Tuesday, November 30, 2010

sometimes it is not about paris...


Although I don't celebrate Thanksgiving in 'the pumpkin pie and good old roast turkey kind of way' I do have a fondness for this holiday. I was married around Thanksgiving and for many years now I have celebrated my wedding anniversary at this time.


The idea of thanksgiving and a wedding anniversary feels simpatico because there is a multitude to be thankful for if you have been married for as long as I have... In my more funny moments I am known to say that a life prison sentence would be shorter...but that is just me being prickly...I don't mean one word. Mr FF and I have known each other longer than we haven't - we met and married young, and have been best friends ever since. Marriage is all about the good, the bad and the ugly and we all know that there are very few ideal marriages but an enduring marriage, a marriage that has grown and shaped who you are today is a marriage to be celebrated and a marriage to be thankful for.


Traditionally we have celebrated our anniversary in Paris (you can read a little about that HERE) but this year Mr FF decided he wanted to shake things up a little, throw over the predictable and surprise me. I wasn't too sure about a 'surprise' - surprises make me nervous. How often are surprises really surprises and how often do they live up to expectation? Besides, who doesn't want to be in Paris for their anniversary? City of Light, City of Love and all that...but he assured me that he 'had it under control' and if there is one true thing about Mr FF, when he says he has it covered he usually does...


My adventures started in London with strict instructions to pack 'comfortable and warm with boots'. PANIC....'comfortable', that meant I could forgo the pretty footwear and 'warm', well that meant forget the little number that I had envisaged for our anniversary dinner. 'Boots', knowing Mr FF that meant walking... Did I need my passport? When a big fat NO was the answer, I knew for sure that Paris, as far as this weekend's celebration went, was to be last year's news. As we drove out of London with overnight bags full of sensible gear he came clean and said we would be driving West and hiking on Dartmoor. Dartmoor....to be precise... 958 square kilometres of moorland in the centre of Devon, England. It was a good call on his part to suggest that I forgo the silk and stilettos....


Four hours later as we turned off the motorway and neared our destination the snow started falling. England and her countryside can be a magical place in the right conditions and this was one of those moments...think narrow country lanes bordered by hedgerows, snow flakes and the rolling green fields turning silver in the early evening light...remember all those favourite Brit rom coms, the Bridgit Jones movies, Notting Hill and Four Weddings and a Funeral...that is the picture I am trying to paint. It may not have been Paris but it was perfect. We stayed at the most enchanting Hotel Endleigh nestled high above the banks of the River Tamar - a more beautiful and romantic spot he could not have chosen. Mr FF is a demon when it comes to the detail; he had even handpicked our room for its original Chinese wallpaper, knowing that I adore all things Chinoiserie....gotta love a man who knows his wallpaper.... 


The day of our hike saw temperatures falling below zero - I was grateful for the 'comfortable and warm with boots' warning. As we trekked our way up the snow covered hill with a wind chill factor of I-don't-know-what I forgot all thoughts of romance. Numb legs, stinging fingers and burning cheeks made it difficult to register the beauty of the moor and the majesty of my surroundings. It would be untruthful if I didn't admit to thinking, 'what's wrong with Paris' at that moment but as we neared the high point and stopped to take in the view I had the most delicious feeling and the most natural of revelations...


Together, we were on top of the world....just he and I with so many years and memories between us...and even without Paris....it was the perfect anniversary. xv

image of the River Tamar - me

Deck the Walls







Stairs and artwork just seem to be made for each other!

Love .... Athol Shmith






I Love

Well hello Brooklyn, how nice of you to bring all your adventures into my home. This Brooklyn life pillow by Aphro Chic has caught my eye since the day it came out. The gorgeous watercolor toile inspired pattern is perfect for any city girl or even us suburbanites. This is so going on my Christmas list…Happy Shopping Everyone!

A Peek into High Gloss on Curbed National

curbed

I was thrilled and honored that Curbed National editor, Sarah Firshein asked to interview me about High Gloss. The interview just went up and the entire High Gloss team is so excited for you to learn a little more about our magazine. We also included a never before seen photograph from one of the interior design spreads in our first issue! You can check out the interview and the full photo here.

More Christmas...





Beautiful !

Monday, November 29, 2010

Every Rose

Guess who’s this years’ recipient of LACMA’s Design Leadership Award? Design goddess herself Rose Tarlow. And in honor of this award LACMA and Rose will be holding a cocktail party at Rose Tarlow Melrose House on December 9th at 6pm. Tickets are only $175 ($150 is tax deductable) and will go to benefit LACMA and all the wonderful things they do. For more information on this event click here and remember seats are limited so hurry…Happy Cocktails Everyone!

Everything In Its Place







There's no excuse for being untidy with all these wonderful storage ideas!

