Bed, Tango, New Orleans, The Queen Of The Night, Domino, Ruthie Sommers

We recently had another fabulous Bed and Tango weekend. We have bookings open in September, but the one that I really, really suggest is the weekend of September 18, 19, 20, 21, because on Saturday we are hosting a tango dance party, a milonga, at The Country Club.

The guests we had for the weekend of August 15-18, were Laura and John. Laura is from Baltimore, and John is from Seattle. They are old friends, and decided to meet here in New Orleans to take classes with us, and tool around the city. Laura is a featured actress in our DVD that goes along with our book Gotta Tango.
We pick them up at the airport, and so begins our terrific weekend!
They worked hard at their tango lessons, taking two - three hours of classes everyday.
Our tango dance parlor is so perfect for lessons. The floor is just great, and it's such a pretty room too.

A collection of vintage and antique mirrors are hung low, so the dancers can see their feet. We also have a wonderful collection of posters of old tango sheet music covers.
There's a 100 year old chandelier that came out of our French Quarter home. A ceiling fan had to be sacrificed for beauty, so a vintage table fan helps keep the air moving.
After a few hours of lessons, it's time to take a nap! The guest room has an iron four poster. I combine antique linens with Ralph Lauren stripe sheets. The vintage wicker vanity and round mirror are from Ruby Beets (now in Sag Harbor, New York in the Hamtpons). I purchased it many years ago when I had my little beach house in East Hampton. The owners, Sharonne and Honey are old friends of mine. The Saarinen style stool is an eBay bargain.

Laura is getting ready to go out. We might go out to dinner at Dick and Jenny's which is a wonderful restaurant in our neighborhood. They serve Creole style food prepared in a modern way.
It's Friday night, so after dinner, we thought we'd take them to hear some music. One of our favorites is Kermit Ruffins, but he's not playing tonight.
We head down to Frenchman Street to hear another fave of ours, The Jazz Vipers, who play every Friday night at The Spotted Cat.
The Spotted Cat is a great dive. It's small, and there's always a crowd waiting to get in. There's never a cover charge. You just need to buy a beer or two, and tip the band when they pass the hat. It's very comfy inside, with couches and arm chairs to lounge in. There's always some great art on the walls too.
The Jazz Vipers play standards, and they really swing it. It's all acoustic, which is really a treat.
Believe it or not, there's even a little space where really cool Swing kids come to dance. The man in the hat is a local character, Uncle Lionel, who usually sings a tune or two with the band when he's not snagging a tourist gal for a dance.
If we have any energy left, we can walk around the Marigny where The Spotted Cat is located. This neighborhood is filled with wonderful colorful homes. It's a neighborhood known for artists and bohemians.
Saturday night is our tango party. We do it at The Country Club, a huge center hall house in the Bywater, another great arty neighborhood next to the Marigny.
We clear the tables out of this double parlor, and dance the night away. There's really good restaurant, so some people come early for dinner. We start at 9 and go until 1 AM.
The Country Club has a beach-y theme. They have a huge pool, a full bar, several parlors, one which has a pool table. The decor is flawless: pale yellow walls, pale blue ceilings, sea grass furniture, tropical style ceiling fans, lush plants, terrific window treatments, great lighting fixtures and all the lights are on dimmers. We love having our tango dance parties here.
After a night of tango and cocktails, we head home. We often prepare a late night supper, and sit around the kitchen table talking into the wee hours.

This night, August 16. there was a full moon, and out Cereus plant, The Queen of The Night bloomed! You know they only bloom for a few hours, and often on a full moon night. Many people host parties to celebrate this rare happening. Read more about this traditional pass-along plant HERE

So what a wonderful surprise to see this bloom! And it was a full moon too! It just capped off a perfect evening in a a most magical way. Another queen of the night buries her face in the intoxicating fragrance.
A new day comes along, and after breakfast you might want to stroll down Magazine Street, just two blocks from our front door. There are tons of cute shops, coffee places, and restaurants.
We even have a Starbucks on our corner of Magazine and Washington Avenue. Magazine Street cuts through one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in New Orleans, The Garden District.
As you walk across Magazine on Washington Avenue, you'll find beautiful homes, and a historic old cemetery. Strolling in these beautiful old above ground cemeteries, is very common here, and you have one steps away from the Bed and Tango.


