May 2008

05/30/08

Scoop | Shedding Light on Color

Anyone who’s ever tried to paint a wall yellow knows that color can be extremely tricky and changes in different lights. That’s why we were excited to hear that Benjamin Moore is opening a showroom in the Mart by June 9 in suite 1686. It will be open only to designers and architects, so if you have one, get yours to take you over for expert color viewing. They’re tricking the place out with state-of-the-art lighting technology that lets you see colors in a range of lights (daylight, natural, incandescent, and halogen).

—JAN PARR

Photograph courtesy of Benjamin Moore

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05/29/08

Obsession | The Flea Marketeers

Adam Moroschan, our trusty associate art director, had another big idea. Why not head to opening day at the Randolph Market Festival and design a room on location using our favorite finds? We could call it “On the Spot” and post big Chicago Home + Garden signs at the market promoting it.  I believe he used the words “make it a spectacle.” Then, he said, we’ll publish the results in our special September/October eco-chic-design issue (after all, isn’t reusing and repurposing old treasures the best way to recycle?). So in true Adam form, he got it all together, right down to the perfectly art-directed fine weather!

I pull into port on Saturday, May 24, at 7:57 a.m. (the market opens at 10 but we spy plenty of in-the-know early birds.) The first find of the day? Front-of-the-gate, rock star parking. Let this be a sign. I head in, heart already racing (did I mention I am a flea market junkie?) to find Larry Vodak of Scout already perusing the rows (his home will get its close-up in our next issue, after all). I meet the crew  (shown above from left to right; I’m the one crouched at the bottom): Matt Gilson (photog and fellow collector), Nellie Williams (intern of all interns!), David Ettinger (Matt's ace assistant), and the aforementioned Adam. We set up our backdrop and let the fun begin.

Dashing up and down the aisles snapping pics of ideas and taking copious notes (thanks, Nellie), we decide a few of our finds would anchor well on a ruddy red and grey Turkish rug. It is said to have mystical powers. Who wouldn’t want that? We haul it over, and begin to build our room. Pairs of chairs, a settee, a mod coffee table (hey, is that Saarinen?). A wooden ironing board (yes, we repurpose it in our room). Hmmm. Feel like home yet? One of the most exciting parts of the day is that our picks begin to sell right off the set. My favorite part is adding the extras (dealers call them smalls – I call them personality) that make it look like someone lives there. Vintage specs on a side table and a retro cocktail glass. Shells from a vacation destination. Auction catalogs and old books. It’s nearing 11:12 a.m., and Matt snaps some pics. The crowd gathers. They are brimming with queries and offers to buy.

Shown at top right is a sneak peek of a few of our finds. Stay tuned for more in the September/October issue. To hear about some of my favorite ideas on flea marketing, tune in here for a recent interview with Sally Schwartz (owner of the market) and me on Nate Berkus’s Oprah and Friends show on XM Radio. A big shout out to Sally for her support (shown above, to the right of Nate). It’s good old-fashioned fun.

—BARRI LEINER

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05/28/08

Happy Hour | Lulu Book Release Party



The party for textile designer Lulu de Kwiatkowski's new book Lulu (AMMO) at Elements was hopping. The preggers designer sat up front signing her gorgeous folio with one of the evening’s hosts, Nate Berkus, sitting at her side and cracking jokes. “Let me answer that,” he quipped when I asked the authoress about the inspiration for her book. She told us (or actually, her PR person told us later, as she was so busy greeting admirers one felt bad making her go too deep) it was “all about the journey of the artist--how you get to where you are going.” And indeed these collage-style pages with diary entries and snapshots of family and friends, alongside original botanical art by Kwiatkowski herself, give you a peak inside her very creative mind. The other eye candy was Elements itself. The new store is amazing.

—Gina Bazer

Photos by Barry Brecheisen

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05/27/08

Scoop | Maxalto Opening in Chicago

Chicago will be the first city in the U.S. to get a freestanding Maxalto store (it’s opening June 6 at 309 W. Superior St. in River North). This collection by Antonio Citterio is part of B&B Italia but has a more classic look, with lines inspired by French design of the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s. —Gina Bazer

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05/23/08

InBox | Bright Light


Local designer Randall Kramer just let us know he is a finalist in a lighting contest sponsored by Design Within Reach. All the winning entries (Kramer’s is shown here) will be shown at Design Within Reach on June 10, 6:30 to 8:30PM, at the Tree Studios location, 10 E. Ohio St.

