says. “A home should be a piece of art when you are finished. Everything that we do definitely revolves around the architecture being the art of the finished project. Once your architecture is done well, everything else is secondary.”

Maximizing views and embracing indoor/outdoor living have become two of 2018’s biggest trends.

Photo courtesy SB Architects

In residential development, amenitized living is dominating as luxury homeowners increasingly seek resort-style living. Similar to a boutique hotel, residential spaces are blurring the lines between resort and residential living as designers curate unique amenities for homeowners who want to feel as though they are on vacation year round.

“Today’s luxury real estate marketplace, homebuyers’ lifestyles, hobbies, and collecting habits are defining their home life and shaping the features and amenities within,” Lee says. “Over the next 10 years, we will see changes regarding home layout, features, systems and products.”

Across all developments, one of the biggest trends of 2018 is sustainability. While this trend is not new, eco-consciousness continues to be top-of-mind for homeowners as the possibilities are constantly shifting and adapting with new technology.

Lee acknowledges the overwhelming trend toward sustainability, and the increased desire for energy-efficient homes. “The trend toward architectural sustainability and eco-sensitivity is expanding its reach,” he says. “Through integrated site design, a comprehensive approach to sustainable building and site design, sustainable residential landscape architecture practices can not only improve the environment, but also result in net-zero or even climate positive homes.”

Sticking with the trend of eco-consciousness, prefab homes — homes that are built in sections in a facility then later assembled on a home site — have recently entered the luxury sector. Using a custom design approach, evoDOMUS creates unique, modern prefab homes that minimize ecological impact.

According to Alexander Kolbe, CEO and cofounder of evoDOMUS, the biggest appeal of prefab homes is their positive environmental impact. “Homeowners want more energy-efficient homes,” he says. Whether limiting emissions, fossil fuels or waste, “people are now doing what they can to try to save the planet. It’s a worldwide movement.”

Prefab homes are entering the luxury market in 2018 as eco-consciousness becomes top-of-mind for homeowners.

“Technology is the leading reason that 2018 is going to be a great year,” Dean believes. “The smaller our world gets — through the ability to share good ideas — we are moving that much faster. The blending of different ideologies and [the ability to] captivate different audiences [around the world] is impacting not just 2018, but all years in the future.”

Goralnick also acknowledges the increasing impact of social media. Amidst a culture that values instant gratification, architecture and design must offer instantaneous appeal. “In our Instagram world, everything from new products to homes and hotels must have instant curb appeal to gain and retain people’s interest,” Goralnick says. “Good architecture and design address both the need for instantaneous appeal, as well as lasting attraction, functionality, comfort, and emotional wellbeing.”

At the International Builders’ Show, John Burns Real Estate Consulting identified six new home construction and repair/remodeling design trends.

Backed by significant consumer research — which has become easier thanks to consumer behavior on websites such as Houzz and Pinterest — building products companies continue to offer new products to stay one step ahead of the competition. John Burns Real Estate Consulting’s growing building products research and consulting business, as well as its DesignLens™ business, continue to help the company inform its expanding builder and developer clients.

Photo courtesy of Steve Basten at John Burns Real Estate Consulting

This article originally appeared in the Spring 2017 Edition of Homes & Estates Magazine.

Harbingers of fashion and design, affluent consumers have become virtual arbiters of what’s in and what’s out.

By Camilla McLaughlin

“My customers are way more educated than they ever have been. I think they’re more aware of design, more aware of what’s out there,” says New York City’s Shawn D Henderson, who is one of the Architectural Digest’s 100 top designers.
“The high end usually wants to be on to the next big thing. It goes back to wanting something different and not feeling like they are walking into every friend’s house,” observes Beverly Hills designer Christopher Grubb, who frequently speaks at design events.
Today, white and gray continue to reign as preferred neutrals. Mid-century Modern is emerging as a touchstone for architecture, and contemporary’s sway extends beyond the coasts and the Sunbelt. Neutral palettes unify open concept plans, but high-end dwellings that appear as simple streamlined white boxes don’t tell today’s design story…
 

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL STORY AS SEEN IN THE SPRING 2017 ISSUE OF HOMES & ESTATES.

