maison21 on the design in conversation podcast!

i am honored to be featured on the lastest "design in conversation" podcast- the only podcast devoted to our community! check out the "design in conversation" blog, or subscribe on itunes and give a listen- you'll be glad you did!

designer inspiration: du verre hardware, brutalism, silas seandel, and blogtour london

i recently purchased a 1970's brutalist lane dresser for a client (above from 1stdibs, mine purchased locally at sunbeam vintage), and i couldn't be more in love with it.  in fact, both my clients and i are so inspired by it, we are having a a dining table base custom-made in the same style by warner brothers studio facilities.  in a few weeks, a real life version of the below sketch will have sprung to life, and be living in my client's dining room (with a bronze tinted glass top):

of course, both 1970's lane, and 2013 maison21 are drawing on famed furniture maker and artist, paul evans, who worked with metal to turn furniture into sculpture  and was pioneer of a 1970's decorative arts movement called "brutalism" (a more "decorative" version of the harsh but concrete-cool brutalist movement in architecture around the same period).

paul evans cabinet at sebastian + barquet

brutalist furniture and sculpture is one of my favorite things in the whole wide world, but not every project can use such a strong statement, so when brainstorming for another project, i remembered the fabulous jewelry-like hardware from du verre. du verre was one of the sponsors of my modenus blogtour london trip last fall, and as always, when introduced to new design partnerships during such events, they have been firmly lodged into my brain for use in a future project and now i think i have the right opportunity! thanks modenus for reintroducing me to du verre so they could be my inspiration for the cabinetry in my project.

these sculptural "offset" collection pulls will look fabulous on the ivory lacquer and walnut cabinetry i'm envisioning- jsut hte right hint of brutalism to keep from being boring...

as would "rio"

or "kuba"

or even this simpler "forged 3" for just a hint of brutal style. 

table base my modern metal master, sila seandel.

and if you are interested in investing in a true handmade work of art, sculptor silas seandel, has been creating works, many in a "brutalist" style, of out of NYC for over 50 years and is still producing amazing pieces, like the bronze table base above. if you love abstract metal sculpture, take a spin around this living legend's website- there are some spectacular pieces in production, and he still handcrafts custom work- loads of design inspiration! can't wait to feature some of his new or vintage work in a future project...

vintage silas seandel at todd merrill

more gabriella crespi goodness

yesterday, when trying to find the date gabriella crespi designed the magic cube table we love so much, m21 ran across this article about her from the NYTimes, originally printed in 2005, and had to share the accompanying picture of her rome apartment, circa 1979.  a-may-zing:

 that's all for today, but it's enough, no?

j'did not know...

that the classique dorothy draper bird cage chandelier from her fabled "dorotheum" restaurant interior inside the metropolitan museum of art had been re-issued by the urban electric co. (though slightly scaled down from the 9 foot high original).

chic.

now if someone would only recreate the entire interior as a restaurant/nightclub, we'd be all set. it's a shame the museum didn't keep it intact to begin with, given mrs. draper's resurgence in popularity; but alas, times change and so does taste in decor...

ancient decorator's secret

tip #1- if you are an absentminded decorator like m21, and you find you've left your measuring tape in the last showroom you visited, or at home, or on the roof of your car- where it later skids off and smashes into pieces in the street (leaving a nice scratch in the process), a dollar bill can be a good substitute. it's a smidge over 6 inches long, so the longer you measure, the less accurate it becomes (add an inch for 8 bills), but it can be helpful in a pinch.

tip #2- if you want to feel like a real fancy-schmancy absentminded decorator, use a benjamin!

detour into fairyland (storybook architecture & a mini tour of the 'hood)

people often complain of the traffic in LA, and yes, the stories are true- it's hideous! but like a new yorker lives with noise, a seattle-ite lives with rain, or a floridian lives with humidity, one learns to adapt and you just deal with it as best as you can. depending on the time of day, some trips that should take 15 minutes take 45, and if you need to be somewhere at 9 am or 6 pm, you can count on the longer times. you just have to be zen about it, and accept. use your drive time to relax and contemplate. ;-)

of course, easier said then done, and instead of zen, m21 often finds himself seeing red and succumbing to a wee bit o' road rage if we happen to find ourselves caught out at the wrong time of the commute. like the other day, cruising down venice blvd at the mind-numbingly glacial pace of 7 miles per hour. no accidents- just nice, normal people trying to get to the freeway and home to their families in the valley or south bay; but at 4:30 pm on friday, m21 hated each and every one of them!

so he tried to ditch 'em, and take smaller side streets, and that's when m21's rage and contempt turned into gratitude; and all those people he was hating and bitching about moments before, he instead wanted to thank, because they caused him to randomly stumble upon something he's never seen before in his 20 years of LA livin: on a tiny, nondescript stretch of road, in somewhat gritty urban culver city (a city within metro LA), m21 was transported out of modern day traffic and into a fairyland of a past that never was...

