MAINE COTTAGE COLOR COMES TO CHARLESTON

    THIS JUST IN!  

 From one of my most favorite furniture desIgners and retailers: Maine Cottage. They have been selected to "do" the Charleston Designer Showhouse! This will be open to the public from March 18 - April 18, 2010. Below is part of their press release.

So, who wants to go? We could do a design trip down to Charleston!  Have you ever been?  It's fabulous. I went once, just about this same time of year. Just so beautiful and full of TONS of design ideas.... not to mention what a "foodie" town it is. Here is one of the many, many sites about Charleston, "Where History Lives". 

Seriously, I will be glad to organize a group! Even as I write this, I'm thinking of ideas and things to do there, and side trips, and color inspiration. The markets, the trips out of town, the restaurants, the waterfront: we could include anything you want..... So, think about it! There are lots of hotels; we stayed in a small cottage just blocks from the waterfront...

 

Here is the press release as PDF.

In case you're not familiar with Maine Cottage, here are some pictures of their furniture, fabrics, and colors:

 

Now, aren't these JUST WONDERFUL? For anyone who loves color, this IS IT!  

And here, TA DA!!!!, is what I consider to be Maine Cottage's "crown jewel":   the video titled "Finding Rhubarb" featuring their designer Anita Dore. It is a remarkable video and has been inspirational in my love of color. 

MAKE YOUR BOEING 747 HOTEL RESERVATION!

All you airplane freaks out there!!!  You know who you are!  Here is something you will NOT want to miss: you can sleep..... I mean really SLEEP in a real bed, in your own room, on a Boeing 747!  Yes, it sits at the Stockholm airport, ready for your visit! The deluxe room is #747, the cockpit suite. But there are singles, doubles, dorm rooms, even a 4 bed room.

Pretty cool, no? Here are some pictures, but go to their website: Jumbo Hostel to see more images.Scroll down here to see the video: 

And HERE is the grand tour from YouTube:

HIGH POINT MARKET

For the very latest and best reporting on what happened at the High Point Furniture Market, read Hermine Mariaux's blog from Home Textiles Today. 

As she mentions, Hickory Chair Co. has some really wonderful looks and some of the best designers in the business. Here, from Alexa Hampton:

And these from Mariette Himes Gomez:

And from Thomas O'Brien:

There was good news and bad news: the traffic was light, but the showrooms looked "terrific". She has many interesting things to say about the state of the industry, the need to appeal to the interior designers, the "elephant in the closet" she calls them. This I found very interesting regarding manufacturing in the United States versus overseas: that while we will probably not see "mass" manufacturing return to this country (most of the equipment has been sold off, not to mention the labor costs), we can envision that: 

"With virtually limitless customization now widely available, a quick turnaround and timely delivery of pieces that are specified and delivered as variations of original samples are essential. By concentrating on special effects and meticulous execution of changes, what's left of American production is less of the assembly line as it is of the increasingly rare but more appreciated skill of quality craftsmanship."

And, in the end (future), it is " direct contact with the consumer - either because they deal with them every day, or, they have made the virtual connection" that will propel and sustain those who conceive, design, manufacture, promote and market this industry.  She sees a rocky future for traditional brick-and-mortar stores, especially those retailers who  hold-out  for the same old, same old. They will not only fall further behind but will face extinction . 

Ecommerce is the way of the future, indeed!      

 

COLOR BY THE BAY

Great colors on Union St.!!

So much to see in San Francisco: I'll show you more later this week. But for now, here are some highlights, including the wonderful scene above.

Here's the Bay early in the morning:

Key chains from the American Crafts shop:

 

 A leaf on the Embarcadero:

 

More to come!

NEW GADGET FROM PANTONE

Do you use a flash drive? I use mine all the time (I carry files from my Mac at work to my PC laptop at home).I know, you may be wondering what I am doing with both systems...I had been a total PC person for many, many years, then almost two years ago my big, cumbersome, clunky monitor began to squeak and squeal so badly that it was definitely time to find a new one. Well..... what about changing to a new Mac? I actually had the funds to do it, and, as it turned out, the time to make the transition. Let me tell you: it was QUITE a transition! Do not let anyone in the Mac store tell you it is easy! I am fairly computer competent... and I had many days with tears and long, long phone calls to Apple. However, after about six months I too became a convert!  I love my 24" screen and the ease of dragging files, filing, opening programs, I Photo, syncing with my IPod and IPhone etc. etc.

But, at home, I had just bought a new laptop which is a Lenovo PC. Why? It has huge storage capacity, and, best of all, it weighs less than 3 lbs., with a 12" screen. In case you hadn't noticed, I do travel quite a bit, and yes, this is just SO easy to take out for airport screening, it fits on that miniscule table at your seat on the plane, and is all-round easy to use.

Thus, my need to transport from one computer, and system, to another. There, I just made a long story even longer...

Well, here's a really colorful, fun way to transport your files!  The Pantone Flash Drive!

 

They come in fourteen, that's 14, colors, and vary in storage size from 1GB to 16 GB! Now, I have lately acquired a passion for the color orange, so that is the color I am ordering...

