Great Skin-- For Life

Don't get weirded out about the title, we are talking about leather sofas and sectionals, from our new line Cierre. Yes, you can have a piece that lasts a lifetime and also have it your way. The leather is simply superb and top quality. It simply lasts more than you want it to last. That is the good news, but the great news is that it is comfortable too. It is also made to match any style you want. The arm rests can be made the way you want them: traditional, modern and sleek, art deco. you get the picture.






You name it, we make it. You want the back to lift open for comfort so you can slouch on the couch? We can make it. You want lumber support and not have your couch look like a La-Z Boy, we can make it.




As far as cushiony feel: we have it all. Pillow top, feather, foam, square cut. Again, this is all about choice- a choice you make once and happy to live with it the rest of your life.

You can see more of the Cierre line live at Chez Moi in San Francisco, or on the web at http://www.chezmoisf.com/cierre-sofas-sectionals.html.

How are Yoo?

When we spoke about the "Boutique Home Experience" a few blogs back , we didn't know that we uncovered a trend started by no one other than Philippe Starck. Under the Yoo Residential Company banner, Mr. Starck is bringing his boutique hotel experience into appartment buildings and homes, throughout the world.

The picture above is from the lobby appartment building close to Wall Street. It simply looks like an Ian Schrager/Starck creation. Funky styles, minimalistic and yet very functional. It is a really creative concept. If you liked the boutique hotel experience, why not live it every day. Needless to say that these residential buildings are also entertainment centers as well, with trendy resident bars and spas.

... and for those who love to bring the baroque style to modern times, Yoo created an appartment building in Argentina, shown below.

The picture is no different in Panama City, in this high rise. A lovely Murano chandelier imposes itself over a funky dining table and a modern leather sofas. A lot of empty space, a lot of modern-meet old, antique gone young, styles.

The picture is almost a post card from the Gramercy Park hotel in New York city. Baroque styles meet modern living.

This was and remains our style at ChezMoi. Blend modern with old, antique with new, a sleek leather sofa from Italy with a 400 year old credenza from India, you get the point, because Yoo gets it.

Mirror, mirror not on walls...

... who has the best lights of all?

If you attended the ICFF design show in New York last week, you probably noticed the introduction of several lines of cluster ball lighting. For those of you who haven't, what we are talking about is a new design in lighting fixtures made from hanging or loosely spread balls (blown glass, polycarbonate, etc.) with lighting fixtures in them.

Very interesting designs- full of depth and reflection at the same time.

Tom Dixon's Mirror Ball pendant shown below adds brightness to rooms and give them a great amount of space. It is hard not to stare at them for a bit, but they are pieces that eventually melt in rooms and become an extension of it. It is hard to imagine a hanging ball mirror giving "space" to a room, but you just have to experience it and see for yourself.

Copper balls were also popular at the show. Several designers displayed them. At first look, they remind you of old copper pans hanging from an old french provincial kitchen. But a closer look reveals a trendier flare- great with contemporary furniture. It is hard to imagine "copper" being trendy, but I guess it is that modern antiquish look that is intended, especially when the light balls are made from highly transparent polycarbonate with a copper film inside.

For those who venture in bright colors, fire balls were also big at the show. An extra set of orange eyeballs with bright pupils were also displayed by Tom Dixon designs.

All in all, a light in a ball ... that is what I got out of ICFF.

Out of the catalogue and into a... social network

These days there social networks for almost every community, from Dog lovers to whale watchers. It seemed like the design community is missing out on these trends and using mass market networks like Facebook and Twitter and doing a poor job at it. No more. The interior design industry is finally catching up and several social networks focused solely on passionate interior designers are emerging. Last night, I had the chance to meet a new one, homeanatomy.com.

They are about to launch later this month, and they are focused on building a community around interior design. Designers will join, discuss trends, shop for products that are not mass market and share design ideas. Home anatomy is all about design and in their words :

"At HomeAnatomy we believe that a home is more than just the objects that fill its interior; it is about comfort, personality, lifestyle, and family. We hope to help our readers achieve these qualities in their homes by facilitating creativity though a vibrant and social networking community. Our design network will connect modern interior design enthusiasts with all the resources they need to make their house a home. "

This is exactly what Chez Moi stands for. A place that turns a house into a home, a place where your style, your personality and not that a production line somewhere in China, is reflected.

Homeanatomy.com is not the only one, already decorati.com has launched and features over 300 design only companies and many passionate interior designers.

The more the merrier. Let the era of catalogue living end and the era of personalized living begin!

Puff Up That Comfy Style

Now that the Milan show is over, the new focus is on New York's ICFF show in Mid May. Curious minds want to know whether the new "comfy style" that was prominent in Milan, would cross the atlantic and make it to New York city. We are not talking about Bean Bags, we are more talking about cushion, pads, comfort ... everywhere, especially in sofas and sectionals. Living rooms are more like kid play rooms, for the adults. Sit, lounge, channel surf, nap, even sleep - Couches look more like sofa beds with great pillow tops.

The Peanut Collection from Designer Bonaldo looks more like a grown up kids room with plenty of style.

The Nuvola collection, also from Bonaldo, mixes modern design and old style comfort. Great padding everywhere and kind of a "laissez aller" - put your hair in a scrunchy look.

The abbracio collection from Cierre is no exception- The leader of living in leather is more like "relax in leather".

.. .and finally the Nick collection from Cierre lays out that cushiony feeling too.