spread over two lots on this tiny urban street (almost an alley) was what looked like a village out of hansel and gretel or the hobbit...a compound of a single family home, and two adjacent apartment buildings, all built in the most whimsical, fantastical story book style- shingled domes and crooked roofs, timbered walls, multi-paned asymmetrical windows- all surrounded by moats, and ponds ,and cobblestone courts. completely charming and peaceful, and if it weren't for hideous LA traffic, m21 would have never stumbled on it - a silver lining if ever there was one.even more amazing to m21 was the above plaque, declaring the structure to be one man's unique vision, built between 1946 and 1970. love that! and really, this gentleman was not designing according to a trend- storybook architecture was a style that peaked in the twenties (it's scattered throughout LA, and other cities across the US), but outside of disneyland and disneyworld, it was a style that completely fell out of favor after the depression, so this really was his idiosyncratic dream of how he wanted to live- always so much more interesting then a mass produced style, donchyathink?

maison21 is passingly familiar with the storybook style because his own miracle mile district neighborhood, developed in the boom times of the 1920's, is riddled with cute little storybook homes- though decidedly less eccentric then our culver city friend above (and semi-mass produced). lots of steeply pitched roofs, gothic details, arched windows and doors, half-timbering, etc. - it's really quite charming. our neighborhood is nice, but modest, with a majority of 2 & 3 bedroom homes with a smattering of duplexes and small apartment houses, bordered by broader avenues with business development (the original developers actually thought about the use of the neighborhood. how refreshing- wish they still did that)! the majority of the houses in the neighborhood are also spanish style (not story book) the most widely popular stye of the period in LA and m21's own triplex is spanish style- kinda. it was started in the spanish style and one unit was completed in the late 1920's. the crash of 1929 put a halt to construction for several years, and once funds became available to continue, styles had changed and streamline moderne was the look of the moment, so the 2 unfinished townhomes were completed in a very different style and builder tied all three units together with a spanish style tile roof. the result, is well... quirky, and we love it.

here's a nearby street where m21 walks mona everyday, with a long row of storybook influence homes. note the first house on the left with it's 1960's alterations of a lava rock facade and cinderblock patio- maybe not the most tasteful reno, but at least they didn't tear it down in the 80's and build a mcmansion! m21's neighborhood escaped a lot of the frightening renos of the ensuing decades because it fell out of fashion (read: wasn't so nice) and by the time of its renaissance in the 90's, people had come to respect the charming original architecture, and were willing to pay a premium to get and preserve it (thank god). many similar neighborhoods to the north of ours weren't so lucky and are riddled with lot-filling monsters completely out of scale and style with the older homes...

this house is one of our faves- kept up, but with all the original charm intact- that little turret for the front door couldn't be any cuter; plus, it forms a petit entry vestibule so you don't walk directly into the living room- a m21 pet-peeve:

couldn't you see this front door in hansel and gretel? a little brick cottage in the woods? 'cept for the cactus of course- they are somewhat rare in the black forests of germany, we think. ;-)

another prettily preserved example, below. a hallmark of our neighborhood is most of the garages are set to the backs of the houses, and the homes sit close to the street (you can see a carport to the left on the below example). we wish all neighborhoods were developed like this, instead of the sea of ugly garage doors you see now- so much more pleasing to view homes' main facades as aesthetic wholes, rather then as something tacked on to freakin' car storage! another quirky note- since most garages and driveways were developed for model-t type vehicles in our 'hood, it means they are skinnnny, and most people prefer to park on the street in front of their homes. while this leads to lots of cars on view, it also means that neighbors in our 'hood actually interact with one another, rather then pressing a button to disappear inside their attached garage when they come home at night, never to be seen again until they leave (inside their car) the next morning. it's really quite nice, and helps to create a real community.
another favorite below, though hard to see the charm because of the greenery. note the tall chimney with the haphazard, exposed brickwork- a signature of the storybook style. we lost a lot of them in the 1994 northridge quake, and the ones that survived (or were rebuilt) are all now reinforced with with metal supports connecting them to the homes' peaked roofs. (another side note- our next door neighbor collected the fallen and discarded bricks from the chimneys not being restored after the quake, and built his patio out of them)!

if you want to learn more about storybook architecture, here is a great description of the quirky styles and some pictures of examples of buildings from all over (not just our little hood) at storybookers.com.

hope you enjoyed our trapped in traffic fairy tale discovery, and the mini-tour of the 'hood!

it might change your life...

bye-bye google reader!

thanks to frankie over at life in a venti cup, m21 is reading his favorite blogs everyday thru bloglovin'. SOOOOOOO much better- shows you exactly what the blog post looks like, all features intact, as opposed to that ugly googlized version in a reader. plus, there is an option to get one email update for all blogs updated, every morning in your inbox. love that. we spent a few minutes configuring bloglovin' this weekend, and as of today, wonder how we ever lived without it...

try it- it will change your life. swear.