—JAN PARR

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05/22/08

Dilemma | Art Director to the Rescue


So, I mentioned on an earlier blog that I got a house. And here it is! Yay! The windows, though charming, are super-old and we are replacing them with new vinyl windows (I know, not ideal, but the place has 33 windows and we are on a budget!). I’ve been mulling over getting aluminum mullions put on these ho-hum newbies to preserve the original 1920s look, but when I mentioned this to our art director (and general in-house maven about everything that looks and doesn’t look good!) she told me that we must consider our options in Photoshop. What a beautiful thing! She got rid of the mullions to show me what the windows would look like with nothing, and I’m so relieved. I don’t need to order these fakey embellishments. The place looks better without them. Now she’s on another mission. Helping me decide whether to go with white windows or dark brown, given that I will eventually want to re-stucco the house in a different color. I will keep you posted. Anyone else have opinions on this? Please share!

—Gina Bazer

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05/21/08

Scoop | Hunting Season



Ladies and gentlemen. Straight from the farms of Sterling, Illinois, starring center stage in their first-ever appearance at Randolph Street Market Festival (formerly Chicago Antique Market): Rick and Linda Gibson of Henhouse Furniture and Antiques. We dig their one-of-a-kind pieces as well as their “yeah, we can make that from old wood for you” offerings (they’ll make you a killer kitchen island, like the one shown here). Stellar craftsmanship and sweet people to boot. If you’ve never been to the Chicago Antique Market, season five promises to be a hit. New name, same game. Go early. Go often. And look for us (we’ll be there opening day for a special feature we’re doing called “On the Spot,” designing a room with pieces we find at the market that day). Opening weekend Saturday, May 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, May 25, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

—BARRI LEINER

Photos:
Randolph Street Market Festival by Keith Portman
custom kitchen island from Henhouse Furniture & Antiques

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05/20/08

Scoop | Old is New Again


While looking for parking on Damen Avenue last week, I ran into an old friend I wanted to be sure you knew: Daniels Antiques. The Ashland Avenue warehouse shuttered about a year ago and this juicy new incarnation (at 2062 N. Damen Ave.) popped open with no fanfare, offering more of its ever-changing mix of mid-century modern and other antiquities of all ages. Georg Jensen pitcher anyone? Edward Wormley for Dunbar furniture? A 17th-century map? Guilty pleasures abound. Be schmoozy and get invited to the warehouse space the owner still maintains (a mainstay for decorators).

—BARRI LEINER

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05/19/08

Happy Hour | Apartment Therapy’s Small, Cool Party


My favorite design blog, Apartment Therapy, recently sponsored a contest, Small Cool 2008, in which design-savvy people living in less than 850 square feet competed for Room & Board gift certificates and accolades. I was one of the judges, who took readers’ picks and helped choose four winners from the semi-finalists. Apartment Therapy founder Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan flew to Chicago for the party last week, where the winners were announced. We were thrilled that a Chicagoan (and one of my picks) made it to the top four; see it here. We also hope to publish photos of this apartment—located in the iconic Marina City—in a future issue.

—JAN PARR

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05/19/08

Obsession | Maison Rouge

“Horse Mane,” photo by Ron Seymour

“That Guy’s Gotta Stop,” mixed media on canvas by Peter Mars

One of the great joys in my life is settling down with a large Diet Coke for an indie film or two at the Landmark Theatres in the Century Shopping Centre, but I usually just avoid the mall shops on the winding road up to my Shangri-lobby. It’s pretty much Retail Without a Cause, unless you’re in the market for board games based on reality television, or some cloyingly sweet body lotions (who are these customers demanding to smell like gingerbread pancakes, anyway?). But there is an unusual, salon-style gallery on the third floor called Maison Rouge that I’ll drop by now and then, and always see cool stuff. I like the WPA-ishness of some of the photos and paintings, and noted Chicago artists like Ed Paschke, Tony FitzPatrick, and Marc Hauser can often be spotted. This Peter Mars painting popped out to me, as did the black-and-white horse photos of Ron Seymour. The eclectic gallery also carries a great selection of sculpture, vintage silver items like watches and frames, and African-American art.

