Southern Charmer

By Haskell Harris | August 14, 2009 | Design

It used to be a given that if you wanted to make it big in the world of interior design, you had to establish a practice in New York. In other words, if you were a southern interior designer, you might as well pack it up and move to Manhattan if you wanted anybody to remember your work (Southerners like Bunny Williams and Charlotte Moss ended up there). But the old school rules are changing, thanks to interior designers like Suzanne Kasler, the widely published Atlanta style arbiter who’s stayed put in Georgia, and now has luxury furniture, fabric, floor coverings, wallpaper, and lighting collections that bear her name. And she hasn’t stopped there. This October, she debuts her first book, Inspired Interiors, a lush photographic tour of her favorite projects. A sneak peak follows below. (All images courtesy of © Suzanne Kasler: Inspired Interiors, Rizzoli New York, 2009.)

Even if you don’t know the first thing about decorating, it’s hard not to get inspired by the wide range of looks in the book, from rustic cabins to city houses to laid-back beach cottages. There is literally something for everyone. 

Though the 224-page volume won’t hit stores until the fall, it is available for pre-order here. Also, keep your eyes peeled for a story on Suzanne Kasler's favorite room in our October/November issue.

Sneak Peek: Texas River House

By Haskell Harris | June 23, 2009 | Design

Recently I've been thinking that I should give a sneak peek of some style related things coming up in the magazine.

So here goes: My favorite Southern Style piece in our upcoming August/September issue is about an idyllic Texas river house on the banks of the Guadalupe River.

The photo below is an out-take from our photo shoot (Andrew Geiger shot it for us and he's amazing). I love how minimal the camp cots are, and the whole house has the same vibe. It's both rustic and modern—a combination that always works: 

Photo by Andrew Geiger

Stay tuned for an expanded gallery of out-takes when the next edition hits newsstands.

And just in case you might want to try the utilitarian look of camp furniture at home, here are a few sources:

1) Cabela's army cot (almost a dead ringer for the one above):

Photo courtesy of cabelas.com

2) The beautiful and super expensive cot by Bottega Veneta, quite possibly the chicest daybed ever designed:

Photo courtesy of bottegaveneta.com

3) These camp stools from Design Within Reach feel like something off the set of Out of Africa. A pair of them at the end of a bed in an all white room would be fantastic:

Photo courtesy of dwr.com

4) The classic stools from Hable Construction. Everyone has seen these, but I think they always look perfect in children's rooms because the colors are so happy:

Photo courtesy of apartmenttherapy.com

The Bike Life

By Haskell Harris | June 12, 2009 | Design

So it's Friday afternoon and this is a Friday afternoon kind of post.

It's about bikes. Beach cruisers by fashion designer Cynthia Rowley to be exact.

The Charleston influence is easy to see in all four styles, including the tandems. 

Here's why: she came here last Fall and opened a charming store on King Street, and that trip was her first to Charleston, a city where you can count at least five leggy blonde girls on beach cruisers for every block you walk—rain or shine, winter or summer. They are, as they say, part of the culture. Just a few months later, she had her models at New York's Spring 2009 Fashion Week ride down the catwalk at the end of the show on her whimsical line of beach cruisers.

Every last one of them flew off the runway (not literally). One even ended up on an episode of Gossip Girl.

Photo courtesy of coolspotters.com

Now the shop in Charleston has two, propped cheerfully in the plate glass windows between the mannequins wearing adorable things like this:

Photo courtesy of cynthiarowley.com

So what does Rowley have to say about it all?

"I think everyone wants to customize the things they use and love a lot, make them their own. I wanted to do something that is just as stylish as people are in other areas of their lives. And bikes are the best way to get around town, whether in New York or Charleston. They're good for you and for the environment."

Without further adieu, here they are: 

Tree Hugger

By Haskell Harris | May 19, 2009 | Design

Most mornings here in Charleston (even now, with the heavy weather of summer upon us) I walk down to the Battery and meander back to my house via some quiet backstreet or cobblestone alley—with the hope that I might catch a glimpse inside a jewel-box garden.

