Blackband Design

Orange County Interior Design, Renovations, New Builds.

Summer Interns!

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Hello everyone! As summer is near, we are looking for TWO summer interns to join our team. If you think you fit the part, please send your resume and any additional information (social media, blog, portfolio, etc.) to hello@blackbanddesign.com and include your availability and preferred time frame for the internship.

 

INTERIOR DESIGN INTERN (RESIDENTIAL)

BLACKBAND DESIGN

Orange County | Costa Mesa

 

Blackband Design is looking for an interior design intern to work in our new design studio and assist our designers and showroom managers.

 

About us…

Growing residential design firm in a new location we just opened in Costa Mesa. We have a cool, boutique design studio. In addition to doing great design, we also sell furniture, artwork, accessories, custom pillows, and basically everything for the home. We are down to earth and pretty fun to work with. It’s a fast paced environment and we’re looking for someone to grow with us.

 

About you…

Creative, honest, hardworking. Looking to develop a strong foundation in interior design.

Interested in growing with a company.

-Must currently be enrolled in an interior design program.

-Merchandising and accessorizing experience preferred.

-Customer service and retail experience preferred.

 

Responsibilities…

-Organizing materials library

-Creating and updating tearsheets

-Assisting designers and design projects.

-Work with suppliers and fabric reps.

-Working with clients and showroom customers.

-Accessorizing.

-Working on in-home installations.

-Merchandising & keeping the showroom looking great.

-Assist showroom manager in receiving & tagging merchandise.

-Administrative work and answering phones.

-Running errands.

 

 

This is an unpaid internship

Hours: TBD

Hours of Operation: Monday to Friday 9:30-5:30

EXCITING NEWS!

by Filed Under: Behind The Scenes

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We’re moving! We have been busy renovating our new showroom and design studio in Costa Mesa. Our existing showroom will be closed as we organize for our move, but our design offices will remain open. If you have any questions, please call us at 949.872.2234 or email hello@blackbanddesign.com
 
Our new showroom will be located at:
3198 Airport Loop Drive, Studio E
Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Lido House Hotel

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We are so excited to share that we are taking part in the Lido House Hotel Project, a stylish coastal retreat located in the original heart of Newport Beach. Led by Bob Olson of R.D. Olson Development, the four story, 130 room boutique hotel is under construction at the old city hall site, 3300 Newport Boulevard. 

There will be five luxury residential-style cottages designed by local Newport Beach designers, and this is where we come in! The design process for our cottage is already underway… We were selected as one of the design firms and we’ve already started the design process for one of the cottages. We feel so fortunate to be involved, it’s such a cool concept and a great way to bring together the community of Newport Beach. Stay tuned for progress pictures and updates along the way!

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We attended the ground breaking ceremony on June 30th which signifies the first physical step towards completing this hotel by Summer 2017! Below you can take a peek at the layout of the new property, including the location of the cottage we are designing.

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National Ice Cream Day!

by Filed Under: Behind The Scenes

In honor of National Ice Cream Day, we’re breaking down our favorite ice cream shops in Orange County! Have you tried any of these on our list, or did we miss any of your favorites? Let us know in the comments below!

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2ND ANNUAL WAREHOUSE SALE!

by Filed Under: Behind The Scenes

It’s that time of year again, we are hosting our SECOND annual warehouse tent sale! We had a huge turnout last year so we decided to do it again, and this time we’ve got even more to sell.

We’re marking down artwork, pillows, accessories, furniture and lighting. Our sale will be on Friday April 15th + Saturday April 16th from 9am to 4pm so mark your calendars, grab a friend and get here early! The sale will take place at our Irvine showroom, the address is 17971 Skypark Circle #K Irvine, CA 92614. Hope to see you all there! 

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Weekend Getaway // Road Trip to Ojai

by Filed Under: Behind The Scenes

Ojai is a charming little town an hour and a half north of Los Angeles. It’s a perfect destination for a weekend getaway or a spontaneous day trip!

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SEE 

Friends Ranches: There are so many great places to check out in Ojai, but one of our favorites has to be Friend’s Ranches where they grow their infamous pixie tangerines! They offer springtime orchard tours taking you through the history of their family and farm. Meditation Mountain: a sacred site on 32 acres, this is a perfect spot to escape the hustle of city life and soak in the zen vibes. Ojai Olive Oil: surrounded by mountains and trees, this hidden gem offers free tours twice a week on Wednesdays and Saturdays. You can learn about the process of making the olive oil, hear about the history of the ranch and sample different oils. 

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SHOP

Barts Books: the worlds greatest outdoor bookstore! This is a quaint little bookstore downtown Ojai that is worth checking out. Quick tip: If you take a stroll down the street towards town you’ll stumble upon the most charming Spanish bungalow you will ever lay eyes on (pictured below)!  Summer Camp: A husband and wife reimagined this midcentury gas station and turned it into a unique shop with a big personality. The owner gave us this awesome map pinpointing what to check out in Ojai and we shared it down below! A few of our other favorites include Modern Folk Living, an eco-boutique for hand selected products; Into The Field, a desert inspired lifestyle boutique; DeKor & Co, where they carry an eclectic selection of vintage and custom made pieces. 

