 |
Paradise Cove Home Tiki Lounge |
KreepyTiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 18, 2007
Posts: 193 |  Posted: 2008-06-23 9:15 pm Permalink
Aloha, Ohana!
And welcome to...
Thought I'd post "Before" and "After" pics of my bedroom, which is now the "Paradise Cove Tiki Lounge".
Before...
and After...
A year of painstaking work has gone into this "Tiki-On-A-Budget" transformation, and there are a lot of details not visible in the After pic -- i.e. three fountains, basket lights, tapa and palm-leaf ceiling installations, laser star & nebula projections, etc., etc.
And, as you can see, my kitty feels right at home in her own tropical retreat!
Also, keep in mind that the After pic only shows one half of the room. So, there's LOTS more stuff to share with you in future posts. But I thought I should at least give the gang at TC a foretaste of what's happenin' at Paradise Cove, my lil' private oasis in the desert of West Los Angeles!
But I'll leave ya with a few more photos of one of the corners...
(Also -- be sure to check out my upcoming article/profile/interview on Sven Kirsten in the Summer Issue of Tiki Magazine!)
[ This Message was edited by: KreepyTiki 2008-06-24 00:13 ]
[ This Message was edited by: KreepyTiki 2008-06-24 09:58 ]
[ This Message was edited by: KreepyTiki 2009-04-25 01:58 ]
|
sungod
Grand Member (7 years) 
Joined: Feb 07, 2003
Posts: 219
From: Tampa Bay/New Port Richey
| Posted: 2008-06-24 1:50 pm Permalink
Much larger feeling after. Are you sure that's the same room??
|
MsSwanky
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Sep 02, 2005
Posts: 24
From: Knoxville, TN
| Posted: 2008-06-24 3:14 pm Permalink
While I do appreciate what you've done there, I don't want Swanky getting any ideas...we're dedicating an entire room to be the new lounge. Bedroom is off limits! Looks very cool! Makes me wonder what's in the rest of your pad....
|
KreepyTiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 18, 2007
Posts: 193 | Posted: 2008-06-24 8:45 pm Permalink
First of all, the room looks larger in the "After" photo because of the lens my wife used when she took the photo, plus the pic was taken from further away. Also, once the transformation was complete, the relatively mysterious feeling of the darker space and all the mood lighting further accentuates the feeling of size, I think.
Secondly, thanks for the kind words! And, as for the rest of my pad, the living room is done in an Asian theme (complete with more fountains and lots of paper lanterns), in keeping with the venerable Chinese-Restaurant-With-A-Tiki-Bar-In-The-Back tradition which was/is so prevalent in certain parts of the country -- in particular, the Midwest. (Think Kowloon.) The kitchen has an Art Noveau theme, and the bathroom has a New England fishing-village motif.
And now here are some more pics of 'Paradise Cove'...
First, the three different fountains:
The hanging "King Kamehameha Fountain" with misting element added...
A miniature landscape fountain I call "Tiki Lagoon"...
And the largest of the three -- the "Big Kahuna Fountain" (and fairly noisy until I added some shells to catch the water!)...
That one's a heavily augmented bamboo-style ceramic three-level (outdoor-but-I'm-using-it-indoors) fountain which has a smaller fountain added to it (bottom right, with glowing eyes, which they used to sell at Big Lots).
And here's a few more detail-shots -- one of the top section of the King Kamehameha Fountain (featuring the titular figurine)...
And a couple close-ups of the Big Kahuna Fountain...
On the left is a crocodile-wood tiki imported from Hawaii (courtesy of TikiMaster.com).
And now a few pics of the OTHER half of the room.
First, the North-East corner where I have my desk and computer...
Notice the lovely effect created by the "Laser Stars" projectio system? I nabbed it at a Spencer's Gifts in San Diego, and, though it set me back 100 buckeroos, it was worth every single penny!
That's one of those moving-waterfall pictures glowing above my PC monitor's aquarium screensaver, with a tapa/palm-leaf ceiling installation forming a hut-like canopy overhead which can also be lit separately, as in these two photos. (I just use a string of white party-lights, all curled up, lying along the center portion of the canopy.)
And now for the South-East corner...
This area doesn't actually look as bright as this, but I wanted to show all the detail of what's there. Normally it's more atmospheric. And that's one of those flickering "candle-flame" bulbs behind the primitive metallic wall-mask which gives it a nice wavering glow.
THIS is what it looks like in the room's actual lighting...
...with the majority of illumination only provided by the hanging swag lamp, the blue Caliente Tropics night-light, the red light inside the big, black Moai head, the large green float-light, and a small click-light for added illumination on one of the tikis.
See what a difference lighting makes to the mood? But, with mood, you have to give up more detail in the photos.
And now to where I do most of the LOUNGING in my lounge!...
The bed & surrounding area also looks a lot better in person -- i.e. without a flash -- but then it's just too dark to photograph clearly, so I had to compromise or you wouldn't really see what's there. Like the Tiki Lagoon fountain on the bedside table...
Which looks much better under blue light -- AND with the addition of a much more appropriate bedside lamp!
And here's a few close-ups of my two home-made basket-lights with dimmers added...
And here's my Disneyland Enchanted Tiki Room Big Fig with custom lighting and landscaping added...
And, speaking of the Tiki Room, here's an ACTUAL PIECE of the real deal given to me by a dear friend whose Dad was the Vice President of Marketing for Disney...