Coq au Vin a la Julia Child!

Oh my goodness, or OMG, as they say.... I made the original Coq au Vin last Friday evening.   

WHAT a lot of work.... from the bacon, to the onions, to the roux. I hosted a "ladies night" last night and we went French. Thought of a chocolate souffle for dessert but decided that was just a little TOO decadent! Instead, I made the divine chocolate sauce from Maida Heatter:  you know, the kind that, if you cook it the full time, will become so hard when it hits the ice cream, and then you mouth, that you just might lose a tooth! No, I don't cook it that long, so it's nice and creamy... Here is the newest edition of this book: "Maida Heatter's Book Of Great Desserts".  I have a very old, original paperback edition, from 1965. It is so..... doggeared, stained and fragile that I hesitate to bring it off the shelf. Luckily, my Mother also has(had) the book, in much better condition, so she "lent" it to me!  The recipe is simply called "Hot Fudge Sauce".

Here's the table, before the feast!

 

We had a good time: who couldn't with all that good food and red wine and friends!

KINDLE... OR NO KINDLE?

I was just getting my thoughts together for the post about Kindle, when yesterday I opened Abby Nova's post of September 18 : "What's On Your Bookshelf"!  Very timely indeed.

I have been watching, debating and talking about the Kindle. A very good friend adores hers; she's had it for a few years now. I don't know...it's not so much the absence of actually holding a book that I wonder about, no, it's having to hold this techie, mechanical thing that bothers me. How do you actually hold it? Do you need two hands? Can it rest on your lap? Or chair arm? Or, lying in bed ( probably my most favorite place to read) do you hold it, or put a cushion under it? Is it so light that you hold it with one hand... but then again, that would become tiring after a while.  So many questions. I do think it would be nice to have several books available all at once. I'm going to California on Wednesday: how convenient to have all (well, some...) of my books available for the flights and my time out there. Doctors offices! Now there's a place that would be great to have a Kindle.

One truly great thing about Kindle is the ability to download any sort of reading material. New York Times, Wall Street Journal, HFN: you name it, you can get it instantaneously and anywhere. Yes, I can get them on the IPhone, but that screen is small and not conducive to reading long articles. Plus, you are dependent on the Internet: with Kindle you can download say, at the airport, then read while on the plane.

Hmmm. Maybe I've made my case! They have come down in price!  Comments?

A STORY ABOUT COLOR

This is a story about the color ochre, about a town in France called Roussillon, and about getting older and getting around!
Let's start with a book:

Here are some pages:


This is one of the many, many wonderful books published by Editions Equinoxe in France. I cannot resist buying several books from their enormous repertoire, each time I go to France! There is something for everyone: wonderful watercolor illustrations of towns, of food, of shops, of cathedrals, of countryside. Any and every subject matter has been written about and illustrated. The books are small: about 6" square, so are easy to buy, pack and bring home. The "carnet" or address books make wonderful presents.
So, I bought this book about ochre, or "l'ocre" about eight years ago when I was first in Roussillon. Here are some pictures I have taken of the town and the ochre "mines" around the town:






Skip ahead eight years and shift to my aunt, who is 89! Yes, she flew from Philadelphia to Marseille (when she met her group at the airport she realized she was the only one actually carrying a suitcase! She has subsequently gone and bought one with wheels...) She had spent many many winters in Provence with her late husband, so knows the countryside well. And, she is a painter. So off she went to meet a British group of artists and stay in a very small town she knew well.
Here she is in Roussillon!

And here is where she stayed, on the left, first window. And that's her, sitting on the chair, sketching.


Thank you, Lydia, for being such an inspiration!

RUTH ADLER SCHNEE

Opening tomorrow at the Kibel Gallery in  Washington, D.C.: Ruth Adler Schnee: A Passion for Color and Design. This exhibit runs through November 20th only.... and tomorrow there will be an opening lecture at noon.  Oh, how I wish I could go! 

This woman was so important in modernist design: a refugee from Nazi Germany, she attended both RSID and Cranbrook(the first Jewish woman to be awarded a fellowship).  After winning the Prix de Paris in 1945 she worked for Raymond Loewy. Here she worked on graphics and logos: the Shell Oil logo colors were totally her idea. She went on to design textiles when she found there simply did not exist the look she needed for her work as an architect/designer.

Here is a sampling of her designs:

In her words:  "I have always loved color"; "I've loved it all my life"; "Everything around you is design: a leaf, a flower,; it's a way of looking at objects in life".

And here is the link to her stationary through Anzea Textiles.

And, if you have time, I URGE you to look at this: an interview taped by her daughter in 2002. It's really fascinating and touching. 

NEW DESIGN MAGAZINE: 'LONNY'

Take a look: Click here for the first on-line issue of the brand new "Lonny" magazine!

It's only on-line; no print. Thus, overhead is low and there is no limit to page count each month! I found it tricky to navigate and to enlarge the pages to be able to read the print, and then to move on to the next page. But, once you get the hang of it, it's great! So much here to see!!

