Crocs. And not in a bad way

No question I've always loved the metals. I have bits of metallic finishes and architectural elements throughout my new digs. But I've been simply obsessing lately over some masters of metal that had not been on my radar until just recently.

One of them is Claude Lalanne, wife of Francois-Xavier Lalanne (he of iconic sheep fame). I discovered my oversight when I investigated some fantastical pieces that were causing me, upon repeated sightings, to have heart palpitations.  Good golly.

Loving me some crocs.

In a ruhlly good way.

I just wanna kiss them little Lyle faces.

Pillows. So many pillows.

How many is too many?

Looking around, I feel like I need pillows everywhere. I'm seeing pillows on everything, but when I count up how many pillows that would be it's 35 - 40. Pillows. (That includes a few poolside, too.)

Pillows on sofas, beds and chairs.

supersize me

One pillow on each blue chair. Two more pillows on the sofa. Three small cushions stacked on the rattan chair.

supersize me

A pillow on the leather chaise. 

supersize me

Lumbar pillows on the backs of four kitchen chairs. I was thinking small bolsters. 

supersize me

supersize me

Pillows in the library on each of these two black chairs, and I already have two bolsters for the black loveseat in there. 

That's 15 right there! Then there's pillows for beds and chairs in the bedrooms. Pillows for chairs in the office. Pillows for loveseats and chairs in the Florida room, and pillows for chaise loungers by the pool. That's quite a melange of fabrics for all those pillows!

That's too many pillows!

And don't even get me started on floor lamps. Do you know how many floor lamps I think I need?

It's no secret

I'm underwhelmed by the first episode of Emily Henderson's "Secrets from a Stylist", HGTV's newest Design Star's show.

The concept of the show feels too convoluted. That whole 'style diagnostic' biz feels like a contrived exercise from which Emily can hatch a cutesy-clever style mash-up label. The homeowners are quizzed on their favorite and least favorite items from a line up of fabrics and chotchkies and dress up in a favorite outfit with Emily taking notes on a clipboard and then analyzing the results. Last night's couple was found to be hollywood regency-ish (her) and country club chic-ish (him) resulting in a HOLLYWOOD COUNTRY CLUB styled living room.

So much wasted time

Then the room is first styled in full out HOLLYWOOD REGENCY and during the reveal Emily asks "what percentage of the room do you like"? Not surprisingly, since she doesn't include any of the husbands COUNTRY CLUB CHIC style, he isn't about it and is only happy with "25-30%" of the room. No shit. You've already told the guy his style label is COUNTRY CLUB CHIC. Why would he be happy with HOLLYWOOD REGENCY?

But, Emily vows to make the couple 200% happy with the room. The walls are painted, again, and COUNTRY CLUB CHIC is injected to the space.

And now, both husband and wife are happy with HOLLYWOOD COUNTRY CLUB. And I want to know HGTV's secret - why waste time installing a room just for the homeowners to not like? Waste of time.

In the end, we don't get to see enough of Emily's process of styling a room, which, I would guess, is more about intuition and less about labeling styles. I would like to see her doing what she does best - finding great vintage elements, styling and editing. The look doesn't have to be pigeon holed for me to appreciate it. Good design is good design.

Maybe it's because I just naturally have a disdain for labels, but for me, building a show around labeling is a big phooey.

Any thoughts?

Heavy metal

Beautiful. From French designer Herve Van der Straeten.

I've admired his iconic aluminum stools at Ralph Pucci and I've seen some of his jewelry around, but my favorite piece of his, that I've spied in a number of spaces, is a bronze chandelier, seen in this picture posted with a dining room round-up to mfamb

via mfamb

I love work in metal any which way

via (somewhere. brain dead)

1stdibs

via ralph pucci

via vivre

via ny times 

    

Mo bathroom

Mo stuff.

I needs things. For this bathroom, too.

A mirror to start. A rug? Or no rug?

Floors are polished marble. There's that wall covering. And that etagere. It's a powder room.

And it needs stuff too. So many things.

I need so many things.

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

Where do I start?

Dreaming big,

not always getting what you want, and the design evolution of a bathroom.

And so on. And so forth.

I fell in love with these pieces by Jaime Hayon for ArtQuitect 4 years ago when I began my reno project. I wanted this vanity for my guest bath

hayon studio

But it wasn't to be. It was going to be too expensive. It was going to take too long to get. Whatever it was.

I don't really remember when the idea of it fell by the wayside or when it became definitive that I wouldn't  get what I wanted, but when it did I already had a back up plan.

Around this same time, I was becoming fascinated with some of the furniture and accessories designers were fabricating with Corian.

duPont

duPont

duPont

ftf design studio

So! I thought. Maybe I can have someone fabricate a look-a-like Jaime Hayon vanity out of Corian. Yay!

But I live in a small town. And sometimes it's hard to find someone willing to try new things.

But I found such a person. A Corian fabricator who's business had dropped dead off at the crash of the building boom.

But he could only do so much with the machinery he had available to him in his shop.

Still, he was happy to give it a try. And I ended up with this

 All made of Corian. And I love that.

I didn't get what I wanted. But I got something I needed. And something that fascinates me.

And because I know I'm not going to get this (gee, it's gorgeous)

hayon studio

Or any of the other number of bath storage I've fantasized over, I've been working on back-up plans. 

And now, one of them may involve Corian. Yay!

Mod. Mom.

Here's something from Jill Malek.

Wallcovering in my pool bath. I think it's pretty.

And poolish.

And then there's this

Which could be kind of groovy.

And it could be my mom. Cause it looks like she did in 1970.

I miss that woman. 

Blackman Cruz fantasy and my dining room

I've been fretting over the dining room. I've been here and there, back and forth, to hither and yonder with ideas.

I've been inspired and an evolving plan has sprung from those inspirations. The latest incarnation includes chairs in black patent leather, which I always loved. That love was sparked anew when I saw the dining room of Blackman Cruz co-owner, David Cruz, in the book I just bought - Rooms to Inspire in the City - and once I had my own chairs locked in thanks to another one of my ATL scout pals. 

I've been vaguely familiar with the iconic LA showroom just based on a few of their most seen BC Workshop pieces

ellipse OP table

bronze skull lamp

 photos via blackman cruz

Neither of those are going in my dining room.

Dammit.

But a very cool table will be there. And some beautiful chairs.

Dressed in black patent.

And because I can't scan the book with the my-most-favorite-dining-room-at-the-moment-with-black-patent-leather-chairs image, here's some gratuitous Blackman Cruz shots lifted from katiedid, who actually visited the showroom in LA and took these pics.

photos via the blog katiedid

Designer's Eye - lessons in tableaux

I was turned on this morning, at The Zhush, to an incredible spot in NYC that is new to me! And it's on my itinerary for my first trip to NY this season - good Golly! I can't wait to see Buck House! They have a beautiful and varied inventory, but what has captured my attention most, for the moment, are these tableaux, these inspirational looks into the world of Buck House, curated by Deborah Buck.

all images above via Buck House

And here's my own tableau I'm working on - minus those glass pieces

dining space with built-in buffet

and starting with this piece

piece to go on built-in buffet

(And, it's a good size, but it's not as big as it looks here!)

What else would be pretty?