Cream-colored ponies and crisp apple strudels; Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles;

More of a my personal favorite things... and this one is a real "trade" secret!!!... 

Every good and reputable interior designer carries one around in his/her tote bag just in case of emergencies...

This is a miracle tool!  It will touch up floors, furniture, frames... You name it, it'll fix it!  Scratches on a new wood floor from those super careful movers...  Grab your Sharpie!...  Gold leaf picture frame got a little dinged up...  Add a touch of Sharpie to the nicks and you've got a glorious distressed look!  What the hell did the rivets on your jeans do to that leather sofa...  I don't know, since you can't see it after I took my Sharpie to it...

SHARPIE, Pick one up for yourself!!!

People need to wake up and stop hating!!!...

Asher Brown, 13

Billy Lucas, 15

Seth Walsh, 13

Tyler Clementi, 18

Do you know who these boys are?  Do you know their faces?  You shouldn't, but you do now...  These boys all committed suicide because of the ignorance of those around them...  Why in this day and age are gays still the acceptable target for bullying and harassment?  It seems like this country has turned a blind eye to the equality for all...  In another post I mentioned Canada, and how they at least have the decency to treat us as humans, and not second class citizens as this country does...  I'm so sick looking at these faces.  These are kids who were teased and taunted to the point where they felt that their lives weren't worth living...  When is this country going to stand up for the rights of all and put a stop to things like this from happening?  Matthew Shepard should've never happened, but should have been the last time we would have heard of incidents of kids losing their lives because of who they were...  Adrian brought up the point to me, which makes me so sad, that these kids won't get a chance to find that one person in their lives who make them happy.  They won't have the opportunity to rise above all the hatred, and have a family.  I feel so fortunate for having my boys with me, but my heart aches at the fact that these 4 boys weren't given that chance... I hope this world changes, and hate of others because you don't understand them becomes an appreciation for the differences we all share...

What's up GLEEK's!!!

So did anyone else have a hallucination about Britney Spears last night?  Okay, if you don't watch Glee, you need to start, and if you do watch it, I hope you caught the Britney episode last night...  If not, you need to...  Now!!!

Wouldn't it be fun to be Britney's designer or even more tragic, Lindsey's????  I mean come on.  Like what would you image they would want in their homes?...  Lindsey would probably want that metal chaise Madonna used in the Rain video...  Wipe any fluids off easily...  It's all about practicality kids!

Who's place would you love to peek into and get all up in their business?  Who's place would you need a Hazmat uniform to walk over the threshold? 

I know one particular house where the sheets probably stand up on their own and false lash droppings and protein powder probably coat the formica counter tops and vinyl floors... Mmmmm...  Gotta love that bunch!

Look!  8 reasons to scotch guard your fabrics!!!

Wedding Stress...

So this morning a friend of mine asks me my opinion on a black and white table cloth?...  I wasn't sure where she was going with the conversation till she whips out a picture of a formal table setting with a black and white wide striped cloth as an option for her wedding...  It was an interesting idea, then I asked about the flowers, the size of the table and how many tables...  The picture showed a table no more than 48" round, meaning much of the surface was covered with the china and flatware and a horrible arrangement of multi-colored posies and roses or something. (BTW not opposed to posies and roses, just not together, and especially not on this table...  I digress)  So it turns out it's going to be about 15 tables of 10... That's a lot of people and a lot of stripe.  My instant thought was Beetlejuice. 

Okay, obviously not the intention of the bride...  So I ask about the flowers...  She was thinking red.  It's probably fine, and very classic look, the black, white, red combo, but I still wasn't feeling it... 

I have to say it's a tough call.  From what she said her mother and mother in law to be are quite traditional in their thinking of what a proper wedding should be and consist of...  Maybe as an alternative to the stripe as it is so graphic, another type of pattern for the black and white cloth?  I'm loving Ikat's right now, so I know totally untraditional, but fun...  Then maybe instead of red, doing a pale lilac and deeper purple tones... I love the really dark purple calla lilies that almost look black, mixed only with the lighter purple variations for the center?

My thinking may be totally out in left field, and Preston Bailey would probably kill me, but I'm not a wedding planner...  I can't even imagine what you girls have to go through...  So glad I got my man and got hitched in our jeans and baseball caps.  God Bless America Canada!...  (The two boys getting married thing to our friends up north isn't such a big deal... It's even legal up there!)

A Linen by any other name, just isn't the same...

One of the staple fabrics I love to use is a great linen... It's timeless, it's effortless, it's chic.  It can be dressed up, dressed down...  It's the equivalent of your favorite pair of jeans that you can put your Tory Burch ballerina flats on with for day, then slip on the Louboutin to die for heels on at night.  Linen, especially one with a great weight to it, with countless gorgeous colorways is always on my radar...  Well I have found yet another to add to my bag of goodies... This one comes from Castel in 15 shades of amazing.  The fabric, I was told by the girls in the corporate office here in NYC was actually named after my son PAOLO...  How awesome is that?...

Orange and Black doesn't always need to remind us of a Scary Witch or a Frightful Cat...

How'd this picture get in there?...

The color combination of orange and black is one that isn't often used in home decor other than for that 6 week span where we are feeling particularly goulish and ghostly, and pull out all those horrible decorations for the kids, which I know far too much about since it looks like a party we'll be throwing a little bash year.  But in the real world of everyday use, the pairing isn't as thematic as you might think... 

