Curl up with These

Let’s face it: there is something flat delicious about curling up with a gorgeous coffee table book and a glass of wine with your feet by the fire, which is a likely endeavor this season. Daddy may not have gotten you that “pony” back in the day, but he probably let you buy your fair share of books along the way, or maybe you pillaged the local library and filled your head with finer thoughts. Great inspiration comes from the works and writings of others, and we certainly have our favorites. Thought we’d share below as ideas for under the tree or just because!

Vintage French Interiors: Inspiration from the Antique Shops and Flea Markets of France, by Sébastien Siraudeau

That’s right- there’s an accent aigu over the e in his name, making it a sultry “Say-bast-ee-ohn” for those of you who don’t parlez Français. Naturally, the French are still considered the quintessential culture vultures of our time, spurring many a trend in all facets of life. From culinary delights to collectible scarves, French folks truly cut a swath through the fields of Ugly and leave us with many an inspiration. This little book is no slouch: it’s filled with various and sundry accoutrements and a vast array of crusty bits and peeling paint evoking that fabulous vintage aesthetic we treasure so.

Idea: collect antique hat forms in varying shapes and sizes to display at your wedding paired with a photo booth and an array of wild hats for funkier pics.

One Hundred and One Beautiful Towns in Italy: Food and Wine, by Paolo Lazzarin

Forget the coq au vin for a moment and relish the thought of a simple bolognese a-la-Giada, and then pick up this book and try not to salivate. Its many pages take you from hilltops to seaside throughout the gorgeous Italian landscape, divulging secrets on where to find the best restaurants in tiny towns, where to shop for a fresh farm-to-table experience, and how to prepare some of the great classics the way they would do it.

Idea: Opt out of the tired carved tenderloin table for your station-style winter wedding. Instead, consider osso buco with crusty breads served from heavy black cauldrons and paired with a hearty Barolo.

Pattern, by Tricia Guild

Although Rachel Zoe’s exclamation of “Die!” over things she loves can be grating, it’s literally the only thing that pops into our heads when we come upon this book while brainstorming for our clients. It’s nearly edible- with its flocked velvet cover and pages rife with color, boldness, zealous juxtaposition of fabrics, frames, curtains, furniture, and detail. From European checks and stripes, Asian silks and damasks, the Caribbean’s vibrant ethnic prints, as well as contemporary abstract and geometric patterns, the book covers it all in its style sections of floral, painterly, geometric, classics, silks, and tropical. You could borrow ours if you don’t mind drool.

Idea: having a tented affair? Talk to your wedding planner or rental company about having your tent pole covers made from a coordinating secondary linen that meshes well with your table linens, and don’t be afraid of patterns and prints!

Lowcountry Plantations Today, by N. Jane Iseley and William P. Baldwin

A phenomenal book chock-full of eye candy from the still-standing homes on miles of Southern land, this book makes a fabulous gift for the newly-engaged couple planning to be married anywhere in the Lowcountry. Take notes on the natural landscapes, the indigenous colors and historic details throughout and let those tidbits bolster your own wedding’s design.

Idea: Interested in furniture vignettes for your wedding reception? Take books on the Lowcountry and place them in neat little graduated stacks on coffee tables, end tables (under lamps!), and console tables for a personal touch and entertainment for those taking a break from dancing.

Bunny Williams’ Point of View: Three Decades of Decorating Elegant and Comfortable Houses, by Bunny Williams

Mama always said, “some people only have taste in their mouths”. Not so with Bunny, who has it in her bones. “You learn from people with great taste,” says she, and we agree- we learn from her! Bunny’s interiors reflect her legendary sense of chic, as well as her mantra that every person’s home should manifest his/her personality and guide the design. We consider the same principles when designing a couple’s big day: let the couple’s memories and future dreams shape the nature of the ceremony and the reception. You might use this book to garner a grand sense of proportion, style, and color as it pertains to laying out a welcoming environment.

Idea: take a cue from Bunny’s clients’ soaring ceilings and design your own affair to have spot-on scale…example: hanging a chandelier? It shouldn’t just float mid-air over nothing: ground it by hanging it directly over an inviting piece like a votive-flooded table, a sign-in book table, or a fabulous cake. How low do you go? Chandeliers should be about 36″ above the item(s) they’re highlighting.

Cool + Cool + Hot

We chat often with peers, clients, and friends about the incestuous relationship between interior design and event planning. Both industries rely heavily on a profound sense of space, an appreciation of color’s impact, an obsession with details, and an intense focus on quality. Working closely with the ever-talented Courtney Gunter Rowson of Stitch to design our corporate stationery suite and color palette back in the day, we were exposed to the power of choosing a few cool colors and one *pop* color, ours being- surprise- orange. Since then, we’ve employed this technique when creating motifs for our clients, and it works like a charm.

It can be a little challenging (in a good way!) to design weddings along the Southeast coast when we, as a rule, eschew the whole barefoot-on-the-beach motif.  Being surrounded by palm trees is peaceful and Buffett-esque, but emblazoning them all over everything is a wee bit much. As a testament to our little coastal mecca, we’re designing a 2010 wedding around another “cool/cool/hot” color palette of dove gray, ice blue, and punchy yellow. Check out our inspiration board below!

Pillows from Mecox …Interiors from Decor Pad…Bouquet from Martha Stewart… Treesje clutch… Sweets from Rebecca Thuss…

Orange you in love with orange?

Sorry, couldn’t resist. We wholeheartedly disagree with the writers of the original Legally Blonde, who had Reese Witherspoon (a Tennessean, at that!) exclaim: “Whoever said orange was the new pink was seriously disturbed.” Sorry, Reese- it’s true. Bubblegum pink and its spectrum of dissident shade sisters has truly been replaced by the overt and opulent orange. Our travels and general Googledom have revealed that orange is most definitely au courant, in tones ranging from sherbet to neon and many shades in between. We have a strain of a delicious creamsicle orange running throughout our corporate stationery suite, and we pen all of our thank-yous in a coordinating orange Sharpie (living on the edge). A few ways to incorporate this saucy color into wedding design:

Blood Orange Champagne Cocktail

From Bon Appetit …

Ingredients ( serves 8 )

1/4 cup crème de cassis (black-currant liqueur)

1 1/2 cups strained fresh blood orange juice (from about 6 oranges)

1 750-ml bottle chilled brut Champagne or dry sparkling wine

8 blood orange slices (optional)

Preparation

Spoon 1 1/2 teaspoons crème de cassis into each of 8 Champagne flutes or other glasses. Add 3 tablespoons juice to each glass. Fill each glass with Champagne, then stir gently. Garnish cocktails with slices of blood orange, if desired.

Flower Fun

Accessorize your Signature Drinks

… from Elizabeth Anne Designs

Inspired invite?

… from Dauphine Press

Votive Light

… from Conran Shops

Passed hors d’oeuvres, in style

… in Target stores only