Tag Archives: Elements of Style

West Elm Goes Gami

Posted in Architecture, Designer Profiles, Uncategorized by

Origami that is.  West Elm is a company that I admire on so many levels.  As a lover of Mid-century Modern furnishings, West Elm’s clean lines and sixties aesthetic appeal.  So too does the price point, the on trend colors and their in-house designers that work to put it altogether for you, if you need a nod indicating you’re doing it right – or a whole hand in crafting your next home look.

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Ori on display at West Elm’s Fenway location. 160 Brookline Ave. Boston.

There business model, appears to this outsider, to be pretty pliable.  Not something I necessarily associate with a big corporation. They team.  Teaming is good for business.  It puts the community back into the places these stores are located, and small businesses are very important to our economy, not to mention fighting the good fight against homogeneity.  It feels pretty special when you walk into the store, meet with local Etsy purveyors, select a painting from an artist to go above the sofa you saved your hard earned doe to get, so you could stop watching tv on the floor atop a pillow.  Add to that a signed copy of Erin Gates book, Elements of Style, and you not only have a story to tell friends when you entertain, you’ve personalized it.  That’s the magic of West Elm.

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Ori Interface.

Don’t worry, they seem to produce that dust out back somewhere because they have done it again, albeit, in a very different way.  This collaboration will be short lived like their Esty pop-ups, so you’ll want to forgo one or two of your fav fall activities to visit the Fenway West Elm store, because Ori – short of Origami – Robotic Furniture has arrived, for a limited time (October 30 . 2018) in store.  160 Brookline Avenue . Boston.

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A whole existence in a box.

I’ve written about this MIT Media Lab launched company before – wow that’s a lot of alliteration.  Their tag line:  “One room . One Hundred Ways” is pretty brilliant, but the fact that you can transform your living room into a bedroom, your bedroom into a study, your study into a walk-in closet, by hollering at Amazon’s Alexa, or if you’re old school, by pushing a button, is AMAZING.

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At West Elm . Fenway . Try it for yourself.

Originally only for sale to developers, this limited time offering allows the public – that’s you and me – to get our hands on one.  The price point is a bit higher than the developer deal, but in fairness, they are buying in bulk.  Full size option at $15,500., Queen at $16,000. Not exactly walking around change, but if you haven’t been tracking, waiting, saving, and hoping (harassing the people at Ori to let you buy one) then you can rent one for $300. a month.  Now isn’t that convenient?  Designed to snuggle into a 300 – 600SF space, CEO Hasier Larrea (and team) have created something truly brilliant.

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345 Harrison . Ori would snuggle in there nicely.

Always willing to try something new, I am considering making my way on down to West Elm and ordering one up to be delivered, right under the gun, to 345 Harrison Ave.  a place I am considering for my next home.

Farming is no Fable: Farmhouse Pottery

Posted in Designer Profiles, Shop Locally, Uncategorized by

Shhhh….can you hear that?  It’s the sound of serenity.  The traffic thins, the mountains rise around you, the rivers start to rush, and the people slow down and smile.  It’s not a Splenda smile either – all Emily Post etiquette.  It’s warm maple syrup, tapped from the tree where the wind whispers a happy tune.

Vermont is a special place.  Oh it has it’s troubles like any place, but when it’s you, the smell of firewood burning in the distance, a brisk breeze making your cheeks rosy, the smell of fir pines as you tromp through the woods, they do seem far away.

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Eight Days a Week.

On my annual work retreat we tucked away to Woodstock, Vermont, a storybook New England town, to work, and to hear one another, away from the noise of the city.  We worked, and it worked.  Maybe it is as simple as clean air, clear ideas, renewed spirit?  Whatever the reason, I feel lucky and inspired.

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Artisan’s at work.

On my way out of town I stopped into Farmhouse Pottery.  My Boss Lisa gave me a beautiful parting gift from this store, and having seen a blog post from Erin Gates – Elements of Style, I couldn’t leave without seeing more.

Zoe and James have created their very own American dream.  Harvested from the land, mined, tooled, and worked by artisans – all here in the states, they have created something sophisticated in its purity, and simplicity.  The retail store and the workshop juxtapose mud and beauty.  Thoughtful vignettes abound, a wall of pottery, a whitewashed stump turned side table, a linen pillow, apron or napkin, a custom crafted table set with wooden bowls, dried flowers, and decorative clay fired trees.  A floor stained in a custom pale gray.  I’d move right in – though I am pretty sure that Zoe, James and their two little girls live upstairs and would find my presence unwelcome.  Now if I could perfect my pottery making skills, it might be a different story all together.  One of the artisans assured me that after making 500 or 600 vases – I’d really get the hang of it.  He wasn’t kidding.

