Design Post Update

I had the pleasure earlier this week of attending a presentation by husband & wife fabric designers Elizabeth Hamilton and Peter Fasano at the beautiful John Rosselli showroom here in Washington earlier this week. I had first heard of the design duo on everyone's favorite design blog Style Court who frequently references their work. Events like this aren't only great learning experiences but a fun chance to catch up with friends.
Due to some unfortunate weather the crew was small but vivacious.  The ever lovely Sally Steponkus, Josh Hildreth, Frank Babb Randolph (who doesn't have a website but then again is a self-professed NON-reader of blogs), and Atlanta's notable blogger 'The Blue Remembered Hills' (amongst others) were on hand to learn about hand printed and hand painted fabrics.
The banter between Elizabeth and Peter was almost as interesting as the discussion of how they produce their fabrics; both those readily available (at John Rosselli) and their custom projects. You probably saw in last month's issue of House Beautiful magazine an article of 4 designers working with them on completely different custom fabric designs.
Naturally the fabric swatches of the husband and wife team are mounted side by side in the showroom.
Peter specialized in hand painted fabrics while they lived in NYC and after their move they've been concentrating more on silk screening. For all the pattern they are known for professionally Peter said in their own house they prefer more texture and no pattern!
As always the showroom was filled with goodies that I wanted to take home. I also loved that the store is scented with delicious candles. It's more like visiting a stylish friend's home instead of a showroom!  I particularly loved the lounge chairs below with the cute drinks table, available in wood or metal. Stop into John Rosselli in Georgetown to see whats new and prepare to be inspired by visiting all of the links I've included in this posting!
Many thanks to the staff at John Rosselli for making me quite at home and all of my dear friends who were in attendance making for such a fun mid-day treat.

I was thrilled to have lunch recently with one of my favorite bloggers, The Blue Remembered Hills, while he was traveling through DC. As so often happens when bloggers meet for the first time we began chatting at once like old friends and eventually the topic naturally veered towards design.
Both of us have 'pet peeves' with wordage, his being the incorrect use of the word couch instead of sofa (mine is the incorrect use of home vs. house). Above you see the famous couch of Madame Recamier.
The term sofa is what we normally are talking about, the article of furniture found in everyone's living room. It's not a 'formal' term or interchangeable with couch -they are DIFFERENT things. A couch is a specific term reserved for pieces of furniture on which one lies. I immediately thought of Madame Recamier, so well known for having been painted in repose by numerous artists.
While in the Louvre on my last visit I loved Madame Recamier's furniture made for her by Georges Jacob as well as 2 very well known paintings of her, in which she is lying on a couch.
 The rest of her furniture is really beautiful and I just had to have an excuse to post!
In the future think of Madame Recamier on her couch and the sofa you have at home; unless you have a fainting couch or daybed, well then that's another story!

Lampshades don't always have to be white (or my much preferred black with gold foil interior).  These sconce shades in a house decorated by talented Katie Ridder are a reminder of that fact and add such a nice detail, or layer, to the room in question.  Ridder is wife to architect Peter Pennoyer; talk about the designing duo of talent!

I hadn't been to my favorite shop, Artisan Lamp Co, in quite awhile so window-shopped the other night. As it turns out thats the best time of day to check out a lighting store!
The store is enormous and they have a larger inventory on their newly revamped website as well as on 1stdibs. They've been carrying a larger number of vintage 'modern' fixtures since they sell well.
 The owner loves to mix up the front window and it changes a few times per week. I especially liked this interesting lamp above.
 And an empire style boulette style lamp is always useful!
What do you think about window shopping? Beats shopping online!

