Dan Marty, a pleasant surprise.

I was flipping through my Western Interiors saying silently in my head "love it, hate it, love it" but then I got to the Dan Marty spread and I started screaming, "LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT!" Dan Marty is a designer/showroom owner originally from Northern California. His style reflects his sophisticated and worldly upbringing as he went on trips to Europe at least twice a year growing up (psht, is that all?) with his family. He uses lots of eclectic antiques, yet his style is very original and surprising. This spread was of his apartment in Villa D'este in Los Angeles, an Italian Renaissance building built in the 1920's.

Here is the living room filled with eclectic style antiques and Chinoiserie accents.

The other half of the living room. I'm such a sucker for color but this room is mostly neutrals and I can't look away. There are so many subtle things going on here--the chunky sisal carpet, the three paintings stacked on each other, the blue and white urn on the brick hearth just to name a few.

Even though I can't stand the abrasive red color of those chairs, I still love this room. The framed antique maps mixed in with the drawings and the light yellow lantern over the gorgeous wood dining table.

This bamboo chest with the ebony lamp and pleated shade are like a work of art. J'adore.

Woah, Union Jack motif! I love the way he uses reds and blues...and antlers.

And at last the bedroom, I love the striped rug and my fave thing that you can't see is that he monogrammed the initials, DMD, on that blanket--it's genius. I love the inset arched moments on the back wall as well.

A lot of times, when you put lots antiques together it can either look too casual slash beachy, or too stuffy and museum-like. I think that Dan Marty conjures up just the right balance. He describes it as what "started out with a British Colonial feel, but I also mix in a French Indochine look." Take a look at his website too, it's amazing with so many things to look at: Dan Marty Design.


Alicia B.