Follow my blog with bloglovin´


ps- if you have a wee little one in your life (human issue, not a dog or cat baby like moi), franki has lauched "life in a sippy cup"- possibly the most adorable offshoot blog title ever!

abc modern.com (and bonus "learning new things on the internets" mini-edition)

we recently purchased a beautiful vintage modern chandelier for a client from the good folks at abc modern.com, and wanted to encourage everyone to pay them a visit, as currently they have the most amazing exhibition of andirons we've ever seen assembled in one place. seriously- the ABC in abc modern.com must stand for Absolutely Beautiful Chenets*.

*learning new things on the internets mini edition: if you didn't already know, "chenet" is an uppity french word we decorators use for "andiron" or "fire dog". as an old school antique dealer friend of ours once put it: "the kind of fancy name that adds an extra zero to the price tag" ;-)

we also LOVE the philosophy behind of abcmodern.com, as it is identical to m21's own- from their website:

"For us, the thrill is in the hunt, and we are firm believers in "catch and release". This philosophy allows us to live with important pieces of design for a short time and then pass them on to others to enjoy."

here is more of their amazing selection of chenets for you to enjoy:




drool-worthy stuff, no?

a great idea (from an unexpected source)

maison21 finally made it to the post office this last week to mail the pretty coral stone box won by studio annetta- sorry it took so long, suzy! his tardiness in mailing was based upon the fact that he dreads visiting the post office- going there is akin to going to the dmv (department of motor vehicles for those in far off-lands). long lines, rude employees and typically inept bureaucratic procedures. my recent visit went something like this:

you need to fill out the GREEN customs form, not the white.

but the sign says tracking is only available with the white customs form, and i'd like tracking on this package.

if you need tracking then you need to send it global express mail, not global priority mail. we don't offer tracking with global priority mail- not with the green form OR the white form.

ok, let's send it global express, then.

i can't do that sir, it's in a global priority box.

ok, then let's put it in a global express box.

we don't have any global express boxes that will fit your global priority box. you would have to repack your item in order to send it global express mail.

so i'd have go home, repack the damn thing and come back to wait in line for another half hour?

i'm afraid so, sir, if you want to send it global express mail.

but i don't want to send it global express mail! i just want tracking! the sign says "if you wish your package to be tracked, please fill out the white customs form" it says NOTHING about express or priority or whatever!

regardless of what the sign says, we only offer tracking with global express, sir.

fine- just mail it as is! no tracking!

then i'll need you to step out of line while you fill out the green form. next customer in line, please!

maison21's head was about to explode after that exchange, and that's why he was so shocked to discover on the same visit this nifty FREE recycling program for small electronics, offered by the united states postal service! how can a bureaucracy be that inept, yet come up with such a good idea? little plastic postage-paid envelopes for you to mail back your old broken or outdated cellphones, ipods and other small electronics for recycling. completely easy and completely free- what a great solution to those old cellphones squirreled away because you didn't know what the heck to do with them! maison21 can't be the only one with a junk drawer full of outdated technology, can he? currently the program is offered only in l.a., washington d.c., chicago and san diego, but will hopefully soon be expanded nationwide.

a great idea from an expected source- who knew?

ps- while he might dread encounters with the employees at the post office, maison21 LOVES his mail carrier, and several of the employees at his post office go out of their way to be friendly and helpful, so certainly not all (or even most) usps employees suck. just some of them...

a peek into pasadena's glamorous past (happy easter, part 2)

in our last post, maison21 promised he'd tell you why his easter egg hunt & brunch pictures belonged on a design blog. of course, he also promised that he'd tell you "tomorrow", but somehow "tomorrow" turned into "next week" (maison21 blames his delicate constitution- he had his 4,712th bout with the flu this week. he apologizes, and hopes cold and flu season is now officially over- for ALL of us).

anyway, the reason maison21's easter egg hunt and brunch deserved to be publicized (besides an excuse to show pictures of his adorable little friend, lucy), was that the brunch and hunt were held on the grounds of the historic castle green, in pasadena, california (about 15 minutes east of downtown los angeles- if you are lucky and there is no traffic. btw, there is always traffic).

