TRULY GIFTED: 15 GIFTS FOR THE GAL OR GUY ON THE GO

We all have those friends that never stay on the ground for too long. For those with serious wanderlust that can't seem to stay put, lavish them with travel appropriate accessories.  Satisfy their travel bug with the necessities that make their journey one to remember.  Adventure seekers and design divas alike will forge ahead in style this season.

 Photo courtesy of Mrs. Strong

 Getting a little tongue in cheek, the Don't Fuggedaboutit tablet notepad from Mrs. Strong will help the recipient  remember to tackle everything on their to do list before they step on the plane or train.

http://www.katieridder.com/

Everyone loves a crisp new tote to use while running errands. For the print and pattern fan, Katie Ridder's signature fabric and wallpaper prints now come on a cute tote bag. Order by emailing: info@katieridder.com

 Photo courtesy of T. Anthony

I need a new rolly bag in the worst way. The new carry-on Wheeled Duffle from T. Anthony fits in the overhead bin and is a nice addition to give to someone that has their luggage already. Mom, are you reading this?

Photo courtesy of Land's End

For the pal who is always en route to a picnic or party, the Lands End Wine Tote is just the thing.

Photo courtesy of Sister Parish

These little zippered pouches help keep the contents of a bag neat and tidy. Sister Parish printed fabric Cosmetic Bags come in a set of 3, and can keep your charger cords and passport separate and easy to access.

 Photo courtesy of Anya Hindmarch

A tiny bag that can serve double duty as a clutch and hold your camera, Anya Hindmarch's Courtney Moire Clutch will make interior designer friends happy with it's big ol' custom leather hanging tassel. 

Photo courtesy of Turkish T

Super lightweight and easy to pack, a robe is a travel must. Turkish-T's beautiful soft cotton Spa robes have a fringed hem and sleeve with spirited candy colored stripes. They can multi-task from breakfast to the beach.

Photo courtesy of Shop Bop

Mary Green's Sleeping Mask from Shop Bop will make for rested travelers.  Rested travelers are happy travelers.

Photo courtesy of Julia B.

It might surprise you how many people love to have the comforts of home while away. Long-haul flights and hotel rooms are just better with the addition of a pretty boudoir pillow.  Bring the comfort of your own bed with Julia B. baby pillows, she has a variety of  beautiful customized options.

 

 Photo courtesy of Saks

Ward off a chill with Queen of Cashmere's monogrammed travel throw with matching case. You never know when a bit of cashmere may come in handy.

Photo courtesy of Barneys

For those that never leave home without a signature scent, Frederic Malle's highly addictive Carnal Flower perfume comes in a portable spray (case not included).

Photo courtesy of mypressi

On the go and need a pick-me-up? Take the tiny well-designed My Pressi on Safari and always have your caffeine fix close at hand.

Get a game going anywhere. Play to win with Tory Burch's sleek Printed Portable Backgammon set.  Such a luxe version.

Photo courtesy of Momastore

Crisp sound, an FM Radio and alarm clock make Geneva's  bright red XS Sound System from Moma Store worth packing to travel.

Photo courtesy of Clare Vivier

A classic vide poche for a fraction of the Hermes prix, Clare Vivier's zesty red version is perfect and portable for keeping jewelry and other lotions and potions on the nightstand.

NY GIFT SHOW PREVIEW: SISTER PARISH'S PRINTS CHARMING ACCESSORIES DEBUT

I cannot contain how excited I am for these new Sister Parish Design fabric covered accessories and pillows. Accordion files, desk blotters, picture frames, note pads, pencil cups, photo albums, pillows, tissue box covers, wastebaskets, ice buckets, trays, napkins and tablecloths await you. I want one of each to have great gifts on hand at all times! This is why I am convinced I need a gift wrapping closet and a shelf in it for future gift giving.

