So Haute!

Pagoda Yellow

I love discovering new websites and design blogs and yesterday while perusing Craigslist for vintage chairs, I followed a link that led me to Pagoda Yellow. Just over a month old, Pagoda Yellow is blog/shop run by an interior designer who restores vintage finds as a hobby. The site's about me section tells the story of how Pagoda Yellow came to be:

"Trained as an Interior Designer, in searching for furniture and accessories for myself, I realized there was a multitude of pieces just waiting to be given a second life. Thus came the "lightbulb" moment - a new hobby of selling new and slightly used pieces and refurbishing antiques."

Fabulous hobby! Wish I could do something similar if I had the time! Pagoda Yellow has a well edited selection of faux bamboo chairs as well as mirrors and antique glass vases and bowls...all with a Chinoiserie/Regency revival sort of feel. The pieces are all available for local pickup in Manhattan but shipping outside of NYC can also be arranged. Below are a few of the faux bamboo chairs they are currently offering. Love! I'll definitely be checking back frequently to see what great new pieces they have for sale! Be sure to check out Pagoda Yellow here.

Pair of white antique chippendale chairs upholstered in a pagoda printed fabric. $300 each.


Set of 4 brand new Jonathan Adler chippendale chairs upholstered in a cheery orange textured fabric. $1200.


Faux bamboo chippendale chair upholstered in a Kravet chinoiserie fabric. Set of 4 available. Chairs are $350 each.

Lived In

As much as I love a very tailored looking room, I also love the look of space that looks totally lived in and comfortable. This room from the May '06 issue of InStyle is the perfect example of a "lived in" space. The cozy looking furniture, plush pillows, layered rugs and soft curtains all add to the rooms comfort factor. I also love the blue accents, the Asian influences and the striking black and white art on the wall. Recently, I spotted this same photo on the website of House Eclectic. Here is the same photo featured the House Eclectic home page from a reverse and slightly closer perspective.his room looks like the perfect place to just curl up and relax. Love it!

Photos by Douglas Friedman

I've Been Tagged!

 
Me in my pre-school days...when I was young & innocent:)

If you read many design blogs then you've probably noticed the little game of blogger tag that many of the bloggers have been partaking in recently. I knew sooner or later someone would get me and lo and behold Katiedid tagged me earlier this week! In case you're not familiar with blogger tag you have to answer a series of 5 questions and then "tag" 5 other blogger friends who you'd like to answer the same questions. Here are my answers...

1. What did you do 10 years ago?
10 years ago marked the summer before my senior year in high school. I spent the summer playing lots of golf and researching colleges. I was also working at a mall in suburban Detroit and just having fun being a teenager. I'm sure chasing boys also fit into my schedule that summer too!

2. Five Items on my to-do list today:
-Pack for Houston (heading there for a wedding!)
-Order fabric for a pair of benches I'm having re-upholstered
-Find the perfect pair of lamps for my bedroom
-Sign up for personal training at my gym (this will probably get put off until it never happens!)
-Swiffer my floors

3. Snacks I enjoy:
I know it sounds strange but I rarely eat snacks! I do love to bake though and every now and then when I get a craving for sweets I'll bake things like oatmeal raisin cookies with chocolate chips, apple pie, peach crisp, vanilla cupcakes...you name it. But the funny thing is that I usually only eat a few bites to get my fix and then give the rest away. I always have fresh iced tea and lemonade in the fridge and I like both extremely sweet...so I guess that's the "snack" I enjoy most regularly. Oh--and I love Nesquick chocolate milk! Almost forgot about that! Yum!

Me at around age 3. Already learning to bake! (and having fun licking the bowl!)
 