My Dream Home

exterior commune design hollywood

I’ve spent years blogging about beautiful spaces and saving all types of rooms to my files for the dream home I will surely build one day. I’m sure many of you do the same, keeping images of beautiful homes that inspire you to make changes in your own space or that make you dream of what could be. The other day, I was thumbing through the current issue of House Beautiful and I came across a home designed by Commune Design in Los Angeles. I wanted to see more of their work, so I visited their website in order to check out their profile. The second that I saw this gorgeous house, I thought “that is my dream home! That house is so me!”. Granted, their work is a little too hip and eclectic for my taste, so I thought, what the heck, I’ll take the the house itself and “redesign” the interior. Seeing this gorgeous exterior inspired me to put together some images and create what would ultimately be my dream home. Keep in mind that there are discrepancies here and there. After all, these pictures aren’t from one house, rather they would serve as the inspiration for my dream house.

dream home14

domino yael aflalo

If this amazing home looks familiar, you most likely recognize it from when the exterior and grounds were featured in Domino a couple of years back. It belonged to LA fashion designer, Yael Alflalo who has since sold the property. Sadly, I was not the buyer.

The gorgeous grounds were designed by Art Luna.

{Stunning!}

{I can picture Tate posing on these steps next to the gorgeous quartz crystals.}

dream home13

estudio lazaro2

{When I visited Lázaro Rosa Violán’s amazing apartment in Barcelona this summer, I fell in love with virtually every room. The kitchen is massive, features original chevron wood floors, and an amazing gilded screen. What else could a girl need?}

dream home12

estudio lazaro

{This dining room is a glamorous study in contrasts, which I absolutely love.}

dream home11

domino klj5

{I’ve blogged about my love of Katie Lee Joel’s Nate Berkus designed townhouse many times and her kitchen was such a strong contender for my “dream kitchen”. However, I will settle for her amazing breakfast nook. Aren’t the windows beautiful?}

dream home10

jkf seating

{The JK Florence has been one of my favorite hotel spaces since I first blogged about it a couple of years ago. I adore the clean, black and white palette as well as the sensuous shapes of the furniture, and the touch of zebra. If the living room were one large space, the image above would be one half of the room, while the image below would be the other half.}

jkfsuite2

dream home9

laurann

{I contemplated selecting a dark, high-gloss study for this room, but I need light in order to feel creative. I love the simplicity of this study along with the fact that there are books for days.}

dream home8

Cassie1

{The rest of my dream house has a decidedly more formal, glamorous feel, but the family room should be a place to relax, be comfortable, and enjoy the company of family and friends. Deborah Needleman’s family room definitely fits the bill!}

dream home 7

nuevo estilo thomas urquijo

{I am constantly going back to gaze at this amazing bedroom designed by Spanish designer, Thomas Urquijo. I love the crisp linens, abstract art, geometric patterns, and gilded touch. To me, this room is supremely chic and it is neither too masculine nor too feminine. It is sheer perfection.}

dream home6

{This bathroom by Martensen Jones is glamorous, beautiful, and has so many special touches, like the beautiful sconces and mirrored closet doors. For the sake of my dream house, let’s pretend the mirrored doors are for my husband’s closet…}

dream home5

ellen rakieten2

{…and this spectacular dressing room by Nate Berkus and Anne Coyle would be ideal as my closet!}

dream home4

domino miles redd bed

{This iconic bedroom by Miles Redd is one of my all-time favorites. I think it would make a very lovely guest bedroom.}

olatz schnabel hb

{Having this gorgeous room as a guest bedroom in my dream home would give me an excuse for being unabashedly feminine with the décor in a room. I will say, the Julian Schnabel art keeps the room balanced.}

dream home3

steven gambrel elle decor

{I’ve been in love with this Steven Gambrel-designed bathroom for quite some time. From the turquoise subway tile to the gallery wall, it is gorgeous!}

bath splendid willow

{This bathroom is at once serene, timeless, and chic.}

dream home2

{I had to include a child’s room in my dream home and my favorite in recent memory is this lovely little girl’s room by Melissa Warner of Massuco Warner Miller. The colors combination is perfect, the toile adds graphic punch, and it all feels at once classic and fresh.}

bath domino venetian

{What little girl (or grown woman for that matter) wouldn’t love this pretty bathroom?}

 

So, what did you think? Was I able to capture my taste adequately? If ever I’ve put my design sensibility into a nutshell, I think this would be it. Would you like to see this type of post made into a series featuring some of your favorite bloggers?

 

{Image Credits: 1 Commune Design, 2-5 Domino, 6-7 AD España, 8 Domino, 9-10 JK Florence, 11 Lonny, 12 Domino, 13 Nuevo Estilo, 14 Martensen-Jones Interiors, 15 ELLE DÉCOR, 16 Domino, 17 House Beautiful, 18 ELLE DÉCOR, 19 Splendid Willow, 20 Massuco Warner Miller, 21 Absolutely Beautiful Things}