Chameleon Design Featured Project: The Wine Cellar, 2011 Philharmonic Design House- Newport Coast
The Philharmonic Society of Orange County has been presenting design houses since 1993. It’s their largest fundraiser and benefits their free Youth Music Education Programs which provides musical experiences and education for over 200,000 students in Orange County. Maison de la Mer was last year’s House of Design and is a beautiful French inspired home with wonderful indoor/outdoor elements that are perfect for entertaining. Chameleon Design had the honor of designing the wine cellar.
We began with that point of view that wine is more than just a bottle to be enjoyed- it’s about an entire experience. This wine cellar and sampling room was inspired by the rustic elements of the wine country, yet we incorporated a modern edge through clean lines and natural elements. Throughout the space you can see components from the wine making process from barrels that aged the wine, to the wooden crates that shipped the bottles. You will also see organic items that, like a fine wine, have been given their beauty through age.
Relax and enjoy conversation with friends and family around the reclaimed live-edge acacia table. It’s made of reclaimed wood and displays a leaf organically carved and made of onyx, with a sea urchin on top of it. Adding to the relaxed feeling of the space, Joan élan Davis’ painting, Tranquility, is an an interplay of closely valued colors and varied textures in a painterly woven format. Layers of an earthy brown upon a russet upon burgundy in one palette to deep, rich greens in another lend a sense of movement to the surface.
At one end of the room is a striped buffet. A sustainable, organic and contemporary piece, the buffet is made of reclaimed teak and the stripes are formed from scrap wood in a variety of hues. Above this hangs a custom art piece commissioned for the room. The Untitled piece is made of recycled wine crates and was done by Alex Adamonis of Woodworking LA. Iron sconces flank the art, allowing you to see the depth and variety of the piece.
Just like the rolling hills of California wine country in the spring months, the colors chosen reflect golden yellows, vineyard greens, cabernet reds and the grey of morning fog. The walls are textured with a Venetian-like plaster, and painted French Grey in the tasting room and Mahogany in the cellar.