4. What would you do if you were a billionaire?
-Take care of my family!
-Buy both of my parents their ultimate dream house.
-Establish trusts for all of my nieces, nephews and little cousins to cover their educations.
-Establish a charitable foundation and give money to causes that are dear to my heart.
-Do some volunteer work.
-Go back to school and maybe study art history.
-Travel the world.
-Buy myself a beach house or two...maybe in St Barths, Mexico's Mayan Riviera or some fab European destination like Marbella or Monte Carlo.
-Buy a cottage on Lake Michigan, a brownstone on NYC's Upper West Side, a country farmhouse in the Catskills, a greystone in Chicago and a cute little bungalow in Santa Monica.
-Lavishly decorate all of my homes
-Build an empire that will give Martha Stewart a run for her money!
-And hopefully getting married, having babies and living happily ever after will be the icing on the cake:)

5. What places would you live?
-Anywhere in the Caribbean... The sun, the sand, the palm trees, the fresh seafood...nuff said.
-CHICAGO! Love that city. I went to undergrad there. It's like my second home & I miss it!
-Atlanta: One of my BFF's is there, love the laid back lifestyle and you can't beat the cost of living.
-SanFrancisco: Love it there!

The beach at Eden Rock in St. Barths.

Ok, that's it! Now you know a little bit more about me! I'm now tagging:

Alkemie
MadeByGirl
A Cup of Jo
StyleCourt
Style & Grace

(Sorry guys! Happy tagging!)

Chic Serving Trays

I'm loving these faux-snakeskin serving trays from Nieman Marcus. They're $125 for the set of three. Apparently they're very popular because these babies are on backorder. Hopefully I can get on the waiting list! Click here for more info.

Elephant Love

I often become fixated on the most random things. This week its elephants. I think it's because I went to HomeGoods last weekend with the BF (big mistake) and saw these great chinoiserie style lamps that had lying elephants as the base. They were so beautiful and so inexpensive. I wanted to buy them. He said they were ugly. I tried to argue. He won. (Note to self: Never take boyfriend to HomeGoods.) Anyway- I've been looking around for other elephant pieces to cure my fix so here's a little roundup of some of the cool things I've found...

Pair of mid-century glazed ceramic etables. Via ebay. Click here for more.


Brass elephant candle holders via Z Gallerie. Available here.


Glazed ceramic elephant vase. Via Z Gallerie. Available here.


Pair of jade elephants. Via Orientalfurniture.com. Click here to view.


Also via Orientalfurniture...a Zhou Prince on a lucky elephant. Click here to view.


Ceramic elephant side table. Via Gumps. Click here for more.


Brass elephant teapot via ebay. Available here.


"Ganesha In the Shade" brass scuplture. Available at Novica.com. Click here for info.

Upholstered Headboards: Hi and Lo

As many of you know I've been re-decorating my bedroom and the next major purchase on my list is a great headboard. I want an upholstered headboard with some curvature and I love tufting. One realization that I've come to in all of my searching is that upholstered headboards are expensive! To cover all bases, I've been looking at options that cover many different price points. Here are a few upholstered headboards that I've been eying recently:

The Woodhouse bed from Jonathan Adler. Very mid-century modern. Love the shape, the contrasting piping and love the tufts!


This is the Sutton headboard from Williams-Sonoma Home...

And here it is in an actual room setting.

Another option I like from Williams-Sonoma Home is this Newport headboard...


Looks amazing here doesn't it?


What I would really love is to have a custom-made headboard so I can get exactly what I want in the fabric of my choice. The Furniture Joint in New York's NoLita neighborhood is the go-to upholstery shop for many of New York's top decorators as well as many home decor magazines including Domino. They also offer great upholstery classes for anyone who wants to learn craft for DIY projects. Above is a headboard they made for a client, upholstered in a great David Hicks fabric. This is exactly the style I'm looking for, although I think I want to upholster mine in a solid silk linen. The downside...it's so expensive and I'm not yet sure if I can splurge right now. The tufting is also more labor intensive which definitely ups the cost quite a bit. I've requested quotes from The Furniture Joint and their prices are insane. However- they're highly regarded, often recommended and their work is top notch so I'm sure you get what you pay for! I've also gotten quotes on this style headboard from other upholsterers but right now they're still out of my range...which has led me to explore some less expensive options from places such as Tar-jay (or Target as most people call it!)


This photo was featured in the recent June/July issue of Domino (Photo by Justin Bernhaut). I think everyone who saw this photo fell in love with this room and these headboards. Can you believe they're from Target!? And only $299 for a queen size. This "Tudor" headboard is upholstered in a microsuede fabric and features brass nailhead trim. It also comes in a number of colors...