A major trend in today’s high-end wristwatch market is the exhibition of all moving parts, viewed through flawless sapphire.
Although subject to market fluctuations, there remains strong demand for luxury timepieces, particularly among the same clientele vying for vintage sports cars, cases of old Bordeaux and Midtown Manhattan real estate. Some of the hottest new watches, with stratospheric prices to match, reveal intricate operating movements through transparent sapphire cases.
Sapphire crystals — this is synthetic sapphire created in a laboratory, but nonetheless a precious material — are no longer exotic, and show up in many mid-priced timepieces and Apple devices. Far more unusual, however, is when entire cases are made from the material, allowing views inside from every angle. “People are paying for craftsmanship and they want to visually see that craftsmanship,” says Ariel Adams, founder and editor-in-chief of A Blog to Watch and one of America’s leading experts on luxury timepieces.

One limited edition watch that exemplifies the all-sapphire trend is the Greubel Forsey Double Tourbillon Technique Sapphire. It is a flashy blend of technology and glamour with the crystal, case back, case band (middle panel), and bezel, all crafted from sapphire, as well as the lugs (where the strap is attached) and crown. The brand is a favorite of Alexander Linz, a prominent watch industry authority and publisher of Watch-Insider.
Speaking to the consistent innovation of watchmakers Robert Greubel and Stephen Forsey, the Vienna-based Linz states, “It’s rare to see watches created with this kind of spirit, love and passion,” and adds, “Their hearts are really in these watches.” All of this invisibility accentuates the complex and aesthetically alluring mechanisms, with many of the flashy watch’s 393 pieces in full view. The price tag on this watch — a limited edition with only eight produced — is a staggering $1.1 million.
Hublot is a highly respected Swiss manufacturer founded in 1980 and now a subsidiary of luxury conglomerate LVMH, whose upmarket brands include Moët & Chandon, Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton. One of the company’s most exotic timepieces is the MP-05 LaFerrari Sapphire ($575,000), among the most audacious looking timepieces a gentlemen could ever strap on his wrist. The name reflects Hublot’s partnership with the Italian sports car manufacturer (the watch even carries the automaker’s famed prancing horse logo), and Linz reports it is actually modeled after the backside of a Ferrari supercar. The watch is so aerodynamic, it looks like it could take the pole position at Le Mans.

Since its founding just 17 years ago, watchmaker Richard Mille has become a cult favorite, and Linz reports that in Europe, his watches are particularly favored by Formula One racecar drivers. For women, the RM 07-02, nicknamed “Pink Lady Sapphire,” is one of the most stunning-looking watches to ever make its way to market. The case, bezel, case band, and case back are milled from solid blocks of pink sapphire, and the contrasting central dial is crafted from gray mother-of-pearl, bordered by sparkling diamonds that reappear on some of the unveiled red gold mechanisms. The ultimate cocktail watch, the Pink Lady is priced just shy of $1 million.
MB&F is a limited-production boutique brand for elite consumers seeking exclusivity as well as craftsmanship. Its futuristic-looking HM6 SV (that stands for “Sapphire Vision”) combines advanced engineering with one of the most avant-garde aesthetics in the industry. While the entire case is not sapphire, this watch showcases its complex, intricately crafted movement through a multi-bubbled crystal crafted from 11 distinct pieces of sapphire seamlessly fused together. “It’s insanely interesting, and the movement is as much a piece of art as the case,” says Adams. And at nearly $400,000, the watch is priced like real jewels.

Bell & Ross products tend to possess a simple masculinity, strongly influenced by aviation and military instruments. But the BR-X1 Sapphire Tourbillon is a stunning, sheer-cased timepiece cut from nine blocks of flawless sapphire. Unlike some skeletonized watches whose movements are embellished with vibrant colors, variances of white and grey on this watch create an ethereal appearance that commands almost $500,000.
Veteran retailer Greg Simonian, who dispenses extravagant products at Westime, his posh Rodeo Drive boutique, best articulates why luxury watches continue to capture consumers’ imaginations. “There are many devices to tell you the time, but a beautifully crafted luxury watch is part jewelry, part miniature machine, and, most importantly, a real statement about its owner,” he states.

