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Fire and Ice: New Stylin’ Electric Fireplaces and Wine Fridges

By Candace Manroe

Until a product preview last month from Twin-Star International, whose brands include Classic Flame Decorative Electric Fireplaces and Tresanti (refrigerated wine cabinets), I never gave much thought to either item for my own home—or as something worth sharing with readers. In fact, until that presentation and a hands-on look at the products, I regarded electric fireplaces, in particular, as something, ahem, less than tasteful. The ones I had seen—admittedly quickly, in rushing through a big-box store—struck me as distinctly lacking in sophisticated styling and natural materials, while the flames appeared egregiously fake.

Well, no more. I’m no expert on what else is out there in the electric fireplace market, but the Classic Flame products I viewed are worth sharing. Take a look for yourself. There’s plenty for the pure traditionalist, as well as more streamlined  designs for the traditionalist who loves a little modern in the mix. If you’re in a home that does not already have a fireplace, these are worth considering. Or if you’re like me, with two fireplaces but none in the bedrooms, these present an option to a major remodeling.

designer visions

By Amy Bleier Long

The proliferation of the Internet, social media, apps, and online collaboration has prompted a handful of interior designers to offer their expertise online at discounted rates, the caveat being that you do the measuring and the shopping. But that means you can set the budget and timeline, and have a little fun!

So far I haven’t come across a service that is as much of a bargain as Designer at Home. And if you haven’t yet used an interior designer—or are on a budget—this might be for you.

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give to me your leather

By Amy Bleier Long

If you’ve been contemplating a new sofa, chair, or ottoman, now’s the time to buy: Select items from Elite Leather will be on One Kings Lane for up to 50% off retail price (OKL requires membership, but it’s free). Pieces available include the Belcourt tufted armchair, Old Course tufted ottoman, both below, and the Barkham chair from LA designer Nathan Turner’s collection. The sale starts Friday, July 23 and ends Sunday, July 26.

Belcourt chair in Grotto Cerulean

Old Course in Dover Jungle

Arkansas Traveler: Antiques & Design

By Candace Manroe

Are You Going to Scarborough Fair? All About Edible Herbs

By Rebecca Christian

I wish I liked to weed as much as I like to read; it would improve my garden much more than reading about gardening, which I’ve been doing lately thanks to several books that have floated into my ken.

One is The Beginner’s Guide to Edible Herbs: 26 Herbs Everyone Should Grow & Enjoy. Bit sweeping, that subtitle–I suspect Paris Hilton would rather prance around with her dressed-up chihuahua than transplant hyssop after all danger of frost has passed. Still,  one prefers an excess of enthusiasm in a writer to the drear of a dutiful tone, and  Charles W.G. Smith is nothing if not enthusiastic about herbs. “Experiment!” he enjoins herb growers who might feel timid about branching out beyond basil and parsley for pesto, “You’ll be amazed by the pesto possibilities!”

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Word Nerd: H is for Hyperbole

By Rebecca Christian

Hyperbole is exaggeration for effect, and I, for one, adore it. Okay maybe that’s hyperbolic, but I do like it a lot; once after I delivered a eulogy for a funeral, I was told by one mourner that I did such a good job of accentuating the positive, eliminating the negative and not messing with Mr. In-Between, she didn’t even recognize  the deceased.

The cover for The Andrews Sisters “Accentuate the Positive” record; Al Jarreau, Chet Baker, and Bing Crosby are among the many who have memorably covered this song.

Here’s an example of hyperbole from the Trad Home article “Rediscovering a Classic,” May 2008 (note the words in bold):

“When Lynn and Frank Ehret moved to San Francisco’s Pacific Heights neighborhood just a little more than two years ago, they began with the best; a stately 1903 home by architect Albert Farr, who once designed a home for writer Jack London and whose addresses are coveted for their enduring beauty and their many heart-stopping details.”

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enchanté at Maison France

By Amy Bleier Long

This week, French flair touched down in New York with the Maison France exhibit—promoting French decorative arts—opening yesterday. I visited the Felissimo Design House to see a showcase of 30 French companies displaying luxury home décor items including lighting, wall coverings, and bath fixtures.

Familiar with only a few of the companies, such as Taillardat, who has appeared in TH pages previously, I was very interested to discover the others. Some of them already have a US presence—at retailer Bergdorf Goodman, for instance—but the remaining brands seek a home here.

18 of the companies carry the Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant (Living Heritage Companies) label, which recognizes them for promoting French industrial and craft heritage. EPV-labeled brands are known for excellence, and those on display here are artisans with mastery of rare traditional or technically advanced skills, and antique machinery and/or archives. The companies present were hand-selected by the French Trade Commission.

A comprehensive catalogue featuring the exhibit’s participants is available as a free iPhone app (it also works on the iPad and iPod Touch).

The exhibit is open to the public tomorrow, Thursday June 24, from 12-5p, at Felissimo Design House, 10 West 56^th Street, NYC.

Check out a few highlights and some of my favorite finds after the jump.

sculptures by Verodalla

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Ethereal Angkor

By Jenny Bradley

I have to share with you a new book that is on my list of new favorite things. It’s John Mcdermott’s, Elegy: Reflections of Angkor (McDermott Gallery, hardcover, $75).

If you’ve been to Cambodia, it’s a must-have. If you haven’t, it will persuade you to get there. And soon. I’ve tried for years to describe to people what it is about Angkor that puts it smack dab at the top of my favorite places list. McDermott’s book communicates visually what I have not been able to communicate verbally.

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Sun-loving Impatiens

By Rebecca Christian

Yes,  you read that headline right. Impatiens with their whimsical names — Busy Lizzie and Patient Lucy — have long been known as sturdy shade-lovers that bring brilliant color to yards that are so sun-deprived they’re hopeless for just about anything else but hostas. Often you’ll see impatiens planted in a gay ring around the base of a beautiful old tree or in mass plantings, providing a carpet of color on the grounds of corporations.

Now Sakata has come out with SunPatiens, which the company bills as something new under the sun. These hardy little plants will root in two weeks versus the usual four. SunPatiens will thrive even in the most brutal sun and keep right on coloring your world until hard frost. If you neglect them and let them get parched, they may look half-dead, but just revive ‘em with a pint, as the Irish say — though of water, not of ale. They’ll perk up right away. You can get the spreading type, like this:

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eye on the tiger – behind the scenes at Shaw

By Amy Bleier Long

I’m kind of a geek, so I was very into the heavy-on-the-science tour of the Shaw headquarters. It was cool to see the process from start to finish, and it really illustrated the advantages of Tigressá SoftStyle carpet.

We started where most things do: inspiration. We briefly discussed the colors, research, home and fashion trends, and qualities (strength, beauty, protection) that influenced the Shaw designers. Regional inspiration boards and displays showing national and regional sales of existing products by color were interesting to study.

The group was paired off to create our own inspiration boards. The Shaw team wanted to see what we were inspired by and what we were seeing in the market. I worked with the fabulous Carmen Natschke from The Decorating Diva. Here’s our board (including some pieces you may already recognize from past TH issues):

If you want to hear me discuss our board, here’s a video. More of what I’ve been seeing in the market will be in our pages soon!

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