elements of zaw: a suspended greenhouse
When a new Health Department rule called for a scrubbable and washable ceiling above the food preparation, our clients worried they would have to build a heavy-looking drywall dropped ceiling. We, instead, suggested a series of light acrylic panels dropped into a standard ceiling grid which met the new code and also filtered the simple fluorescent lighting above while a separate vertical panel would conceal the HVAC unit from the customers’ view.
The grid was set at 15” x 19” so that the resulting combination of acrylic and metal resembled a window pane. The series of “window panes” could open as ductwork needed to pass. The frosted white and metal windows hanging above the fresh ingredients mimic the appearance of a functioning greenhouse.
Labels: Interior Design Seattle, MUSADESIGN, zaw pizza
elements of zaw: finding the right refrigeration
The refrigerators that would hold the beer, wine, and sodas would be a crucial part of the interior scheme; we sought to design a functional and striking space uniting menu and beverage display.
Finding the right look meant working around the refrigerators, which meant endlessly researching all available commercial refrigerators to find just the right look and feel. We looked at full length refrigerators with doors, half-sized with doors, integrated walk-in refrigerator and retail side glass doors, and open-air curtain units.
Meeting with dozens of product reps, studying as much about storage capacity and energy efficiency, and discussing options and dimensions and suppliers; selecting the units that accomplished all of our demands proved quite difficult. Each change to the refrigerators resulted in changes to the way the additional dry red wine display and to the menu board design, size, and information frontages. 
The use of modular cubes at full and half heights stacked on top of each other allow the clients to change the size of the overall display depending on the varying sizes and layout of future store locations and allowed them to reconfigure the displays based on their changing advertising and sales needs.
Labels: Interior Design Seattle, MUSADESIGN, Retail Store Design, zaw pizza
zaw materials: burned wood
While the owners of 'zaw were meeting with local vineyards to find the perfect complements to their pizzas, we were looking for the right material to go with our custom tiles and complete the retail counter. Because the pizzas are served uncooked, the black and red tiles suggest the fire of the customers' burning ovens. We found a sublime companion with a wood flooring material that was burnt by hand, continuing the perception of warmth and baking, as well as the theme of the artisan's touch.DuChateau Floors is a company that plants two trees for every one it uses. All their floors have recycled wood substrates and are finished with natural oils instead of harmful chemicals. Labels: DuChateau Floors, Interior Design Seattle, zaw pizza
zaw seattle: preliminary store designs
very early concepts, before logo or location
Without a real location or a finalized logo, we began by designing interactions: What actions will customers see in the kitchen? How will they read the menus? How will the employees greet customers? What should passersby see through the windows?
In both conceptual designs we created an open view for customer into the kitchen, which was the clients' main directive, and suggested ways to engage the customers and create a show. Integration of the menu with beverage display allowed the clients to easily suggest pairings while the increased scale and proportions of beer/wine displays and retail counter pushed the feeling more towards an old deli or bakery.
Labels: Interior Design Seattle, MUSADESIGN, Retail Store Design, zaw pizza
zaw seattle: initial design concepts
‘zaw: artisan pizza in the raw is a new place for great fresh pizza, salads, beer, and wine in Seattle. We at MusaDesign have been working with the energetic owners and visionaries to design their stores. Here we will be able to share the design process throughout its progress.
Pizza is a traditional food. It’s a meal to be shared. It has endured an onslaught of terrible modifications and experimentations. Our clients wanted to bring back classic pizzas. To us, that old-world feeling is present in bakeries and bookstores. In the wood and scale and light of those places, we can foresee dough being tossed, pizzas being assembled, and wine being displayed beautifully.
Because a ‘zaw pizza is assembled in store baked at home there’s a unique experience for the customer: shared between staying in and going out, preparing a meal without having to cook. Therefore this brand needs to follow the customer home, and to do so effectively, we feel that it has to feel a little homemade with an artisan touch.
Because fresh, local, organic ingredients would make up the main components of the pizzas and salads, the store needed to look like a place that wasn’t using microwaves to warm up bags of frozen pizza toppings. It needed to feel fresh to the customers, as well as the employees. It had to evoke trust.
We developed the mood board above to show the key elements that we felt should define the ‘zaw brand and the look of its store.
Labels: Interior Design Seattle, MUSADESIGN, Retail Store Design, zaw pizza
Who needs a balcony in Seattle?
With all the rain that we get here in the Northwest, we do not get to use our balconies very often, and the balcony space tends to be somewhat of a waste. Over two years ago Dutch architectural company Hofman Dujardin Architecten came up with a clever window design called bloomframe™ that makes windows transform to an open balcony at a push of a button.