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Linen Pillows . from $85.

West Elm: Working Partnerships

Posted in Lighting, Uncategorized by

It was a few years ago when I first started noticing West Elm pieces in Commercial applications.  I spied a side table or two in AEW’s Corporate Offices, in the Seaport, designed by ADD, Inc., scattered throughout.  To my delight I found pillows and side tables in Hawthorne’s artisnal drinkery in Boston’s Kenmore Square, and thought, perhaps they’re on to something here.  Affordable, hip, mid-century design – way to stay on budget, on trend, and allow for the flexibility of change down the road.  Love it.

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West Elm with Inscape

A little over a year ago, West Elm partnered with Etsy to bring local businesses together in their Kenmore Square location, allowing them to have a pop-up shop under their roof.  Brilliant.  It happened in cities across the country.  What forward thinking business strategy.  I was introduced to some small business owners I wasn’t likely to have made contact with otherwise, and got to meet Erin Gates of Elements of Style, eat a fantastic bacon glazed donut from Blackbird Bakery in the South End, and leave with two pillows.  A win.

On Thursday night I visited Peabody Office Furniture in Boston’s Financial District for the big reveal of their Inscape Office Line Partnership with West Elm.  I have been waiting for the unveiling for months when I first learned of the dynamic duo’s plans.  I wasn’t disappointed.  It’s got that welcome to Don Draper’s Office, care for a Manhattan look about it.  It’s sixties cool with its clean lines, dark wood, and retro fabrics, I wanted to move right in and have the Mad Men re-make me.  I could just picture it….I enter in jeans and tennis shoes, hair in a pony tail, bags under my eyes….I exit in a red Carolina Herrera gown, Harry Winston choker hanging heavy around my delicate neck, diamonds as big as rock candy threatening to make off with my earlobes, 5 inch Louboutin’s peaking through the swaths of fabric surrounding me like meringue cloud.  Naturally either Don himself or some swashbuckling man trails behind me.

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West Elm . Mid-Century Modern Madness

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West Elm . Pelle Gooseneck Chandelier $799.

Ah, dare to dream.  Thanks West Elm for that lovely fantasy, and thanks too for finalizing my decision on a living room chandelier.  After all, your first order of business was to help the everyday gal like me have a fabulous home, was it not?

 

Designer Profile: Erin Gates

Posted in Designer Profiles, Uncategorized by

“Sliding head first  is the safest way to get to the next base, and the fastest.  You don’t lose momentum, and there is one more reason I slide headfirst, it gets my picture in the paper.” – Pete Rose

That kind of momentum takes courage.  It takes faith.  It turns a blind eye to thoughtful contemplation, which might lead to a logical, risk free path.  Which just might lead you nowhere fast.  To a place that isn’t new, that doesn’t inspire, that won’t challenge.

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Erin Gates at home showcasing her signature leopard print.

When I consider Boston-based designer Erin Gates I think of some serious momentum.  I admire it in such an enormous way, and frankly it isn’t limited to Erin, but to people that have the courage to defy common wisdom, to launch into uncharted waters, even if they are only certain that the current pool they are in, doesn’t suit their temperament, but aren’t at all sure which pool will.

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Velvet pillows with Key Fret Detailing under $100.  Erin Gates Collection for Wayfair and AllModern.

Art Gallery Manager, Fashion Stylist, Event Planner, and Interior Design Assistant, from what I’ve read it doesn’t appear that Erin’s early jobs where anything but that – a job.  When she launched out on her our, I bet she didn’t imagine that she’d become a business mogul.  An author and publisher of multiple books – her first Elements of Style is an amuse bouche for the eye, her second, out soon will surely be as delicious.  She has collaborated on jewelry design with M. Flynn in Boston’s South End, pottery with Jill Rosenwald, also of Boston, she provides her own fine art pieces to accent spaces when the occasion calls, and her latest venture has her teaming with Wayfair and AllModern to produce a line of home goods.  Her blog – http://www.elementsofstyle.com provide a sneak peak of what she had to offer.

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Juniper & Moss . Follow her on Instagram…it’s worth it.

While I think of her signature pattern being a leopard print, and admire the joie de vive it took to put aa stair runner in the front entry of her suburban home in the same, her book jacket which captures my attention.  The bold white and black stripes are distinct and instantly recognizable.  Whomever came up with it should be given a prize.  It’s brilliant, I spy it in dozens of Instagram photos, and it always makes me smile.

Look for the collection on its release 5 October 2015, and visit her blog for additional information on her signature collection.