Newly Married, Historically Happy

I'm having a bit of an Elizabeth Bennett moment this morning, so I thought I would share Easton Neston with you. Built in 1702 in Northamptonshire, England, this house was recently restored by Leon Max, the founder of clothing label Max Studio. The brick wing above, which houses Max's design studio, is said to have been designed and built in the 17th century by Christopher Wren. Just like newlyweds Mr. & Mrs. Darcy, WWB and I are so happy, but a house like this explains her use of the word sublime. 

Photos courtesy of Architectural Digest

Happiness Is ...

Headboard: Pagoda Background, Pillow: Aga

Busy day! Off to Quadrille to return some samples and pick a few up that I'm recommending to my mother-in-law. There are few places that exude happiness like the Quadrille showroom at the D&D in New York - it is an attack on the senses ... in a good way. Walking in there is like walking into your happiest feeling. WWB is always telling me that I should probably branch out in my favorite fabrics and find another brand that I love ... but how do you compete with Quadrille and China Seas? 

Loveseat: Trellis Background

Wallpaper: Bangalore Paisley

Chairs: Melong Batik, Stools: Petite Zig Zag

Images via Quadrille & Coastal Living

It's Official ... Summer is Here!

I hope everybody had a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend! Summer is officially here, so time to break out those trusty Roberta Roller Rabbit tunics and get ready for some time in the sun. I wish my closet looked a little bit more like this one, but maybe we'll work towards that this summer. This closet, with all its bright colors, could very well be the inspiration for a great summer room. See you all tomorrow! 

Image via Coastal Living

Perfect Day

I'm sorry I have been away ... I have a good reason. I was planning a wedding and getting married. I got married at Drayton Hall, which is familiar to those of you who have been reading Lacquered Life for a while. It was a perfect day, a perfect day with a super moon. 

Old and New ... Again

Hello everyone, sorry for no posts the last two days ... last weekend was my bachelorette, and I felt like I was still recovering. So yesterday at the office my boss sent me to the website of his favorite architect, Steven Harris, who seemed familiar to me ... that's because his work has been featured in Elle Decor several times! However, below are two photos of a townhouse on Jane Street that tie into our conversation a couple weeks ago about modern additions to historic buildings.

From the front, this Jane Street townhouse looks like many others on the block - beautiful 6 over 6 windows, french doors on the ground floor, and Greek Revival detailing. During the renovation, expert care was taken to restore the front of this house. On the back of the house, however, the architect took a different approach . 

He opened up the entire backside of this house to its little garden on Jane Street. What I love about this is that the aesthetic changes on the interior of the house do not impact the visitor experience on Jane Street, and yet the owners still get the location they wanted with the design style they love. Please go look at more of Steven Harris' work, he is really brilliant. 

Pictures courtesy of www.stevenharrisarchitects.com

Grey Weather, Colored Fabrics

Starburst

Its a gray and rainy day here in NYC - so I thought that I would head over to the D&D to do some fabric browsing. I have been focusing a lot on Quadrille lately, so today I thought I would head up to John Roselli and look at some Peter Dunham Textiles. 

Rajmata

Kashmir Paisley

Peterazzi

 Fig Leaf

Starstruck

Again, I am thinking about some of these for the master bedroom in Charleston, and others I would just like to "keep on file" for future reference. Don't you just love the Fig Leaf fabric? Goes right back to our recent conversation, "Fig or a Palm?" And that starburst fabric makes me so happy - and comes in an array of fun colors. Would you use any of these fabrics in your space? Wish me luck! 

All images courtesy of Peter Dunham Textiles

Kitchens on the Move

At work, I am doing a project that requires me to source fixtures, stones, finishes, etc for what will be two rental apartments. In SoHo, these apartments are located in a building that was built in 1920 - but the entire interior of the apartments will be new. I am struggling a bit to capture the feeling that I am going for so I thought I would work it out here. 

Although I typically favor more traditional kitchens, one of my favorite things is the juxtaposition between old and new, which we touched on last week. 

With kitchens, as with historic public buildings, there is a great opportunity to show the passage of time in a house. 

Old wood beams and windows, adjacent to lacquered cabinets with stainless steel fixtures and countertops allows the visitor to understand when something is new, and often the shiny and modern aspects of the kitchen make the antique aspects of the home all the more apparent. 

We have seen places where homeowners take it to the next level, and make it seem as though you could remove the kitchen one day, and you wouldn't even have known it was there. Now that is a look I love. 

Most of us remember House Beautiful in February 2010, when we saw a kitchen in what used to be the dining room of this Montgomery house. Again, in an historic home with wainscoting and moulding, that stainless steel range truly stands out - showing us that passage of time. 

It is that "passage of time" look that I really love. In all of these photos, the kitchen and its appliances seem transitory, as though they have just stopped by for a visit and could be removed at a moment's notice. That's good preservation. 

Photos courtesy of Elle Decor UK, Marie Claire Maison, & House Beautiful