There are at least two reasons to have an attractive and architecturally interesting office space. One is to make a good impression on clients and potential clients. The other is because you have to live in the office for most of your waking hours. If you’re an interior designer, both reasons are doubly important. For Taylor Zack and her interior design business, Rêver Design, moving into a new office space was an opportunity both to show off her design sensibility and to enjoy its results. One of her most important choices was to select a ceiling that not only blended with the decor but enhanced it, a decorative, three-dimensional thermoformed ceiling from Ceilume.
Zack designed a setting of white surfaces contrasted with dark and blond woods. The caned wooden chairs were another element with a warm, residential feel.
Zack and her team found the right ceiling by pursuing the same process they use when designing for clients.
“We like to use small businesses, businesses that not a lot of people know about,” says Zack. “That‘s what we focus on for our clients, products that are harder to find, local type products. We’re very active on Instagram, seeking out vendors we can use. We found Ceilume on Instagram, we started communicating, someone on their end responded relatively quickly, and we started chatting about our office.”
Zack went in the opposite direction from an exposed ceiling, choosing a classic ceiling structure: coffers. Ceilume’s Madison pattern creates the formal coffered ceiling style that has been popular since the time of the Ancient Romans. She selected the Sandal Wood faux wood finish, complementing the wood-grain elements throughout the space but contrasting nicely with the dark wood floors.
A shallow-relief style, Oxford, was used as a border tile at the perimeter of the room, and another square pattern, Cambridge, for tiles that have fire sprinklers protruding through. In a room with numerous square and rectangular objects throughout, the bold statement of organized squares across the breadth of the ceiling helps bring the separate elements of the space together into an intentional whole.
Since the ceiling panels are impermeable to water and highly stain resistant, Zack does not have to worry about the kinds of discoloration and water damage suffered by the previous mineral fiber ceiling. They are also environmentally friendly, Greenguard Gold certified to protect indoor air quality and made from 98 percent recycled material. Zack was able to keep the original T-bar suspension system. She changed the color of the grid to work with the coffered panels by covering the grid bars with Ceilume’s EZ-On Grid Covers. These rigid vinyl strips snap over the T-bar, providing a new, clean appearance to the old grid. They are available in six colors that complement most of the colors and finish options of Ceilume thermoformed tiles.
The redesigned office was a success even before it was completed. Rêver Design moved in while some of the furnishing and finishes were still being installed.
“We love it,” Zack reports on her team’s response to the new space. Moreover, it has the desired effect on others, demonstrating the firm’s style and taste. “We get compliments on it from all of our vendors, all of our clients.”