Here it is in Khaki...looks amazing!

This is the Barcelona headboard, also $299 for a Queen size at Target!


Here it is in a photo from Domino that was featured in their Feb '07 issue. The room was designed by David Netto. (Photo by Justin Bernhaut)

So...Now is where I ask for all of your great advice and input. Has any one ever seen either of these Tar-jay headboards in person? AND--do any of my New York readers know of any amazing upholstery shops in or near the city that don't charge an arm and a leg for custom work? Would love your help!

Have a Great Weekend!

Photo by William P. Steele via PointClickHome

I have a busy weekend ahead of me. Lots of errands to run and my dad is coming to visit for Father's Day. So...I'll leave you with a few great links to check out while you're surfing the web this weekend. I also wanted to share this beautiful image above of a lovely home with a lovely pool. Wish I had a pool so I could go for a swim on this beautiful summer day! Sigh!

Enjoy these links:

• One of my favorite bloggers, Anna Spiro of Absolutely Beautiful Things is currently re-doing her office and gives us a sneak peek here. LOVE! Can't wait to see the finished product!
• Check out Burke Decor for a well edited selection of lust worthy home accessories and furnishings. Right now I'm obsessed with these lanterns, these tulip candle holders and these nautilus shell vases. A bonus: Spend $50 or more and get a free Beatea bar of soap - just enter BEAUTEA at checkout.
• Another site to check out is 66 Degrees...an cool new e-commerce site that showcases limited edition works of art and design by innovative and talented artists and designers from across the globe. Lots of interesting things to see here. I was recently checking out this Barnsley table by Pennsylvania furniture designer David Stern Lightner. It's made of woods from Central America and Brazil and was handcrafted right here in America.
• LA based interior design firm Brown Design has launched a blog and its full of great inspiration. Check it out here.
• Carolina Eclectic wrote a great post about her recent  shopping trip in Dallas. I really enjoyed reading about all of Dallas' fabulous home decor shops. If you missed it, you can read it here.

eBay is a Beautiful Thing!

I have an exciting bedroom update! I've been looking for the perfect pair of low chests for my room to function as nightstands/clothes storage and had been eying these 1950s Baker campaign chests on eBay for a few weeks. Now they're mine! They're walnut and have the most beautiful wood grain finish you've ever seen...plus they're in perfect original condition. They arrived on Thursday when I was away on a business trip and I returned yesterday to find them perfectly in place, nestled on either side of my bed. I'm in love!

Handsome Interiors

Recently  my boyfriend expressed that he thinks my blog is "too girly," "too pink", yada yada yada. I'll admit that I tend to like softer, more feminine interiors so I guess that softer look is what ends up being featured more prominently on my blog. So...this post is for the boys. Here's a little collection of some masculine interiors that I love. I hope you love them too!

Remember this editorial from the May '07 issue of Elle Decor? This spread featured the LA home of Will Kopleman. With lots of black and white, very cool contemporary art and sleekness all around, his place is the ultimate bachelor pad. Photo: Simon Upton.

This may seem a bit cliché but nothing creams masculinity like a black leather sofa. The cow hair rug and the dark wood paneling that you see off to the right also gives this room a masculine edge. This photo is by Brandon Barre via pointcklickhome.com

This office is very cool...sort of rock'n'roll. Photo via Desire to Inspire

This is the living room in David Jiminez' carriage house.

 

Here is the study in David Jimenez' home. Very elegant. The details here that scream masculine are the chrome and the cowhide. Photo via djimenez.com

A living room by Glenn Gissler. My BF is consulting as I write this. He thinks "that plant" i.e. the orchid, "takes away from the room's manliness." I beg to differ. The sofa's angular shape and its stainless steel frame lead me to believe this room was designed for a man. What do you think?

I loved seeing the apartment of designer Markham Roberts in the Dec/Jan '08 issue of Domino. Above is his study.

Here's another view of Roberts' apartment. The mahogany chest is gorgeous and I love the horn shelving unit.

