Studio Ilse.

Glancing through this Sunday's edition of the NY Times Magazine, I stumbled upon a collage of work from interior designer, Ilse Crawford, and became entranced. I love the element of sophistication and elegance in her work, and yet, I can still imagine her designs functioning practically in any home. In the article in the Times, she attributes this to the fact that she is constantly aware of the emotional and personal context of a space and tries to incorporate that into her design. She realizes that spaces need to be functional and attainable in addition to being pretty and glamorously designed - a crucial point a lot of interior designers can miss sometimes. Her use of color is flawless, exquisite and emotional. She expertly crafts a sense of upscale class with earthy, subtle tones...mixing the hues of browns, creams and grays against black. And the disbursement of a bold color, red seems to be a favorite, in many of her designs does not feel forced but rather, right at 'home.' I particularly enjoyed the design of a bedroom in a flat on 661 London Road, Notting Hill. Spread behind the bold, blue sheets of a bed is magnificent mural of a galloping white horses that adds an intense expressive flare. I look forward to seeing the work on this budding British designer.

http://www.nytimes.com/indexes/2008/09/28/style/t/index.html#pageName=28collage