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EAT

Almost everything in Ojai is locally sourced and finding a spot to grab lunch can be difficult with so many great options! Based off our own experiences, we recommend grabbing brunch at Knead Baking Company and stopping in for lunch at Hip Vegan or Farmer and the Cook. If you’re looking to indulge in a little wine tasting, stop by The Ojai Vineyard or Tipple & Ramble. You can also take an “All Around Ojai” tour on a jeep with Cloud Climbers that ends up stopping at a local winery.

The Right White, Blackband Designs GO-TO White Paints!

by Filed Under: Behind The Scenes 6 Comments

We are constantly asked what white paint we use so we decided to do one big blog post to try and answer as many questions as we could! The right white (in our opinion) is a neutral true white and we wanted to let you know what shades we turn to first when we are looking for a clean crisp white. Our best suggestion is to test, test, test! Pick up small cans of your favorites and sample the paints on your wall near each other, then observe at various times of the day to see how they reflect different light in the room. We just painted our showroom and offices in Dunn Edwards White (DEW380) and it made a huge difference, everything feels so bright and airy! If you have any other questions, please leave them in the comments section!

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Happy Halloween!

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Happy Halloween from Blackband Design!

Halloween only comes once a year so we couldn’t resist the opportunity to dress up at the office for a little costume contest! Scroll through to see what our team came up with this year. Tory won best costume for her version of a Kravet Fabric book (Interior Design jokes). We hope you all have a safe and fun Halloween! 

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blackband_design_halloween_wendyWendy dressed up as Steampunk! 

blackband_design_halloween_ashleyAshley DIY-ed a Jellyfish costume!

blackband_design_halloween_toryOur costume contest winner! Tory dressed as a kravet fabric book (so creative!). 

blackband_design_halloween_brooke_and_amandaBrooke and Amanda dressed up as hippies! (p.s. how cute is that new pouf we just got in?)

blackband_design_halloween_whitneyWhitney dressed as Tinkerbell!

blackband_design_halloween_rachelRachel dressed up as Michael Jackson!

blackband_design_halloween_ashley_and_maryAshley dressed as Where’s Waldo and Mary dressed up as a pirate!

blackband_design_halloween_laurenLauren channeled her inner granny and dressed old lady chic!

blackband_design_halloween_jamesJames dressed up as Clark Kent aka Superman!

Houzz Feature on Project West Bay

by Filed Under: Behind The Scenes 9 Comments

We were recently featured in a Houzz Editorial titled “5 Fully Decorated Living Rooms That Don’t Go Overboard”you can see the whole article by clicking here. We wanted to share our portion of the interview below to give you some behind the scene details from our latest Project West Bay!

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5. Coastal Farmhouse

Designer: Wendy Blackband
Location: Newport Beach, California
Year built: 2015 
Homeowners’ request: A space for entertaining with a contemporary coastal farmhouse feel. A large seating arrangement inside, as well as on the front patio to which the living room opens through folding doors, helped achieve this. 
Plan of attack: The house was a new build, so designer Wendy Blackband visited the site several times during construction to better understand how things should flow, how the layout should take shape and how the materials and finishes would come together before she selected furnishings. Maintaining open pathways became a challenge once the furniture filled the room. But proper space planning and a few minor adjustments allowed Blackband to create two adequate walkways through the space. 
Why the design works: “What immediately stood out to our design team was the huge open floor plan encompassing the kitchen, dining room, living room and bifolding doors leading out to the patio,” Blackband says. “With one large seating arrangement focused on the fireplace, it helped break up the open layout. The large folding doors to the front patio help bring the outdoors in, allowing extra seating and table space.”
Designer secret: Keeping the furnishings and accessories muted using grounded neutrals and bright whites. “Because sometimes understated is best,” Blackband says. She also used soft and tonal furnishings so they wouldn’t distract from the architectural details inside the home. “One thing that makes this home tricky is that the entire home can be viewed from the street or from people walking by,” she says. “So by having two chairs back up to the folding doors, it makes the space feel more open versus putting a sofa there that would have blocked off the view of the interiors.”
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 “Uh-oh” moment: The main entrance and garage open to the kitchen, but the way the house is positioned, it’s more convenient to enter the home through the bifolding doors. “Creating an arrangement that was welcoming but functional for the space was our biggest challenge,” Blackband says. “By leaving space behind the sofas with the sofa table, we were able to create a makeshift walkway that gave the impression of an entry.”
Splurges and savings: Blackband saved on the area rug, which is carpet that she had bound. She then used the savings to splurge on accessories.

Take-away: “You don’t have to go overboard with color to make a bold statement, and never be afraid of white sofas,” Blackband says. “A good fabric protectant can be a lifesaver.”

The nitty-gritty: Sofas, coffee table and pillows: custom made by Blackband Design; sofa table: cFc 

Team involved: Chris Brigandi of Arbor Real Estate (home design and build)

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