  

Because Roberts' apartment is a rental, he couldn't do any major renovations so he covered up his unsightly back splash with faux boa wall paper that wipes clean easily. Clever...and very chic! Photos: Paul Costello.

Another room that screams bachelor pad. This one was designed by S. Russell Groves.

A very handsome bedroom designed by Todd Romano.

This room was designed by Kenneth Brown for a male client. Sort of has an urban safari look. I love all of the textures seen here...like the grasscloth covered walls, the seagrass rug, suede bed, animal skin benches, etc. Also love the pop of red on the inside of the secretary.

This bedroom actually belongs to a couple. The photo is from a spread on the home of architect Will Meyer and his wife that was featured in Domino last November. I hope this doesn't offend anyone, and I'm sure the room was intentionally styled this way, but the messy bed makes this appear like a guy's room since most guys I know never make their beds! Love the room though. It has a chic, casualness about it. And that bed is actually from Ikea. I would have never guessed! Photo: Paul Costello.

Introducing the So Haute Book Shop!

I'm very excited to announce the launch of the So Haute Book Shop! My book shop contains a collection of must-have books that I think are So Haute! The books you'll find at the So Haute Book Shop are stylish, inspirational and cover a variety of topics including interior design, fashion, art, entertaining and more. My So Haute book recommendations are essential reads for the decor obsessed and also make great gifts for your fashionable friends.

To browse the selections, click the So Haute Book Shop link at the top right hand column of this page. Or, you can simply click here. A couple of books I'm really looking forward to are Emily Eederman's Regency Redux and Michael S. Smith's Houses. Below is a bit more info on each title. Happy shopping!

 
Houses
 I'm such a fan of Michael S. Smith's work so his second book release, Houses, is definitely on my hot list. Smith has such impeccable taste so you can bet this book will be filled with gorgeous photos of his gorgeous interiors. Houses is slated to release this Fall. Click here to pre-order.

Regency Redux

Available this Fall. Design historian Emily Eerdman's Regency Redux provides a historical look at some of the stylish interiors that defined the Regency period in England and also examines the modern Hollywood Regency revival. Click here to pre-order.

Antiquing on a Hot Saturday Afternoon

Yesterday was the hottest day of the Summer thus far here in New York, but even with a 98 degree temperature coupled with extreme humidity, I still decided to brave the heat and spend the entire day walking around Chelsea, hitting up all the flea markets and antiques shops in the neighborhood. The strip of 25th street in Chelsea between Broadway and 7th Ave is filled with antique shops, vintage stores and flea markets and is always bustling on the weekends. Yesterday, however, was relatively quiet because anyone with any sense was at home indulging in the comfort of their air conditioner. It was actually sort of nice to not have to fight through a crowd for a change but I have to admit, the heat was exhausting. I visited many antique shops, vintage stores and flea markets during my Chelsea antique tour but I thought I'd highlight a few of the more notable places I went to. My first stop was the Showplace Antique Center...

As soon as I got there I headed straight to the top floor which is dedicated to home furnishings. (The galleries on the other floors mainly house collectibles, jewelry, art, etc). All of the furniture and accessories are curated into little room vignettes which provided plenty of inspiration.

These Milo Baughman tufted leather chairs were the first pieces I spotted when I reached the top floor. The chrome and the black leather combination is so masculine and sexy.

These French armchairs also stood out to me. The mahogany frame is beautiful and I love the black and white printed velvet fabric! I kind of have a thing for chairs...

I loved these too...

And these...

 

And these...


And this one...

I thought this piece was really interesting. It's an antique x-ray lamp from a dental office...

Also loved this pair of silver mid-century whippets...

This vignette was filled with many Hollywood Regency pieces. The Dorothy Draper chests were in perfect original condition. I also loved those blue murano glass lamps and the starburst mirror...

My next stop after the Showplace Antiques Center was right across the street to the 25th Street Flea Market. I breezed through everything pretty quickly because it was just too hot to take my time looking at everything. I saw a great pair of silver Foo Dogs that I really wanted but they were a little too expensive so I took a pass. On to the Antiques Garage...

