A Home For Shadow: Building a Dog-Friendly Yet Aesthetically-Pleasing Home

My canine buddy, Shadow, is one of the most important figures in my life, and since he's my number one roommate, it's my utmost concern that our house is a safe and fun place for the both of us. And, of course, being an interior designer, having an aesthetically-pleasing abode is also a significant matter. So how does one build and maintain an awesome-looking pad that's still perfect for doggie pals like Shadow?

Image source: flickr.com

Accessorize with items that look great even when distressed - Pristine items that get scuffed or broken easily are bad ideas, especially if you have an active, furry friend. Antique or vintage-like furniture that still look awesome even with a few dings and scratches are a way to go.

Install a resilient floor surface - Concrete, hardwood, and tile floors are great for pet-friendly residences. Not only are they easier to clean, they're also generally harder to scuff. Furry dogs will also enjoy tiled floors during the summer because they're cooler.

Avoid wall-to-wall carpeting as they're harder to clean. Instead, go with easy-to-remove tiled carpets or rugs made from durable and stain-resistant materials.

Coordinate your decor with your pet's fur - Constantly having to pick fur out of sofas is a pain, -and if your furry companion is anything like Shadow, he'll love sleeping on the sofa, so choosing upholstery similar to your pet's fur color is great camouflage. That said, it's not an excuse to be a slouch about cleaning the house and grooming your dog.

Dedicate spaces for your dog - While Shadow can go practically anywhere around the house, he also has specific, comfortable spots to sleep and eat. A design trend nowadays is integrating napping niches into shelving and stairs so that separate dog baskets don't take up too much space. Having a regular area for eating makes it easier for clean-up.

Image source: en.wikipedia.org

Maintain cleanliness - Sticking to a regular grooming schedule for pets keeps them healthy and clean, controls the shedding around the house, and the shorter nails means keeping scratches, scuffs, and fabric snags to a minimum. 

Following these tips will make living with a furry companion safer, more comfortable, and neater, and that's great for Shadow and me.

As Shadow's best buddy and an interior designer, I, Scott Jay Abraham, am dedicated to making sure that our home is both dog-friendly and great to look at. Read more about my life with this awesome dog by visiting this blog.

Loft Apartments: Adaptive Reuse Meets Industrial Sophistication

As an idea, the repurposing old buildings isn't new. People have reused stable old buildings for various purposes, often refurbishing their interiors to keep them up to modern standards of habitability. Adaptive reuse has grown in popularity in recent years, fuelled both by the demands to preserve a city's notable architectural heritage and a desire to redevelop and revitalize urban areas. And nowhere is this more apparent than what could be the most famous form of adaptive reuse: the loft apartment.

Lofts are hitherto former industrial or commercial spaces repurposed as residential areas, usually consisting of a large open space. These are often called “hard lofts” to distinguish them from newer industrial-themed residential apartments built to resemble lofts.

Abandoned industrial buildings were once the abode of impoverished artists post-World War II, and then turned (initially illegal) to makeshift homes and studios for bohemian communities. As the appeal of the artist community surged among wealthier folk, so did the eclectic style that characterized the lofts, though this came at a less-than-pleasant price, literally speaking, for the artists who already lived there. Today, lofts are a popular choice for the urban professional, especially those in need of space for work purposes.

The roots of modern industrial style owed their existence to apartments reused from industrial buildings, with key elements such as exposed ducts, bare brick and unfinished concrete walls, the extensive use of metal and aged wood, and repurposed structures used as furniture. Even today, loft-styled apartments still use these industrial design cues as part of their overall aesthetic.

Scott Jay Abraham here. Follow me on Twitter for more updates on the aesthetics of industrial design.

Steampunk: The eclectically antique aesthetic of a time that never was

When you say steampunk, the image that frequently comes to mind is that of eccentric machines that seem both sci-fi and old timey and, in recent years, a subculture of people who wear corsets and period suits adorned with homemade mechanical accessories. One does not always encounter a steampunk-themed interior, but the subculture and literary genre has inspired many enthusiasts to combine this fusion of ornate and the industrial in their interiors.

Image Source: slate.com

Evoking the brazen dreams of steampunk—a world where technology goes on a widely different direction—involves creating ornate 19th and early 20th Century detailing interspersed with themes typical of industrial design. “Steampunk” as a whole is rarely recognized as a theme among many designers; creating this look requires striking the right balance between the decorative Victorian flourishes and industrial themes.

Image Source: hotpads.com

As with most industrial interior designs, steampunk favors the extensive use of metal, found and repurposed objects, and exposed brick. Wrought iron especially works well for the purpose as does copper and brass fixtures and scrollwork.

Image Source: weburbanist.com

Antique-looking furniture is a must. These should be in muted colors that favor browns and other earth tones. In contrast, decorative flourishes should be mechanical in appearance, which can include valves, meters, gears, and other repurposed pieces of salvaged machinery as accents.

The end result is not quite your typical industrial look, being more decorative than utilitarian, and yet not quite antiquated or gothic, while possessing hints of science fiction here and there.

I'm Scott Jay Abraham. I craft industrial-themed interiors for homes and offices. Want more of this? Follow me on Twitter.