Details matter. Details are what separate a mansion from a mcmansion, a generic box from a lovely structure, a house from a home. They need not be as ornate or historic as those at the Musee Nissim de Camondo in Paris but any good architect or designer will fill a home with lovely touches that will separate the wheat from the chaff.
The stairhall that I mentioned yesterday HERE features this lovely plaster painted to appear as limestone blocks. Notice how each individual block, separated by the thin white 'mortar' lines, is a slightly different tone of French gray? This adds depth and texture to the walls and adds to the illusion of real stone walls.
I warned there would be many light fixture photographs -here is one of them! These Classical gilded sconces line the stairhall.
The above image captures the curtains in the main salon and the boiserie. Notice the many different subtle shades of color picking out the detailing. Nothing high contrast mind you - subtle.
The boiserie in the dining room are also picked out in many colors. The color is softer in real life and less 'lettuce'.
 The relatively simple iron railing leading up to the private 2nd floor is probably my favorite.
 The perfect sconces line this intimate stair.
The interior halls on the 2nd floor which don't benefit from windows still are flooded with natural light from skylights. Notice how the chandelier is hung from the lay-light.
I love the worn finish on this simple door on the 2nd floor corridor with such elegant minimal hardware. Now you have to visit the museum yourself to pick out more lovely details to share!

The interiors of the Musee Nissim de Camondo are even more stunning than the exterior; see my post HERE. While efforts have been made to make the house feel as if members of the family had just walked out the room, the house reflects the collections gifted by the Count rather than how they actually lived. One imagines it was probably relatively similar though for such an avid and passionate collector.
One enters off the entry courtyard into a beautiful faux-stone stairhall. While the floors and stairs are marble, the walls are plaster molded and painted to appear as if limestone blocks.
The architect ingeniously laid out the L-shaped plan so that it flows seamlessly without any hard corners in the hallways.
Lighting is so important and this house proves the point. The lower level is glamorously lit, the ground level nicely lit with beautiful fixtures, while the private floor is actually rather cozy and dimly task lit. You'll notice a lot of photos of light fixtures in my posts! This is a great historical house museum as no HIDEOUS recessed lighting has been installed, the bane of my existence -it should be limited to airports and bathrooms. But you didn't come here for my thoughts on recessed lighting.....
The kitchens are just beyond the entry on the ground level. One can almost feel the 'Downton Abbey' vibe - Mrs. Patmore must be just around the corner!
Efforts have been made to set the house up as for daily use -even the servant's dining hall table is set for a meal. Remember this photo to contrast with the family dining room upstairs.
Guests and family members were of course rarely, if ever, in the kitchen. One would ascend the stair into the gallery with views down to the entry courtyard.
A suite of rooms hosted guests with great flow for parties.  The Grand Salon was of course the main entertaining space.
Gilded boiserie, the best of the Count's 18th century furniture, and stunning views of the backyard and park from this raised level are featured in these rooms.
 These were public spaces to impress guests and show the stature of the Camondo family.
As the true mark of a collector, the house is not 'decorated'  per say; there are not matching suites of furniture but rather many different pieces of different woods and styles mingling together.
As with all great architecture, alignment is given to doors and windows to create lovely enfilades. No one fails to notice such thoughtful gestures in the design of buildings.
After the Grand Salon one is introduced to the Salon Huet, so named for the paintings by Jean-Baptiste Huet inset into the paneling.
One of my favorite rooms in the house is the dining room, featuring beautiful green painted boiserie.
The table is set for a meal displaying some of the large collection of the Count's 18th century china, silver, and crystal.
In order to better display parts of his collection a china cabinet or room was built adjacent to best display his most favorite services. He would often take private meals in this space overlooking the backyard.
Down the hallway is of course a more useful butler's pantry.
The gallery surrounds the public rooms which are all on the left.  The door at the end of the hallway leads into the dining room. The butler's pantry is just to the right. Notice how the dining room door doesn't fit the mirrored paneling in order to fit the antique boiserie found in the room. The architect didn't let that mess with the hall's symmetry!
 The niche adjacent to the main stair contains access to the private areas of the family.
One of the many things I like about old houses is the use of natural light. Staircases, hallways, bathrooms, and kitchens all feature good sized windows.
 At the top of the stairs is the private paneled family library.
After the Count's wife passed away he turned her bedroom into his private (colorful) sitting room -one of the most popular rooms on the tour.
 These two rooms feature the best views of the Parc Monceau.
 I could happily live in this room without changing a thing!
The bedrooms hold various parts of the collection but the most interesting thing to see are the bathrooms. While not entirely original they reflect the period atmosphere.
The count's son's bathroom was no less elegant and featured an odd assortment of various baths and basins for feet as well as other......items.  Please remember to visit this amazing house museum on your next visit to Paris!  Tomorrow I will feature some of my favorite details found throughout the house.