Wonderfully Cutting

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Ever see grand rooms like this and admire them, but think they have nothing to do with you and your dream house?

Think again.

So many classic design concepts can be applied to a variety of contemporary interior styles.

Here, George Terbovich has used a very similar concept as the print room in Yester House, above. Instead of etchings and swags he has applied images from the book, “Letters to Giorgio” by the late Jean-Michel Folon. Click the images and you will see charming illustrations from Falon to his friend. They are decidedly personal as the recipient of the letter and the shop owner share the same name.
Images, top, from In House by Mitchell Owens, photography by Derry Moore.
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Serendipity

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There was an interesting article in the paper this weekend about the loss of serendipity. The theory is that as we hunt and peck behind our screens we are less likely to stumble upon something new and fresh. Everything is sorted for us. There is little opportunity for surprise.

At the Nelson yesterday my friend and I stopped in front of this painting by Franz Kline. As we were walking away the museum guard, who had stood quiet and unalarmed as our children darted here and there, stopped my friend to tell her that Jackie Kennedy had endorsed Kline. It was considered a brave choice, he said, for her day and position.
Sometimes it’s good to get out.
Image courtesy of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
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Gifts

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So, we’re busy. Last week especially our plate was overflowing with goodness. Good friends, good parties, good events.
Mr. Blandings and I make a point of only being out together one night a week. If we can. Then we both have the occasional meeting, but at least the other is home to help with homework and sports carpools and computer glitches.
Last week was nutty bananas. We were so lucky to see Eddie Ross and Jaithan Kochar when they were in town. Twice. The last time at home and we could have stayed up until two a.m. catching up.
But yesterday things settled down and the youngest Blandings boy and I had the chance to go to see the new American Indian galleries at the Nelson with a friend of mine and a friend of his.
The weather has been cold and yesterday was overcast. In addition, this weekend we’ve been upended as the flue on our furnace draft is not opening which is leading to carbon monoxide venting into the house instead of outside the house. We have detectors, but it’s troubling.

Always when I enter the Nelson the world melts away and yesterday was no different. The meetings and projects and downdrafts were gone. My friend and I wandered through with our six-year-olds and asked questions about piles of rice and rows of beads and cages for crickets. The girls agreed that given the opportunity, all the turquoise bracelets should be worn all at once and definitely not one at a time.

And while not all of us were aware, a couple of us were, that collectors and givers like Morton and Estelle Sosland have shared their passion in an incredibly generous way. Certainly, and unknowingly, they provided a respite from daily cares and the anxiety of postponed holiday shopping.
Go, if you can, to see the Nelson and particularly the newly opened American Indian galleries. Admission is free.
And if you don’t have carbon monoxide detectors, don’t delay.
All images courtesy of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
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Shaken Not Stirred

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Friday, when I was leaving to take the middle Blandings boy to basketball practice, Mr. B asked me if I could stop at the hardware store and pick up more Christmas lights. Of course. Be right back.
Two hours later I arrived, lights in hand. “I got side tracked.” I had made a quick stop at Mission Road Antique Mall. There had been some vintage seltzer bottles at Suzanne Cooper’s booth at the amazingly low low price of $38. I’d seen them last week and could not get them out of my head.

I ran like a crazy reality show contestant to her space at the back of the mall. Still there. Hooray. As I meandered back to the front I saw two vintage shakers, both at great prices, and I thought they might all be a happy trio, a merry menage. Arms full (the seltzer bottle is heavy) I made my way back to the desk. “Are you finished shopping?” Well, come to think of it, maybe not.

While browsing, I happened upon a charming ruby glass shaker and matching glasses. As I lifted the shaker from the shelf it slipped from my grasp and crashed to a million pieces at my feet. The base remained, presenting a scary and jagged edge. I gathered as many shards as I could and carried the corpse to the desk. I had a brief image of tripping on the stairs and impaling myself on the shaker, a flash of an unfortunate antique dealer having to tell my husband of my death by ruby glass. I can’t help it; I’m wired that way.

Fortunately, my fate was nothing worse than having to stand at the desk and confess my clumsiness. The men behind the counter blanched when I explained that six glasses remained, orphaned, no longer a “set” but just six small glasses desperate for a home. I made amends, but we all felt the despair of the tragic situation.
There was nothing left to do but go home and mix myself a good strong drink.
I hate to talk money, but there was one more seltzer bottle at Suzanne’s booth when I was there; it may be there still if you are interested. Images of London-based architect and designer Philip Wagner’s Sussex cottage from the Perfect English Cottage by Ros Byam Shaw; photography by Jan Baldwin. Look closely and you will see that Wagner has quite a collection of shakers and seltzer bottles.
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