Life in Focus

I met husband and wife photographers Wendy Carlson and John  Kane when we did a magazine shoot together a while back.  I love the way Wendy captures a broad range of subjects with unpretentious elegance and, like the Momix and Pilobolus dancers that he works with, John’s photography elicits lyric and rhythm in human form.

I look forward to working with them again soon!

Photo courtesy of Wendy Carlson Photography

Photo courtesy of Wendy Carlson Photography

Photo Courtesy of Wendy Carlson Photography

Photo courtesy of Wendy Carlson Photography

Photo courtesy of Wendy Carlson Photography

Photo courtesy of Silver Sun Studio

Photo courtesy of Silver Sun Studio

Photo courtesy of Silver Sun Studio

Blows to the Head: How Boxing Changed my Mind

Click here to order it on Amazon!

It’s here! It’s here! It’s heeere!!.

Popular radio host, Binnie Klein, has just released her new book: Blows to the Head: How Boxing Changed my Mind and I can’t wait to read it!

Judging by the blurbs on the publisher’s website, this id-romp of a memoir is destined to be read and reread by anyone who has ever grappled with the intricacies of  self concept, and anyone who appreciates how the mysterious hiccups of everyday life can dictate our paths.

Nice Blurb: “Until now, I have avoided anything to do with boxing on the grounds that it was brutal and uncivilized. Reading Binnie Klein’s elegantly literary, funny, philosophical, moving, and endlessly intriguing Blows to the Head has changed my mind! It’s a wonderful discovery.” — Katharine Weber, author of True Confections and Triangle

Nice Plug: In a story that will captivate and inspire women and men, athletes and nonathletes, Klein shows us that if we turn over the “weird stones” on our path, the ones we usually ignore, we may find ourselves on an unexpected journey that will summon vitality back into our lives.

Why not?: When Binnie Klein took up boxing in her mid-fifties, the reaction from friends and acquaintances was always the same: “You?” Why, after all, would a middle-aged Jewish psychotherapist with no previous history of athletics take up boxing?

New year – new design story…

Welcome to 2010 everyone!

I’m pleased to kick off a new season by posting some images from virtuoso designer Amie Weitzman.  The former Design Director for Joseph Abboud Inc. and designer for the Ralph Lauren Home Collection, Weitzman’s alchemy of earthy textures and crisp editing give all of her spaces a livable agelessness.  To punctuate that mix, she brings the same creative vision that she was known for as a fabric designer to her custom furnishings and textiles.  I am excited to be doing a story on her amazing Connecticut lake house for the March issue of Litchfield Magazine and hope to publish a piece on a beautiful home she did in Westchester before long.  I’m saving that one for you, Traditional Home!

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Christmas in Connecticut

Photo via Flickr

Sure, it’s a cliche, but there really is nothing more nostalgic than the image of a child at Christmas time. No matter how different our individual experiences have been, most of us share some universal flashback of the awe and anticipation that colorful lights, cheesy carols and once-a-year confections bring- reminding us of a long lost vibrancy and openness which often evaporates as we grow older.

I recently saw an 8mm movie of me as a baby-  bubble-butted from droopy diaper, bonnet upon peach fuzz head, dirty hands, drooly face, boundless energy – toddling among what must have seemed like a carnival of wonders, but was really just the tragic refuse on a trailor-trashy lawn.  It reminds me this Christmas that gifts can come in any form you care to receive them, if you can manage to tap into the expansiveness of a child’s imagination. (I find vintage Christmas cartoons and champagne helps to reproduce the effect – -  the cartoons are optional.)

The photo above comes courtesy of a Flickr stream called; When the Journey Collapses, where they offer a number of their own personal holiday pix which are strangely familiar because they are just so darn every family USA. It really could be my bubble butt, and peach fuzz head! Thanks WtJC..

…and a joyful, cozy and occasionally childish Christmas to all!

