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Right brain Left brain

As creatives, we design spaces with the right side of the brain, the side that performs tasks that deal with creativity and the arts.  For me, the left side, the side that deals with logic such as science and math, plays an important role in how I design as well.  

This new 2019 blog will become a place where I store and share design inspiration.  A place where I can share my processes and explore the science behind why certain design works and why it may not.

A place where the two sides shall meet.

If this interests you, sign up for this blog:  http://www.fioriinteriordesign.com/blog.html   

My goal is to show up in your inbox twice a week.  Or if you prefer, follow along on your own: check us out on Instagram and Facebook. Cheers to 2019! ~ Terri Fiori

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Bone inlay trays. Dimensions: 18"L x 12"W x 1"D Code: DM0153 $226 each  - Limited quantities available.

We fell in love with these boxes and trays at the last design market.We are now offering free delivery to these New Jersey towns: Wyckoff, Mahwah, Franklin Lakes, Glen Rock, Waldwick, Midland Park and Oakland. Contact us via email: [email protected] or call our office: 201-848-9797 to place your order. Check or cash only please. Want to make your gift even more enticing? Include a gift certificate from Fiori Interior Design for a 90 minute consultation to any of the towns listed above! Ask us for details!

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And the winner is...

Fiori Interior Design is delighted to announce that we recently received two bronze awards by New Jersey Chapter of The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID).     The winning categories were "Single Residential space" and "Show House design"  (woohoo!!)

                   2017 Saddle River Showhouse “Nanny’s Retreat”

                                       Tenafly Living Room

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The Healing Effects of Light: Wellness Principal #1 Until I started designing spaces for other people I didn’t realize that I had actually been "studying" design my entire life.  I was raised in a household where my mother wasn’t always healthy.   Many days I’d come home from school and find her sitting in our living room—the one room in our house that had been arranged to receive the most amount of sunlight.  I don’t know if she knew how beneficial it was to her or not…I just knew she was drawn to that space.   I saw first hand how my mother actually used design to her advantage - demonstrating how design can lift us up, and help us function at our highest level.   This is the foundation of how I design today.  I’ve incorporated my specific principles of design for wellness into my practice.  Because I believe - based on my own experience and what I’ve seen in my clients - is that when you’re in surroundings that support you…you thrive.

                                                                                                                Our interiors are designed to be highly personal.  We ensure that you’re surrounded with design that’s meaningful and represents you authentically—so that you’ll thrive.   Give us a call or email us.  We’d love to get to know you and help you create an uplifting environment.

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Another view of one of our favorite projects.  Love it when our client’s great grandmother’s hand made throw happens to work in perfectly with the photo shoot!

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Principle #6 Livable (aka Universal) Design

This month’s Wellnotes delves into the principles of “Livable Design”, more commonly referred to as “aging in place”. When we think about “aging in place” we think of wider doorways or higher electrical outlets.  A recent statistic however, shifted our focus from a physical to an emotional point of view: “Half of nursing home residents are placed there, not for health reasons but the absence of social interaction due to a lack of accessibility”.  A large part of a designer’s job is to implement designs so that social connections aren’t lost and more importantly, don’t look like an after thought.   As Aging in Place Specialists (CAPS) we can recommend many design options that not only speak to an aging population, but also benefits families with young children planning on staying in their homes indefinitely, such as:

Levered door handles easily grasped by aging hands and small children. 

A slight entranceway ramp instead of stairs that are both wheelchair and stroller friendly. 

Entranceway cameras with an intercom system (with smartphone features) providing security to both the elderly and mothers with small children. 

Hallway motion sensor lights that illuminate objects benefiting both the elderly and toddler’s leaping out of bed in middle of the night.

Livable design is a thoughtful design process that can be implemented now and work for all ages. 

                                                                                                                Our interiors are designed to be highly personal.  We ensure that you’re surrounded with design that’s meaningful and represents you authentically—so that you’ll thrive.   Give us a call or email us.  We’d love to get to know you and help you create an uplifting environment.

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A beautiful first day of summer! Fortunately for us, designing with florals are back...and they're bigger and better than ever!

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We’re showcasing a few of our favorite manufacturers that are eco-friend.  Choosing manufactures that are members of the Sustainable Furnishings Council means that they incorporate eco-friendly practices.  For example, the majority of Vanguard’s cushions include a mix of duck feathers and down, which are all natural by-products…plus more than 80% of their coils used are from scrap or recycled materials.  