The Antiques Garage happens every weekend and at this antiques market more than 100 dealers take over two floors of a parking garage to showcase everything from antique furniture, rugs and art to vintage clothing, jewelry, books and other collectibles. As the sign above indicates, admission to the garage is free.

This photo gives you a general sense of the atmosphere. I didn't buy anything here either but had a ton of fun looking.

After I left Chelsea I headed down to Soho to run a few errands. My stylish friend Linda recently told me about a great little antique shop there called Penine Hart Antiques so I made sure to stop by while I was in the neighborhood. Antique dealer Penine Hart's eponymous shop is filled with lots of French furniture, beautiful art and the most lovely ceramic and porcelain pieces you've ever seen. And best of all, everything in this charming little shop is relatively inexpensive. Definitely worth visiting if you're ever in the neighborhood. For more info on Penine Hart visit her website here.

The Source of the Beautiful Props Revealed!

I received quite a few inquiries about the source of the gorgeous French furniture featured in my previous post.  All of the furnishings we use for our photo shoots at work are rented and I asked the prop stylist where he found the pieces used for this particular shoot. His response: "a bunch of antique stores on the Upper East Side and some of the stuff is from Antony Todd." Sort of a vague answer and I didn't want to probe since I was neglecting my responsibility of managing behind-the-scenes interviews to ogle over the furniture! Afterwards I did a bit of digging to see if I could locate exactly where these beauties came from. My first stop was 1st dibs and with a quick search I found them both!

 

This beautiful Maison Jansen 1940s French daybed is from John Norwood Antiques on Manhattan's Upper East Side. It's currently listed for $13,500 on 1stDibs.

This Louis XVI style settee is from 145 Antiques in Chelsea and is currently listed on 1stDibs for $5,800.

If I had an extra $19K sitting around both of these pieces would for sure be going home with me but since I don't, I'll just have to dream!

Photos via 1stdibs.com

{So Haute!} The Most Beautiful Props Ever...

Yesterday while covering a photo shoot for work I fell in love with these gorgeous pieces that were used as props for the shoot. I just had to take a few photos to share...

Simply beautiful!

On the set...exquisite!

Meet My New Armoire...

This lovely Chinese antique is going in my bedroom:)

Best of ICFF: Stylish Furnishings for the Modern Baby

I was astounded at the number of brands at ICFF that cater to the modern baby. Seems like hip, modern furnishings for the little ones is becoming quite the trend so I thought I'd devote my last ICFF post to recapping some of the standout products designed with stylish kids (and parents) in mind...

Casa Kids was probably the most stylish of all the modern baby brands that were present. Nearly all of the modern baby furnishings I've seen are very angular but I love the soft curves of the Casa Kids line. And all of their pieces are versatile and are designed to grow with the child through their teenage years. The top photo highlights a bassinet that an be converted into a vanity table later on. In the background you see a changing table but once you remove the changing pad and tray the piece becomes a modern dresser suitable even for an adult. The bottom photo showcases a crib that can be converted into a toddler bed and after that, a twin sized bed. For more info on Casa Kids visit their website here.

Nurseryworks was another brand on display at ICFF. This upholstered "Vale" headboard is what made me stop and take a closer look. This is from their Lawson-Fenning for Nurseryworks collection. Such a sophisticated silhouette for a toddler but the bright color and the field of blossoms as a backdrop give this piece a young, fun look.

I also liked this spindle bed, also by Lawson-Fenning for Nurseryworks. For more info on the line visit nurseryworks.net.

 

Spot on Square wins the award for the best eco-friendly furnishings line for babies and toddlers. The fairly new company is based in Omaha, Nebraska and is owned and operated by a very cute husband/wife team. All of their products are responsibly made using non toxic, low VOC paints and the line is available in three finishes including MDF made from recycled or reclaimed materials, an MDF/birch combo and an MDF/naturally sustainable bamboo combo. Their line is also extremely versatile as the pieces easily convert to take your little one through various stages of childhood.

Here is their "hiya" crib which can be moved into three different positions to grow with your child. Here, the crib is converted to a toddler bed. For more info on Spot on Square visit their website here.