Home Improvement Partner

Gerard de Hoop is an independent designer and interior architect living and working in Groningen, the Netherlands. His passion gives life to versatile pieces of furniture created to suit a modern lifestyle. The first thing I noticed about Gerard was his unobstructed attention to details. The interview is punctuated with examples and images that illustrate the inspiration gathered in the years that led to creating such an interesting portfolio.

Tell us about your first steps towards design – when did you realize you want to become a product and interior designer?

• The first time I realized I wanted to be a designer was during the last year of high school. I

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Boy we’re loving this Aussie example of modern home design! Located in Victoria, Australia and designed by Watson Architecture + Design the homes really sits in and respects the awesome wild surroundings of its yard. It’s also seems to have the colors of the region pulsating through its corridors. We l

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Garlic is popular in the kitchen. But there is one garlic that is popular in the garden – the Ornamental Garlic. From its flowers to its foliage, the Ornamental Garlic or Allium senescens spp. glaucum never ceases to provide interest in the garden. The leaves of Ornamental Garlic are gray to blue-green in color.

Each leaf is linear and flat but twisted. This swirled or curly effect becomes more pronounced with the new growth. The photo at the left shows lilac-pink flowers of Ornamental Garlic. These cup-shaped flowers can be seen on wiry stems held above the plant foliage.

The flowers are very attractive to bees, butterflies, and birds; whereas the plant foliage or leaves make the plant of utmost interest to gardeners, landscapers, and xeriscapers.

The Ornamental Garlic may be used as a specimen plant. T

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The concept

Due to ever shrinking school budgets, limited capital funding aging infrastructure and overcrowded schools that must respond to shifting populations, school districts prefer to invest in relocatable classrooms since future increase in student enrollment cannot always be accurately judged when permanent classrooms and buildings are being planned and constructed. In remote communities, places dealing with natural disasters or school districts dealing with higher student enrollment, modular classrooms can help schools best utilize their budget.

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An interesting feature of Kelly Behuns work is the way she manages to mirror urban life in her projects. For today we decided to showcase some of the interiors envisioned and implemented by the studio of the modern artist, as we consider they represent a real American design trend nowadays. Seen on Desire to Inspire, the imposing penthouses feature an elegant and minimalist design, defined by a soft color palette. Intriguing lighting schemes and subtle decorations make for good sources of inspiration. Studio Kelly Behun is the result of a design collaboration with artist Alex P. White and is ran according to the slogan: It is when two disparate ideas collide, creative sparks fly and the best design is realized.

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