Recently in “Vintage”

The stunning, well designed Magasin Trudon on the rue de Seine in Paris, is a visual feast, a must see, a "go-to" shopping experience ........ an "accessorator's" dream!!!!!!! From the well known scented candles, the individually sold bright colored candles in a variety of sizes, the "candle-busts" of nobility, the "church" candles in natural with gold text, and those with gold seals....... everything is eye candy ....... Look everywhere ...... don't forget the furniture, the accessories, the vintage candlestix, the color-walls, and the fantastical propped displays ......spectacular!!!!!

The history of Cire Trudon candles began in 1643, when wax merchant Claude Trudon began making candles for the churches of Paris. The all natural candles were (and still are) made of 100% vegetable wax, with pure cotton wicks, for the purest candles and the cleanest burn. Royalty, including Marie Antoinette, learning of the quality of the candles, asked that the candles be available for their castles .... Versailles included!!!. Today, Cire Trudon candles remain the oldest and finest candles in Paris, and possibly world-wide. In addition to manufacturing private-label candles for a variety of companies, including Hermes, Dior, and Guerlain, Trudon sells their candles internationally

I found these divine candles, encased in stunning absinth colored, hand blown be-spoke Italian glass vessels and labeled with gold crests made by the same company that makes Moët Chandon's champagne labels, at Barneys NYC. I think the black boxes that house the candles are as identifiable as Tiffany blue boxes!!! Over a dozen scents are available but, my favorite is "Ernesto," a clean scent that favors leather, wood, and tobacco. The total package is a wonderful "accessoration" and a divine gift!!!!!!

Vanessa Stramboni has an "accessorator's" sensability .....  that I adore!! She mixes eccentric French vintage, with African ethnic; blending bijoux (jewelry, in our lingo!), textiles, furniture, lighting, and fantastic objects to create her store's eclectic feeling. I adored the set of four black & white, French 60's chairs, whose seats are re-upholstered in a black, white, & grey wool check fabric .... very reminiscent of Chanel!!!! The collection of black and white African masques, that have a slight hint of red, are exceptional "accessorations" ...... and of course, I love, love, love the African stool that still has touches of it's original bright colored paint!!!!! 

These wonderful "new-vintage" pieces of furniture are from Blue Ocean Traders in Louisville, Kentucky. Combing reproduction antique frames with vintage linen grain sacks, from Eastern Europe, gives each piece a unique history with a modern twist. Historically, the sacks were one-off patterns; woven into the linen was either the farmer's name, initials, a specific stripe, or linen pattern. The purpose of these markings was to identify each farm, so that the sacks got returned to the correct farmer after they had been emptied. In their travels, Blue Ocean's designers put together a collection of these sacks, creating this selection of vintage-inspired furniture, each with bespoke upholstery.

 

I adore books ..... reading them, as well accessorating with them!!! So, when I met Brian Wynn, owner of Middletons, I was in heaven!!!! This eco-friendly Kentucky company rescues vintage books from the public library system and turns them into studding treasures!!! Brian creates a unique library of re-claimed books, rebinding them with beautiful hand-printed papers. In addition, he also rebinds books with solid paper, and individually hand-silk screening each one. After binding, the books go through a process to soften the jackets, giving them a gently worn feeling. In addition, color or a metallic surface can be added after the binding process, creating another design element. 

French company Frederique Morrel, the brainchild of husband and wife team Frederique Morrel and Aaron Levin, has moved from covering poufs, footstools, pillows, furniture, and lamps in vintage needlework ......  to these updated taxidermy "deer creatures." This past week at Maison et Object, in Paris, the company presented "The Slice of Life" collection. The unique, handmade creatures are created from polyurethane taxidermy molds, re-enforced with steel rods and covered in re-cycled vintage tapestry. Each piece, whether a full-sized animal or a trophy head, is then completed by the addition of real antlers, horns, hoofs, or fur pieces. Frederique's concept is "to "decycle" (put into a new life-cycle) unj-justly un-recognized, anonymous and devalued pop artifacts." 

According to Frederique and Aaron, "Our products have been carefully re-made using vintage needlework saved from oblivion in the interest of the redemption of the painstaking work involved in their original creation. When wondering around markets or garage sales we're often very saddened to see discarded embroidery. We think about the love, time, craftsmanship, and patience that went into creating such beautiful things and find it so sad that they end up unwanted and for sale for a few dollars."