By Samantha Myers

Ten years ago, closet design didn’t exist the way it does today. “When I started the company in 2007, I didn’t know another luxury closet designer,” says Lisa Adams of LA Closet Design. “There were always closet cabinet companies, but what has changed is the design aspect. People are starting to see the value in the design and the potential of creating these amazing closet spaces.”

Closets are no longer simply spaces to hold clothing and items, but are becoming as luxurious as the products they store. “The designs are getting elevated,” says Emily Giebel, design consultant for California Closets. “Customers are looking for more items than are typically in a custom builder closet, and the trends are being pushed by things they see on Pinterest. If they value their closet, they don’t want to do wire racks, they want to make the closet something they can walk into and say it’s great.” Giebel added that she has sold more closets for over $18,000 in the last two years than in the previous five.

The price range for a luxury closet is typically $10,000 to $50,000, but can go up to $500,000. Adams recalls one of the most grandiose closets she designed — a three-story closet in Bel Air, Los Angeles. “It was spectacular in its materials and finishing, details and accessories. Imagine gold leaf cabinet details, a spiral staircase, biometrics, a jewelry room, cosmetics refrigerator, a panic room,” Adams says. Giebel recently finished a well-appointed closet with leather countertops. “They were purely for an aesthetic purpose; there’s nothing practical about a leather countertop,” she joked.

While extravagant features obviously appear in the higher price range, one of the biggest trends sweeping closets across-the-board is a display-orientated design, inspired by luxury retail boutiques. “Display is functional,” Adams says. “If you see it, then you’re more likely to wear it, to use it. In all the closets that I design, my motto is to be able to see everything in a single glance.”

Boutique-style closet design has employed glass as a means of achieving both display and storage, and is becoming a resounding trend. Another trend is custom lighting, as well as lighting in hanging rods, a technological detail that has been growing in the last few years. “Ten years ago, we didn’t have all those options. We didn’t have glass doors, glass drawers, high-gloss, all that stuff throughout the home that is now being offered in a closet,” Giebel explains. “A lot of the trends are coming from the furniture industry, and we have vendors giving us access to these things.” Up-to-date with interior design trends, closets are adopting a transitional look, leaving behind the traditional style that was popular in the past. “I’ve seen a trend in mixing materials and textures. Blush, brass and marble are hot right now,” Adams adds.

Because closets are receiving more attention on the back end from vendors and distributers, they are becoming focal points for homeowners, comparable to the conventional rooms in a house. “I’m seeing people take rooms over and make them into closets,” Giebel says. “And when additions are done to the home, they are putting more thought into the master walk-in.”

These architectural and design developments suggest that closets are becoming the new “room” in the house, some fit with center islands, couches, vanities and televisions. “People are converting spare rooms to dressing rooms, and I even have projects now where we are converting a living room and dining room into dressing rooms. It’s the feel-good room in the house!” Adams says.

When it comes down to the basics, there are a few things that Adams thinks every walk-in needs. “Every luxury closet should have matching hangers, high-quality functional hardware, a nice finish or lacquer, organized drawers with partitions, base and ceiling molding, and cabinetry that goes to the ceiling,” Adams says. “Similar to a luxury car, you would expect high-quality detailing and a nice paint finish.” Giebel finds importance in mirror options, especially full-length mirrors and decorative molding.

“What I love about my job is to see how something that is in my mind so economical, change somebody so easily by giving you more storage, or making you put things in a certain place so you know where to find them,” says Giebel. “It’s something that’s so simple that they don’t even think about, but it’s transformative. It makes peoples’ lives less chaotic in the mornings, more simple when they are getting dressed.” And for Adams, “I love closets because they are intimate spaces that blend function, art, design and fashion all together.”

THIS ARTICLE ORIGINALLY APPEARED IN THE GLOBAL 2016 ISSUE OF UNIQUE HOMES. TO SEE THE DIGITAL VERSION OF THIS STORY, CLICK HERE.