Innholdsfortegnelse for Volume 31-4 i Florida Design – Digital Edition

One of the many lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic seems to have been this: spaces matter, whether they are outdoor or indoor. And for those in the know, award-winning landscape designer Fernando Wong is the go-to guy to make your outdoor space a showstopper. So much so, Wong says, that clients—both residential and commercial—have been reaching out to secure his design expertise at the earliest stages of their building or renovations plans. “More and more clients are coming to me first even before they hire the architect or interior designer,” says Wong. “People realize how important the outside is, and how crucial spending time in nature is to their happiness and well-being.” Wong is the founder of Miami-based Fernando Wong Outdoor Living Design, a firm known for creating gorgeous garden…

When Hurricane Irma blew through Florida in September 2017, Little Palm Island shut down for a full-scale reinvention and reopened with a new design that feels familiar but is much elevated. The design team, Rossi Architecture of San Diego and New York–based AvroKo, took a cue from No. 33—President Harry S. Truman famously spent time on the island in the 1940s—to create an exclusive social-club vibe where elegant surroundings meet island insouciance. The four-acre private island in the Lower Keys is an enclave of 30 thatched-roof bungalow suites reminiscent of treehouses. Ranging in size from 550 to 1,020 square feet, the suites come with wood-and bamboo decks and private beaches. Interior design is an updated interpretation of 1940s style, with British West Indies and Caribbean influences. Detailed millwork and vaulted…

WHEN RENOWNED interior designer Juan Montoya is tasked with a tricky project like the 10,000-square-foot condo at the lavish Four Seasons Private Residences, he starts with listening—first to the space, and then to the clients. “I always let the space talk to me,” he says. “Then [I] make a list of what the clients want, and I study how people should move and function there. Based on that, I create the layout.” The project, which took four years to complete, is in one of a pair of 12-story, luminous glass condominium towers—offering jaw-dropping views of the Magic City on one side, and miles of shoreline on the other. Gleaming wood, polished metals, and walls of windows give you the impression of being aboard a luxury superyacht. “That was the inspiration once…

INTERIOR DESIGNER ROB BOWEN and his husband weren’t looking for new digs. But the location of a newly constructed three-story home was too perfect to pass up. Located in downtown St. Petersburg (within blocks of Bowen’s design studio and the couple’s new restaurant, Social Roost), the 2,760-square-foot home was quintessential Florida coastal—but not for long. Bowen spent nine months stripping it down to its studs and restructuring the space. He began by staining the white oak floors with vinegar and steel wool, and then coating it with a matte black finish. “Black floors create a blank canvas to layer upon,” he says. “It’s classic and neutral, and everything you put on top of it becomes a statement piece.” Next up: the layering. “I was obsessed with bronze, black, emerald, white, and…

Building a “future-ready” home isn’t just about smart appliances and high-tech features; prioritizing sustainability is a key piece of the puzzle. “Greening homes in Fort Lauderdale and across the globe is essential to lessen the climate-change impacts our city is already experiencing,” says Glen Hadwen, sustainability manager at the City of Fort Lauderdale. “Changes small and large, from installing LED light bulbs to solar panels, all play a part.” Achieving sustainability in Florida—with its low elevation, porous geology, humid climate, endangered species, and air rich with sunshine and salt—comes with challenges. Here are three steps you can take to construct a greener home. 1 WORK WITH NATURE “Check local zoning and figure out first what you’re allowed to do, then look at sustainable strategies and figure out what’s best to…

Inspiration comes in many forms, and Beachside—Vendome Press’ new design tome—offers inspiration to spare. Explore Windsor, a planned community in Vero Beach, Florida, known for casual-yet-elegant seaside living and striking design. Created by Andrés Duany and Elizabeth Plater‑Zyberk (the geniuses behind Alys Beach and other New Urbanist communities), Windsor is chock full of homes designed by A‑list architects and interior designers like John Stefanidis, Steven Gambrel, and Alessandra Branca. Beachside offers a view into the community and its homes, filled with inspo-board-worthy photographs of bougainvillea‑framed entrances, airy living and dining rooms, cozy studies, and bedrooms that open onto balconies with sweeping ocean views. vendomepress.com…

