Friday Faves

Guess who's back!? Friday Faves is! Friday faves is a mini round-up of a few of my favorite things: fashion, design, and life to get you through to the weekend. Friday can either be very short or very long and I'm just trying to make it short.

I've always had a pretty serious obsession with this house in Newport RI. It's John Peixinho's 1730's home and maybe I'll get to see it this weekend! Newport is home of The Breakers and Marble house, which we'll also be seeing, but I'm secretly most curious about this one!

I couldn't resist. This is another shot from the above home. This shelf is amazing--gorgeous shape, and I love collections like this. If you want a collection like this, you don't need to already have it, just head on over to a flea market and collect the ones that catch your eye!

I've always loved Galbraith & Paul, the textiles, rug, and lighting store, and I came across this picture on their website. I love the soft muted colors and the greyed out zebra fabrics. This room is the epitome of warm and soothing right now--or quiet confidence as the title states. Casually confident?

Calico Corners has always been a great source for traditional inexpensive fabrics but did you know that Iman has designed a collection for them? This is one of them and I've ordered a sample in hopes of turning it into a pillow for a client! I'm looking for another client for something more geometric and I've found the perfect fabric for that too!

As you know, I'm off to Newport for the weekend to enjoy New England before it turns to Winter, and to get out of the city a bit. What are you up to? Anything design related? I'll be taking lots of pictures of all the mansions that we see, don't worry. Have an amazing weekend!


Alicia B.

Dining Table Gossip

This is the dining table that Bunny Williams designed for the Kips Bay Showhouse.

I was so sorry that I couldn't make it to the Holiday House 2009 Showhouse; a tablescape show house on the Upper East Side, but I read a fun article about it in the NY Times. It sounded like a glamorous event to be sure but the main thing that I took from it was a fabulous quote from one of my favorite designers Bunny Williams. In regard to dinner and seating she said, "First off, hosts need to separate husbands and wives. Nobody does that anymore, and I think it’s disgusting. I don’t want to sit next to John (her husband), I want to get in the cab with him later and gossip." Oh Bunny, you are too hilarious! And of course, she's right. Bad form. Anyway, here are some gorgeous dining rooms that you can all gossip about later in the cab.


Here is Bunny Williams's table that was inspired by the Summer Solstice! So gorgeous and I love the colors--they look delicious. If you want to see more pictures, Heather from Habitually Chic was lucky enough to attend the gala and take amazing shots of everything there. Check it out HERE. Also, oddly enough she did a post on dining rooms today too...weird.

A simple X-based table with two benches, this dining room is simple and glamorous with the glass top on the table. By Tom Scheerer.

I normally hate a skirted table (yes, it's not a popular opinion, I know.), but for some reason this one is really working for me over this round table. Maybe it's the cheery yellow fabric in the otherwise muted, soft shaded room. By John Peixinho.

This traditional looking design by Eric Cohler is soft and unstuffy. I think that shade of blue freshens up the room that is fully antiques and plush fabrics.

I'm not sure why all of a sudden I'm drawn to round dining tables, but I am. I especially love the pewter vase full of flowers. Barry Dixon.

Not LOVING the rug there that Barbara Westbrook chose, but how can you not love the shade of grey against the gilt wood frames. Swoon.

Just a little flash of what must be an incredible dining room by Bunny Williams, I'm loving the yellows and that rug is exquisite. Yes, exquisite.

This post really makes me wish that my kitchen table didn't function as a dining table, craft table, drafting table, and counter top. It would be amazing to be able to throw a dinner party in a formal dining room but for now, I can blog. These are sure inspiration enough and now I must get back to my drafting table which is covered in fabric swatches right now! You can gossip in comments, thanks.

Alicia B.

Basket Case

Manden Basket from the Sundance Catalog for $75.

If you recall a few posts ago, I wrote about foyer spaces and realized that my sister's foyer spaces was seriously lacking. We brainstormed about a lot of different options but my favorite was the addition of a basket underneath her console table! Not only does it add visual interest but it adds storage and depth to a flat space. I love baskets because they can look old and like they have a history.

This is what we're working with.

Eileen Kathryn Boyd is one of my new fave designers these days. This is quite a tall basket but I like its wide weave.