Check out this amazing printed cotton fabric from Designers Guild, called Delancey Vermilion....

Gorgeous right, so what I did for this client who wanted to purposely be a little more playful is to take this fabric but divide it asymetrically and flank both sides of it with a fuscia linen, joined together at the seams with a limey green leather welt...  Before you think I've gone completely off the deep end, check out the results.

Now I do understand the gorgeous cream lacquered pig bench by Robert Kuo at the foot of the bed isn't everyone's cup of tea, but again, these clients were looking for the whimsical and fun!  Sumptuous black linens, with a pop of that limey green color on the pillow shams and throw, complimented by the orange lacquered mirror... Sure works for me, without a hint of Halloween!

The MOTHER of all Chandeliers

Is this not the sickest looking piece of lighting you've seen?!...  I've had the extreme good fortune to have just had a client who is bold enough to specify this masterpiece for their dining room.  It is going to look simply breathtaking as you walk into their entry foyer with a clear view to the open floor plan dining area.  The high polished jewelry quality nickel chains being draped off the 3 laser cut bands is so impressive, the client left the showroom exclaiming, "It's so beautiful, I want to wear it!..."  This exquisite piece is from Hudson Furniture, and aptly named "Mother".

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens; Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens...

Just another one of my favorite things...

So as the weather starts to cool down and you're looking to pull out the winter linens, and of course that pillowy and warm down comforter; why not try a mid-weight quilted coverlet during the transition of seasons.  One of my favorite items is the box quilted Masaccio coverlet by Signoria Firenze.  It's the perfect density to use paired only with a flat sheet for those cool Autumn evenings.  It's also a great way to add a splash of color over your existing sheet set.  It's available in over a dozen and a half luscious colors.

*Simple style tips for living in a chic world*

The easiest way to get your closet looking like it was custom tailored for you by an expert is to get rid of the dozens of mixed matched hangers.  You don't need to keep those god awful plastic hangers that come with the clothes from the store!  You don't need to just keep your dry cleaning on the hangers they give you!  No more wire hangers!  Please just do yourself a favor and pick up a few boxes of those really simple wood hangers from any bed and bath store.  It's so simple, but so effective because there is some consistency in size, shape and form, you can't imagine the transformation for under a $100.  When you use those mailer coupons, it may even be less!  Believe me, your clothes will actually be much happier as well...

Use your common SCENTS...

The success of a room is not only found in the luxurious hand of the chenille upholstery fabric on the sofa, or that gorgeous Walnut side table, or even that French Limestone Mantle...  All your senses need to be working in harmony to create an environment that is truly fab.  These are a few of my favorite picks to help bring your room to the next level...

Agraria San Francisco, Inc.-Balsam Air Essence

$110.00

Cote Bastide-Ambre Crystal Potpourri $62.00

Diptyque-Figuier Candle $60.00

Sabon NYC-Aroma Bordeaux $34.00

Don't forget kids like a bit of style as well...

Before Adrian and I even closed on purchasing our place almost 2 years ago today, I purchased wall paper for my son Paolo's room.  Needless to say, like the plumber with the leaky faucet, that paper sat in a drawer till a few months ago.  His room was previously occupied by another little boy, almost the same age as Paolo.  It was painted a typical light blue color with a horrible wallpaper border running around the room.  Well, that border was taken down immediately, but the paint remained.

A year and a half later I finally borrowed a miter saw from a friend and decided that Paolo deserved what was always intended...  I installed a chair rail running around the room, and began papering below the molding, when I realized I had not calculated in the large repeat of the camouflage design.  So quick thinking, I blocked out an area for some cork board, framed out with molding to make up for my mis-measuring.  At the end of the day the papering, pin up board and molding were a success.  I color matched the different shades of grey on the paper and painted the walls above the molding a light heathery grey, almost the color of cement.  The trim and the doors were done in a charcoal grey color.

Through work I inherited a custom designed red leather bench with chrome legs.  This gave us the idea to spray all the frames and shelves we already had up in the room in the same Chinese red lacquer color. I then introduced a lime green to offset the reds and greys to keep the room youthful, but still chic.  He's the kid of a designer, it shouldn't be any other way.

To finish off the room I picked up a pair of kid sized version of the Phillipe Stark Ghost chair, a Noguchi Cyclone table, and the minature version of the classic Bertoia Diamond Lounge chair, upholstered in a wonderfully nubby green boucle.

A lot of work and effort for a kid's room!...  Yeah, I agree, but why should the little people of the world be denied a little, or in this case a lot of style!

Come enter my world...

Welcome to the world of design, at least the way I perceive it, and what influences me to be creative...  Finding inspiration happens by chance, whether it's a new found fabric, an advertisement in a magazine, the way light creates shadows and movement on the sidewalk... Don't limit yourself to what you think you're supposed to find beautiful because the world around you says it's so.  Like so many things in life, you can't explain why certain colors evoke specific emotions or why a scent can be exquisite to you and putrid to someone else; just embrace all the wonderfulness that the world let's you stumble upon... 

I found this fabric over a year ago, and it still brings me so much joy to look at it.  I can't explain why, I'm not a paisley kind of guy, but this is something that speaks to me...  I love the colors, the pattern, the texture, and why???  I don't know...  What speaks to you?