Yesterday, the entrance to one such garden was left wide open, and as I passed it, I saw the most enchanting scene. A tidy courtyard replete with potted citrus, confederate jasmine, and creeping fig, but more importantly, a lone ancient oak with a charming garden bench wrapped around its base.

Wrapped is the only way I can describe it, because the wood bench itself (in this case painted Charleston Green, which is almost black) literally wrapped all the way around the trunk, so that four people could easily sit and chat at an outdoor party.

This morning, I was on a mission to find a similar design. The teak bench (pictured below) from outdoor outfitter Barlow Tyrie is pretty close. Just picture it, all weathered and gray in an old garden. So pretty!

A Fabric Story

By Haskell Harris | May 4, 2009 | Design

I am consistently obsessed with the history of things, particularly when it comes to design.

Which is exactly why I wanted to share this  style anecdote. 

A while back, I visited the very down-to-earth CEO of design powerhouse Dessin Fournir, Chuck Comeau.

He walked me through the various offices and workspaces for the Dessin Fournir brand (I met the welders at Palmer Hargrave Lighting, pored over drawings for new furniture in the Kerry Joyce line, shopped around at the retail store C.S. Post, etc.).

But my favorite stop was Classic Cloth.

In the warehouse, they had mile after mile of beautiful fabric bolts stacked all the way to the ceiling. Talk about heaven!

Then Chuck introduced me to the fabric designers who create all that gorgeous yardage day in and day out. 

One of their newest styles was inspired by a pillowcase from the Petit Trianon on the grounds of Versailles.

Chuck bought a remnant at Christie's of the original (a rustic, flax colored linen embroidered with yellow silk thread in a delicate floral). 

As I stood there looking at it, the idea that Marie Antoinette (love her or hate her) might have slept on it was completely surreal.

I only got to see one finished colorway of the pillowcase-inspired collection since the designers were still in production for the other colorways at the time. I believe it was a dark-chocolate linen. Very pretty.

The other day, though, I came across a photograph of the now complete "Marie Antoinette" collection (pictured below), and I love the hues they chose. The tone-on-tone neutrals (soft pink, pale cocoa powder, silvery gray) are perfectly subtle, but the intricate embroidery makes it fancy—like the Dauphine herself.

Organic Flowers by Mail

By Haskell Harris | April 21, 2009 | Design

I love sending things to my friends when they least expect it.

I mean, everybody looks out for a card when their birthday rolls around, but getting something out of the blue is particularly fun.

Most of the time I send little things—notecards from Charleston's Sideshow Press or a set of bamboo pens. But in a perfect world, I would send flowers every single time.

Side Show Press image courtesy of sideshowpress.com, bamboo pen image courtesy instylebamboo.com

The problem is, most mail-order flower vendors send bouquets that have too much fluff, too little substance—that, and the blooms are usually loaded with preservatives.

So I was thrilled to find a source for organic mail-order flowers (and chocolate, and wine, and every other fabulous gift you could imagine): Charlotte-based Organica Deluxe.

Their yellow cut roses (grown on a family farm in Ecuador) are gorgeous.

Rose image courtesy of organicadeluxe.com

Wouldn't you like to open a box and see a dozen of those staring back at you?

Bag of Gold

By Haskell Harris | April 10, 2009 | Design

Any company that got its start during the Great Depression and continues to thrive in spite of our current economic conundrum must be doing something right. 

For example, Moore & Giles, a family-run operation based in Lynchburg, Virginia, that supplies some of the most beautiful leathers in the world to the home furnishings industry.

I have always loved leather upholstery (I still have my heart set on a pair of Belgian wing back chairs covered in shiny black leather—with whitewashed wood feet and antique brass nail heads).

But before I knew this company's work, I had no idea how soft leather could be or that it could be dyed the exact color of, say, lapiz lazuli?

But it can! And then some! The range of color and texture in the collection is simply staggering.

And recently, they began crafting some of their leathers into accessories like travel bags and belts. I seem to have fallen for one bag in particular (pictured below):

It's called the Berkeley Doctor Bag, and get this: To achieve the hazy, subtle metallic texture, they tan the leather, laser cut the surface, and brush it with a finish that looks at once gold, silver, and copper.

