Lofts

The Loft, which originally constituted a type of clandestine life, has become a concept applicable to large, renovated spaces, where the existing structure has been incorporated into everyday architecture. Consequently, old factories, storage areas and warehouses are being transformed to create homes and offices, or commercial studios and shops. The original architecture of these spaces is characterized by the use of materials such as concrete, aluminum, marble and wood, with smooth walls and large doors and windows. The decoration in lofts emphasizes simplicity, adaptability and functionality to create open-plan spaces, with separate rooms being formed using folding screens, medium-height walls or simply pieces of furniture. There are currently two trends: constructing new homes in the style of lofts, and recycling and re-using those already built as a further step in the development of sustainable architecture. ILLUSTRATIONS Colour throughout (knihydobrovsky.cz)

Small Lofts presents in more than 300 images how to maximize space and design in a small but open area. (knihydobrovsky.cz)

Industrial style or "industrial chic" refers to an aesthetic trend in interior design that has been popular since the start of the 21st century and which takes inspiration from old factories and industrial spaces that in recent years have been converted into lofts and other living spaces. Components of industrial style include weathered wood, exposed brick, industrial lighting, fixtures and concrete.Old factory spaces are often characterized by their spaciousness, high ceilings, large windows and special finishes. This guide to interior design sets out to convey the atmosphere of the industrial style and how it influences contemporary interior design in domestic and hospitality settings. (knihydobrovsky.cz)

A stunning collection of the homes of sixty celebrated contemporary global designers and decorators The homes of interior designers are the places where all the knowledge and decorating expertise they have perfected can be seen in their fullest expression. Inside: At Home with Great Designers is a tour of the homes of sixty of the most talented and accomplished creatives working in the design world today. This revelatory book allows us unique insight into how and where designers live and showcases an inspiring and aspirational kaleidoscope of homes around the world. Features top contemporary interior designers and decorators in the US, the UK, France, Italy, and many other countries across the world and the homes of such leading international design talents as Brigette Romanek, Roman and Williams, Sheila Bridges, Darryl Carter, Sig Bergamin, and Joseph Dirand. Homes included range from apartments, townhouses, and lofts, to country and coastal retreats, bungalows, and palazzi - this is the perfect gift and inspiration for a house-and-design-obsessed global readership. (knihydobrovsky.cz)

Unreal City: a zany cartoon megalopolis where towers are built of cotton candy, facts scatter like pixie dust, and the truth is whatever you feel it to be.And it's no fantasy. It's where we live. We dwell in Unreal City. We believe in un-being.With saber-like wit, poet and professor Anthony Esolen leads readers on a tour through the ruins of their own Western world--through king-size bookstores, manicured college campuses, strobe-lit choir lofts, mechanized farms, divorce courts, drag-queen libraries, and beyond. This hilarious guide to a culture gone mad with sex and self-care minces no words and spares no egos. We the people of Unreal City are no better, and certainly no smarter, than our fathers.But fear not. Sex and the Unreal City insists there's no need to settle down in the ninth circle of unreality. Esolen lights a torch and heads up the well-trod path back to our cleaner, kinder, truer homeland: earth. Along the way, the author sings the songs of masters somehow long forgotten--Shakespeare, Dante, Milton, the evangelists--and asks us to chant along.Readers of essayists like George Weigel, George Rutler, Malcom Muggeridge, and Walker Percy will enjoy this rollicking, intelligent book. (knihydobrovsky.cz)

'Like sitting in a room with Mark and hearing the best stories in the world, wound up with wisdom, craft, and hard-won philosophy' Burkhard Bilger, The New Yorker 'A brilliantly engaging storyteller, laugh-out-loud funny, loving, cheekily smug.... An enjoyable read on making, inventing and what might contribute to a life worth living' Julie Mehretu, Painter--Over the past forty years, Mark Ellison has worked on some of the most beautiful homes you've never seen, specializing in rarefied and challenging projects with the most demanding of clients. He built a staircase a famed architect called a masterpiece.He worked on the iconic Sky House, which Interior Design named the best apartment of the decade. He's even worked on the homes of David Bowie, Robin Williams, and others whose names he cannot reveal. He is regarded by many as the best carpenter in New York.But before he was any of that, Ellison was just 'a serial dropout' who spent his young adult years taking work where he found it and sleeping on couches. In How to Build Impossible Things, Ellison tells the story of his unconventional education in the world of architecture and design, and how he learned the satisfaction and joy that comes from doing something well for a long time. He takes us on a tour through the lofts, penthouses, and townhouses of New York's elite which he has transformed over the years - before they're camera-ready - and offers a window into what he's learned about living meaningfully along the way.Scrapped blueprints and last-minute demands characterise life in the high-stakes world of luxury construction. From staircases that would be deadly if built as designed to algae-eating snails boiled to escargot in a penthouse pond, Ellison exposes the messy wiring behind the pristine walls - and the mindset that any of us can develop to build our own impossible things. (knihydobrovsky.cz)