New Posh Lounge opening in L.A.

I know this isn't very "design-oriented", but I feel it is so I'm posting about it. Seems there is this new, ultra-cool lounge bar opening up this week in L.A. and it looks like the type of pseudo-chic place I'd like to run into a Hollywood A-lister at --- if I wanted to. Mostly, I'd probably just like to see them there, pat myself on the back for again knowing the cool places to hang out at (since said A-lister being there as well is proof positive that I know this), and not even acknowledge their presence.

Seriously, I really love cool lounge bars, no matter what the decor is. It can be a Tiki place, an old-world, leather booth-filled, cigar-smoking place, or one of the trendy, modern Hollywood mega-lounges that opens up seemingly every other six months, filled with $1000+ a night tables with "bottle-service". I love 'em all --- if they are well designed and have a great atmosphere.

This place called "Trousdale" looks like it could be that sort of place. From Thrillist L.A.:


"Opening up tomorrow, Trousdale's a super-posh ultra lounge, from a newcomer nicknamed "the Kid" as well as several club and nightlife vets: the dude from Guy's, one of the girls behind Hyde, and notorious club-man Brent Bolthouse, who's doing his own thing for the first time since parting with SBE's Sam Nazarian, whose name alone strikes fear into the hearts of... proofreaders everywhere. The inside's appropriately plush: the main room's got silver-toned leather banquettes, black-marble columns, a mid-room DJ stand, and dark, exposed piping, while the smaller back area boasts a massive pool table, tufted walls, and a fine-art print of an automatic rifle, notably painted by Andy War-Haul. As far as libations go, they've got a fresh-ingredient'd cocktail list and beers, as well as dolled-up comfort food and small plates from a top caterer who's done work w/ Louis Vuitton; options include sesame wasabi ahi tartar w/ ginger on a taro-root chip, mini grilled Gruyere cheese sandwiches w/ Worcestershire sauce, and a garlic/rosemary crusted New Zealand lamb chop, which Shari Lewis uses to teach kids about bad breath.

The bar's only open three days a week: Friday, Saturday, and also Tuesday...
There's absolutely no website, but you can ring them at 310.274.7500."

For more go to: http://www.thrillist.com/los-angeles/trousdale.

Whole Body Gallery logo redesign

So, I have been working on the corp ID redesign of an L.A. Pilates Studio, named Whole Body Gallery. My friends Nigel and Daria own the place, and I've been doing design work for them for many years. At first, we went through a bunch of logo designs based on Daria's initial ideas and sketches. Here is one example, as Daria wanted to use a flower symbol:


After going through the different versions of this logo, both Daria and I weren't exactly satisfied with this. I decided to play around with a few vector images I had and merge a few together to form an entirely new logo design, but one in which I felt reflected both the spiritual individual and gallery aspects of the studio (it doubles as an art gallery, hence the name Whole Body Gallery).

I first came up with these next two, using a cool blue and a contrasting, and complimentary colored, orange:



Then, after consulting Daria, we changed the final colors to the original organic green and hot orange red for the final logo design below:

I think it represents the gallery very well, with both a sophisticated and serene look, with all the elements present, with the tree representing the individual and pilates aspects and the frames representing the art gallery.

Now, we are off to create the rest of the corp design, including business cards, stationary, and website (which should be up by the end of March, I hope). I will keep updating the progress.