Right across the street from the cemetery, is Commander's Palace. Maybe it's time for lunch, and the 25 cents Martini special. Many a star chef has passed though this kitchen. The food is the best, and lunch is the local's bargain.
After lunch you might want to hop the streetcar on St. Charles Avenue, just steps away from Commanders. You can just ride it from one end to another, and sight see all the spectacular mansions and homes on St. Charles Avenue, which has been called "the most beautiful street in America".
Or maybe you'll ride down to the French Quarter. We're about 25 blocks away. You can enjoy Jackson Square, a beautiful park in front of St. Louis Cathedral, and a hub of activity of weekends.Maybe you'll window shop, and stop in at Hove, a classic perfume shop that has been around for over 50 years. They can mix a custom blend for you.
Back to Washington Avenue, where you can stroll either side of Magazine Street. This house is on our side. One side is The Garden District, and one side is The Irish Channel.
Architecture varies, You have both grand and humble homes. This Creole color scheme is a street or two over from our house.
Shotgun houses are in both neighborhoods.
And of course grand town houses too. Anne Rice grew up in The Garden District, and still owned two homes here when we moved to New Orleans in 2000. When her husband passed away a couple of years ago, sadly, she left New Orleans.
No matter if a house is large or small, humble or grand, each one is beautiful. The architecture and beauty of New Orleans was one of the reasons we decided to live here.
And nestled under the grand live oaks on Washington Avenue is this humble house - it's ours! And it's yours when you come and stay with us. This is the only photo of the exteriror I have on hand, taken last Christmas. Our guests love sitting on the front porch.
Everyone who comes to New Orleans post Katrina is curious about the flooded areas, like the Ninth Ward. If you have time, we can take you there. This is the house that Brad Pitt, Domino Magazine, and Ruthie Sommers all pitched in on. It's in the Holy Cross neighborhood right next door to the Ninth Ward.
It's a "green' house. What cracks me up is that they paint it green inside and out. I guess they want you to really know it's green. Right now it's being used as the office for The Global Green Project.
This is the living room. It just doesn't seem very Ruthie Sommers to me, and really not very Domino either. It looks kind of like a student Ikea deal.
You can visit this house at 409 Andry Street, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday form 11 AM until 4 PM. It's open Saturdays from 10 AM until 1 PM.
There are plans to build an apartment building too, something that is predicted to be ready for occupanacy in 14 months or so.





It's really just another version of the classic shotgun house footprint, using modern architecture, and green products.


So now it's time to take Laura and John to the airport. The weekend went way too fast!

I hope you like my little Bed and Tango story. We would really love for you to come and visit us soon. And don't forget the tango party on September 20! Book that weekend now! mizvtheb@yahoo.com

I'm A Perch Addict

Every time someone comes over, and I take them for a walk in my neighborhood, I always steer them into a fabulous store, and one of my favorites, Perch, on Magazine Street.The other day I spied this clever version of a Victorian balloon back chair. Mr. Mayberry, the lovely manager told me it made their upholsterer go a little crazy.
Is it is amazing that Perch took something that looks like this, and updated it in such a beautiful and fresh way.
Here's another version of an updated Victorian chair by Dondoli and Pocci called Victor-Victoria, and you can get it HERE
Also at Perch, this wonderful fantasy canopy bed. And don't you just love all the things piled on and around it? I hope you can visit Perch, and maybe even take a walk with me in my neighborhood, and maybe stop for lunch at Commander's Palace and have 25 cents Martinis.

I Heart Hillary

Chelsea looking chic and beautiful
introduced her mother tonight
at The Democratic National Convention

Mama hit it out of the park tonight
She looked radiant in her Hermes orange suit,
or as she put it: The Sisterhood of The Traveling Pants Suit

Bill was proud of her

An eerie and magical moment
A year ago this picture,
would have meant something so different

So now we gotta do what we gotta do
Vote: Obama

Please go HERE and HERE

These were among my first postings on this blog
And I posted them on my mother's birthday

Welcome Katiedid!

How can you not a love a girl who uses this quote: "Decorate your life", and then tells you she got it off a Dove chocolate wrapper?
Many, many of you already know her and her fabulous blog, and her talent, and her work, but if you don't, take a moment to indulge yourself HERE
And if you are already a fan of hers, keep on keepin' on....

