AERIN ARRIVES AT LEE JOFA: PRETTY LUXE

Photos courtesy of Aerin

Recently named one of Fast Company's 100 Most Creative People in Business, Aerin Lauder is poised to make the spheres of beauty, fashion and home more stylish with her lifestyle collection launches.  When I first heard over a year ago that Aerin was designing fabrics with Lee Jofa for her new Aerin lifestyle collection, I imagined the influences, her elegant grandmother Estee and her high style way of living, her travels, but had no inkling what direction it might take. The one thing I did know is that is she was partnering with Lee Jofa, it was going to  be imaginative, pretty, and beautifully executed. I was right on all counts, for the selection of velvets, prints, embroidery, wovens and textures is lush and luxe, and offers designs that easily integrate into traditional spaces or add something sumptuous to modern one's. Taking design classics, like the Tree of Life, an Indienne a batik and cut velvet, she has put her signature stamp on them, reinterpreting and recoloring the fabrics in uniquely fresh ways.  The fabrics complement furniture she recently debuted at High Point with EJ Victor, lighting with Visual Comfort and rugs also from Lee Jofa.  Here is a peek at the collection shown at Aerin headquarters last week. Today, at Kravet's Blogfest 2013, she will share her design sensibility in-depth, and take the group of bloggers through the studio to see the soon to be classics of tomorrow. 

The fabric story laid out to explore by color way.

Richly colored linen damasks sit beside an oversized cotton chevron print on one right side, an animal woven on the left.

Deep reds, rich blues, grass green and lilac in the damask linen.

My first look at Aerin's fabric came at the DIFFA dinner, where the linen damask in lilac made it's debut at the table she designed.

I loved seeing the damask print made casual by the addition of rattan and bamboo accents.

A rich chocolate colorway.

Blue is a signature color, making it's way into many of the patterns.

Birds and flowers add light, pretty elements to  a neo Tree of Life and Indienne pattern.

A new take on batik in shades of blue and white is great for a casual Island feel.

Gray is a neutral in the Aerin line. Remember how brown was the big neutral a few year's back? Gray is now its replacement.

A classic climbing vine on the Tree of Life pattern is reinterpreted in a simple, less-detailed revival. It's more modern in this incarnation.

Robust, juicy colors make this version a favorite. An ode to Joseph Frank.

Rich cut velvet in geometric squares.

The chevron goes Italian in a stried cut velvet.

The green tones are unusual and interesting, and the strie allows for greater flexibility with shades of green.

The same applies for the red, you can match it, but it doesn't need to be an exact match.