It looks like Italian designers are sending us a message to chill and relax. Would New York listen? I guess we will wait and see at ICFF. In the meantime, you can enjoy these lines and many more at Chez Moi in San Francisco.

The Boutique Home - A New Experience

"THE ONLY WAY TO DISTINGUISH YOURSELF IS TO BE YOURSELF IN THE PURSUIT OF YOUR OWN PERSONAL VISION."- IAN SCHRAGER.

Since the 70’s, entrepreneur Ian Schrager, CEO of Ian Schrager Company, has achieved worldwide recognition for concepts that have revolutionized both the entertainment and hospitality industries. His commitment to the modern lifestyle has been expressed through a series of pioneering concepts: The hotel as home away from home, the hotel as theater, "cheap chic", "lobby socializing", the indoor/outdoor lobby, the urban resort, and the urban spa. The result, a complete reshaping of the modern hotel from a place to crash to a place to experience.

The Gramercy Park Hotel- By Ian Schrager

Now imagine you can do the same to your home. Turn it from a place to live to a place to experience. You can and you don't have to hire architect Philippe Starck to do it for you. In fact, you can do it on a budget. The trick is to mix styles - Blend ecclectic with contemporary. Blend modern and antique. Don't build a hodge podge. Simply build an image of fun, an image you want to experience, a travel destination you want to re-live and design your home accordingly.

It is time to bring the great social experince back home. It is time to experience your home and not just live in it. It can be done. The Chez Moi team has done it in San Francisco.

In San Francisco, The Leather is Beautiful!

Mark Twain once said "the best winter is a summer in San Francisco". Who ever lives in SF can never deny that. But this is talking about real weather. But, when it comes to Leather- San Francisco's summer is gearing up for a nice heat storm. Chez Moi's team is bringing a new line of contemporary leather furniture: Cierre.

Here is Cierre, in their own words

In 1972, Cesarina and Romano Conficcioni founded a new furniture company focused on quality, craftsmanship and professional pride. They named the company Cierre, and they gave it a slogan: Living in Leather. From what the name susggests, the company specialized in high-end, yet affordable leather furniture. They purchase their own hide from Italy and South America and never sacrify quality.


Cierre combines timeless design with a craftsman’s eye for detail, often in the form of hand-stitched details. Their strength lies in their varieties of leather which scale new heights in terms of look and feel as well as durability and ease of maintenance. Suitable for a lifetime of luxurious living in leather.

Cierre is now exclusively offered by Chez Moi in San Francisco. Cierre sofas and sectionals can work in modern dwellings (lofts, etc.) or in stylish victorians and edwardians. The quality and the craftsmanship is simply second to none.

Top Trends in Home Decoration and Design

Fashion trends no longer dictate the way we dress or decorate our homes. Eclecticism and contrasting style directions reign in home decorating. More and more people develop a taste of mixing contradictory furniture trends in their home decor, combining contemporary furniture with vintage finds and exotic art pieces.

Uncertain economy, the rise of natural disasters and persistent war conflicts have resulted in the further insulation of people within their home cocoons. This cocoon lifestyle has given a boom to the housewares, home decorating and furniture industry since more and more people turn to home entertainment and dinner parties instead of “going out.”

The “cocoon boom,” which originally started after September 11, 2001, transformed the modern home into a family sanctuary and hideaway. Casual living remains as the major theme with contemporary furniture today, with an emphasis on home entertaining and informal dining.

From modern furniture to accessories and dinnerware, people look for ihome decorating tems that possess a strong sense of personal style. The casual living trend in modern furniture translates into multi-functional furniture with clear non-cluttered design and extended seating furniture pieces such as extra-long and curved couches and sofas.

Modern furniture today encourages family values, promotes quality family entertainment, supports traditional values and generally helps people connect. Another noticeable trend in home décor and home decorating is a return to ‘formal’ for special occasions. People tend to make a greater effort preparing for special occasions or dinner parties and spend more time selecting dinnerware, candles, photo albums, seasonal decorations and table linen. Another important modern furniture trend for home decorating is sensuality which means luscious fabrics, soft warm colors and simple shapes.

Many furniture items are adjusted for use for the targeted group of single men. This means sleek minimalist design and an emphasis on the use of multi-media applications. Flat screen TV’s are accommodated in hi-tech entertainment centers, and flat loudspeakers are incorporated into lean, spacious sofas, covered with dark trendy upholstery fabrics. This trend is also reflected in one-of-a-kind furniture items, such as art pieces having a functional meaning. Wide use of LED lighting technology helps transform a coffee table into a futuristic object that will change colors depending on a situation.

Speaking of materials used in modern furniture today for home decorating, light woods still dominate. Oak, cherry, and birch are the most popular woods, with rattan and bamboo on the rise. Many woods are artificially stained to resemble exquisite tropical woods, for example, zebrano, mahogany, or palisander. A varnished solid front is often combined with a veneered body. Stainless steel, polished or brushed, and aluminum are used widely, often combined with innovative satin glass and boldly colored fiberglass.


In the upholstery, modern furniture designers favor refined large abstract patterns or sophisticated monochrome surfaces. Stripes and checks, as well as floral patterns are slightly out of fashion. The most popular materials are wool, cotton and leather, with wool felt gaining popularity.

The main characteristic feature of modern furniture is its understatement. Giorgio Armani, a couturier turned furniture designer says that a subtle richness, not an obvious beauty, is most important in contemporary furniture design for home decorating. Like a beautiful woman, furniture today reveals itself over time.