Sister Parish's granddaughter Susan Bartlett Crater and Libby Cameron, Sister Parish's protégé and colleague founded Sister Parish Design, and launched their fantastic collection of fabrics and papers several years ago. Their accessory line will debut at the NY Gift show this weekend, say hi to Libby and Susan at Pier 94 Booth 44047!

All your favorite Sister Parish prints make for lively accessories. Dress up your office desk at work with a blotter and pencil cup to bring a bit of style to your space.

Photos Courtesy of Sister Parish Design
Pattern love!

Napkins and cloths make entertaining with style a snap

They make it so easy, these pillows are ready to go

THE FINAL BOOK SISTER PARISH GOES TO WINNER # 1 KELSEY HUBBARD AND CHRISTOPHER ROLLINSON

Sister Parish On Decorating goes to New York apartment dwellers Kelsey Hubbard and Christophher Rollinson. Rollinson, a decorative painter and designer used his paint line, Rollinson Hues to create a bright oasis in the city. The couple embraced a bright, mood-altering hue for big impact. Their furniture and accessories choices make their home young and fresh.

The inspiration: A room by LA designer and expert colorist Mary McDonald is full of life with bright pink, zebra and blue and white plates and vases.The vignette provided insight to placement, scale and working with color.

The creation:
The couple searched high and low for things they loved. "The mirror and chandelier we rescued from the Plaza Hotel sale before it turned into a condo. The stools we found from the Somerset Hills Visiting Nurses Assosiation rummage sale at Visiting Nurse Association. They were painted black with a blue velvet covered board, so I stripped and reupholstered them. The botanicals are from a street vendor in Paris and the carpet is from Source Perrier. The walls were the fun part. They are a metallic strie I mixed with a Rollinson Hues, my paint line, as a custom pigment formulation. Kelsey loved this picture (shown above) and while she was away one weekend, I hand mixed the color that Mary Mcdonald had used and put it on the wall. It was INTENSE! Like "Pepto" intense, so I figured I would try an experiment. With paint there is no such thing as a mistake, just another layer on the way to a beautiful finish! I grabbed some silver metallic paint and added pigments to make a raspberry glaze which I stried over the intense pink. The result made the walls look like pink ribbon candy. While quite a bit darker, the reflectiveness of the metallic along with the colorful Rollinson Hues pigmentation of both layers resulted in a colorful but mellow pink. It works really well with the adjacent high gloss chocolate brown walls in the living room." Their dog Matisse is actively involved in all major design decisions.

SISTER PARISH ON DECORATING: INCLUDES WATERCOLOR INTERIORS AND TALKS DESIGN WITH TODAY'S BEST

Sister Parish Design: On Decorating just came out from St. Martin’s Press. It was written and created by Sister Parish's granddaughter Susan Bartlett Crater and Libby Cameron, Parish's last protégé. Both of them bring a unique perspective and stylish take on interiors. For 15 years, Cameron worked for Sister Parish at Parish-Hadley Associates. Crater, an accomplished decoupage artist, and her mother, Apple Bartlett, also wrote Sister the Life of Legendary Decorator Mrs. Henry Parish II. With design running in the family, Bartlett started Sister Parish Design in 2001, and created a wildly successful line of fabrics and wallpapers based on the extensive Parish-Hadley archival designs. The line reflects Parish's loved pattern and color with a sense of whimsy. The book incorporates a charming array of watercolor interiors done by Mita Corsini Bland. They are so beautiful and bring each interior to life--- it is tempting to want to frame every last one.

I recently spoke with Susan about the project.

Why this book, why now?

I inherited a lot of water color interiors as I believe it was the fashion then to have interiors painted the way people had portraits of their children painted so there were a lot of them in our family. I love the way they look, but more importantly, they tell the story of a house or room a lot more than a photograph does- at least for me. I think they bring you in and make you think a little more. There is a bit more fantasy at work as well. You can use your imagination as to what went on in the room. Finally, Sally Richardson,head of St. Martins Press, promoted the idea as there are so many books of photographs on the market and she thought this one could be a little bit different. People have also said they have been reading the text of our book more because of the watercolors. They tend to just flip through the pictures in books with all photographs and ignore the text.