—BRADLEY LINCOLN

Images courtesy Maison Rouge



 

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05/16/08

Happy Hour | Alessandra Branca Opening


Alessandra Branca threw a party to celebrate the opening of her new home furniture and accessories store at 17 E. Pearson St. last week and it was quite a bash. The place, which is set up much like an elegant home, is full of fun finds (like the African feather headdresses pictured here) and antique glass radiometers on pedestal bases, along with china, silverware, Branca's favorite design books, antique chairs recovered in modern fabrics, and tons more. Her PR guy, recently relocated here from New York, said he didn't know of another store like it in this area, and I had to agree (maybe the just-opened Michael Del Piero's Good Design; see our May 7 blog entry)? Or Elements... But it's true that this is one store truly curated by its owner, with a great mix of old and new things that all seem fresh and modern, even if firmly grounded in the traditional. Elegant and charming—just like Branca herself.

—Jan Parr

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05/16/08

InBox | Lovely Lanterns


Interior designer Kara Mann just sent over pics of some new lanterns from Casamidy that she is carrying at her showroom. They are so cool, I want one in every room of my new house (about which I will soon be sharing—so exciting!). They are meant for the outdoors, of course, but I like the idea of pretending that I live in a medieval French castle. (At least for now, while the electrician is updating some of the wiring in our new, um, old place).

—Gina Bazer

Photos courtesy Kara Mann

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05/15/08

Scoop | Post27


It’s always fun to drive west on Grand Avenue and discover a new storefront. The good stuff always pops on this strip of old warehouses and invariably (at least in my case) leads to a near-collision. A recent discovery is Post27 (1819 W. Grand Ave., 312-829-6122; you’ll read more about it in our July/August issue) in the old location of Olde Good Things. With a cool mix of vintage (lots of mid-century Scandinavian pieces) and new American-made accessories that all have a cool, eco-stylish slant, the place feels very indie and hip. Here’s a decorating tip: they have Thomas Paul rugs hanging on the walls as art. Love that for a loft space!

—Gina Bazer

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05/15/08

InBox | The New Bronze Age


Two great local companies have teamed up to produce a new line of cabinetry with gorgeous hardware. Jill Salisbury of el: Environmental Language has partnered with New Bronze Age Tile to come up with sustainable new cabinet doors in her el: Kitchen line. These fab new doors—in sustainable rift-cut oak or walnut—feature custom metal inlays and handles.

—JAN PARR

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05/14/08

Happy Hour | Green Design Party


Sit down, relax, and don't worry about global warming. (Well, worry about it a little.) You'll be helping the environment when you lounge in Roscoe Jackson's new line of recycled plastic outdoor furniture (look for these cool chairs in our July/August issue!). Also try on some eco-conscious attire from Pivot boutique, and check out the much-talked-about Smart Car. Get a 25-percent-off discount on an item from Pivot when you purchase the guilt-free lawn loungers or make a Smart car reservation. If you are already the proud driver of one of these groovy tiny new automobiles, pull up in yours and feel extra cool. Hors d'oeuvres from Carnival will also make an appearance. May 15, 5 to 8 p.m., at Pivot Boutique, 1101 W. Fulton Mkt. Click here for more details.

—JACKIE HUNZINGER

Photo courtesy of about.com.

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05/13/08

Scoop | Color My World


The magazine House Beautiful hosted a “Color Institute” last week at the Mart. It featured a panel with HB’s editor, Stephen Drucker, local design maven Alessandra Branca  and Windsor Smith, a designer from Los Angeles. Here’s what I learned about color from each:

Stephen Drucker on color trends:

  • “The new femininity.” Pretty, flirty colors such as apple green and pink, especially used on strong shapes.
  • ”The new globalism.” Lots of rich colors that reflect homeowners’ travels.
  • Neutrals. “A lot of people talk color but only use neutrals.” The today factor: lots of distressing and metallics.
  • Tropical greens and browns.
  • Water and sky blue colors brought to life with metallic shimmer, texture, and mixed with greys (see photo above).
 Windsor Smith’s tips and observations:
  • She loves dark, dark brown—nearly charcoal black, with light salmon
  • Acknowledge the landscape. If your home has a lot of art, you need to create a neutral backdrop for it.
  • When you paint windows dark, what’s beyond it (trees, shrub, flowers) pops. If you paint them white, your eye stops at the white.
  • Teenagers inexplicably love purple. Naturally, this very strong color is hard to work with (and isn’t everything hard with teenagers?).
  • Go-to Colors: Benjamin Moore Rock Harbor Violet, Benjamin Moore Decorator’s White
 Alessandra Branca’s observations:
  • She wakes up to “spring every day” in a room that’s apple green and white
  • Black balances… it’s as much a color as any other.
  • No color is bad unless it’s overused.
Find lots of other great color tips from House Beautiful here:

—JAN PARR

Photo courtesy House Beautiful

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05/12/08

Happy Hour | Get Smart

We went to see the Museum of Science and Industry's new Smart Home last week, a fab pre-fab that's all green. Our colleague Cassie Walker from Chicago magazine was also there, and posted this item about it.

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05/09/08

InBox | Not Your Neighbor’s Sunbrella


SilverState just sent along samples of its newest Sunbrella collection of outdoor fabrics, called Casual Elegance by Joe Ruggiero. Still packed with all the good no-stain-no-fade-couldn’t-wrinkle-if-you-tried properties of its well-known past. But, wow.  Yes, WOW. It’s soft. The patterns are swanky. The colors are sophisticated. Why leave it outside? Bring it on in! Make a shower curtain. Cover a small bench for the bath. Heck—cover the whole family room in the stuff. If it resists mold and mildew, surely it can stand up to a stampede of messy kids. Available through designers only (it’s about $50 to $70 per yard).

—BARRI LEINER

Images courtesy of SilverState

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05/08/08

Happy Hour | Wall Royalty

A quick check reveals Maya Romanoff doesn’t make the list of claimants to the Russian throne, but in the world of glam wall coverings (think gold leaf and mother-of-pearl) he’s unchallenged royalty. Last Thursday night Maya and family hosted 200 guests from 14 countries (and me) at the opening of Maya Romanoff Corp’s new 40,000 square foot inter-galactic headquarters in Skokie. Seems the company burst from its old downtown Chicago space when sales doubled between ’05 and ’07. Maya, his brother, and son-in-law held court in crimson czarist-era sashes while the Romanoff women (representing the Czarina and Princess of Wallpaper) wore Swarovski tiaras that would have brought tears to a Bolshevik’s eyes. Champagne flowed, and from somewhere deep in the warren of cubicles the fabulous Maxwell Street Klezmer Band belted out the swinging sounds of old Odessa. This warehouse/workroom/showroom is open to the trade only, but judging from the babel of languages at the party the pros are already wearing a path to the new door. (Party chatter had it that the walls of Dubai’s newest palaces are lined in Romanoff.)

—LISA CREGAN

David Seaman (left) and Maya Romanoff
Credit: Photos courtesy AngelaSwan.com

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05/07/08

Scoop | Budget Design

 
If unearthing cheap and chic home stuff and Target and T.J. Maxx gets your adrenaline running, stop by the new shop Home Accents in Andersonville (5653 N. Clark St., 773-754-8466). Owner Kevin Idlewine is a wholesaler who decided to open his own storefront, while still selling to retailers such as Home Goods and Marshalls. He goes to the Maison d’Objets trade fair in Paris regularly, notes the trends, then calls on his manufacturers in China and India to reproduce them for less. Find vases (including some pretty good Jonathan Adler knock-offs) for $25 to $50 and pillows ranging from $20 to $25. The most expensive item in the store is a $225 chandelier-style lamp covered with a string shade (it’s made with real crystals). He also has a good selection of pots and ornaments for the garden. Everything in the store is conveniently arranged by colors.  