I think these quirky and clever "artifacts" are divine and decadent ......... imagine one "accessorating" your great room ...... or a whole heard of trophies "accessorating" a wall!!!!!

That's a WOW!!!!!

I have always adored the unique pieces of furniture from the Lebanese furniture company Bokja, the brainchild of Huda Baroudi and Marie Hibri. I first heard of the collection from a Lebanese friend who was renovating her apartment. Her architect sister, who had designed the space, took her to meet these two wonderful woman and see their furniture. The result, an immediate match was made and a stunning vintage chaise, covered in a patchwork of antique suzani textiles was sent to New York. I must admit I was very jealous when I saw it ...... it is sooooooo me!!!!!I 

Since then, I have been following the company with a passion!!! I have seen the collection in New York City at ABC Carpet & Home; in Miami, in 2008 at Design Miami; in Milan at Spazio Rossana Orlandi; last fall in Paris at Merci; and in London at Gallery Fumi. Finally, last month I was in the new Bokja store in Beirut and met Hoda!!!! She was charming and of course, as is the case in Beirut, we had friends in common...... but, most importantly, she remembered the chaise that had come to NYC!!!!! We chatted, I learned more about the company, and fell in love with a number of pieces in the store!!! 

Bokja is not the new kid on the block ........ Hoda and Marie's partnership began in 2000, when textile collector Huda, put a piece of Uzbek tapestry over one of Marie's antique chairs, to get a better look at it ..... and a collaboration was born!!! The charming, eclectic furniture combines extraordinary textiles from all over the middle east, a melange of color, patten, and often needlework, with antique furniture from the 50's, 60's, and 70's.  Each bespoke piece of furniture tells a different story and the narrative results in a name and "passport" specific to the piece. 

Last week, my friend Jennifer Parry visited NYC and she asked me to take her to Norfolk Street in the Lower East Side, to this amazing store she had heard about ....... I drove around for one hour, made a number of phone calls for directions, and finally found this eclectic and innovative "design project," that is Maryam Nassir Zadeh, a store that is so special .... it was worth every minute of the hour to find!!!

Owned by Maryam Zadeh, and her fiance Udsay Kak, this well curated, modern space is both open and intimate. The front has large glass windows, interior walls are white painted brick, the floor is grey concrete, and original wooden floor-to-ceiling beams support the ceiling. The store is non-traditionally fixtured with a variety of handmade wooden tables and benchs, flea markets finds, and organic elements found by the owners. The clothing, shoes, jewelry, and accessories featured in the store are by innovative, independent designers, with a touch of vintage ...... reflecting the same "old and new" aesthetic as the interior.

For "the accessorator", the most important element is the composition of the store and the artist's works that have been selected by Maryam and Udsay. The stunning oversized necklace wall-hanging, in neutral yarns and ropes of ivory, grey and peach tones with silver, is by a collective known as Confetti Systems. There are divine handmade bows and arrows by Fredricks & Mae, that would be wonderful color accents for any room. Sitting next to the arrows is a black felt sculpture by artist A'Detache. Hanging over the back counter is a wonderful Calder-like mobile, that includes a stack of paper plates, by artist and jewelry designer Samma. In addition, there are several black rubber sculptures on the floor that are made from bicycle tires by Italian artist Paolo Bertocchi. Not to be missed in the back corner are several long beaded pieces hanging from the ceiling by jewelry designer Lauren Manoogian. This eclectic, fresh mix of art is a wonderful accent to the apparel and is all for sale. 

"We wanted to express our aesthetic in a very personal way. It's not about the labels but more about the mix of unusual things coming together." Maryam Zadeh

There is no question that Maryam and Udsay have achieved their goal ..... the spirit and energy that surrounds this store is what real "merchandising" is about. If we want to give our customers a reason to shop we should take a look at the environment that has been created here, as well as the wonderful off-beat mix of innovative and interesting merchandise!!!!

AND YOU CAN CALL ME FOR GOOD DIRECTIONS!!!!!!

Lots of news about the fantastic collection of "revisited" furniture that I had made by in London ...... Squint for j.roaman is featured in the trend section of the November issue of House Beautiful and on the updated j.roaman website. 