Two words: brilliant technique.

The Bookish Type

By Haskell Harris | March 25, 2009 | Design

***Before I begin: Please excuse the long delay between posts. I'm back up and running after a little Spring Break. Thank you for your patience!

Now, on to the post:

If I could live in a library, I would. Preferably an old one with mile-high ceilings and marble floors, but I digress.

Books are, by far, my favorite thing to collect and are, by definition, art. Every detail—from the style of the binding to the fonts used to, most importantly, the words held between the covers—is fascinating to me.

And I'm not alone.

Interior designers have been onto the allure of books since the dawn of decorating. From antique European leather designs, to collections bound in a single color (British designer David Hicks was famous for stocking a library with bold, all-red volumes) to the ever-humble DIY trick of covering a collection in decorative paper, I thought I'd seen, and read, about it all.

Until now.

Months ago, when I was in New York for the gift show, I was mesmerized by the display for a company called Middleton's Library.

Originally, the owner, Brian Wynn, started by selling antique books and binding leather ones for custom interior design projects (both of which they still sell).

But that's not what got me. Mixed in with the traditional examples, I saw books bound in all-white parchment, emblazoned with fabulous old-world type (see image below):

books bound in metallic leathers:

and even books done in bright violet:

The contrast of their designs mixed in together on one huge bookshelf was absolutely stunning.

I stood there looking at it for a very long time, thinking about how genius the idea really is.

Basically, whether you are a private consumer or an interior designer, you can commission a collection of books from them in any leather or any color.

Just picture a striking all-violet library (how cool!) or a demure all-white one (how classic!). The combinations are just endless.

As for me? I won't be able to take things that far, but I would settle for sending my hardback copy of Anna Karenina up there for the silver leather treatment and be a very happy girl.

For more information, please visit middletonslibrary.com.

Design Flash: Marysia Swim

By Haskell Harris | March 3, 2009 | Design

Charleston, South Carolina, is a bathing suit town.

Blame it on the palm trees, the sailboats, and the surfing.

And this bathing suit town, in turn, is also home to one of the best—and newest—bathing suit designers in the country.

A former ballet dancer, Marysia Dobrzanska Reeves (pictured below) grew up in Poland, studied design in Los Angeles, worked for Milly in New York, and has now made Charleston home base for her budding business, Marysia Swim, and her young family.
                                           
Her work (for women and children) is both playful and chic, as evidenced by these pieces from her collection:

If you're craving summer, perusing her Web site (wherever you live) will kick the winter blues for sure.

And look for her at Charleston Fashion Week if you're in town. An artist on the cusp is a beautiful thing to watch!

All in the Numbers

By Haskell Harris | February 20, 2009 | Design

Awhile back I posted about my friend Matthew Thompson, who has a wonderful carpentry business in New Orleans. Every now and then, he'll jot off a note with a picture of something he's working on and yesterday he did just that (see below).

I never cease to be amazed by what inspires him...

I have attached a picture of a set of wooden stadium seats that I just finished for a client who saw the ones in my house that I made many years ago. I remember as a little boy sitting in such seats at Hestand Stadium in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, watching the high school team play, somewhere around 1965. Originally, I copied these from the movie That's My Boy! starting Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin, a football movie in which the hapless Lewis becomes the best player on the team. The stadium scene shows thousands of these seats, I believe, and they made such an impression on me—the repetition of them—that I went out and made a set the next day at Jefferson County Mill, where I worked as a boy and a teenager. 

These very ones in the picture were made over the Christmas holidays, and I finished them about two weeks later, working intermittently on them. They are constructed from red heart pine that I have salvaged from demolitions around town. The detail is my own. I used a flat oil ochre color for the striping and borders and a flat black for the oval background. The numbers are a flat green oil that I found in the shop. The oval motif is copied from a Mississippi state highway sign, #604, that I saw outside of Pearlington, Mississippi, very early one morning, just as it was getting light. I admired its simple industrial marking. All that detail is covered with a deep walnut stain and sealed, a way to give it some depth.

Matthew