Simeone Deary Design Group

Last week I went on my first grad school field trip. My class had the pleasure of visiting Simeone Deary Design Group for a tour of their office and a huge dose of inspiration from the principals Lisa Simeone and Gina Deary.

Simeone Deary is a firm that focuses in hospitality, restaurant, and some residential design. We had the honor of listening to Lisa and Gina walk us through a slideshow of some of their most prominent work, including the Elysian Hotel, the JW Marriott Indianapolis, Brush Creek Ranch, Santi restaurant at the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, and some private residences here in Chicago. With each project they discussed their inspiration, their approach of concept design, what it was like to work with the clients, and also the realistic aspect of sometimes having to modify your ideal design to fit within the budgets and expectations of the client.

Lisa and Gina were so generous with their time with us... they answered questions, gave us advice, and most importantly shared their infectious love of design and passion for what they do. Our visit to Simeone Deary was a refreshing reminder that it IS possible to be successful AND love what you do- a balance that oftentimes seem unattainable.

Some of Simeone Deary's work here in Chicago:

The Elysian Hotel

Spiaggia

SpyBar

Floor Fashion

The Rug Company- a London-based retailer, now with select locations in the US (including Chicago)- has collaborated with some A-list designers to come up with their exclusive Designer Collection. They really are pieces of artwork for your floor (made obvious by the prices), but if you can invest in one it would be a fabulous piece to own.

The ones I'm drooling over:

Climbing Leopard- Diane Von Furstenberg

Feathers- Alexander McQueen

Zap- Fiona Curran

Tribe- Matthew Williamson

Peacock Light- Matthew Williamson

Kara Mann Design

Dark. Sexy. Edgy. Pretty much sums up what I love about the work of Chicago-based designer Kara Mann, of Kara Mann Design. She fearlessly incorporates dark walls and exotic pieces into some of the most luxurious spaces in Chicago; definitely an unexpected aesthetic, but it totally works. I need to go check out her showroom at the Merchandise Mart for some serious inspiration. Below are my favorites from a Lake Shore Drive penthouse she did, but be sure to check out the rest of her work here.