Back in 2005 MusaDesign wanted to use bloomframe™ inside a loft interior space to provide privacy upstairs while still allowing it to be opened when privacy is not necessary. Unfortunately, bloomframe™ was still just a concept back then and we could not use it. The good news is that bloomframe™ is getting launched as a product in April 2008. We are looking forward to using it in our projects in Seattle.
The bloomframe™ balcony will be presented at the GEVELtotaal exhibition at the Ahoy Exhibition Centre in Rotterdam from the 23rd until the 25th of January 2008.
http://www.hofmandujardin.nl/pdf/Bloomframe-pressrelease.pdfhttp://www.hofmandujardin.nl/index2.html Labels: Interior Design, Interior Design Seattle
Seattle's Sensational Seven Interior Designers
Seattle Magazine has named MUSADESIGN one of the “Seattle's Sensational Seven Interior Designers with Northwest Flair”:
"MUSADESIGN (2617 Fifth Ave., 206.448.3301; 425.246.8464; musadesign.net) was founded four and a half years ago by Russian-born sisters Julia Sandetskaya and Polina Zaika. Growing up in a creative environment around their artistic father helped them both realize their love for design after testing different paths in school (Julia earned degrees in classical music, Russian, medicine and design, and Polina has degrees in art history and graphic design). The biggest chunk of their work is residential, taking projects from concept to completion with space planning, custom furniture, storage and lighting design, but their breakthrough work on Café Darclée earned them a Northwest Design Award for Environmentally Responsible Design in 2007. The green element is subtle—they used aluminum scaffolding, coconut plywood and chair seats made of recycled paper. Expert Advice When interviewing prospective designers, Sandetskaya says it’s important to judge them on more than just their style; she recommends posing a design challenge, whether it be a spatial or drafting problem, to test how they think."
http://www.seattlemag.com/BestOfHome2008: Interior DesignersLabels: Interior Design Seattle, MUSADESIGN, Seattle Magazine
MusaDesign receives Northwest Design Award
The Northwest's top designers were recognized at Seattle Design Center's annual Northwest Design Awards Gala held September 27 2007. The Northwest Design Awards competition recognizes interior design professionals whose work has made a significant contribution to the design industry. Projects are judged on the basis of problem solving, creativity, quality of design and beauty of the space. Awards were presented in fourteen categories: kitchen, bathroom, living room, bedroom, whole house (more than $200,000), remodel, best of traditional design, best of contemporary design, hospitality, retail, commercial, yacht/jet, outdoor living space, environmentally responsible design and student design. Among those being honored were Polina Zaika and Julia Sandetskaya of MusaDesign Company who won the award for Best of Environmentally Responsible Design.
To see images of MusaDesign award winning design, visit the Projects section of www.musadesign.net and choose “Cafe Darclee” project.MusaDesign is an interior design partnership specializing in residential and commercial projects in Seattle and around the world. We work with our clients to express their own ideas in the visual language of design, in an effective and environmentally conscious way.http://www.musadesign.net/northwest_design_awards_winner_2007.htmLabels: Interior Design Seattle, MUSADESIGN, Northwest Design Awards 2007
Tom Dixon and MusaDesign
We attended ICFF (International Contemporary Furniture Fair) in New York in May, and we were blown away by all the designers, their concepts and ideas. What an amazing opportunity, to see the life of design unfolding before us in the city of life. Through it all though I found myself always returning to one man's work. His name is Tom Dixon and his lamp designs were so influential that when we were faced with the opportunity to meet him back in Seattle we jumped all over it. He met us at San Francisco based Limn's (http://www.limn.com/) newest showroom in Seattle, located on Western Ave. by the waterfront. 
I was impressed with Tom before,but after the meeting my impression rose to a whole new level. Our meeting at Limn progressed to a nearby bar where we spent hours discussing design, his influences (he described to us how a chicken becomes a chair [see his drawing below]), and most importantly life.
I would also suggest stopping by the Limn showroom located at 639 Western Ave. in Seattle, they have some really amazing peices. Ask for Eric Fassett, he's a really great guy and will help you with all your needs.
MusaDesign
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interior design seattle
Tom Dixon
Interior DesignLabels: Interior Design Seattle
MusaDesign at 100% Design Tokyo
MusaDesign at 100% Design Tokyo
MusaDesign
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Labels: Interior Design Seattle, MUSADESIGN, Tokyo
When a new Health Department rule called for a scrubbable and washable ceiling above the food preparation, our clients worried they would have to build a heavy-looking drywall dropped ceiling. We, instead, suggested a series of light acrylic panels dropped into a standard ceiling grid which met the new code and also filtered the simple fluorescent lighting above while a separate vertical panel would conceal the HVAC unit from the customers’ view.