(above photo stolen from castlegreen.com, the rest were captured by m21's instamatic)

the castle green building was built in 1898, as an annex to the castle green hotel- a resort that catered to visitors from the east coast escaping their harsh winters, by visiting sunny southern california. though the hotel itself was torn down long ago, the "annex" lives on today as historically landmarked condominiums.

now, maison21 knows that some of his readers live in cities with buildings far older than 110 years, but here in southern california, we don't exactly treasure our history the way normal people do, and the fact that this building survives, and wasn't knocked down for a shopping mall, is quite the achievement- the equivalent of the parthenon in athens or the coliseum in rome. really.
the spanish-moorish-victorian style castle green building is a fabulous document of it's time- the over embellished styles of the victorian era were on the way out, and the more modern style of the arts and crafts movement was on it's way in, and the interiors and furnishings really show the blending of all those styles and more (there's a lot going on...)
all modern conveniences were included in the castle green when it was constructed- things like elevators and electric lights- and they are lovingly preserved to this day. the lobby uses still uses antique-style edison light bulbs, and the iron cage elevator still requires an operator. very cool oldskool.
the entire first floor is devoted to public spaces, like the onyx walled ballroom, and several large sitting rooms as well as a immense front terrace and garden. these spaces can be rented out by the public for weddings and special events, or reserved by the residents, as lucy's granddad was nice enough to do for our brunch on the lovely shady balcony- much needed on a scorching-hot, freaky spring heatwave day, as easter was over 90 degrees! that's hot!
for a peek inside the castle green residences, visit www.castlegreenunit502.com, and take a tour of a studio condo on the market for $495,000 (complete with murphy bed). maison21 thinks $495k seems like kind of a bargain, and he's sure his readers in places like new york or london would agree! with a little maison21 sissy magic™ to update the decor, we think it could be kind of cute. sorry though, the included murphy bed would have to go FIRST THING, as murphy beds rather scare us- maison21 had one in his first apartment, but couldn't bring himself to use it- he had a fear it would fold shut during the night, and he would be trapped inside the walls of his apartment forever.

(above photo stolen from castlegreenunit502.com)

what do we think of unit 502- a fabulous bargain, and a blast from the past? or too much to pay to live in a studio- no matter how quaintly old school it is?

maison21 loves 'em burly...

as maison21 sucked down his daily pot o' coffee this lazy sunday morning (lazy, because m21 wuz robbed of an hours' worth of sleep by the daylight savings time change. loving that it stays light later, but why do we even have to make the switch? can't we just leave it this way year round? it messes with maison21's biological clock something fierce!)- anyway, as he was trying to wake himself up by guzzling coffee, m21 put his not-yet-awake mind on autopilot, and rifled through some old issues of design magazines, looking for inspiration and resources. isn't this what everyone does on a lazy sunday morning? maison21 is sick, i tell you, sick! maison21 also thinks this is a sickness many of you might share (though maybe not first thing in the morning), so he thought he'd share some of the images he enjoyed with his morning cuppa (potta, really)...

maison21 first ran across this image of a teak burl table in front of a vladimir kagan sofa, used in a new york townhouse designed by julie hilman (october 2007 issue of interior design magazine). the table is absolutely PERFECT for a project maison21 is working on - he needs a big ol' cocktail table that is indestructibly kid-proof, and he loves the idea of inserting a sculptural organic element into a living area filled with more traditional furniture elements.

isn't the meteor table from chista amazing? a tour of the chista website, or their nyc meatpacking district showroom is a must, as they have the most stunning selection of spectacular sculptural natural wood forms- like the monumental teak root fashioned into a room dividing screen, below:

the delicious images from chista got maison21 hungry for more fab organic wood furniture- not for the same project as the coffee table, since too many pieces in a similar style would be like living in a mangrove swamp- but just because natural wood is pretty and we like to look at it.

a great place to start looking for pretty natural wood furniture would be the website of the master of the organic wood form, george nakashima. though mr. nakashima is deceased, his legacy lives on in his eponymously named company and you can order new pieces from them based on his iconic forms, such as the classic conoid bench (image via craftinamerica.org). you can also find a great selection of vintage nakashima furniture (and the staggering prices it commands) on our favorite decorating porn website, 1stdibs.

maison21 next went to the website of the hudson furniture company, another new york-based firm offering gorgeous reclaimed wood furniture celebrating the organic form. isn't the lucite base console table fabulous? and the dining table on sculptural hammered bronze legs? yum!


maison21 really wants one of hudson's petrified stump end tables for his own living room:
last image from hudson, one of their amazing "tahiti" chairs. how much do you think this svelte 'lil guy weighs?

one of maison21's favorite stores here in los angeles, lawson-fenning, has long had a teak burl and lucite cocktail table- the "redlands" table- in their own well-designed custom furniture line:

isn't the juxtaposition of the transparent, artificial lucite against the solid, organic wood burl, kinda wonderful? (btw, we think the guys from l-f had this table in their line long before the hudson furniture co. had the console in theirs- not that it matters as they are both fab pieces- but we want to give props where they are due)...

last, if you are a frequent reader of maison21's musings, you know he loves to mix the high with the low, so check out these bargain examples of organic burliness from online retailer, vivaterra, $169 and $149, respectively:


so, do you think you wood be up to adding a little burliness to your decor?