Interior Design magazine celebrates best of 2009

Last night the 2009 Interior Design Best of Year awards were held at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in NYC. One of my favorite firms among the merit award winners was Interior Design Hall of Famers, Shelton, Mindel & Associates. Their materials-driven approach combines luscious wood tones, metals and stone surfaces with crisp, clean and modern design to create that elusive comfy-yet-utterly cool balance that classic modernism is built on.  I particularly like these residential spaces:

Photo courtesy of Shelton, Mindel & Associates

Photo courtesy of Shelton, Mindel & Associates

Photo courtesy of Shelton, Mindel & Associates

Photo courtesy of Shelton, Mindel & Associates

Photo courtesy of Shelton, Mindel & Associates

Wishing you all…

EVSC opens flagship store in Greenwich

Went to the opening reception for Ella Vickers‘ flagship shop on the avenue in Greenwich last evening. Ella is a charming and talented sailor and entrepreneur who began designing bags out of the retired sailcloth of the yacht Columbia, the first 12-meter vessel to win the Americas cup, after sailing on her as first mate. The well-edited designs, superb construction and utter usability of the bags made them an immediate success with boating aficionados in the loop. Now Ella Vickers Sailcloth Collection (EVSC) is busting out into the broader market. The season may be over here in New England, but you don’t need to be a boater to fall in love with this eco-friendly bags.

Along-side Ella’s bags and accessories in this high-rent neighborhood, is the sublime portraiture of photographer Koren Reyes.  Check out the pets and maternity pictures on her beautiful website; Korenreyes.com. She somehow manages to turn what could be unbearable cuteness into true art.

Recycled Sailcloth Hand Bag with Rope/Sailing Line Handles & Black Star

San Francisco Backside Shoulder Bag

Sailcloth shower curtain

Sailcloth Garment Bag

Sailcloth Tote with Rope/Sailing Line and Laser Sail Insignia

Wrap it up. I’ll take it.

I make it a policy not to just troll other blogs and regurgitate what others have done. But I will break my own rule when someone has posted something that I have to kick myself for not finding on my own. Today’s post comes courtesy of Object Lesson, a cool blog and one of the many fans of artLAB, an Etsy shop which grabbed my attention and sent me on an knee-jerk shopping binge. Thanks Object Lesson! (well, my closet thanks you but my budget thinks you’re the devil.)

Oversized Wool Wrap No.4 Charcoal Gray

Alternate view

Muted Blanc oversized ruffle cowl No.1

Good Morning Jacket

Ruffle Noir Tee

Purple Rain Flannel Ruffle Scarf

Ephemera

The shelter magazine industry continues its grisly decline…

Today, industry insider Stacy Kunstel, reports in her excellent tweets at StacyStyle that Metropolitan Home is going belly up by the end of the year.  I don’t know about you, but it makes me feel a bit queasy.

Marcel Wanders in Philly

The Philadelphia Museum of Art will be hosting, Marcel Wanders: Daydreams; a dreamlike, multimedia installation personally created by the Dutch designer to represent pivotal points in his career. Per the museum’s website, the exhibit, which runs from November 22, 2009 to June 13, 2010,  will feature “new films detailing Wanders’s design process and philosophy in projects ranging from manufactured products, hotel interiors, and design art… The soundscape that accompanies the films provides Wanders’s personal views on design.”

I have  too many Wanders favorites to be able to showcase them all here, so I’ll just post a few today…

Skygarden for Flos

Stairway at Mondrian South beach

Kartell Stone Stool

Smart Deco Crochet Chair

July Throw for Mooi

CT artist makes a splash. literally.

I came across the hyper clever work of Kevin Van Aelst,  an artist who lives and works in New Haven, CT during the recent Open Studios group show.

Splash, 2009, carpet, monofilament

The elasticity of his technicolor brain conceives these color photographs which he says, “consist of common artifacts and scenes from everyday life, which have been rearranged, assembled, and constructed into various forms, patterns, and illustrations… creating order where we expect to find randomness.” Photos of his can be seen  illustrating “The Medium” in the New York Times Magazine. (www.kevinvanaelst.com)

Driving at Night, 2009, digital c-print, 24 x 36

The Heart, 2009, digital c-print, 40 x 30"

Hawaii, 2007, digital C-print, 12 x 18

Phases of the Moon, 2006, series of 28 digital c-prints, each 11 x 11

Left Pinky Finger,†2007, digital C-print, 43 x 34.5

Right Index Finger,†2007, digital C-print, 43 x 34.5

Gonna need more shoes…

Short and billowy bubble-icious skirts, harem pants (again), frenetic prints and classic black and white; Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week is over. With designs that range from romantic (Venexiana and Georges Chakra) to architectonic, (Trias and Alexandre Herchcovitch) the spring 2010 shows give us plenty of mood and color options to work into our own wardrobes.  Like you, I’m always looking to translate a few elements from the runway into my personal style. Here’s a roundup of some of the looks that grabbed my attention this season:

Alexandre Herchcovitch

Alexandre Herchcovitch

Cesar Galindo

Dennis Basso

Georges Chakra

Maria Pinto

Michael Angel

Narciso Rodriguez

What memory sounds like

Wild for White

Another Saturday morning shopping excursion on 1st Dibs. Today, the guest shopper is New York City designer, Alex Papachristidis. I picked out a collection of items that I would love to work with when putting together a fresh, sophisticated, modern living room. What pieces would you choose from this selection, how would you put them together and what would you add to bring balance to the space?

Bertoia “Bush” form, circa 1965 at Lost City Arts

1950’s Seguso sconces at Orange

Tommi Parzinger night stands at Palumbo

Loop design white lacquered armchairs at Liz O’Brien

Hal concrete stools/side tables at Twentieth

16th c. Burmese sandstone Buddha head at Europa

1960s white lacquered console table

Hollywood regency sofa by Dunbar at Prime Gallery LLC

1970s Low waterfall table in brushed steel at Liz O’Brien

Pair of French Art Deco Plaster Ceiling Fixtures circa 1930 at Tom Thomas

Rock crystal lamp by Carole Stupell, circa 1960 at ABC Modern

1960s “Albatross” Armchair by Danielle Quarante

The Crisp, Cozy Crackle of Autumn

September again. How the hell did that happen? Still, there are some redeeming things about early autumn; cushy new sweaters, the purest deep blue afternoon skies and comfortable sleeping nights. I came across these fire features from Colombo Construction Corp a couple of months ago when I couldn’t even think about hovering over a crackling fire unless it was to toast marshmallows- now that I look at these pictures again, I kinda can’t wait for the first fireplace-worthy evening…

Elena Colombo is a classically trained sculptor and architectural designer whose works have been featured in everything from the New York Times to Country Home magazine.  Her firm, Colombo Construction Corp, is a conceptual design and fabrication firm that creates large scale exterior works.

Fire Bowls

In-ground Corten Steel Fire Arc with Acid Etched Tree

Spring Burn Firebowl

Charles Doig Memorial

Corten Steel Nest

New Feature Story: Rossiter Revisited

The latest issue of Litchfield Magazine just came out, with my feature story on The Sumacs, an elegant shingle style house in Washington, CT.  (To see the entire story, click here.)

Photos by Michael Moran

With the help of Reese Owens of Halper Owens Architects, homeowners, Gene and Barbara Kohn applied their vision and skills as architect and designer to bring this house back from the brink of blah. They were wonderful hosts and I enjoyed working on this piece. Here are some excerpts:

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Built in 1894 for the illustrator and naturalist William Hamilton Gibson, The Sumacs is one of several significant “cottages” designed by renowned architect Ehrick Kensett Rossiter. Not withstanding some misguided attempts at modernization, this one hundred year-old structure was in good shape and retained most of its character-defining features. Fireplaces with glazed earthen-ware tiles, forty-eight different types of windows and elaborate turnings along the stairway are just a taste of Rossiter’s range of expression.

A meticulous renovation was undertaken with the goal of restoring many of the original elements of Rossiter’s design while bringing the 6,600 square-foot house up to date.  Formica counters in the butler’s pantry, an echo of so many remodels that sacrifice the architect’s art in the name of practicality, had to be replaced; other mid-century built-ins needed to be removed. The bathrooms and kitchen were sorely inadequate so the kitchen was gutted and doubled in size by removing a mud room and two pantries.

Several small rooms were reconfigured in keeping with Shingle Style architecture which prizes continuous volumes of space. Some of the original sleeping porches that had been closed in to create bathrooms (since there was only one installed when the house was built) were reworked. But they did keep a charmingly vintage though somewhat dubious elevator that was added not long after the house was built.

Dispatches from 7th Heaven

My friend Rose is one of the goddesses that makes the Barneys NY warehouse sales happen. As most of you fashionistas and web surfing, nose-smudge-on-window-pane shoppers know, the NYC warehouse sale started on August 20th. I always say I’m going to go but it never seems to fall into place. HEY ROSIE, if you’re listening – here’s my shopping list for all that spare time you’ll have… I want at least one of each – and you should probably know, I have a budget of $23 American dollars.

