Six months in the making and we finally pulled off the Guest Bedroom for the 2017 Pasadena Showcase House of Design, now in its 53rd year and the oldest show house in the country. You know that saying "It takes a village"? Well, the saying definitely holds true when orchestrating a room for a showcase house, as it is not an adventure that one embarks on solo.
This Guest Bedroom was not an easy room to tackle, as it seemed as the vertical space was occupied by more windows and doorways than blank wall space. In addition, several layers of paint over grasscloth, badly damaged walls and a ceiling made it a difficult, not to mention, costly expense. Despite all the challenges, our persistence prevailed and the final result is one that we are definitely proud of, but could not have pulled off on our own.
The room prior to us working our magic:
When we initially set out to design the Guest Bedroom, we knew that we wanted to incorporate Sony Life Space UX products into the space, as it was the perfect platform to show how seamlessly they could be incorporated into a more traditional space while not detracting from the design of the room, as modern technology often does. The home was a 1916 English Tudor Revival designed by acclaimed architects Marston & Van Pelt. Throughout the years, the home has appeared regularly in film and TV, most recently in LaLa Land as well as Beaches, Mad Men, and Alice in Wonderland to name a few. We were able to retain much of the home's original charm and details- original woodwork, window casings and hardware, but now with a modern edge and the addition of modern technological amenities without having to punch through walls to run wiring.
On a full charge and with the bulb illuminated, we were able to get 4+ hours of continuous playing time from the Glass Sound Speaker. The LED filament bulb provided ambient light and was the perfect touch to make the room feel intimate and cozy. Wireless connectivity allowed us to move the speaker throughout the room effortlessly and position it in different locations throughout the day. All of those who walked through the room marveled at the quality of sound emanating from within the small size of the Glass Sound Speaker. We opted to play opera - Nessun Dorma by Pavarotti, to demonstrate the range of highs and lows, and the crystal clear sound quality.
Situated on top of the custom, ebonized maple desk with brass inlay we laid a sketchpad which we used to showcase the capabilities of the Portable Ultra Short Throw Projector. Most people associate projectors with projecting on vertical surfaces such as a screen or wall, but this projector can be used for much more. Utilizing a laser rather than a bulb as the light source enables projection onto both vertical and horizontal surfaces simply by repositioning the device. Pretty revolutionary.
Because of the absence of wall space and an almost entire wall of windows situated on the wall opposite the bed, we opted to build out a custom corner cabinet in the small amount of wall space we had available. We designed the cabinet to complement the architecture of the home with traditional moldings and vintage flea market-found hardware, but we gave it a modern edge with a high gloss grey finish and a built-in screen, painted in white ceiling paint. This area was to be our "TV", but unlike the traditional TV, when turned off, the visual space was not cluttered with an unsightly black screen to detract from the aesthetic of the room.
To round out the sensorial experience in our Guest Room, we used the Life Space UX LED Bulb Speaker in a table lamp next to the bed. When staying in a foreign place, oftentimes all that is needed is something familiar to get comfortable, and that can be as simple as listening to music that reminds us of home. Synching the LED Bulb Speaker to a smart phone and one's play list takes less than 30 seconds and just like that, you can listen to all your playlists or stream music off of Pandora or Spotify - all wirelessly via Bluetooth technology.
All in all, we were pleased with the outcome of our Guest Bedroom, and so were the more than 30,000 visitors that made their way through the 2017 Pasadena Showcase House. Thank you, Life Space UX for making the user experience a truly sensorial one, and especially for allowing the design of our room to take center stage!
Excerpts were taken from the original blog post on Cozy Stylish Chic.
For more details on the design process behind the Guest Bedroom for the 2017 Pasadena Showcase House, please visit: http://bit.ly/2uiuHUF
For more details on the process and how to participate in a designer showcase house, please visit: http://bit.ly/2ttt35k