Loving this Moore & Giles + Brad Ford designing for good collabo…

This one-of-a kind, “Great American Woody” was designed by Brad Ford for Moore & Giles with consultation from Jim Meehan. Outfitted with Moore & Giles leathers, it was designed to offer the ultimate in luxury tailgating and showcase the art of high-end entertaining outdoors.

Following its launch at DINING BY DESIGN New York 2011, it has traveled to some of the most exclusive design and epicurean-related events across the country. It is now the leading item on DIFFA’s “30 for 30” auction on charitybuzz.com featuring 30 exceptional, one-of-a-kind auction packages to commemorate 30 years of fighting HIV/AIDS.

To learn more about the auction and to register, please click here.

-S

Last week, my uber-talented designer friends, Oliver M. Furth, Philip Gorrivan & Michelle Nussbaumer invited me to the press preview for the Greystone Mansion “Maison de Luxe” showcase house.  This year’s house features the crème de la crème of the industry, who are applying their aesthetic magic to the iconic estate.  Unfortunately, I wasn’t allowed to take pics of my favorite spaces, but what I can say is that the mix of POV’s is simply inspiring.  I definitely recommend adding a trip to Greystone to your holiday itinerary if you can.

In conjunction with the City of Beverly Hills and the Friends of Greystone, Maison de Luxe opens December 2^nd and runs through December 22^nd.

Photo | Antoine Verglas

D.B. Kim, Associate Principal at PYR, designed this Swan chair for Swarovski as part of The Pink Swan Project to benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

His Inspiration:

“My design inspirations are from the patterns of healing power: radiating lines and beautiful rays from the Swarovski crystals. The sensual and organic form of the Swan chair transforms as a perfect canvas for the pattern and crystals. I would like to thank Swarovski team for their support and the opportunity.”

This one-of-a-kind chair will be auctioned to benefit BCRF on charitybuzz.com.

Auction runs October 1–31, 2011.

(Above: A never-before-seen Fuse Lighting chandelier makes the showcase house feel more like a treasure hunt.)

It’s that time of the year again, to check out all of the design eye candy at the Pasadena Showcase House. One of the oldest and largest house & garden tours, the showcase is in its 47th year.  This year’s house, a 1927 Paul R. Williams in La Canada, (LAX Theme Building, Beverly Hills Hotel, Saks Beverly Hills) is as important as Los Angeles, historic architecture gets! The show is running through May 15th.

A big thank you to my friend, designer David Dalton, for taking me on a guided tour.  Be sure to check out David’s design of “The Great Room,” which is filled with a healthy dose of oversized glazed floral chintz, a lively palette of geranium red, carnation pink and marigold orange, not to mention textured fresh whites anchoring the color scheme while black lacquer elements lend a certain polish to the décor.  In other words, the fabulousity level in this room is off the charts!

The Vitrine and Specific Merchandise are pleased to announce POP UNDERSHOP, a 4-day presentation of limited editions, handcrafted furniture, and unique works of art made by our favorite artists, designers, and architects.

Fitzroy Gallery Basement, 77 Mercer Street, SOHO

Opening Reception:
Wednesday, April 13, 2011 6-9 PM

POP UNDER SHOP Hours :
Thursday, April 14th – Sunday, April 17th, 11-7 PM.

Featuring work by:
Sarah Crowner
Workstead
Dino Sanchez
Amanda Keeley
Andrew Zarou
Fern
Jamison Carter
Dina Weiss
Yahia Ouled Moussa
Rachel Peloquin
Jason Rosenberg
Denyse Schmidt
Quinnford + Scout
Winter Session
JP Thurlow
Morgan Maclean
Tanya Aguiñiga

POP UNDER SHOP marks the debut of a new edition by Sarah Crowner. She created an original watercolor/collage drawing that was then printed onto 36” square silk charmeuse scarf. Edition size of 100. This is the first limited edition project published by The Vitrine label. Sarah Crowner is a visual artist living in Brooklyn, NY. Her artistic practice is a multi-disciplinary one, moving between painting, sculpture, book making, and textiles. Working with the traditions of the early 20th C, like the Bauhaus, this silk scarf is both a functional, usable item, but also an artwork and part of her ongoing body of work as a contemporary artist. The original watercolor / collage drawing will be on display and the scarves will be offered at a special reduced price for the pop_under.

