Spirited Journeys

Los Angeles-based artist Hakakian is now known for her colorful street murals but she wasn’t always a professional artist known for her works at the PaliHotel on Melrose and at Art Basel in Miami’s Wynwood Arts District, among others. Hakakian graduated from the University of California, San Diego with a bachelor's degree in neuroscience and worked for ten years at Cedars Sinai before leaving her job to pursue a career in art.

The New York City Smithsonian’s design museum is currently showing "Saturated: The Allure and Science of Color," a comprehensive exhibit about the continuing history of color perception. Assembling 190 artifacts, the exhibit traces a path between antiquity and the modern era through an exploration of how thinkers have ordered, manipulated and interpreted color. Drawn from the Smithsonian Libraries’ and Cooper Hewitt’s vast collections, the show takes visitors through "seven phases of color"— a reference to the seven hues Aristotle cited in his color spectrum in the fourth century B.C.— in sections like "Creating Color" and "Color and Form."

Florence’s impressive Velona’s Jungle Luxury Suites stands out for it’s exquisite interior design. Located on the third floor of an elegant mid-century palazzo in central Florence, this boutique hotel boasts exotic jungle-inspired décor.

During the past few months, a colorful renewal has taken place in Palm Springs. In partnership with Dunn-Edwards, The Saguaro Hotel set out to repaint its exterior color palette, highlighting the fourteen hues inspired by local desert wildflowers and plants envisioned by the architects.

Casa Estrella, the latest property to be revitalized by Thomboy Properties, provides a glimpse into the design highlights to come for the 2018 Spring Modernism Show. The stunning residence, designed in 1975 by architect Hall Lacy, boasts an extraordinary 5,000 square feet located on a corner lot in the Indian Canyons neighborhood of Palm Springs.

Colors play a vital role in our daily lives and it has been proven that our activities and responses are influenced by them. For children in learning environments, studies have shown that classrooms and school buildings painted with vibrant color resulted in students with reduced blood pressure, less off-task behavior, aggressiveness, disruptiveness and improved academic performance, making it an important and much-overlooked consideration in school design. A simple paint job can positively affect students’ abilities to stay on task, perceptions of learning and emotional well-being

“Poetic Passage,” our third trends story speaks to the soft and subtle side of life that incorporates nature in a chic, minimalist atmosphere. Shadow and light dance in a marriage of masculine and feminine, luxury and lines. The aesthetic is minimalist, soft and subtle with chic and refined natural basics within tender, cozy atmospheres.

Set in Guadalajara’s trending Lafayette district, Casa Fayette is a 37-room, Art Deco showcase that masterfully blends early 20th-century architecture with the polished grandeur of a heavenly tower. Hoteliers Carlos Couturier and Moisés Micha, the creative minds behind Grupo HABITA, joined forces with local architectural firm Estudio5 to transform the 1940s mansion into Guadalajara’s first design-led hotel. The design is a minimalist style that pays homage to Guadalajara-born architect Luis Barragán, with colored-glass panels combined with gilded touches and plush velvet furnishings.

Classic country characteristics work beautifully in contemporary settings and are used by some of the finest interior designers to create eclectic spaces. This notion is explored in our next color and design trend, "Charms of Country Life." Timeless with a contemporary twist, this look draws on elements — such as stressed timbers, green and pastel hues, and floral patterns and themes — all offset against a modern backdrop.

Tucked away in Los Feliz, a hip, neighborhood enclave in Los Angeles, sits an historic Spanish Revival owned by interior designer Mariah O’Brien. Growing up in the Laurel Canyon area of Los Angeles gave O’Brien the sense of history and quality about the neighborhood so, when the opportunity to own a home in nearby in Los Feliz came about, it was the perfect time to put her design skills to use.

Trends have a history of repeating themselves. And, when it comes to the latest trend we’re seeing come back, we’ve got no complaints. Please meet 2018’s version of this 90’s classic, velvet. From appearances at New York Fashion Week, to the top of the must-buy list for HGTV’s Home Design Director, Nancy Fire, velvet is again having moment in today’s style zeitgeist.

Sarah Rosenhaus, principal owner of Sarah Rosenhaus Interior Design (SRID), based in Santa Monica, Calif., believes each home should tell a story of a well-traveled life. With a focus on luxury residential interior design, Rosenhaus and her team have faith in the importance of listening to clients and filtering their desires through their vision and approach.

Due to the stressful lives that we lead, an emphasis is placed on the need to "escape" the everyday and to experience true relaxation, indulging in simple pleasures alone or with family and friends. Each space should be designed with this in mind.

Nestled in the desert area of Joshua Tree, Calif., lies a bohemian retreat known as Casa Joshua Tree. Set up just six miles from the entrance to Joshua Tree National Park, Casa Joshua Tree is a three-bedroom, two-bath gem, recently renovated by owner, artist and designer, Lindsay Hollinger.

Michelle Qazi is the founder and owner of a beautiful home décor store centered in the Arts District of Long Beach, Calif., called 6th and Detroit. Showcasing an array of vintage pieces from the 1960s and '70s, Qazi celebrates this era with relish, seeking out hidden gems from a variety of sources to provide inspiration to the clientele.