Maybe it’s the way the Southern California sunlight shines through the windows and plays across the parquet floors and lovingly collected furnishings. Or maybe it’s the creative spirit of the owners, artists Garrett and Ginny Speirs. But whatever it is, it’s one of those houses you just can’t help feeling good in.
Decoration & Design
Houston Designer Pamela Pierce Creates a Beautiful New Milieu
Does the world need a new design magazine? Absolutely, always, of course. Hence my delight at hearing that Houston designer Pamela Pierce is adding her calm, clear and elegant voice to the sadly dwindling chorus of yummy, glossy, actual paper pages we can touch and hold and put sticky-notes on…
My Atlanta Townhouse, Twenty Years Ago in Veranda…
The other day I ran across photos of my old Atlanta townhouse, the first project designer and friend John Oetgen and I worked on together. It was published in Veranda, what, nearly 20 years ago. Lord. But it holds up pretty well, if I say so myself, more than I can say about certain parts of my anatomy…
12 Home Offices to Inspire
As we all have back to school on the brain, whether we are going or not, the end of summer is a good time to think about getting aesthetically organized for fall. This isn’t about arranging your pens and pencils but about creative ways to enliven your work space. Think outside the desk.
A Great Trick for Hanging Belts
For those of us not sunning in the South of France this August, we can always enjoy staying home and organizing something. Nothing gives greater satisfaction for so little expense.
Well maybe a few things, but you won’t find those at the Container Store. This you will.
New Art Perks Up an Old Hamptons House – Artist Cole Sternberg and the “Arted House”
Let’s get the weird title out of the way. It’s “arted” (because it’s full of art) instead of “haunted” (because it’s full of ghosts), although owner Bryan Graybill thinks there might be a few arful spirits lurking about the charming Sagaponack cottage…
Loving Lotusland, a Garden (and a Gardener) Like No Other
Anybody with the stamina to marry six times is nothing if not energetic. Ganna Walksa was certainly that–and a visionary as well. Her beauty was legend, her voice sublime, her past a touch scandalous, and her portrait a gift from the czar of Russia. But her most fabulous legacy is Lotusland. Prepare to swoon.
Just Another Night at the Ranch… Starring Shirley Jones and the Cassidy Brothers
How often do you have in your living room an Academy Award-winning actress, a Tony Award-winning costume designer, an Emmy-winning composer, and a Grammy-nominated bona-fide teen idol all at once?
We did when we hosted a singalong with Shirley Jones and Shaun Cassidy and decided to make an evening of it. Rancho La Zaca was filled with music, laughter, and a tear or two.
500 Square Feet of Style, by Mary Douglas Drysdale
I admit I always fall a little in love with every single project I write about for magazines, and Mary Douglas Drysdale’s work in a tiny-ish Georgetown townhouse was no exception, except that it is exceptionally charming. Like her.
Fun Summer Fabrics to Refresh on a Budget
Summer’s sweltering right along and you may be hankering to spiff up your porch or sunroom without breaking the bank. Laurette Kittle has cooked up a line of fun summer fabrics that might be just the thing. Slipcover a sofa or or whip up a pillow or two and see […]
Tom Britt’s Impossibly Fab Hamptons Pool House
Nobody sizzles up a summer house like designer Tom Britt, whose Water Mill “barn” and pool house grace the July/August ’13 issue of Veranda, reported by moi. Tom’s designs are, like him, often bigger than life, and I am happy to call him friend. Even though he yells at me for half the interview and we laugh the other half.
Portraits in Fabric and Lace, by Maria Torroba… And a London Shopping Tip
If you like your shopping streets to have charming home decor shops, stylish one-off boutiques, a few antiques, and a good lunch or drinks spot, Walton Street in London is one of the best. Nina Campbell’s shop always seems to have exactly the thing you didn’t know you were dying […]