—  GINA BAZER

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05/07/08

Happy Hour | Michael Del Piero

“Welcome!” an enthusiastic and happy Michael Del Piero greeted us at a party to celebrate the opening of her new design showroom, Good Design. “The best part is this,” she said, motioning to the back, where her desk is. No more working from home. For us, though, the best part is the front of this Damen Avenue storefront, where Del Piero has arranged a selection of stylish, earthy, and often oversized accessories that just wowed us. It was no surprise to us that in attendance were stylistically compatible friends who included Larry Vodak of Scout and interior designer Laura Soskin.

—JAN PARR


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05/06/08

Happy Hour | Arik Levy


I’ve been going to a sporadic series of lectures at the Museum of Contemporary Art called “People Who Shape Our World,” featuring various muckety-mucks of the design and art communities. Recently it was Arik Levy, an Israeli-born designer who lives in Paris and has collaborated with firms like Ligne Roset, Baccarat Crystal, and Zanotta to market his furniture, tableware, jewelry, and lots of other stuff, some of which is ending up in pretty prestigious museum collections. Levy gave a charming, cerebral slide presentation that made me think about how people connect to what they fill their houses with. If you put a light bulb in a chair, does that make it a lamp? Hmmm...thinky. I really like this origami-inspired coffee table for Baleri Italia, and these tables for Zanotta. I’ve spotted his furniture at Orange Skin and Luminaire. You can also find his candleholders at the MCA gift shop.

—BRADLEY LINCOLN

Baleri Italia table image courtesy unicahome.com; image of wire tables courtesy Zanotta

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05/05/08

InBox | Pretty Pottery


We’ve written about the history of Teco Art Pottery, which is now being reproduced in Carol Stream by Prairie Arts. Two new shades, aqua and orange, have been added to the palette of glaze colors. This “Kiss” vase is my favorite shape. And love the new modern shades.

—JAN PARR

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05/02/08

InBox | Ann Sacks Rocks!


Just got a press kit from Ann Sacks featuring all of the incredible new designs the company introduced at the recent Kitchen/Bath show. The colorful Paccha line (see red and white tile above) is the real Moroccan deal, handmade in Marrakech. I’m not sure where I would put this bold flooring—perhaps in a powder room? Kitchen? Probably a small space to pack a punch. Also love the carved stone by Robert Kuo (see the Hua, or “bunches of flowers,” design above). It’s marble hand-chiseled with subtle Chinese motifs that feel both modern and ancient at the same time. Finally: the Perennial line of ceramic mosaics (see the royal blue and white photo above). What a cool alternative to wallpaper.

—GINA BAZER

Photos courtesy of Ann Sacks

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05/01/08

InBox | I Dream of Teepees

  

Two long months.  Two hundred–plus listings. (Shelia Starr from Baird & Warner deserves two million gold stars for patience alone!) A two-block radius to stay within the desired school district. Two exhausted kids. Two losing bids. Too many grim rentals to even consider. Then, one fine just-when-you’re-not-looking-day, the answer arrives by way of email. Leave it to Orange Skin, that bastion of hip furnishings. They call themselves a “complete resource for modern design,” but who knew they had entered the real estate game? My girls are so excited when they see the snaps of the modern wigwam designed by Jose A. Gandia for Gandia Blasco. Comes complete with a small interior mattress made of nautical plastic. We’ll add some Piramide portable lamps (see the lighting leading up to the teepee in the photo) and be done. What more could a girl ask for? I think we’ll take three. Hope Nettelhorst school will let us put up our teepees on the playground. You can’t get more chic—or in-district—right?

BARRI LEINER

Images courtesy of Orange Skin

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About This Blog

Design Dose
Design Dose is the online extension of the inspiration, advice, and scoop that Chicago Home + Garden provides every other month, only in smaller doses. Editors Jan Parr and Gina Bazer—as well as special guest bloggers—share news and trends from their in-boxes, confess their latest design obsessions and dilemmas, and take you behind the scenes to exclusive design events and showrooms. Have a local design fave, scoop, or dilemma of your own? Share it with us here.

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Chicago Home + Garden’s trends and products editor Barri Leiner has her finger on the pulse of all things stylish in the world of home design
Contributing writer and copy editor Bradley Lincoln is our turn-to guy for everything from placing commas to tracing trends.

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