First Home In New Orleans

A young woman engaged me to help her furnish her new condo in New Orleans. She recently arrived from New York when she got a job as a resident doctor in a hospital here.

The condo is a two bedroom, carved out of one side of an old  shotgun style house. It has been renovated with nice contractor grade finishes (granite in the kitchen, etc.).

The young lady had no furniture to speak of, so we were starting from scratch. She loves color, her books, and a collection of prints. She wanted a tufted modern gray sofa. So we took it from there. She reads the design blogs, and Houzz, so she has a good eye and vocabulary for decor. We speak the same language.

First home in New Orleans

The starting point was the gray sofa

We got a pair of these chests for the living room- Later on when she moves to a larger home they can be re-purposed as nightstands, sideboards, useful in any and every room

I arranged the furniture away form the front door to create an entry way - I hate when the door opens right onto a couch in a shotgun house - One of the pair of chests is placed by the front door

A breakfast nook in the kitchen was created by using two upholstered benches and a round table - These benches can be used elsewhere since they are not built in

Vamp Greige walls, gray and white furnishings, with an accent of green and black - The white chairs are part of my flex plan for the future - They could be used as host chairs in a  dining room in a larger home one day

My young lady is on a budget, so we did a bit of catalog and smart local shopping.

• Sofa - Z Gallerie
• 4 Bookshelves - Home Decorators
• 2 green studded chests - Home Decorators
• Sea grass rug - on sale at Modern Flooring (a local shop)
• White leather chairs - Renaissance (a local consignment shop)
• You can also find the white quilted leather chair at Overstock
• Pair of vintage green tables - Caravan Finds (local home furnishings shop specializing in on trend vintage)
• Green chair is one of 4 - Hotel Liquidators (a local warehouse that sells second hand hotel furnishings at rock bottom prices - These chairs were $7. each, and we spray painted them).
• Pair of floor lamps - Hotel Liquidators
• Pair of over size lamp shades - World Market (our local one)
• Drapes - custom made from Etsy
• Pillows - Etsy
• Bamboo shades (for the whole house) - Overstock
• Picture frames - on sale at our local Michael's
• Benches for kitchen dining area - Overstock
• Industrial metal kitchen table - Discoveries (a local shop)
• Paint - Wal Mart,  job done by a lovely local
• Prints for her gallery wall - various internet sites
• Daybed for guest room - West Elm
• Headboard, nightstands, lamps for master bedroom - Hotel Liquidators

This is just Phase 1. We have spent the first part of her allotted budget. She also got a padded headboard with nail heads, two nightstands and two lamps for her bedroom, and a daybed from West Elm for her second bedroom used for guests.

Once her home decor fund is replenished, we plan to get a vintage vanity for her bedroom, a rug, and drapes (she has bamboo blinds in the bedrooms now). The second bedroom needs side tables, a rug, curtains, and a desk and desk chair. Down the road, we would like to do a tile back splash for her kitchen.

Buying a first home is a milestone. What did the first home you bought look like? How did you furnish and decorate it?

Photos by Sara Essex Bradley

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One of Truman Capote's Swans

When something is good you do not tire of seeing it again and again. So I read the Sunday New York Times today with extra pleasure.

Nicky Haslam wrote a wonderful piece about his dear friend Lee Radziwill in T Magazine (The Sunday New York Times glam supplement). And the pictures of her Paris apartment were shown again.

"While she has long captivated the public as one of Truman Capote’s swans, the sister of Jackie Kennedy and a European princess, with romantic liaisons from Peter Beard to Aristotle Onassis, not one of those labels begins to capture the true woman. The inimitable Radziwill — direct, free spirited and true to her own ideals — offers a rare, personal glimpse into her remarkable world." 
Nicky Haslam on Lee Radziwill in The New York Times

Also from the article by Nicky Haslam:

“Oo—h. You’re here already!” The voice, lively, with its unmistakable husky drop, comes in to the living room. I turn from the balcony that looks out onto the Avenue Montaigne.
“Oo—h” — again, that low last note — “how did you get here so quickly?”

You can hear that voice in a bonus video interview with Lee Radziwill done by Sofia Coppola and Deborah Needleman.

Enjoy the images by François Halard and styled by Carolina Irving. the article, and the video.

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The Wedding of Preston Bailey And Theo Bleckmann

Preston Bailey has been making the dreams of brides and grooms come true for twenty years or so. So of course, when he got married yesterday to Theo Bleckmann one wondered what the decor would look like.

Preston Bailey and Theo Bleckmann were married at 12:01 AM February 14, 2013 at the Empire State Building

Preston and Theo have been together since 2006. They are neither young or old. Both are wonderful men, spiritual, decent, fun,  and hard working. So while the wedding was beautiful and filled with joy and humor, it was not a replica of of one the huge events Preston produces.

