the art of cohesion

I constantly think about themes and cohesion, because of course design isn’t just about picking good things. It’s about how things work together. Nothing is devoid of context.

I caught up with my friend Isaac French earlier this week, and we talked about some of his recent viral content at Serenbe, a 1,000-acre biophilic community about 30 miles southwest of Atlanta. He pointed out something interesting: the place feels like one thing, yet there are all kinds of different architecture.

How is this possible? We both would have assumed you need a specific architectural style to create cohesion in a community.

via serenbe.com

But according to Steve Nygren, Serenbe's developer, the simple answer is massing.

Strict rules around massing and scale produce buildings and neighborhoods that feel connected while still allowing a lot of stylistic differences.

via serenbe.com

I've never been to Serenbe; really need to go. Would love to get involved in something along these lines. Let me know if you have been or have lived there!

We spent all day Wednesday breaking up rocks at Arrington Woods. Our landscape team laid flagstones, but they just weren't right. They were too big, the spacing was way off, and we are about to list the property.

So Josh, Ryan, and I spent almost the entire day using chisels, jackhammers, and sledgehammers to break up and move huge pieces of flagstone.

Such hard work, but it looks a million times better. It's important to get physical now and again. So easy to get soft when you are on the screen all day.

We moved those.

Also, they just plastered the pool. We explicitly did not want something bright blue because, like the rest of the house, it needed to feel natural, like a pond or beach.

So we went with this tan color, which will make the water look more turquoise when it's full.

I am pumped; can't wait to take a brisk November dip.

Totally plastered

Just came across the Cardinal Series from MS Editions, designed by Guillaume Delacroix. I love rattan and patio furniture with removable cushions, and this reminds me a bit of that.

Is this comfortable? I have no idea, but I think it looks incredible and feels fresh. And I appreciate the red, which has been missing from our world for a while now and seems to be coming back in a big way.

And finally, who needs art when you can paint a headboard? A room concept from Gabby Storey. There's a lot here; it gives me so many ideas.