(Now that's what I call a "Birthday Present"!)
Here's my tribute to the most well-known cover of Tiki News...
And a few more details from various spots in the room...
(Ignore the wall & ceiling behind the planter -- that was the "Before" look!)
And, lastly, more 'Laser Stars' "sky" shots, which turns the whole ceiling into one big projection screen & truly gives Paradise Cove the feeling of being on a tropical island at night!...
So just add your favorite Exotica, shake well, and... CHEERS!
And now me and my canine pal, Luau Lil, wish you a big "Aloha" and hope you enjoyed your virtual visit to my home-made slice of Paradise!
Feel free to drop by and talk story any time ya like!
Bottoms Up! 
Castaway Clemens (aka KreepyTiki)
[ This Message was edited by: KreepyTiki 2008-06-25 18:23 ]
[ This Message was edited by: KreepyTiki 2008-06-27 21:44 ]
[ This Message was edited by: KreepyTiki 2008-07-13 01:20 ]
|
Benzart
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 09, 2004
Posts: 10309
From: Port Saint Lucie, Florida
| Posted: 2008-06-25 03:10 am Permalink
Excellent Post and pic's, what a Beautiful transformation! It even LOOKS like it took a Long time to convert. I'd have a hard time getting motivated to leave the bedroom with a place like this.
JEALOUSY is Lurking!
_________________
FACEBOOK
|
bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 10599
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2008-06-25 05:43 am Permalink
Aaaah, the importance of lighting, and making things glow from the inside! Great job, Paul, very "special effects"/model railroad/diorama inspired and inspiring.
|
MadDogMike
Grand Member (3 years) 
Joined: Mar 30, 2008
Posts: 6486
From: The Anvil of the Sun
| Posted: 2008-06-25 08:03 am Permalink
Nice details, I like that you have different rooms decorated in different themes. My tiki room is outside and my bedroom is Moroccan
_________________
Clay, the oldest and most divine art media;
"And now, from the clay of the ground, the Lord God formed man" Genesis 2:7
Pirate Ship Tree House
|
sungod
Grand Member (7 years)
Joined: Feb 07, 2003
Posts: 219
From: Tampa Bay/New Port Richey
| Posted: 2008-06-25 10:44 am Permalink
Your entire home sounds interesting. Lets see some more of it even if it ain't tiki. Good job!!
|
TikiTres
Tiki Socialite
Joined: May 28, 2008
Posts: 263
From: Forney, TX
| Posted: 2008-06-25 11:15 am Permalink
It really looks fantastic, thanks for the virtual tour and the great photos and descriptions  Very nice work! I would also love to see pics of your other rooms, they sound intriguing.
|
TikiLaLe
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Feb 09, 2006
Posts: 891
From: Largo, Floriduh
| Posted: 2008-06-26 05:29 am Permalink
You got alot of 'STUFF'!
|
Tabu
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 07, 2004
Posts: 137
From: Port Hope, Ont.
| Posted: 2008-06-26 5:16 pm Permalink
Off the hook. I love purposeful clutter.
|
hala bullhiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 26, 2002
Posts: 570
From: champaign,illinois
| Posted: 2008-06-26 6:18 pm Permalink
i too am a big fan of clutter.....looks great man
|
KreepyTiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 18, 2007
Posts: 193 | Posted: 2008-06-26 7:56 pm Permalink
Aloha & Major Mahalos for all the nice comments, everybody! MUCH appreciated! As I'm sure you can see, this was a proverbial "labour of love" for me!
And for those of you who requested some pics of other rooms in my pad, with their own individual themes -- though admittedly NOT  -- here are some new shots:
This statue -- a 50% lifesize reproduction of a bigger-than-lifesize bronze called "The Vine" -- stands in my kitchen atop my fridge. But its Art Noveau beauty becomes a lot more striking with the special lighting set-up I have on it at night...
And then, stepping back a bit, the Asian ambience that dominates the dining-area/living room starts to become visible...
This next shot, while too dark for my liking, nevertheless gives an indication of the many special lighting features and illuminated fountains throughout...
And here's a detail shot of more of my "puposeful clutter"!
And, as you may have noticed by now, I'm quite fond of fountains. So here's a couple shots of two of my four living room/dining area fountains...
And, to finish with that section of my place, here's a couple more decorative touches I've added, here and there, to accentuate that serene Eastern vibe...
And then, moving on to the bathroom, we have a major change of theme to New England Fishing Village...
And, lastly, same room without a flash...
So that's it for those of you who requested a peek at the rest of my pad!
And now, for me, it's back to my FAVORITE room... (And I don't have to tell YOU folks what THAT might be, DO I?) 
Cheers!
|
Kewlava
Tiki Centralite
Joined: May 21, 2007
Posts: 47
From: Phoenix
| Posted: 2008-06-26 10:14 pm Permalink
Folks, I've seen this room in person, a few months ago, when it was half-way.
It was inspiring and incredible then. These pix, as good as they are, don't do it justice.
Beautiful work, Paul my friend.
Shipwreck Kelly
_________________
[ This Message was edited by: Kewlava 2008-06-26 22:40 ]
|
VampiressRN
Grand Member (5 years) 
Joined: Nov 23, 2006
Posts: 5137
From: Sin City Lincoln Hills (NorCal)
| Posted: 2008-06-27 05:19 am Permalink
Inspiring indeed...great job!!!!
|
|