Paula Perlini used lots of baskets here--all different. You can put fresh flowers in them (she gets so many flowers from that husband of hers anyway)!

This is just an example of the different kinds of baskets you can choose from. These are from Pima--they remind me of these gorgeous baskets that my parents have from South America. By Michael Dale.

This is part of the John Peixinho home that I can't stop looking at, but isn't this basket perfect? It peaks out the perfect amount from under the console table.

I think this basket idea would not only add a bit of depth to the foyer/console area but that area needs a bit of texture too. They have that gorgeous lacquered console and crystal candlesticks, so I think they need to let in a little softness or something with a more natural feel. Also, they could put colorful things in there like flowers, throw pillows, etc. What do you think? Any other solutions?

Alicia B.

Kitchen Dilemma

Kitchen featured in the 1950s in House Beautiful. WOW.

Yesterday afternoon as I was looking out the window in my parents' kitchen to watch the neighbors walk by (it's what we do in the country to pass the time apparently), I was blinded by the sunlight streaming in and had to look away. It made me start to think about the idea of curtains in the kitchen. My mother says she doesn't want them because they will get cooking debris (oil etc) on them and get dirty. She also really likes the light and openness in the kitchen and doesn't want to feel closed in by curtains. I wanted to see what other designers have done in kitchens, as the 3M filters on the windows my parents have just isn't cutting it. See below.

T. Keller Donovan uses a pretty blue toile valance in this otherwise white Nantucket kitchen.

Wooden roman shades would def solve the problem of cooking oils/dirt and since these are pretty thin, they still let the light in. By Noel Jeffrey.

In this uber colorful french style kitchen the designer, Michele Allman uses a red toile fabric and a traditional pinched pleat drapery style in the windows.

One of my now favorite designers John Peixinho who works mainly in Newport, RI also used a roman shade style in this kitchen, but I think it's a thin parchment colored fabric. Low maintenance, light blocking and good looking.

James Michael Howard designed this sleek clean kitchen and used an ivory linen shade in the large window. I like how he continued the strong dark horizontal line on the mouldings into the curtain.

Though the stove is right in between the two windows with long drapery, the designer used floor length drapery and a valance. This may seem like a lot, but it starts to become an architectural element as it echos the door off to the right. From Domino.

Another simple roman shade style but with a little kick with a small vertical stripe running down it. By Caroline DeCesare for the movie Something's Gotta Give. (Good movie but uncomfortable to see with your grandmother.)

One of my many design heroes, Victoria Hagan solves the entire problem of the light by creating these beautiful clerestory windows which provide great but indirect light.

If you're feeling DIY-ish, Martha provides this how-to on making your own curtains in my old fave magazine Blueprint. I like this one because it lets in light but it has very pretty and subtle polka dot texture. So cute!

Well, I helped my parents with their ivory shades from Kravet in our den, so maybe I can help them solve the dilemma of being blinded by too much light and feeling too closed in inside a big kitchen.


Alicia B.

Plaid Love

Isn't this Ralph Lauren tablescape so cozy/beautiful? I don't think I would change one thing about it.

Ever since I took a look at the new Loro Piana interiors collection (yesterday) I've been loving on plaids (more than usual) for interiors. They look so cozy and warm and I definitely need that since, if you are in New York today you might have frostbite (me). Plaids are coming in different forms, window pane, tartan, gingham, etc. Here are some you could...warm up to? Wow.

Nathan Egan loves this wool plaid from Rogers and Goffigon. I do too.

This comfortable and classic looking interior was designed by John Peixinho with a tartan plaid bench in front of the fireplace. In Newport, RI.

Mixing tartans is allowed too! From Domino.

Designed by David Mitchell this mix of different neutrals and beiges is carried by those two chairs in Rogers and Goffigon wide gingham print.

I SUPER love these two chairs. They are covered in Colfax and Fowler Lanark plaid.

Jeffrey Bilhuber covered these two chairs in a soft Bahagalpur plaid by Shyam Ahuja.

Through looking, I think the best places for plaids are Ralph Lauren Home, Colefax and Fowler as they are a British company, Holland and Sherry for plaids, tweeds and herringbones, and of course Loro Piana. Am I a stodgy old British man? Hmm.

Alicia B.