Greek Chic: House of Turquoise

All images Elle decor

Greek Chic: Fresh and fashionable on Patmos

All images Elle decor

Athenian apartment (worth seeing)

I absolutely fell in love with this apartment in Syntagma Sq., that's the very heart of Athens.

Conceived by an architect, it's 200m2 , bathed in natural -Greek!- light.

What do you think, people?

{All images via here}

Greek Traditional homes: Mani II

Where once stood the remains of a Byzantine (Medieval) structure, an Athenian architectural practice built a functional new home for its new British owners, using materials of the past.

This technique of building the new using the old, is deeply rooted to necessity. 

As an added bonus it has offered us the chance to see in our days the surviving fragments of the past.

Greek Homes: Mani I

Greek traditional architecture is utilitarian.

 It is in constant dialogue with nature and the the environment and it responds to people's real needs.

However, it bursts with charm and good taste.

It corresponds a feeling of clean lines and comfort, a joy of living and a freedom to move or stay according to one's needs and desires. 

This renovated traditional house is situated in 

Doloi, Mani, The Peloponnese,Southern Greece.

Materials salvaged and bought from deserted local homes.

Architects: Aiolou, Greece

House Hunting : Home One

As I have told you,  in the past few months, we have been house hunting. 

There are homes we like but cannot afford, homes that we can afford but do not like.

I also think we like this old house with all its issues.

Starting today, I am going to show you some homes that I have liked over the past weeks.

I think it'll be fun!

Google Offices in Athens

So Google opened an office in Athens.

Is it good? I am not all that happy with foreign magnates coming in Greece. It means they have something in their plans for us, and I am not sure their plans are good, no, not so far.

Anyway. What interests me in this post is the way a global company and the architects it chooses incorporates in its design the trends we see in blogs all over the web.

Is it avant-garde or is it passe?

The offices do look modern and different.

It is obvious that the company embraces the conclusion of researches stating that peple are more productive if they finf themselves in a homey environment, where they are made to believe they are at home, and they can relax or play for a while if they want, then get back to their cubicles.

On the other hand, having been involved with a company who uses such design, I do feel that thw company;s interest is rather phoney. Yes, companies want you to keep longer hours that you should, they want to suck the last drop of your imagination and energy and they want you to do it all right there, under their eyes, under their control.

As for the design as such.

In my opinion the architects do read quite a few major design blogs. Their paletts-as-furniture idea and the vegetable crates as shelving idea are well documented internet wise (including in this blog). Tolix stools have been everywhere on the net for the past four years. And so have blackboards, knit pouffe and hanging colour lights. All in all, the designers are selling staff the idea of belonging to a global avant guarde community, that is, if you are ignorant enough not to know better.

There certainly is an olde Athens atmosphere, to add some couleur local, and please visiting managers and staff, the old registering as a contrast with the company's new age profile. There are also old film posters to account for culture, and traditional kiosques that are actually phone booths.

Good try, if not phoney, Google guys.

Design: Fluid Architects

All images:Studio Paterakis

First seen here. Images via here.