Michelle Adams, Editor in Chief, comes from the wonderful-but-no-longer Domino magazine. With print magazines having such a difficult time (see earlier post re. Gourmet!), maybe this is the future. I've been receiving manufacturer's catlogs on line for some time now and think they are wonderful: it's so easy to see the entire line offered, then zero in on what products interest me. You can save the bookmark and come back to it later....

Here are some stories that have run recently, heralding the arrival of Lonny: This from Design Sponge; another from NPR's Blog of the Nation; and Home and Garden Buzz. So take a look and see for yourself!

NEW CAMERA SUGGESTIONS?

                                HELP!!

I am looking for a new camera! I've had a Sony Cyber-Shot  for several years. Yes, I'm happy with it, generally.... but it definitely does NOT do zoom and close-up shots very well (has a 3x Optical Zoom). I can't get in very close, or I lose the detail. The color is actually quite good. But then again, every time you turn it on there is high pitched riiiiiiing, a sort of trill, that at best is annoying, and at worst (as in a museum) embarrassing. Then again, it DOES have a view finder which I find just about invaluable. My old camera only had the LCD screen and if the light is too bright, you can have such trouble viewing the screen. 

Ok:  so what does everyone think? Please, send me your thoughts and suggestions! I've had one very helpful suggestion from my friend Sue (thank you!). I dread plowing through all those techie internet sites, so any shortcut i.e. suggestion would be welcome!

GOURMET MAGAZINE TO CLOSE

This just in:  Conde Nast will close down Gourmet, Cookie, Modern Bride and Elegant Bride.

What is happening here? Conde Nast corporate has certainly been known for its luxurious lifestyle ...Just three months ago they hired McKinsey & Co. to look for ways to cut costs. We all thought they would "tighten their belts", with some layoffs expected, but this was certainly not forseen.

In particular, Gourmet has had SUCH a loyal, long time following. It was an icon of the best of American culinary writing and cooking. Even the ads were great! I would subscribe for a few years, let it lapse, then realize how much I missed it, and resubscribe for another three year stint. It will be sorely missed.

I personally am a big fan of Ruth Reichl and have followed her for years. Her books have been an inspiration and just such fun to read: Click HERE to take a look.

IFDA DESIGN SEMINAR

The International Furniture and Design Association hosted an interesting talk yesterday in New York. See my posting of September 28: "Things To Do and See This Fall" for more information.

The two speakers were Hermine Mariaux and Patty Bouley, both veteran trend watchers, and here they were reporting on all they had seen at Maison et Objet earlier in the month. The talk was SO informative, thoughtful, organized and FULL of visuals.

As to COLOR:

1. Mustard is HOT: This is yellow with a green cast, often mixed with neutrals, gray, and even blue.


2. Poppy with Punch: A fuschia and gold mix for real punch! 


3. Deep is Ink:  remember that couch I saw with deep indigo silk and small jewel "constellations"? 


4. Nostalgic Mauve: yes, all that I had noted and more. Think dusty and rosy. 


5. Silver is Gray: Seen in warmer shades and often textured and pitted.      

  THEMES AND TRENDS TO WATCH:

1. To Russia With Love:  folkloric, use of embroidery, oversize paisleys, textured


2. Roughing It:  This is the "Luxury Chalet Style". Yes, luxury is still with us! Use of affluent ski resort "names" as in embroidered pillows; then there is the associated "Campaign" type furniture, a la Hemingway. 


3. Material Matters:  use of wire and metal in everything from placemats to garden accessories to a new open work in furniture. Along with this is the use of zinc; then in wood, the "scruffier" the better. Often wood is left untreated, awaiting the elements of a home...


4. Victorian glass bell jars: these were seen with all sorts of found objects on view inside. Also seen in the garden category where topiaries, bonsai and palms were under glass bell jars... Related to this were fake topiaries, made of fabric, on view at the show and in stores in Paris. 


5. The Art of Seduction: again. luxury reigns. In bedding, look for large scale florals. Bling is alive, although smaller and less obvious. Tailored lace embellisments; use of real fur (!) in furniture and accessories. 

   But, what I found to be almost the most interesting part of the session, was the discussion at the end. Here we all discussed the role of the retailers, and buying habits in general. The overwhelming feeling was that retailers simply control too much of the "game"; by not taking any chances at all and putting a new item or trend out on the floor for consumers, they are not benefitting anyone." Put is out there, and the customer will come"  was the attitude yesterday. And, by having the gift and trade shows here only open to the trade, we stifle any consumer input we might get.  This, combined with our country's "dumbing down" and "lowest common denominator" buying habits, is making for a very very bland, simplified offering in the stores. 

     I could go on. But you get the idea! I loved each and every minute of it!

Next on the agenda for a day in the Big Apple: a walk through the D&D Building, lunch at "David Burke at Bloomingdales".  Happened to walk by and it looked very appealing. Well, not only did I have the "lobster bisque with green apple essence", but it came with a fresh-from-the-oven popover!  Perfect lunch...before heading over to the Paris Theatre to see "Coco Before Chanel". I most definitely recommend it!