IT DOES NOT HAPPEN often; but when a client and an interior designer not only agree upon but embolden each other on a home’s redesign, it’s kismet. “We had the same vision. They are adventurous and not afraid of color,” says Jackie Armour, principal and owner of JMA Interior Design, of her clients Liz and George Ross. “We provide a beautiful, safe haven for our clients; the COVID-19 pandemic really made that hit home.” Avid golfers from Rye, New York, the Rosses have vacationed in the Hobe Sound area for many years. Recently they yearned for a larger home to accommodate their evolving lifestyle with their four sons; three in college and one in high school. “My parents have been here in Loblolly since the eighties,” explains Liz. “We have…

Showroom Opening at ARTEFACTO The Florida Design team was on hand in Coral Gables for a preview of the new 40,000-square-foot Artefacto showroom. The opening of the space coincides with the celebration of Artefacto’s forty-fifth anniversary this year. The brand has been committed to offering products that are sustainable and eco-conscious since CEO Paulo Bacchi took the reins from his father, who founded the company in São Paulo, Brazil in 1976. Bacchi’s sons, Pietro and Bruno, now work alongside him in the business. The trio welcomed the South Florida design community, inviting everyone to celebrate their new showroom in style. artefacto.com Design Panel at EGGERSMANN Florida Design partnered with Eggersmann USA to welcome local designers to a panel discussion focused on new trends in kitchen designs, innovative cabinetry and surface options,…

Florida is a haven for outdoor living. To achieve maximum enjoyment of your exterior spaces, registered landscape architect Michael Behrndt, owner of Environmental Design Studio in Naples, is a firm believer in creating “different outdoor rooms for people to experience” to ignite their imagination and invent different experiences. “People appreciate the landscape in many different ways,” he says. The state’s balmy climate lets homeowners blur the boundaries between the built and natural environment. Behrndt says he creates outdoor rooms by “bringing in structure as opposed to just plants,” he says. “You’re bringing the architecture outside to the landscape” by adding elements such as pergolas, courtyards, walls, fountains, firepits, and freestanding arches. These physical and visual components “pull the architecture into the landscape to create a seamless transition.” Here are some suggestions…

Call it the sweet smell of success. Step aboard the sleek, golden-hulled superyacht Stefania from Monaco-based builder Dynamiq, and you’re immediately greeted by a mesmerizing aroma. A unique atomizer system built into the yacht’s air conditioning gently spritzes the interior with Bianco di Carrara scent from Italian designer Ferragamo’s latest home perfume collection. More of a Gucci kind of person? Dynamiq will happily switch it out. That’s part of the appeal of building a superyacht with Dynamiq. Even before meeting the company’s design team, a buyer can go to an online configurator and choose pretty much every detail of the yacht—and even get a rough price and delivery date. It’s a feature that’s previously unique in the superyacht industry. The owner of Stefania took an easier route with his interior…

There’s no place more fitting for Armani/Casa’s first foray in Florida (and its third U.S. showroom, ever) than the Miami Design District. Its sleek interior features fashion-forward pieces that deftly translate namesake Giorgio Armani’s designs into furniture, textiles, accessories, and tabletop offerings. The showroom provides interior design services to its customers, too—from private clients to property developers. It’s an aesthetic that has become so sought-after that Armani has extended its Casa brand into large-scale projects, like the Residences by Armani/Casa in nearby Sunny Isles Beach—an oceanfront building designed by architect César Pelli, and appointed with Armani/Casa furnishings. armanicasa.com…

MIAMI INTERIOR DESIGNER FEDE TERAN goes with the flow—in his designs and in his approach to life. So he was delighted when repeat clients bought a penthouse in Echo Brickell, the 62-floor high-rise with a wavy silhouette and ocean view in Miami’s financial district. “Water is movement and tranquility,” Teran says, “It’s my signature and the theme of this project.” The client—a Latin American business executive, along with his wife and two children—not only bought the approximately 5,000-square-foot condo in 2019 without ever touring the unit, but they also gave Teran carte blanche after seeing only a mood board he created for the living/dining room area. “She said, ‘Yes, yes, yes. Let’s do this,’” Teran says of his client’s response. “That was our final communication until the finished project.” Teran…