Arbitrary Trend Forecast: the Phoenix

You know I love to call trends and hope they catch on, like Gretchen in Mean Girls "trying to make 'fetch' happen." But I swear, phoenixes are so gonna happen or are already happening. Of course I mean the mythical bird that lives for a thousand years and then sets itself on fire, only to rise anew from the ashes. It's a hot (sorry) symbol for our troubled times and lately I'm feeling the synchronicity. First a certain Scorpio (a sign also represented by the phoenix) friend considered covering a certain permanent body adornment with a big, charred bird tattoo. Then the band Phoenix came out with a new single and album and performed on SNL. Then General Motors announced its phaseout of the entire Pontiac line, but since their most awesomest model EVER was the Firebird, do we really believe it's for good? Naw.


Finally we're all atwitter (no, not on Twitter. NEVER!) about the Doris Duke auction and went to its preview today in New Jersey. Double D, the Scorpio tobacco heiress who *accidentally* killed her decorator with a Chrysler station wagon, had menageries of the animal, tchotchke and wardrobe varieties. Check out this FABULOUS phoenix-printed scarf made by Christian Dior for Miss Duke:

photo via Newport Restoration Foundation

"Happy wishes" indeed! And I believe it was the incomparable, indomitable Mary Louise Parker (whose cad of a baby daddy Billy Crudup left her at seven months preggo for that coat hanger Claire Danes) who said at the end of John Grisham's "The Client":

"Phoenix ... Sure do like the sound of that."

And then she got her house in Arizona with a walk-in closet thanks to the Witness Protection Program.

See?

Accent Walls

Yea or Nay?


Not trying to step on any toes here but I personally HATE most accent walls. Visually I think the effect is more jarring than having bold (or any) color on all four walls and it seems like they're for non-committal types: "this is the wall where I just went crazy!" But photographer Annie Schlechter's unadorned Yves Klein blue wall (above) has made me reconsider. Maybe because I love the color, or maybe because it acts more as a divider/screen and I'm just crazy for screens right now! Really, I am. But what do we think about this corner situation:


Take away the cute kid and Anthro styling and this is a bad day at HGTV. What's so wrong about a whole red room? I *might* be able to wrap my mind around one expanse of gorgeous De Gournay wallpaper as in this Barrie Benson shot from Domino (Feb. 2007):


Works because it's pretty and scenic and framed in what looks like black bamboo. Let's put the accent on the frame and go all Mondrian or Lichtenstein like this room created by über-stylist Jeffrey W. Miller for an old House & Garden (thanks to Mugatu for the heads up):


Brilliant. And hey, even Karl Lagerfeld draws a black frame around all of his fashion sketches! Are you gonna argue with the Kaiser?

(Photos from top: NYMag, Anthropologie, style court, Jeffrey W. Miller)

West Elm gets me.

They just do. Talk about a throwaway tchotchke fix:


Never heard of sheesham wood, but that pieced pyramid is chic. 19 bucks and free shipping make it irresistible (Are you listening, Cambria Cove?).


Abstract ceramic seashells? Yes, please! $16 each and again free shipping. These are in the 5-6inch range, but how cool would it be if they enlarged the nautilus, tilted him up one side et voila, lacquer side table? And bigger conch (ahem) would make such a fabulous lamp base! Just a thought.


Meanwhile in the soft home accessories department, splatter is So Hot Right Now. I might have a Jackson Pollock/Albert Hadley for Hinson moment in my bedroom and the print on this pillow is just as inspiring. Wish it came in poppier colors though.

Mini Cuteness

So I've been a bad blogger! I swear I make a million mental Post-its of post ideas all day long and then I get home and what do I do? Dither and dilly and dally and then order Indian food from that place in my old neighborhood that won't deliver anymore and go and pick it up, get back on the subway and then they call when I'm IN THE STATION to tell me they gave me the wrong order! Are you crying for me yet, Argentina? Oh and I had lovely Easter weekend with Aunt Pat. How've y'all been?

Anyhoooooo I saw these in a catalog the other day and they sorta prove a theory: useless stuff is even CUTER when made en miniature:




No, the top isn't one of those pretty lacquered boxes from Plantation Home, it's a business card holder from Cambria Cove, online ladyporium. How quaint. The catalog looks like what Girl Scouts in Orange County would sell instead of cookies. Next are red and black patent leather sunglasses cases? For a preemie, maybe. They're 3 inches long! "Just the right size for holding earrings, stamps, mints, or other small items that get lost in your purse" they say. Like my last shred of financial prudence now that my taxes are paid?

Don't get me wrong I'm a Dum Dum Sucker for stuff like this. Is it 40-dollars-cute? Maybe not, but I gotta hand it to CC for trying.

One of the great rooms.

photo via Sotheby's International Realty

A favorite expression (tongue-in-cheek, mind you) around the office: "It could be one of the great rooms!" Well, many of us are familiar with this great room done for a great lady by a great man (oxblood lacquer library, Brooke Astor, Albert Hadley) in New York City, but I'd never seen ANY of her famed Holly Hill estate in Westchester County until Mugatu saw a listing advertisement in the Sotheby's elevator and then Googled it himself (!!). Mrs. Astor passed away in 2007 and the spread has been on the market for months. Who wants to loan me $12.9mil? I'm good for it!

Anybluewig, take a look at the loooong paneled library above. I know the chintz h8ers out there will say "Nick, you're just an old lady who likes old lady decorating!" but this room serves as a lesson in non-matchy matching. The carpet doesn't exactly match the curtains (never "drapes," people), if you know what I mean. And I mean it literally. Sure there are bits of yellow in the rug and some dusty rose but the black field is rather out of left field paired with bright yellow-blue-pink chintz curtains, club chairs and pillows. It's also curious to see so much polished walnut-y/mahogany furniture in a dry, bleachy oak paneled room ... again it shouldn't work but it does. The perfectly scaled gilt mirror, gilt-framed paintings, and brass mounts on the furniture paired with the oiled craft paper lampshades, beige-y sofa and ottoman, and sea of hardback books -- no editions bound in red morocco for the country, thanks -- create the same shiny-dull situation as the scheme. Jeez, Sister and Albert knew what they were doing.

Frontgate Outdoor Carpet

Okay, so don't think I'm a one-trick-decorating-ponyboy or nuthin', but did I mention I like Greek key motifs? On carpets? Well look at what Frontgate has done:


Chic, right? Also referred to as a "meander," this design is so simple yet so easy to screw up. I love the robust scale of the border and the black and cream combo is my fave. They're 100% polypropylene, come in seven different sizes, and cost only $175 for a 5'-9" x 9'-2". Meant for outdoors but I could also see one in a mudroom or playroom or hothouse or anywhere that gets a lot of moisture because they resist mildew. What repulsive words, moisture and mildew.