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Highlights. Trends. Insights. We’ve got the scoop on everything you need to know about interior design right here in one tidy space!

May 23, 2017

Trending: Navy Is the New Black

Just right for smaller spaces or any room requiring a touch of drama, navy is surging as a top color trend for 2017. It’s as versatile as black but not as harsh. An inky blue accent wall looks modern and sensual, and a navy-and-white combo can lend some nautical whimsy to a coastal home. Look to patterned tile to lend a focal point to bathrooms. But don’t stop there: For a quick update, incorporate navy-hued accessories into a home.

The Interior Style Hunter

April 18, 2017

How to Incorporate Home Technology Invisibly into Design

Although technology is ubiquitously designed into every new home, no one wants to see the telltale signs of it. Gone are the days of showcasing technology as a design focus; today’s consumer wants it to work in the background seamlessly. Fortunately, thanks to a crop of new audio, theater, energy monitoring and security gadgets, technology is more powerful than ever before yet integrated into home design for practically invisible use.

Stage a TV over a Fireplace – Or Make It Disappear

Although it’s a popular trend to hang a flat-screen television over a built-in fireplace, electronics and heat don’t mix well. One new solution to this dilemma is to select an ethanol-alcohol fireplace, which produces less heat, and recess a TV into the wall so it’s protected better. Although a TV is a focal point in many living rooms and dens, a cupboard design like this one allows homeowners to hide the monitor when not in use.

Houzz

Hear It, Don’t See It

For an ambient experience, consider embedding surround-sound audio speakers into existing design. In fact, some types of speakers are made to vibrate and amplify audio signals better when hidden in walls or ceilings. Other solutions include faux rocks to hide speakers in a backyard or on a patio.

Fedorova

Charge Wherever You Are

Mobile phone users swipe, tap and pinch their phones on average 2,617 times a day, racking up a million touches every year, according to research firm Dscout. All that checking in drains battery life quickly, but furniture with built-in, wireless charging pads mean you can set down your smartphone and charge up in no time.

HGTV Home

Whole-Home Integration: There’s an App for That

For the ultimate in convenience, homeowners are turning to automated systems that run lighting, heating, security and other electronics from one touchscreen system – even a single app accessible from any mobile device. An integrated system like this one lets users control practically everything in a home.

HGTV Home

HGTV Home

April 18, 2017

Trending: We Admire Wire

Forget about overwrought patio furniture or quaint bed frames, the trend toward wire furniture brings modernity to any room or space. The look mixes well with wood, as seen in this dining table and coffee table, and accents like these ottomans and storage baskets add scriptural artistry to otherwise functional pieces. Even lighting gets wired this year, a big trend that takes up little space – a perfect for fans of minimalism.

April 18, 2017

Project Highlight: Skye, Pool View South, Palm Springs, California

Care for a Martini?

Any fan of Palm Springs knows two things: The desert oasis is a mecca for snowbirds and creatives, and it’s synonymous with midcentury modern style. Chameleon Design built upon these archetypes to help Woodbridge Pacific Group present Skye, a new community located within walking distance of downtown Palm Spring’s vibrant shopping and restaurant district. The spacious, well-designed floor plans with luxury finishes provided the ideal backdrop for our design, which includes all the details required for a Mad Men-style happy hour. Inspired by the desert color palette, we incorporated punches of tangerine, citron and turquois to complement the glossy white modern flat panel cabinets and large format, white porcelain tile we selected. With a space focused on entertaining, the only thing a homeowner will have to decide is whether to serve martinis poolside or in the outdoor den.

Courtyard

Dining

External view

Great room

Kitchen

Master bath

Master bedroom

Patio

Bedroom

Great room

Master bedroom

Pet parlor

Pool

March 27, 2017

Project Highlight: Celadon at Parasol Park, Plan 4, Irvine, California

Midcentury Modern Meets 21^st Century Family Life

The newest of the Great Park neighborhoods in Irvine, Celadon at Parasol Park stands out for its well-conceived designs for modern homebuyers leading busy lifestyles, including one floor plan just right for growing families with four children. The builder, William Lyons Homes, tapped Chameleon Design to envision an eclectic version of midcentury modern interior design for this model that is budget- and kid-friendly. The result is as appropriate for playtime as it is for cocktail hour, thanks to a mix of surprisingly affordable pieces that mimic vintage lines. We selected a fun and energetic color palette based on pops of color as a design solution with all-white walls. We also took the opportunity to play with shapes and finishes, such as the multisided coffee table and brass trunk in the living room or nubby pillows and a nightstand featuring a honeycomb-inspired façade in the master bedroom. From morning school bell to après-dinner entertainment – and the family moments that happen in between – this design is tailor-made for Southern California lifestyles.