The furniture is a combination of vintage, gently-used, and reclaimed silhouettes of English furniture..... all re-upholstered by hand, in a variety of vintage and new damasks, velvets, silks, quiltings, and French tickings. The eclectic, "bespoke" collection includes couches, chairs, chaises, mirrors, ottomans, and light fixtures....all in excellent condition. Each unique piece knows divine secrets..... and if it could talk would tell exciting and interesting tales!!! 

The collection is an "accessorator's" dream....actually it was this "accessorator's" dream!!!!!!!!!!!!   

j.roaman website          

The most fabulous "Vintage Halloween" is found at The Antique Store in Bridgehampton, from dealers Barbara Trujillo and husband and wide duo, Kelter Malce. These three well-known dealers have been collecting "holiday memories" for many moons!!!!!  Papier mache trick-or-treat pumpkins and cats, ghost candles, paper skeletons, and skull swizzel sticks from Barbara ........ a "witch taking flight" on a vintage Halloween party hat, framed by Jolie & Michael ....... are just a few of the "spooky accessories" that will make this Halloween a "howling" success ....... BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Barbara Trujillo & Kelter Malce  2466 Main St, Bridgehampton 631 537-3838

Zoe Murphy is a "bright young thing" in the London design community. Her work is at Liberty and she exhibited for the first time at 'Content' in Tent London, during the Design Festival. Zoe's passion is "the potential of re-use and rejuvenation of unwanted items, working closely with the idea of encouraging others to consume more carefully and with more responsibility."  Currently her collection, titled "Loving What Belongs To You," revolves around reclaimed mid-century pieces that she has "re-dressed with pattern and color." Bureaus, tables, end tables, chairs, etc. have been re-veneered and treated to a palette of bright colors and graceful images. In addition, the theme of 're-use" continues with the silk textiles Zoe uses for her collection of pillows...they were once wedding dresses!!! The recycled silk textiles have been lovingly hand dyed and printed upon, making them look charming and feel nostalgic. 

This inspired collection is very much the aesthetic that I love.....of course....and it would look amazing with the other divine English pieces I own!!!!! I expect it might be on a boat, "crossing the pond"!!!!

Another stunning "accessoration" from the land of the "great accessorators"!!!!

Isaac Mizrahi is a divine designer, extraordinary entertainer, celebrated chef (he makes the best, best, best mint chocolate chip ice cream in the world!!!), and brilliant bridge player!!!! And, he is now revitalizing retail in New York City!!! Last month Isaac opened his first "shop", a 1500-square-foot- space at 23 East 67th Street, and as usual Isaac knew exactly what he wanted!!!! He made a decision "to keep it really simple....all things that are functional and neutral and lend a sense of ease and even a bit of luxury." His distinctive style drew him to an eclectic array of furniture, in a variety of textures and surfaces. There is a mix of vintage & modern, soft & hard, mirror & matte.....but he says that everything is background for the clothes, which always "shine"!!!! In addition to the furniture, the design elements in the store continue the same theme that Isaac uses everywhere.....in his studio, his apartment, and his house in Bridgehampton. These elements include plywood shelves between layers of lucite, wallpaper tables for display, skinny aluminum handrails. and lots of white "lacquer." The final compliment to the simple, yet luxurious design of the store is a charming collection of Isaac's sketches that cover one wall. 

"The whole thing is meant as a place to house the collection so that it look it's best and so it shows the creative hand at work. It's not just merchandise, it's my babies." 

Isaac Mizrahi website 

Nothing gets me as excited as an empty bookcase!!!  When I found a pair of these amazing vintage library bookcases in London, I was in heaven and knew I had to ship them home!  Their design is spectacular.... the moveable slate shelves, the side braces for holding books in, and the bar at the bottom that is used as a step-up for reaching books on the top shelf....it all makes me quiver!!! And then I got to do what I do best.....accessorize them!!! I loved them bare, but after I propped & played.....they are magnificent!!!! I can't imagine any room that would say no to these bookcases....especially now!!!! 

A memorable trip to the Mideast, led to a must see visit to Sheikh Majed al-Sabab's divine new Villa Moda women's store in Dubai...........actually, we snuck in while it was still under construction!!!  The Sheikh is one of the world's most famous retail geniuses, he turns the world upside down looking for terrific merchandise.  In his travels, he has found over 75 spectacular vintage chandeliers!  Hanging over a winding staircase, they create an incredible visual!!!!!!

Imagine all these chandeliers hanging in a double height entrance hall!!!!  STUNNING!!!!~