POP UNDER SHOP will also feature new handcrafted furniture by New York based Jason Roskey and Maggie Goudsmit of Fern; new wall-mounted lighting by Brooklyn architects, Stefanie Brechbuehler and Robert Andrew Highsmith of WORKSTEAD; stackable birch plywood lamps, produced in three sizes and in an edition of 20, by Dino Sanchez; A one of kind quilt by Denyse Schmidt and High-End Handmade Accessories by Rachel Peloquin, Tanya Aguiñiga, Yahia Ouled Moussa and Winter Session. Limited editions will be available by artists Amanda Keeley, Jason Rosenberg, J.P. Thurlow, Quinnford + Scout, Dina Weiss, and Andrew Zarou as well as unique works by Los Angeles artists Jamison Carter, and Morgan Maclean.

The Vitrine is the Paris based online boutique and dream project of Blaire Dessent. Specific Merchandise is the store-front-project-space curated by Brooks Hudson Thomas. Specific is proud to show new work by artists, designers, architects and musicians along with unusual found objects.

RUTH BACHOFNER GALLERY AND WORK MAGAZINE

REQUEST THE PLEASURE OF YOUR COMPANY TO CELEBRATE THE PREMIER OF LIVING WITH ART

A NEW LINE OF LIMITED EDITION SCULPTURAL FURNITURE BY AZADEH SHLADOVSKY

PROMISE WINE RECEPTION: MARCH 19, 2011

RUTH BACHOFNER GALLERY @ BERGAMOT STATION ART CENTER

5:00-7:00PM

2525 MICHIGAN AVENUE, G2, SANTA MONICA, CA 90404

RSVP: rsvp@theculturecreative.com

FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT: sean@theculturecreative.com

Voila! Gallery’s collection of curiosities are a surrealist dream-come-true. Not only do they have new arrivals of their chic oddities in this week, but they’re also having a special sales event on One Kings Lane now!

So many amazing objet’s, but I think my favorite item is the timely “Black Swan” skeleton.

Look out for a new book by Chronicle on Voila!’s collection of vintage educational charts in September, too. There will be around 150 large scale images of botanical and zoological charts in all their richness.

Best,

Sean

The La Cienega Design Quarter expands on their popular Spring, “Legends” event with “Home for the Holidays,” December 3rd and 4th. LCDQ’s Design retailers invite you to celebrate the holidays with special hours and events, including book-signings, trunk shows, cocktail parties, exhibitions, and most importantly special pricing! Check out standout events, such as Ceramicist, Gabriella Hoffman’s “Soul Ornament” jewelry trunk show at the Szalon Antiques showroom, Lee Stanton’s live, street-art exhibition of celebrated LA graffiti artist Louis Carreon, and a special open house event at Jean De Merry. The complete schedule of events are listed HERE.

-S

I had the pleasure of attending Voila! gallery’s launch party for their new line of custom moulding designs by Martyn Lawrence-Bullard. The new line is beautiful and quintessentially MLB of course, but it was the entire collection of interesting curiosities that really blew me away about the showroom. Voila! explores, discovers and exhibits their treasures, mixing vintage oddities with antiques and contemporary art, to truly create an authentic space with a unique point of view. As gallery owner and designer, Katrien van der Schueren explains, “we mix old with new [and] we make our own creations, edgy with a sense for humor. I am from Belgium, and surrealism is close to my heart and my aesthetic.”

I’ll let their work do the rest of the talking. For more info and to check out their entire collection, check out: Voila!

Friend Voila! on FB

-S

International interior designer, Thomas Hamel, presents his first book, Residence, an inspiring retrospective featuring an eclectic array of breathtaking homes – from waterfront villas in Sydney and Melbourne to a stylish retreat in Windsor, Florida, and a sprawling farmhouse in Luberon, France. Hamel worked for the venerable design duo Sister Parish and Albert Hadley in New York before embarking on a 20-year adventure to Australia, where he established a prominent interior design firm whose projects include some of the country’s most prestigious homes.

If you’re attending Fall market at the PDC, Thomas Hamel will be signing copies of Residence at the glorious Thomas Lavin showroom, Thursday, September 23, 1PM. RSVP to: rsvp@thomaslavin.com