Joan Rivers was the officiant. Yes she is ordained. She and Preston became friends after he did her daughter Melissa's Dr. Zhivago inspired wedding decor in 1998. Preston was already well known, but this celebrity wedding really propelled his business to a higher level.

Preston Bailey decorated the wedding of Melissa Rivers in 1998

Preston walked down the aisle encased in a 15 foot tall sculpture entirely made of flowers. Another huge floral piece was a huge sculpture of King Kong.

Preston walked down the aisle encased in this 15 foot tall floral bride sculpture

I made this little round up of photos for you, taken from Entertainment Tonight, The New York Times, and  FB snap shots.

Joan, Theo, and Preston

Exchanging vows

Exchanging rings

Celebrity guests and love birds Nene and Greg

Mazeltov!

So much love

Preston with wedding guests

The bride sculpture

The floral King Kong

BACKGROUND The couple met in 2006, and when asked why they fell in love, Mr. Bleckmann said that was an unanswerable question.

WHEN 12:01 a.m., Feb. 14, 2013

WHERE Empire State Building, 21st Floor

DETAILS More than 200 guests stayed until 5 a.m. eating “great pairings,” like cookies and milk, peanut butter and jelly, bacon and eggs, oysters and Champagne, and peas and carrots. 

The links: Read the whole story in:

 The NY Times Preston & Theo wedding 
Watch the clip:
 Entertainment Tonight (comes near the end)

The day after - Preston says, "Theo and I awoke to a scenario reminiscent of Christmas morning when we walked into a room full of gorgeous cards and generous gifts! We didn’t know which to open first, and truly loved all of the beautiful notes, which we will cherish forever. Thank you all so much.  You have touched my heart."

Needless to say, Alberto and I wish Preston and Theo many many many years of happiness. I like the way our mutual friend Marcy Blum said it: "Kongratulations and wishes for many, many years of Kongjugal bliss to the newlyweds."

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The Paris Attic Apartment Of Christian Louboutin

Just a little eye candy with a glimpse into the Paris attic apartment of Christian Louboutin. Je suis folle de lui (I'm crazy about it).

The entry hall

The wonderful marble in the bathroom -  very Wearstler don't you think?

The entry hall - Love the mod skylights in this attic apartment

Beautiful carved doors opening to the dining room

The bed is great, but the mod wall sconce is to die for

More carved pieces he collects, and a touch of taxidermy

Here are some links to see and read more about the Paris apartment of Christian Louboutin:
RDuJour, The Daily Mail, Preciously Me


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It Speaks Volumes

There are so many tell tale clues about all of us. We don't even have to be present or say a word. How many times have you looked at the books on some one's bookshelves, or in the old days at their record or CD collection, and kind of knew what they were into? And so it goes for the colors we choose when we decorate.

The Language of Flowers

You've heard of The Language of Flowers, or maybe even The Language of How a Lady Uses Her Fan, and of course there is a Language of Color.

Red - Confident, Courageous, and Action Oriented

Purple - Charitable,  Intuitive, Spiritual, Insightful

What does range say abut you?

Orange - Fun Loving, Competent, Spontaneous

Brown - Honest and Wholesome

Pink - Affectionate, Romantic, Compassionate

Black - Disciplined and Strong Willed

Black

Turquoise - Serene, Sophisticated, Creative, Perceptive

The Language of Color as seen in House of Fifty

All images from the current issue of House of Fifty which is dedicated to the subject of color. Go check it out if you haven't already see it. It's a great issue!



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The Fickle Finger of Fate

You're on top of the world. You have a wonderful family, a great job, and an awesome house. Then you get downsized (as in let go) from the job. You're okay because you land another pretty great gig. The renovations on your swell house are done. All seems well. Then the house burns down. No one is hurt. See how this story ends HERE. And enjoy a few photos of the post fire renovation.

"The fire really changed us and we don’t want to just fill the house. ”

Two architecture books survived the fire. If you look closely you can see the smoky silhouette of one on the other.

A pair of Robsjohn Gibbings chairs from the Celanese House, a modernist show house designed by Edward Durrell Stone in New Canaan, Connecticut, survived the fire and have been recovered.

The bed is from Room & Board; the bedding, by John Robshaw. .

The bedside table is French, and vintage. The lamp is from the 1950s. The grass cloth wallpaper is from Phillip Jeffries Ltd.

 

The leather club chairs survived the fire, as did the mid century wood side table.

The mid century Danish bar used to be in the homeowner's office. It survived the fire, as did the photograph by Irving Penn, above. (The bar had to be restored, but the print was unharmed.)

  The antelope head was found at a local antiques store. The parsons desk was bought with the house, and survived the fire. The rug is new,  from Ralph Lauren Home.

The fab lacquered linen bookshelf,  is one of a pair, from an auction of Brooke Astor’s belongings. It was designed by Albert Hadley. Hanging from it is a Slim Aarons print.

Story by Penelope Green, photos by Trevor Tondro in The New York Times

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