The other day Style & Grace had a really great post about how she & her mom used the same Schumacher Chang Mai fabric in different colors to make pillows for rooms in their respective houses. It made me think of an article I loved that was featured in the premiere issue of Domino called “Are We Turning Into Our Mothers.” The story featured rooms in the homes of three mothers and daughters with very similar design styles. Below are photos from two of the mother/daughter pairs. This got me to thinking about my own design style and I realized that I definitely inherited some of my mother and grandmother’s taste. My grandmother’s house is an homage to all things chinoiserie. All of her furniture is upholstered in chinoiserie print fabrics and she also has screens, wall hangings, Buddhas, lamps, bowls, vases and many other Asian-style tchotchkes everywhere. My mom certainly picked up some of my grandmother’s style and while her house isn’t exactly an ode to chinoiserie like my grandmother’s, she did incorporate many chinoiserie and Asian style elements into her home including small pieces of furniture, wall hangings, vases and accessories such as the many Buddha statues that are scattered throughout the house. Looking around my own living room, I can see several Buddha’s staring back at me! Clearly there’s lots of mother-daughter style sharing going on in our family! What about you? Was your design style influenced by your mother’s?
This mother-daughter pair owns Face Stockholm cosmetics. It’s funny how similar their dining areas are. Both rooms are bright white spaces with round dining tables and upholstered chairs. They also both have painted white floors.
Photos by Francois Dischinger for the Spring/Summer 2005 issue of Domino
The top room belongs to Nian Fish, Creative Director at KCD Public Relations. Nian produces runway shows for top fashion houses such as Marc Jacobs, Zac Posen, Chloe, Louis Vuitton, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein…the list goes on. I was an intern at KCD in college and having met Nian, this is exactly how I would envision her bedroom to look! The room features an eclectic mix of colorful ethnic textiles and the walls are painted a vibrant reddish orange color. Her daughter Natane’s room is much more subdued with its neutral color scheme but you can see that she also incorporated some ethnic textiles into her bedroom…with her bedspread as well as the tapestry hanging over the bed’s footboard.
Wasn’t it supposed to come out ages ago? My most trusted source, Barnes & Noble, doesn’t have it listed. Other sites say it comes out April 1st. I’m skeptical. Does anyone know? Just curious…
Even if you’re not a Kanye West fan, his blog is definitely worth checking out. Aside from a bit of self promotion here and there Kanye’s blog features his daily finds in the worlds of interior design, architecture, product design and fashion…all things he’s very passionate about. The things he highlights are often random and outlandish but sometimes he features things that are pretty interesting. Below are a few of his faves…The crib and the trash bag are a hoot!
Ceramic tiles designed to look like alligators skins…
Concept renderings for a disaster proof “water house” community in Holland…
A tricked out infant crib…
A 360 degree rotating gyrofocus fireplace…
A coyote fur hammock…
A Takashi Murakami pillow…
A Louis Vuitton trash bag…there are no words! Kanye calls himself “The Louis Vuitton Don.” I wonder if he uses these for his garbage!
Photo via All The Best
Yesterday Ronda over at All The Best posted photos of the most gorgeous Parisian apartment and I am completely obsessed with it. So modern! So chic! To see more photos of this beautiful space click here to view Ronda’s post. Enjoy!
While running errands over the weekend I stumbled upon a jewel of an antique shop called FIG. And on the Lower East Side of all places! (If you’re not familiar with New York, the LES is known for being one of Manhattan’s grungier neighborhoods.) This tiny little shop is filled with a well edited collection of fine European antique furniture, art, textiles, and jewelry along with many other incredible items. For such a small shop there were so many amazing things to look at! Some of the pieces date as far back as the era of Louis XIV. I was kind of in a hurry and left the shop feeling like I wish I could have learned more about some of the amazing things I saw there. Luckily they have a great website with detailed info on many of their pieces. Check it out here. Some of my favorite picks from their site are shown below. And if you’re ever near the LES you should definitely pay FIG a visit!
Left: How great are these Chinese ginger jars with the little Foo Dogs painted on them?! They’re from the late 1800s. Right: A 19th century inkwell from France.
Left: A French Boudoir mirror from the early 1900s. You can see the store’s reflection in the mirror. Unfortunately this piece is sold but they have a selection of other equally amazing mirrors to choose from (see below). Right: A 19th century French Bergere chair with original needlepoint embroidery.
Left: I love these South African Kudu horns! The Ebonized mirror behind it is also for sale…It’s from Italy dating back to the late 1800s. Right: This 1920s Louis IV style desk is to die for. It’s lacquered black with gilt metal detail and topped with a red tooled leather writing surface. Sorry people, this one is sold too.
These 14K and 18K gold bands from England are from the late 1800s. I’d buy any one of these…so my style! I love the one on the bottom right that looks like a belt buckle. So chic!
