Downstairs at Maison de Luxe

I want to thank Luxe Magazine for inviting me to attend last week's Maison de Luxe Opening Night Gala event. The show house, taking place at the glorious Greystone estate in Beverly Hills, is quite a success thanks to the hard work and skill of an impressive mix of designers. Over the next few days, I plan to show my photos of the house. (You'll have to forgive the quality of some of the images; taking photos at night with people milling about is not my area of expertise.)

The house is around 50,000 square feet, so needless to say, I took a lot of photos. Today's post features the rooms on the first floor and basement. Tomorrow, it's the upstairs that will be the focus. There are many other decorator rooms that I was not able to photograph, so if you happen to be in Los Angeles over the next few weeks, I highly encourage you to visit the show house for yourself. You won't be disappointed!



First up, the Grand Entry Foyer that was decorated by Timothy Corrigan. Corrigan chose a rich red Phillip Jeffries grasscloth paper to warm up the vast space.



Corrigan also designed the Grand Center Hall on the second floor.



A Corrigan vignette on the second floor.



A detail of one of the urns flanking Corrigan's seating area in the second floor hall.



Looking down the stairs into the Grand Hall and Card Room, both decorated by Michelle Nussbaumer. Born settees were a popular accent in a few rooms.



Looking across Nussbaumer's Card Room.



Two card tables at the ready.



One side of the Card Room.



This fixture in the Card Room caught my eye.



Barry Dixon decorated the Library.



One side of the Library.



I'm taken with this intaglio table (one of a pair) that Dixon chose for his room.



I couldn't resist taking a photo of this vintage dog book that was displayed on a cocktail table in Dixon's room.



The Living Room as envisioned by Jamie Drake.



Mary McDonald decorated the East and West Grand Halls in shades of blue and white. How stunning is that ceiling?



An assemblage of brackets with blue and white porcelain and white flowers.



McDonald even created vignettes above the doors.




Two more detail shots of McDonald's Hall.



Suzanne Rheinstein decorated the Guest Suite. At either end of the room were screens upholstered in her new embroidered Vermicelli fabric for Lee Jofa.



A square born settee.



The opposite side of the Guest Suite.



Philip Gorrivan's Breakfast Room.



Another view of the Breakfast Room.



And another born settee.




A detail of the Kyle Bunting rug used in the Breakfast Room.



The Social Secretary Room as designed by Kathryn Ireland.




The Dining Room by David Phoenix.




Phoenix chose one of my current favorite china patterns for the table: Alberto Pinto's Champignon.




Nathan Turner's handiwork is seen in the Rec Room off of the basement bowling alley.




A vintage issue of Playboy graced the bar in Turner's room.

All photos with the exception of the exterior were taken by Jennifer Boles for The Peak of Chic.

Christopher Spitzmiller Visits One Kings Lane

To borrow a phrase from Albert Hadley's famous notepads: "Don't Forget"! Tomorrow night is a big night on One Kings Lane. Christopher Spitzmiller will be having his very own Tastemaker Tag Sale. Starting tomorrow (Tuesday) at 9pm EST, the sale will feature both Christopher's iconic lamps as well as items from his personal collection.

There will be 60 lamps offered, including 20 pairs and 20 single lamps- all of which are considered to be "seconds", meaning they either have slight glaze irregularities or are non-standard colors. I have purchased seconds lamps from Christopher and I have yet to find the irregularities on them. (I know that they're there, but I just can't find them.) This is a great opportunity to buy his beautiful lamps at 30% off the list price.

Also included will be 25 lots from Christopher's personal collection including a Comer Jennings painting of a Magnolia, an antique Venetian mirror that Christopher originally purchased from Sotheby's, and numerous books. I covet Christopher's entire book collection, so I'm especially excited to see what books he has listed.

So, don't forget to mark your calendars for Christopher's big sale tomorrow evening!



Peeking into Christopher's entry hall where one of his lamps graces a console table.

Off to Maison de Luxe

I'm currently in Los Angeles attending the opening festivities of the Maison de Luxe Designer Show House at Greystone. The show house, sponsored by Luxe Interiors + Design Magazine, features rooms decorated by some of the country's top designers. I'm also looking forward to catching up with my L.A. friends. And once I get over the inevitable jet lag that I'll have upon my return, I'll be back to regular posting. See you next week.

Heads Up

I've only been to Lock & Co. Hatters twice, but both times I've found myself staring at the Fezzes and the smoking caps. Are there men who still wear smoking caps? And, unless you're a Shriner or you live in the Middle East or Turkey, at what kind of occasions would you wear a Fez? If you know of other Fez wearing groups or occasions that call for the hat, please tell me.

What I have noticed, though, is that Fezzes often make decorative appearances in homes. Hamish Bowles' entrance hall comes to mind, as does the master bedroom of designer Alex Papachristidis. I recently spied one in a London home that was featured in the November issue of UK House & Garden. Some people choose to display their fezzes solo, while others place the hats on busts and sculptures.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find a vignette featuring a smoking cap, but I'm sure it's out there.


The Fezzes in Hamish Bowles' apartment appear to be vintage Shriner hats.



In this London home, a Blackamoor bust wears a Fez.



Alex Papachristidis' Fez may not technically be a Fez, but it suits the purpose of this post.



The French photographer Jean-Pierre Godeaut wearing his Fez.



Christian Louboutin wearing one while in Morocco. Louboutin also owns the beaded red Fez to the right that was designed by milliner Stephen Jones.


Bowles photo from Vogue Living, Mar/April 2010, Stewart Shining photographer; London photo from House & Garden, November 2011, Mel Yates photographer; Papchristidis photo from Elle Decor, Roger Davies photographer; Godeaut photo from Paris Interiors. Louboutin photo from Vogue Living: Houses, Gardens, People, Francois Halard photographer.

Winter Entertaining

Because so many of us are already decorating our homes for the holidays, I figured that there was no time like the present to start writing about Christmas table settings. While rifling through my holiday files over the weekend, I found this Veranda article about Christmas entertaining in the Paris dining room of Barbara and Didier Wirth.

I think that the first thing one is struck by is all of that fabulous red blanketing the room. Come December, Barbara hangs custom-made red fabric panels over the room's green and white tile walls. A red tablecloth and red taffeta blinds add to the color theme. What's nice, though, is that blue is used as an accent color on both the table and the mantel, something that gives the room more of a wintery feel rather than a holiday one. And the table itself is perfection when set with Venetian stemware, silver candlesticks and chargers, Malbranche embroidered napkins, and lampwork figures placed around the table. (The figures, made in Nevers during the 18th century, were made from glass softened over an oil lamp flame.)

Coincidentally, I happened to find other photos of the Wirth's Paris apartment in the book Paris Interiors. I'm not sure if this is the same apartment or not, but the photos are so attractive that I wanted to include them as well. You can see the Wirths' entrance hall and study below.





























Dining room photos from Veranda, Thibault Jeanson photographer. Remaining photos from Paris Interiors, Eric Adjani photographer.