SF designer Sabra Ballon picks her favorite art-inspired pieces for rethinking rooms in the new year.
Designer Sabra Ballon, founder and principal designer at ballon.
Sabra Ballon offers a quick answer when someone asks about her design aesthetic. “Always art- and architecture-forward,” adding that she adores modern detailing, materials culled from Mother Nature and anything that fits a California lifestyle. “I’m the set designer for the movie of your life.” The founder and principal designer at ballonSTUDIO (ballon studio.com) notes her favorite trends include curves, sustainability and 1970s earth tones like cognac, whiskey, camel, sepia and umber.
“Our luxurious, modern aesthetic is inherently sustainable,” says Ballon. “We always advocate for investing smartly in something that will have a longer life. We create restrained, distilled, organic elements in simplified environments with a longer, more enduring classic appeal.” The busy designer shares her favorite pieces for revitalizing rooms in the months ahead.
DRIVEN TO ABSTRACTION
“The abstract, African, Picasso-esque lines of this stool are simple yet powerful—a good value for a timelessly strong form.” Crate & Barrel Marko accent stool, crateandbarrel.com
MIRROR, MIRROR
“With its overscaled chain and a sassy spin on the pocket watch, this classic mirror has personality and verve.” Carol Egan Studio montre a gousset mirror, studiocarolegan.com
NATURAL SCULPTING
“I adore this sculptural classic chair in natural rattan. It’s great for a corner of a room where you need some texture and interest or in a big closet to drape your clothes on.” Vintage Fong Brothers’ Tropi-Cal design by Miller Yee Fong, Anyon Atelier, anyondesign.com
PICTURE THIS
“I love the idea of making your own art in real-time and being able to hang it up immediately. This reissue of a classic polaroid camera allows you to create artifacts while saving memories.” Polaroid Now+ Generation 2 Travel Set, polaroid.com
FIRE DESIGN
“As Frank Loyd Wright said, ‘The hearth is the psychological center of the home.’ There’s no chimney needed for this minimal and quietly serene homage to the fourth element, fire. Use it to create a focal point in a space that needs some ‘there’ there.” GlammFire Contour 13, glammfire.com
SITTING PRETTY
“Carved from walnut, this stool is sculptural and useful,” says Ballon. “It boasts gorgeous lines with a cheeky, surprising indentation.” Carol Egan Studio American walnut surf bench, studiocarolegan.com
Photography by: COURTESY OF BRANDS