Private New York Remarkable Residences

Digging into my vast collection of old decor books, I found this favorite. The dust jacket is worn and torn, and it looks like it must have gotten wet on the back at one point somewhere in its travels from New York to San Francisco to New Orleans.
Published in 1990, written by Chippy Irvine, with photography by Alex McClean, you can still find it HERE
When I bought this book hot off the presses, I had a new-ish design business, and the first "real money" to spend on the family household. I also had a whole batch of celebrity and society clients to service, and I wanted to see how they did things, so I could be at ease in their surroundings.
Chippy Irvine was a society decorator, so I snapped this book up, and it became a good reference source.
What I learned from the book, and by being in my client's homes, is that art was a very important element in the decor. It never ceased to amaze and delight me to see masterpieces from every era, used in a family home with ease and naturalness. Can you imagine walking into a front hallway and being greeted by this Degas sculpture? I also love the typical old parquet wood floors common in any New York apartments.
New Yorkers are pack rats, or so it seems, because a few things can fill up apartment size spaces, whether large or small. This is the apartment of Kenneth Jay Lane. He studied art at The Rhode Island School of Design. His work in the art department for Vogue and then a shoe designer for Delman and Cristian Dior eventually led him to jewelry design. Since 1963 his name has been at the forefront of fashion.
Though not a professional decorator, Lane is aware that before the first piece of furniture enters a room, the background - the paint finish, floors, and curtains must be absolutely right.
This is the living room of socialite Ann Bass, a picture of East side style and grace. A suite of George II furniture and a set of oval-backed George III parcel gilt armchairs are upholstered in a variety of cream-colored silk. The large painting is Morris Louis.

Now we come to the rooms of Peri Wolfman and Charles Gold, when they lived on Gramercy Park. This is an historic district best known for its tree lined streets of townh0uses and brownstones, with a centerpiece of the only private park in New York City. Only residents who live around the park have a key to enter it.
Peri and Charles owned one of the first great kitchen/housewares stores in Soho called Wolfman Gold. It was a wonderful emporium of white wares, baskets, and vintage silverware, all presented in a way not previously seen. It was a well I drank from often, using the merchandise for many styling jobs, and purchasing many things for my clients and for myself. Peri was very friendly and helpful, and became someone to rely upon for advice. She and Charles have published at least a half dozen life style books.

Her signature look was white. She used antique and vintage textiles, and antique pine furniture. There was no "shabby chic" then, no Pottery Barn slip cover furniture. Peri was an original, and influenced a whole generation of us to go white, blending a sort of urban country look along with contemporary shapes.
Since Wolfman Gold where great purveyors of things for the kitchen, it would make sense that their own kitchen be well outfitted. Indeed it was, but not in the cookie cutter formulas followed en masse today. New Yorkers are funny about kitchens. They kind of keep the original foot print, and often many of the original elements too. Rather than rip out, they truly renovate. Here the big splurge is the professional stove. Cabinets, counters, back splash are rather humble by the standards of today. Clutter is also artful, homey, and useful to have everything within reach.
Open shelving was just coming into vogue, and Peri was masterful at making use of it.
This is a later kitchen in the Wolfman Gold loft in Soho, around 2005. Many of the "old" elements from Gramercy Park have be re purposed. The interesting thing about this space, is that a window over the sink has been bricked up. It looked onto an ugly view, so it was eliminated. This is considered radical, when light is such a premium in New York City apartments. But the open shelving, white ware, reflective surfaces, and one other window, make the space feel light and airy. You can read a fascinating article about it HERE

This little bathroom in the Wolfman Gold loft also got a window bricked up, and a faux window was put in using mirrors and great window treatments.
Today Peri is vice president at Williams Sonoma, and Charles continues his career as a successful photographer.

There are so many wonderful images in this book.
Intriguing chapter titles include: Haute Boheme Bed-Sitter; High Camp Loft; Hotel Des Artistes (I spent my art school days there artist modeling); Harlem Fantasy; Hudson River Houseboat; West Village One-Roomer; Chic Chinoiserie; Park Avenue Traditional; Biedermeir In Brooklyn Heights; Fine Art on Fifth... There are 31 spaces to look at, spread out over 204 pages. I could do dozens of postings on this fabulous book!
Not only is it a pretty picture book, it is a great history of the neighborhoods, and architecture each of these remarkable residences occupies. Chippy Irvine is a gifted writer, and Alex McClean is a gifted photographer. I encourage you to add this book to your collection of out of print and vintage decor/design books.

Saturday Matinee At The Movies - The Big Knife

Turner Classic Movies has the film The Big Knife in its current rotation of programming. Made in 1955, starring Jack Palance, Ida Lupino, Jean Hagen, and Shelley Winters. It was based on play by Clifford Odets. The Production Design was done by William Glagslow, who did work mainly in the genre of film noir, and also had a huge body of design work for early television. His most well known art direction is for What Ever Happened To Baby Jane.

