honolulu design center

hello fat boy!

if you have been anywhere near kapiolani boulevard in the last year you could not help but notice the huge construction site for the future home of the honolulu design center. lucky me, the 80,000 square foot showroom opened its doors a few weeks before we arrived home and, since my aunty is just starting the hunt for a new sofa, we stopped by to see if anything would catch her fancy.

my fella and i had a lot of fun on the first floor which is touted as the hdc's high end showroom filled with furniture from cattelan arredamenti, de sede of switzerland, molteni & c & natuzzi on one side and bo concept on the other (indeed we had so much fun that i forgot to snap any photos). many of the minimal designs found on the natuzzi side have luxe prices to match and would be at home in the million dollar condos that keep popping up in the honolulu skyline.

ever one to find the most expensive piece of furniture whenever we go shopping, my fella's radar plopped him down on the leather fendi casa sofa until i pulled him off and fiercely whispered the price in his ear ($42k!). we then hit the escalator up to the second floor where my aunty recognized many pieces from inspiration, but the best thing was lounging in the fat boy section (which is more in line with our budget) since i had spent many months lobbying for them in vain as extra seating in our cozy apartment.

the honolulu design center also has a few things planned for island foodies with the a*muse wine bar scheduled to open in march. it's a 21st century take on the traditional enoteca where customers will use a smart card to purchase tastes at an automated wine dispensing machine. how very jetsons.

you'll also be able to nosh at stage, the on site restaurant opening in april manned by chef jon matsubara, and enjoy everything from film screenings to fashion shows at cupola which is the hdc's performance space (potential wedding site for island design junkies, perhaps?). and, if you go now, the crema cafe is already open in the lobby which is a nice sunlit space to take a break and sip on pop from waialua soda works.

crafty discovery

spotted at the bookstore: the second issue of the very cool craft magazine with a cover story on how to hand stitch a hawaiian quilt. the step-by-step tutorial was penned by local quilter cissy serrao who has a rich quilting heritage in her ohana (her mom is a legendary quilt teacher & her dad is a respected designer of hawaiian quilt patterns).

this is the next best thing if taking one of the family's quilting classes is not in the stars. the magazine is a tad pricier than the competition, however if you have the soul of a renegade crafter it will be downright impossible not to be inspired to attempt a new project while flipping through each and every crafty page.

pacific home valentine's sale

 

if chocolate and diamonds don't do it for you this valentine's, you can always hit up pacific home and stock up on romantic designer goodies for your love nest during their february sale. then again, maybe i am the only one who would swoon if my fella gifted me with amenity bedding . . .

details:

• print out the coupon on pacific home's website & save 25% off purchases over $250 
• sale ends wed, feb 28th
• map it!

pineapple painting tours

 

two local artists have a novel approach to bringing back a souvenir to remember your holiday . . . create it yourself. pineapple painting tours offers the chance to tap into your inner gauguin and take home a piece of art made by you. yes, you could just head over to the weekend art mart at the honolulu zoo and buy something but this sounds like a lovely diversion for those who have an artsy side and are looking to do something other than the typical tourist activities.

the tour specializes in the plein air style which means you will be painting on location at scenic spots around oahu. transportation from waikiki hotels is included as are art supplies and, most important, instruction from professional artists so chances are good that your creation will be worthy enough to add to your personal art collection when you get home.

{update | jan 2010: pineapple painting tours seems to be no more}

this is not your parents' prefab home

sunset breezehouse

our little family of two can definitely be described as nice modernists and we have been keeping tabs on the blossoming modern prefab movement for quite some time. this afternoon i learned that michelle kaufmann designs recently built a factory in washington and one of their service areas is hawaii (currently, there are three savvy folks building a mkd home in the islands - lucky, lucky)!

this is so exciting. it's pretty easy to spot a typical prefab home in hawaii (in fact, my fella grew up in a hicks home) but if you are not familiar with modern prefab design you should definitely take a look and see what has changed in the past 30 years (fab prefab is an excellent resource). the mkd houses have been designed with the environment in mind and feature sustainable materials like bamboo floors, on demand water heaters & non-toxic paints as well as eco-friendly options like recycled glass tiles & solar power.

unless you have been living under a rock you know that the housing crunch has forced island families who can afford it to raze & rebuild or add an extension to their existing home to house multiple generations so this is definitely an alternative to consider if your budget allows it. i can count three families in my own circle who have either built a new home, are in the process of adding an extension, or are seriously considering going down that road since home ownership costs are so out of reach for many twenty & thirtysomethings.

as for us, this gives us a little more hope that one day we will be able to build an eco-friendly modern dwelling when we finally move back home. of course, it will be a challenge to find a fee simple lot that we can afford but a girl can dream.

{mahalo jetson green!}