Giuseppe Zanotti Crystal Cluster T-Strap Sandals

Christian Louboutin Papilipi

Givenchy Medium Croc nightingale

Bottega Veneta Handbag

Bottega Veneta Tote

Pink: as in Flamingos

Just got back from a few days at the beach. Summer finally obliges with sun, sand and warm ocean breezes. All the things we await all winter (and much of summer this year) were in place; abandoned frisbees, too soon deflated blow-up rafts, that one summer gin and tonic, sandy kids on the rampage, mysterious items bobbing in the outgoing tide-  and, for me, an unabashed celebration of PINK.

Pink: as in Beach Roses

Pink: as in Bicycle

Pink: as in Cupcakes

Pink: as in Boa

Pink: as in Beach Chair

Pink: as in Umbrella

Pink: as in Flamingos

Bauhaus at Ninety

Today, Interior Design Magazine’s Designwire Daily has a piece on two exhibitions which celebrate the 90th anniversary of a profoundly influential (and one of my favorite) design movements; the German Bauhaus school. “Bauhaus. A Conceptual Model”, is currently running at Berlin’s Martin-Gropius-Baumuseum through October 4th, and the Museum of Modern Art will be hosting, “Bauhaus 1919-1933: Workshops for Modernity”, from November 8 to January 18th. (See the entire story here.)

Bauhaus (“House of Building” or “Building School”) was founded by Walter Gropius in 1919 and ran until 1933.  Its attempt at a “new way of living” combined crafts and the fine arts, with the idea of creating a total work in which all arts could be united;  a modern approach which reflected the social changes of the time.

Klaus Labuttis of the Dezignare Interior Design Collective (www.dezignare.com) writes: “The ‘New Man’ became the ideal, a concept that also expressed itself in living. The Bauhaus Design showed a simplicity with emphasis on straight edges and smooth, slim forms. The rooms were sparsely furnished, superfluous features were taboo. Shining steel was discovered as a material for furniture. The aim was to take advantage of the possibilities of mass production to achieve a style of design that was both functional and aesthetic. Objects were to be designed to have simplicity, multiplicity, economical use of space, material, time and money which looks as modern as anything in production today.”

◊ Bauhaus Style ◊

Furnishings:

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe Adjustable MR Chaise Lounge for Knoll at 1st Dibs

Christian Dell (by Kaiser) Desk Lamp Circa 1930 at 1st Dibs

1924 Marianne Brandt Silver and Ebony Tea Pot at Tecnolumen

1924 Wilhelm Wagenfeld Nickel plated Tea Cannister at Tecnolumen

Architecture:

1938 Walter Gropius house, Lincoln, Massachusetts

Barcelona Mies van der Rohe Pavillon

Art:

Komposition 8; 1923 by Vasily Kandinsky at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York

Bauhaus Stairway by Oskar Schlemmer;1932 at The Museum of Modern Art, New York

Beach Blanket Binge

I was surfing on the A + R website for stylish and useful things to keep on hand for days at the beach (Yes, I know it’s August – but I’m in denial) and, as usual, I got distracted by all the other stylish and useful things that I have little use for- -

This cute innovative Orb ice tray not only chills, but can be used to serve and store things. It makes 21 ice cubes, and stores more in its removable inner bucket. And It’s airtight so you won’t get freezer funk in your cocktails.

ICHENDORF OIL/VINEGAR CARAFE

These hand blown, double-walled carafes offer a striking way to store everyday cooking oil, etc. But alas, not at the beach. Unless — maybe sun tan oil? hmmm. No! hmmmm.

KOR'S HYDRATION VESSEL

Perfectly portable and visually quenching, these streamlined bottles are totally free of  BPA. The cap swivels open with a touch of a button and the wide mouth is large enough for ice cubes.  And one percent of sales benefit safe water programs worldwide. A votre sante!

DIRECT DESIGNS' STAINLESS STEEL NOTEBOOK GRILL

GRILL SKEWERS BY EVA SOLO

But I did manage to find some things to prolong summer, or at least make the last few barbecues a bit more fun: This super-slim, portable grill has a large enough cooking surface for about six burgers- or better yet, 6 kebabs.

The square cross-sectional design of these skewers holds food in place so it won’t flop around when you move them, and the flat ends make them easy to hold.