Living Room

Dining Room + Kitchen

Kitchen

Bedroom

Living Room

Bedroom

Patio

Details

Bedroom

Stairs

Details

Bedroom

March 27, 2017

Faux Finishes Mimic Nature

It all began the moment you settled in to read the latest thriller from your favorite author and draped a faux sable blanket across your lap. Since then, your love affair with all things organic and lush has grown in intensity. Now it’s time to invite other faux finishes into your home to drive your interior design choices. From rugs to ceiling aesthetics and everything in between, here’s your guide to using budget-friendly faux finishes to make everything look a bit more luxe.

Mesmerize with Marble

The faux finishing technique of marbleizing replicates the intricate, variegated veins of real marble. This countertop and back splash is made of natural quartz designed to appear like marble.

Chameleon Design

Get the Look of Ancient Stone

Stone stands up to the test of time, but the cost can be prohibitive. That’s where artisan finishes on drywall or wood come in. The look of a faux stone finish is organic – even responsive to fluctuations in lighting.

Popular Mechanics

Nature at Your Feet

If you love the appearance of real wood flooring but loathe to undertake the upkeep or cost, tile that mimics the raw wonder of wood is easy to care. Faux wood tile flooring bears details once found only in nature, such as varying grains, concentric rings and knots, as well as a range of hues.

Chameleon Design

Wood Grain Craze

Enveloping cabinets or even walls in faux wood gain can mimic a range of looks from rustic to refined to exotic. The secret to trying this trend is to varying the direction of the grain to create the illusion of spaciousness in tight spaces.

Kelly Wearstler

March 27, 2017

Trending: Ceramics Are Dynamic

Ceramic accessories are affordable, quirky and oh-so-fun to style. You’ll covet the latest crop of ceramics found in modern collections of vases and love how hanging ceramic pots spotlight greenery. We believe the revival of ceramics coincides with consumers’ desires to personalize living spaces with accessories that spur organic connections to nature – a trend found in ceramics with earthy, artisanal finishes just perfect for spotlighting a posy or two.

Scout Mob: Half Light Honey Studio Striped Black & White Ceramic Hanging Planter

Tozai Home: Capo-Di-Monte White Vase Vase

Tozai Home: Blue Terre Melee Cylinders

Tozai Home: Terre Melee Blue Temple Jar with Lid

Floral Import

January 26, 2017

Pantone’s Color of the Year Soothes the Soul

Does the pace of modern life have you yearning for the natural world? The Pantone Color Institute offers weary souls an antidote with its 2017 Color of the Year, called Greenery. The yellow-green minimalistic hue invites you to stop and breathe, disconnect from technology and reconnect with nature. Greenery is all about unity and community – and we can’t think of a better purpose for design.

January 26, 2017

Invite the Great Outdoors into Your Home

In announcing its color of the year, Pantone lauded Greenery for its “vitality of nature and new beginnings.” We recommend refreshing tired surroundings or calming busy interiors by bringing the soft, desaturated tone into your environment. Greenery answers the call for simplicity and evokes the grounding of nature, making it the ideal color to redefine a room. Almost every brand of paint incorporates a color like Greenery into its palette this year. Some of our other favorite ways to introduce Greenery into your environment include throws, furniture and appliances.

Sources: A: Alpaca Throw, Johnathan Adler B: KitchenAid Mixer C: Leather Pouf, All Modern D: Parsons Bed, Room & Board E: Rustic Platter, Williams Sonoma

January 25, 2017

Chameleon Design Featured Project // The Covey, Buena Park, CA

In partnering with William Lyon Homes to welcome homebuyers to The Covey in Buena Park, Chameleon Design captured the warmth and simplicity of the community’s farmhouse aesthetics by infusing calming shades of white, taupe and green – leading with Greenery, Pantone Color Institute 2017 Color of the Year. We reinforced this refreshing color palette by incorporating other design trends we believe you’ll see in architecture, interior décor and fashion this year, such as raw surfaces, organic materials, and unifying features like board and batten. The result is a thoroughly modern yet intrinsically familiar design ready for growing families, with plenty of room for entertaining effortlessly.