Jack Palance and Shelley Winters
Bosley Crowther in his 1955 NY Times review
called Shelly Winters and Jean Hagen "two addlepated tramps"

The Big Knife is shot in black and white. It was shot in nine days, for a crazy cheap budget of $450K. No one wanted to make it, or star in it because it was a scathing story of the corrupt movie business and studio system. Robert Aldrich was the director.
Jack Palance plays Charlie, a successful leading man who cheats on his wife played by Ida Lupino. It's time for him to renew his contract, and he wants out of the nilhilistic atmosphere of making movies in Hollywood. He has alot of angst. Rod Steiger plays the studio boss who doesn't want to lose his money maker, and blackmails Charlie by threatening to expose Charlie's tawdry deeds.
The whole film was mainly shot on one set, a wonderful modern living room set. Since they had to shoot so fast, William Glagslow made all the walls able to be moved and removed, so the camera set ups could change rapidly. Since the living room is on camera so long, you really get to study this iconic and fabulous mid century modern decor.
As usual, there are few images of this fabulous set, which of course plays another character. All the trappings of Charlie's success are represented in this house. In fact, when he refuses to sign his new contract, the studio boss has a tantrum and a tirade telling Charlie he will lose everything, including his posh house and furnishings and all the paintings, everything taken away down to the bare walls.
So I have gathered a few images to show you some similar things in the set design. If anyone out there has any images of the set, perhaps you'd be good enough to share them.
One piece of furniture that prominently played, was a double side couch, a kind of mid century modern Tete a Tete. In fact it was featured in one of the movie posters.

Mid Century Modern Tete A Tete

I couldn't find an example of anything like the one in the movie, but I found a few other interesting examples.

Below: Knoll Tete a Tete

Mid 19th Century Tete A Tete

There was also a second couch in the set design
A strange homey check print

There was a wonderful harlequin accent wall in the movie, something like this one from a vintage decorating book.

The entrance hall had a Sputnik chandelier and a black and white tile floor.

There was a sunken bar. In case some of you have never seen one, I found this image from a present day home for sale in Tennessee.

Charlie loved his painting collection, and was very proud of it. In fact he talked to a clown painting quite alot, spilling his guts out to it. It looked very much like this Georges Rouault painting.

There were a ton of great accessories in the set design. Over size lamps, a Buddha, an antique Chinese Horse, all the accoutrement's and trappings of the new Hollywood class of wealthy movie people trying on the veneer of sophisticated acquisition.

The movie has the pace of a play, and at times it gets overwrought and a little shrill. This was the time of The Black List, so it makes sense that fear and loathing play so prominently in this dark interpretation of Hollywood in 1955.
I hope you can catch it, and I hope you enjoy the set set design as much as I did.

Happy Weekend

It's hot as hell here. Waiting to see if Miss Fay pays us a visit. Heartfelt concern to everyone in her way in Florida.
Saw Vicky Cristina Barcelona this afternoon. Just a wonderful piece of fluff. Loved Javier and all the girls. Loved Barcelona. Loved the interiors. Loved the music. Loved the dialogue and narration. Woody still has it! My favorite line had to with Mormons.
Have a few things to do this weekend, but I may get around to posting again. If not, see ya next week.
PS The lady in the photo is Claudia Cardinale...

Summer Flowers

It's hard to believe another Summer is coming to an end. Many of your children are already back to school. Whatever happened to going back to school in September? If the Summer flowers in your cutting garden are looking droopy or depleted, you can augment the bouquets for your home from my favorite wholesaler G.Page HERE
Located in New York City, G. Page has the best flowers anywhere! And, yes they do ship.
This week's specials are Sunflowers and Lysianthus. I love Lysianthus, and the double ones are just as luscious looking as a rose. In fact the common name for Lizzies, is Prairie Rose.
G.Page's primary Sunflowers supplier from South (New) Jersey is now cutting product. Sunflower pricing ranges from $.9 to 1.75/stem depending on size. Double local Lysianthus pricing is $1.5/stem. So enjoy the pictures of the Summer flowers, and if you are able to order wholesale, check out G. Page. It's great to get a big box of flowers delivered right to your door.
If you'd like a little Labor Day Weekend Getaway, don't forget our Bed and Tango, which is a unique bed and breakfast we do in our home. You can enjoy all that New Orleans has to offer, get tango lessons, and get to see the new sexy Billy Baldwin brown living room. All the details are in the margin to the right, or e-mail me at mizvtheb@yahoo.com
Which color Lysianthus to you like best?

Mercury Glass Table Lamp

I love the setting of this vignette, and the Mercury glass lamp looks terrific.
I'm selling a few things on eBay myself (please check them out in the margin to the right). While I'm checking on my stuff, I did a little browsing and came across this lamp HERE
The seller has several nice photos of the lamp, and also posted this vignette, which really gives you an idea of size and scale.
Tell the seller mariposa490 sent you!