national park week

we painted these mural of national parks for racer's edge indoor karting track in santa clarita california. This is a 100,000sf  building redone. this shows many of the parks melting into each other shown from the track....scroll down 10 picturesa section of 6 national parks from the race track
redwood sequoia and kings canyon
bryce canyon melts into monument valley, arches national park into park lake, lake into east river and new york 
grand canyon, yosemite and lake powell from the race track at racer's edge in santa clarita california.
lake powell area section of the mural
el capitan and half dome about 22' high and 30' long

this is a secret rapa nui man stuck in a grand canyon muralmatthew hermstad and I on the scissor lift in front of the grand canyon mural
celeste in front of the grand canyon mural

sunday with bracca

this is  up in the san gabriel mountains up above la. we went for a nice walk on a great day

5 pictures scroll down

5 great new yogurt themes

i think pinkberry is fantastic. Innovative creative, beautifully planned, has stunning graphics, lighting and colors. Their product is delicious and everybody likes it.

Pinkberry is wonderful

enough already. 

to the other yogurt stores struggling to be chains. Find your own idea, your own colors and style and stop copying the pinkberry swedish light.

here are my five suggestions for your design and branded style

1 not pinkberry

2 not pinkberry

3 not pink berry

4 not pinkberry

5 not pinkberry

we have tons of ideas and finishes for yogurt stores.

I have several color palettes selected that will set you apart from all the other yogurt stores that are copying you know who. I have never seen anything like it. 

 i have one concept right now i want to do but i need the right client who is interested in a modern tech concept. it even has a hook to brand it. You just have to have a delicious product.

I can help you with finishes and surfaces that create the concept. We can interface with your kitchen planner.

twitter for restaurants

I don't have a restaurant or work in one...other than to work with fine restaurants as a decorative(faux)finisher, stained concrete and venetian plaster artisan and yes we do some quirky site specific art...but I actually do work in restaurants and since i've been on twitter i've encouraged some of my clients to give it a go.

why?

here goes.

set up a twitter account and put the name on a blackboard, ask customers to follow.

1. tweet sport games that are on the everblasting flat screens.

2 have an american idol night tweet your favorites

3.specials kind of a no brainer. but it can increase traffic by listing local fresh ingrediants in a special salad, sandwich no no carb day...

4tweet changes in your restaurant or bar, remodel, new color, 

5.tweetups. you can make your space available to alumni groups,  after sports tweet ups, organized groups or misc groups, singles, and twitter about what you are doing.

If you have a dinner rush between 5-8..and quiet until when you close at 10 or 11 why not open up as a tweep up and use twitter to illuminate your big idea.

The photos taken at the top are from spitz. the traffic from an informal downtown la gathering was all social media.

 

earthday special. ideas for restaurants to reduce reuse and recycle

what are some cost cutting ideas for new restaurants opening that are also eco friendly.

1. used chairs.

used chairs. seriously. chairs can be handpainted to look completely different.

see our site 

 celestekorthasestudio.com 

click on hand painted chairs. 

mostly we paint new chairs from gar products but now and then we come across used chairs. it's always astonished me that people are so quick to throw out chairs

even 50% new chairs...

2.paint a bar. rather than buy a new bar or counter. if it's wood it can be primed and painted.

3.cover a wall in used doors. cabinet shops throw out doors that they remove when refacing

4 create a collection of like minded items from thrift stores or yard sales... like jigsaw puzzles, sewing patterns, globes,picture frames all painted ONE color with nothing in them, a series of travel book covers, maps, vintage post cards,  or candleholders all painted brilliant metallic colors...I could go on

5.for an internet cafe a solid wall of web, computer and phone trash. cables, phone chargers, old obsolete phones, non operational computers as a solid piece of art. called a conversation piece

we have many many more ideas. we don't want to internet market, sell lists, hound strangers, we want to work and not the econami get in the way.

5 new restaurant concepts

i 've got 5 new restaurant concepts completely designed utilizing our skills. if something sounds interesting give us a call and we will explain more to you. no obligation... just we hope to be considered for your restaurant creative work. stained concrete, faux finishing, decorative wall finishes, handpainted furniture or site specific art.

1 chinese restaurant. we have an amazing modern concept for a chinese restaurant that really showcases your fine dishes. stained concrete, venetian plaster walls and the piece de resistance art idea that will surely bring customers back.

2 thai restaurant. the idea comes from the chaing mai night markets a beautiful hip modern restaurant with street cooking artifacts used as a sculpture ...and think orchids.

3 lofty urban restaurant.  warm modern quirky ;like an artists loft, a great gathering place workable for many moderate price food concepts, stained floors, art, the best thing is we could put it in a stripmall in kalamazoo or kankakee.

4 sandwich restaurant. amazing sandwiches, delicious healthy healthy healthy, not rolls or hard bread. custom made with delicious ingredients. the restaurant has a retro hippie feel cleaned up. to go and catering options. would make a good little spot near an industrial workplace concept. 

5 yogurt concept. we have a concept for a yogurt shop. modern hip, with a high tech twist...

tech twist??? oopps (trademark) all details a call away. it's an amazing idea and not a clone of you know who.

none of these are franchaises. we have worked out details of new concepts that are missing in the market place. we know design marketing and branding. from an artist perspective. this is not a chain. they arte designs ready to go... we just want to work.

celestekorthasestudio.com

323 707 3815

strip mall opportunities

While so much real estate is available it's an amazing time to rethink some pretty awful designs. Without demolition, a new idea can rise from the ashes with hardscape , landscape, and some unusual building materials

Bulldozing, demolation, and rebuilding just can't be the answer during these times.

It just puts more crap in landfills and ignores the best thinking of architects and designers. Real estate developers and property owners may want to consider some of the following ideas.

1. reduce reuse recycle. a small 10-12 unit strip mall from the late 60's or 70's can be made to appear 21st century modern with metal  refacing. a look at different disposed materials make the choices unlimited. Large metal sheets from salvage cars left in their original colors and resealed would fit the bill. All concrete walkways stained 

2painted and refaced. a small strip mall would have each unit painted a different color with two contrast trims. Each unit has it's own color but the whole center stands out. rust charturce, plum, orange brick, willow green all work together. gives the whole unit a sense of place.

3lofty look.

 take out drop ceilings in a unit that is old and paint all the ceilings a solid brown. canvas color walls and stained concrete floors. The drop ceilings removed gives the height and loft feeling.

Unless the property is in a very cold area and it's unwise to have heat rise this is a great move.

These are just a couple ideas to update a mall and make a property stand out and be n more rentable. On Melrose in los angeles, one of the most desirable retaiul streets in the world, a five block stretch between fairfax and gardner has 29 places for lease. some stand out.

celeste 

celestekorthasestudio.com