Libby and I both love books on design so we just naturally wanted to do one. You can see a list of our favorites and those of the contributors in the recommended reading list at the end of our book. We took the first apartment idea from Dorothy Drapers chapter in Decorating is Fun on the Brides apartment. We also referred back to books we have loved. Of course we both love Mark Hamptons books of watercolors so you can see the obvious references there.

What can the reader take away from the room paintings?

Hopefully inspiration, education and the desire to use your imagination and have fun making the rooms in your house comfortable, inviting and functional. Everyone who contributed to the book has a great passion for design and we hope it translated into the painting and text!

THE WATERCOLOR ROOMS

The black walls in Daniel Romualdez’s library provide a wonderful background for the colors in the bright rug and the books.

Sister Parish’s porch in Maine has a wonderful collection of wicker furniture, iron tables, and plant stands. The arched latticework adds an architectural element to the porch and frames the view.

A magnificent collection of reproduction bird prints dominates a game room designed by Tom Scheerer.

A creamware collection is beautifully set off in a cabinet in Todd Romano’s living room.

The bookcases in Brooke Astor’s library are framed in brass and the walls are lacquered in a deep, dark red, creating a wonderful framework for her late husband’s book collection.

Libby Cameron’s living room has a variety of patterns and textures. The pyramid-shaped bookcases flank a pair of French doors. Sister Parish Design’s “Serendipity” fabric is used for the curtains, and yellow “Campbell” covers an Ellis chair.

Miles Redd uses color and textiles to create a warm and inviting living room.

Albert Hadley’s bedroom represents his spare use of objects and his vivid use of color.

LEGENDS OF LA CIENEGA DESIGN WALK- LA'S DESIGN HAPPENING OF THE MOMENT

California's La Cienega Boulevard Design Quarter will get some much deserved attention over the next three days with the first Legends of La Cienega Design Walk. By celebrating design icons in window vignettes, today's LA interior designers reinterpret the work of home decor legends. Benefiting Habitat for Humanity Greater Los Angeles and sponsored by Elle Decor, a variety of design events are taking place through this Sunday, including book readings and panel discussions. Check out the full schedule at Elle Decor Legends.
For the shops that did not partake in the LA Antique Show, this is a way for them to get traffic. Over 40 decorative arts and antiques dealers in the area, the leading design district on the west coast, have banded together to form a supportive design alliance. This area needs all the interior designer rallying it can get, since fashion boutiques like Monique L'Huillier are slowly taking over.
Alluring window dressing was no problem for these designers. Below are some reasons to rubberneck:



Madeline Stuart honors Dorothy Draper at Downtown



McMillen, as created by Thomas Buckley at at Therien & Co.



Anthony Hail, presented by Jeffrey Hitchcock at Ralf's Antiques & Fine Arts



Sister Parish, exuberantly brought back by Joe Nye at Navona Antiques



At Paul Marra, a touch of zebra in a salute to Michael Taylor by Suzanne Tucker



Tony Duquette, channeled by Hutton Wilkinson at Baker Furniture




James Northcutt & Lou Cataffo, presented by Hendrix Allardyce at Jean de Merry


Chet Chidester, safari chic by Martyn Lawrence-Bullard at Woodson & Rummerfield's House of Design


Tim Clarke celebrates Mark Hampton at George Smith



Kim Alexandriuk tented the space in yards of fabric creating a Gladys Belzer moment at Bausman & Company



Suzanne Rheinstein presents a celebration of the legendary Elsie de Wolf at Downtown


All photos courtesy of Mark Savage and Elle Decor
Kalef Alaton with a light touch by Kerry Joyce at Rose Tarlow