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Photo courtesy of Galbraith & Paul

This month’s Wellnotes reveals that Fiori Interior Design is now a Green Accredited Professional in eco-friendly furnishings!  This certification is granted by the Sustainable Furnishings Council, “a coalition of manufacturers, retailers and designers dedicated to raising awareness of environmentally sustainable practices across the home furnishings industry.”  

As a company, we are always striving to be eco-friendly, so this news ties in perfectly with June's wellness design principal #5: Nature’s Sustainability. 

We learned a lot during our certification journey but one statistic really stood out:  Since 1994 the number of US asthma sufferers has doubled from 5 to 10% . Considering the average person spends 90% of their time indoors - where air pollution levels are typically 2 to 5 times higher than outdoors - these increases become especially alarming.

So what can be done to ensure your home is healthy?

Here are a few guidelines that we follow:

Ensure that your home furnishings are healthy ones by choosing natural materials like organic cotton, silk, wool, linen and hemp.  

Reduce pollutants in the home by specifying low or zero-VOC paints, varnish and adhesives. 

Look to see if manufactures are using wood that is FSC certified (which means it's been legally harvested).  

Look for products that are made closer to home.  (buy locally!)

More importantly, always look for the GREENGUARD certification.

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Design Principal #4:  Designing for Wellness: Visual & Sensory Elements

Can art help people connect? Research says yes.  One organization recently examined how its institutional art collection affected their employee’s mood and performance.  It was discovered that the staff garnered a connection to their work place. The artwork promoted social interactions, evoked emotional responses and facilitated personal connections. 

As a design firm specializing in wellness, we can’t emphasize enough the importance of the artwork you choose to display in your home or workplace.  Art speaks to us about where we are and why.  If you’re surrounded by meaningful pieces, you’re reminded of what’s important...and that can never be a bad thing.  

                                                                                                                Our interiors are designed to be highly personal.  We ensure that you’re surrounded with design that’s meaningful and represents you authentically—so that you’ll thrive.   Give us a call or email us.  We’d love to get to know you and help you create an uplifting environment.

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Inspiration board for a new beach house project.  

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On the Prowl for  Martini Tables

We are always on the search for small and interesting end tables for our projects.  Fortunately there was no shortage of these tables at this past High Point market!  These lightweight tables allow our clients to customize their spaces and move things around as they see fit.  And customization is always a good thing.

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Design Principle #3 of Designing for Wellness:  Spatial Planning.

In this month's newsletter, we're discussing the third installment of our six design principles: Spatial Planning.

A client recently asked us to re-design their large sized family room. Seating in the current layout consisted of only a sectional and a recliner.   In our questionnaire we uncovered the fact that the wife usually found herself reading or relaxing in the adjoining room…while her husband and three kids would congregate in the family room in front of the TV. Although their family room is fairly large, there really wasn’t a place for her. We decided to change that by creating a “territory”  that would become her own personal space where she could still connect with her family.  

Research proves that “all humans are territorial as well as social and having a territory at home is important for our mental well-being"(Smith, 1994).

Here are two examples of nooks that we’ve created in the past:

Our interiors are designed to be highly personal.  We ensure that you’re surrounded with design that’s meaningful and represents you authentically—so that you’ll thrive.   Give us a call or email us.  We’d love to get to know you and help you create an uplifting environment.

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There’s nothing more inspiring than a bright beautiful room to forget about the rain and cold weather!  We love this cheerful room at last year’s High Point Market and can’t wait to be inspired again this April!  

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Inspiration for an upcoming spring project. Love this new Clarke & Clarke Matador Collection!

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We love how this kitchen was transformed using bright and uplifting color... a reflection of the family that lives in this home.

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Our Second Principal of Design: Color

Research has proven that certain colors will elicit certain emotions. 

But...there are so many variables involved when specifying color.   One of the first questions we always ask our clients is “How do you want to feel in your space?”

We start by grouping colors as Cool versus Warm:

Cool colors are purples, blues and green - We have experience with these colors as having healing and calming influences and are stress-reducing.

Warm colors - reds, oranges and yellows - tend to induce excitement, increase blood pressure but can also cause fatigue without the balance of cool colors.  Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to see how we design with warm versus cool colors to evoke different emotions. 

                                                                                                                 Our interiors are designed to be highly personal.  We ensure that you’re surrounded with design that’s meaningful and represents you authentically—so that you’ll thrive.   Give us a call or email us.  We’d love to get to know you and help you create an uplifting environment.