If the Shoe Fits

November 4, 2011Uncategorizeddesign booksMrs. Blandings

Recently I asked a friend if $700 shoes (and $800 shoes and $1200 shoes) really feel different than $300 shoes. We had a brief, yet believable, exchange about quality and longevity. A few days later, pouring over Oliver Messel’s design of Rayne’s Shoe Shop I thought, “This was a place that girl would dig.”

Shelves and pedistals, mirror and silk, this was a shrine to shoes cloaked by a “Shop” with no “pe.” This was one side of one room. There were rooms. This is the sort of spot, like the couture section at Hall’s, where my foot would never cross the threshold.

Later that day I received an email from a friend who sends me pictures of houses he likes with subject lines like, “Yes. This,” and no other text. The latest contained a link to a post at The Selby with a brown-that-was-supposed-to-be-red chair and this. A modern day version of Rayne’s for one’s very own. A cabinet so lovely that she just might become vain, but who keeps her head as she has such a serious job to do.

This jazzy cabinet belongs to Brooke Cundiff (Director of Merchandise at Park and Bond) and her husband, Michael Hainey (who is just about everything – writer, artist and deputy editor of GQ.) And the chic grosgrain ribbon on this convoluted shoe box? This pithy quote at the end of the post that I just might treasure more than a pair of Louboutins:

Image, top, from Oliver Messel: In the Theatre of Design, edited by Thomas Messel, Rizzoli, New York from the Victoria and Albert Museum, Theatre and Performance Collection. Image, next, via the Selby.

Act II

November 3, 2011Uncategorizeddesign booksMrs. Blandings

Obviously, there is set design and decoration. Pages of sketches of costumes and stage.

There are also examples of decoration of both rooms and painted walls.

Don’t forget tales of British aristocracy and politics and life-long friendships.

But the best parts of Oliver Messel: The Theatre of Design for me are the houses he designed in Barbados and Mustique. Those chalky walls, bare floors, porcelain and chintz. My copy’s spine is already cracked to Chapter Five. For the design? Yes. But also for the reassurance that one can shift focus, try something new and succeed.

This book truly has it all – great design, a rollicking story, a great romance and best of all a dashing leading man. And wonderful pictures to boot. All images courtesy of Rizzoli for Oliver Messel: In the Theatre of Design edited by Thomas Messel. Photography for all photos but the third by Derry Moore, the other is by Dale Curtis. Rizzoli provided the book for review.

Light of My Life

November 2, 2011UncategorizedMusings from the Dream HouseMrs. Blandings

“Is Halloween on a full moon?”

“No.”

“Then I’m going to be a werewolf, because since it is not a full moon I can just be a regular kid.”

“If you don’t wear a costume, you can’t go trick-or-treating. House rules.”

“Then I’ll be a lamp.”

With a pause I looked up over the top of my glasses, “I can totally make you a lamp.”

Do not double-dog-dare me. Not to make you a lamp or take the tequila shot or drive to Dallas to see The Who. Because I will. When I suggested he tuck the end of an extension cord into the cuff of his pants and carry the plug over his elbow he said, “You have to stop now.”

This is my way of explaining why posts have been spotty. Picking paint colors and working and managing the boys all take a little energy and some creative juju. Sometimes there is not enough left over for a blog post. I’m not quitting, just getting things together. A woman who I worked with a million years ago, one of my favorite women ever, used to say, “I need to get my shit in one sock.” That is, indeed, what I am trying to do.

Jewelry I Cannot Afford

October 21, 2011UncategorizedBracelets I Cannot AffordMrs. Blandings

This started as a series entitled, “Bracelets I Cannot Afford,” but I am broadening its scope. Tiffany must be ringing my bell as the Sugar Stack rings were/are also my list. This new Venezia Stella ring by Paloma Picasso is simply terrif. Honestly, I wouldn’t even need the diamonds (though they do come with.)

There are some pretty jazzy silver and enamel bracelets and rings in this collection which I actually could afford. Sadly, that is not usually how my wish list works. You can see the entire collection here.

After the Party

October 20, 2011Uncategorizeddesign books, Musings from the Dream HouseMrs. Blandings

In the last two weeks we felt the loss of both a cultural icon and a long-time friend.

Both deaths caused me to pause and consider. Lucky, and aware of it, I was relieved and reassured that I am doing what I want to be doing. What I think I should be doing.

You might have seen Steve Jobs’s Stanford commencement speech and while it acted like heated oil to several kernels of ideas, most significantly it made me wonder what I would do if one of my boys wanted to quit college and start some crazy business in my garage. Or be a fisherman, as one claims he will.

Sharing this with a friend at dinner he wondered, “If he’s happy, what difference would it make?” “It’s important to live up to your potential,” I replied and he asked further, “But how do you know if you are?”

Then he rose to pull the chicken from the oven leaving me with a mental party favor that I’ve carried around since – setting it on the counter here, loading it in the car there. We won’t know, I suppose, any more than these artists knew their work would live for centuries. At the time they were just making brushstrokes on wood or silk or porcelain.

All images from Exotic Taste: Orientalist Interiors by Emmanuelle Gaillard and Marc Walter published by The Verdome Press. The book includes hundreds of images of rooms and objects influenced by the Far East, India and the Islamic world. It’s stunningly beautiful and if you have a strong connection to Chinoiserie or porcelain or unbelievable tile, it is a must. All images Marc Walter. The publishers provided the book for review.