Royal Oak Foundation: St. Giles House

Fall is officially here!

And once again, we are teaming up with the Royal Oak Foundation in November to present...

A FAMILY LEGACY RESTORED: ST. GILES HOUSE 

An Illustrated Lecture by Nicholas Ashley-Cooper, 12th Earl of Shaftesbury

Lord Shaftesbury will be making a stop in Atlanta on November 12th to discuss his mission to restore and rebuild St. Giles House, which has been his family's home since his ancestor, The 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, built it in 1650.

This magnificent estate has been through many changes over the past 300 plus years, with a major "modernization" that took place in the 18th century and that would be followed by another one in the Victorian era.  

Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury c.1672-73.

St. Giles House in 1862 with the addition of the Victorian Tower.

Nicholas Ashley-Cooper, 12th Earl of Shaftesbury and current owner of St. Giles House.

Over the years this estate was the host to Princes and Princesses, grand hunts and cricket tournaments.  The splendor of St. Giles soon gave way to the start of World War I, when most of the house staff left to fight in the war and a portion of the house became a hospital to treat the wounded.  Like many English country houses, St. Giles fell into disrepair after the end of World War II.  

Since then, there have been several attempts to revitalize the house and it's surrounding park, with the most recent by the current Earl of Shaftesbury being successful.  In 2014 his restoration project on St. Giles won the Georgian Group Award for the Restoration of a Georgian Country House.

Please join us on November 12th at 6:30 PM inside the presentation room at ADAC for Nicholas' lecture.

To register for this event please visit:

http://adacatlanta.com/events/548

And for more information on St. Giles and photographs of it's restoration please visit:

http://www.shaftesburyestates.com

Red, White and Blue...

It's that time of year again...

July is here!  And with it brings the hottest weather of the year, cook outs, baseball games, pool parties and who can forget that it's National Ice Cream Month?

But the absolute best day of the month is...

JULY 4th!

This is the day that celebrates the thirteen colonies Independence from Great Britain, but did you know that we were actually legally separated from Great Britain on July 2, 1776?  Here's a little letter that John Adams wrote to Abigail Adams concerning the matter:

"The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival.  It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.  It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more."

Of course, John was off by two days, mostly due to the fact that the Declaration of Independence was being revised and wasn't approved until July 4th, 1776.  He was right, though; for the past 239 years we've been celebrating this monumental day with the "bells, bonfires, and illuminations" fitting of the occasion.  

While we prepare our homes, gardens, and backyards to receive our guests for July 4th, let's indulge in a bit of inspiration from a classic American Icon... Ralph Lauren!

Relaxed and cool... We love the traditional look mixed with fun pieces like the guitar, camera, and American Flag!

Gorgeous red, white and blue textiles from Ralph Lauren

Some favorite pieces based off of 18th and 19th century designs available from Ralph Lauren Home:

Scrubbed Farm Pine Table with Barn Red Base

18th Century Dining Arm Chair

Cane Back Settee

***

Whatever your plans may be for July 4th this year, have a safe and fun holiday!

  

“I begin to think, that a calm is not desirable in any situation in life. Man was made for action and for bustle too, I believe.” 
― Abigail Adams

Greenhouses and Gardening

Greenhouse, glasshouse, hothouse... There are many names for these beautiful and sometimes delicate looking structures.  While modern greenhouses tend be large industrial designs, the concept has been around for centuries.

In Roman times, greenhouses were built using frames and thin sheets of Selenite as opposed to glass which was hard to come by and considered a luxury.  Greenhouses took on the identity of Orangeries during the 17th century, when they were used as a means of protecting citrus trees from harsh European winters.  These were often Baroque style buildings that easily blended in with the aristocratic residences they accompanied.  The Orangerie at Versailles in France is a great example of these beautiful yet functional greenhouses. 

The height of the greenhouse popularity happened in Victorian England.  Although it's no longer standing today, the Crystal Palace in Hyde Park was a magnificent glass structure measuring 990,000 square feet and constructed in 1850.

L′Orangerie du Château de Versailles

An overgrown Victorian Greenhouse

The Crystal Palace, 1854

Despite these impressive examples of greenhouses, the word itself tends to conjure images of small weathered glass buildings surrounded by misty English gardens.  As we ride out the last weeks of spring here is some inspiration for your garden spaces; whether it's a flower bed or your own little Crystal Palace!

Bars

With the temperatures below freeing, it is hard to leave the house!  Right now is the best time to enjoy your home bar.  Here a few residential bars we are especially inspired by…

If you are in the mood to decorate your own bar, here are a few of our picks from the showroom…

From left to right: Astral Wall Sconces from Mr. Brown, Antique Mirror, Carrie Penley's Patton Revolver, AERIN Shagreen Tray, AERIN Match Striker, Antique Wine Tasting Table, Claudio Media Cabinet Mr. Brown

Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs

If you are in the New York area, Matisse: The Cut-Outs is currently on exhibition at the Moma, through February 8th.  It is a must see!

This many of Matisse's cut-outs have not been together since Matisse' death in 1954, when they left his apartment.

In 1941, during the bleak period of WWII, Matisse was diagnosed with intestinal cancer.  Being confined to a wheel chair, he pressed on with his art.  Surviving the cancer felt as a second life to him.  Matisse compared his new medium of cutouts to a sculptor cutting into stone, only he was cutting into paper.  Matisse's nurses arranged the cut-outs around his room to create his works of art.

If you can't make it to New York to see the exhibit, here are a few shots of Matisse and his work:

Welcome to September!

We can not be more excited for September; we are hoping fall weather is right around the corner!    
This month we are focusing our blog posts on fashion, red and gold hues, and animal skins.  September is the most important month for the fashion industry, but it also trickles into the interior design world.  We are going to show you how simple techniques such as slipcovers and a hides can dress up your interiors, similar to the fashion world!

This month is packed, for example, our annual Sample Sale, a delivery of new Julian Chichester items, and  a container from the UK!  Look what we have in store-

1- Labor Day- showroom closed

2- Container 58 arrives

8- re-setting the showroom with new Julian Chichester stock

4-11- NY Fashion Week

23- 1st Day of Fall

24- Warehouse Sale

Robert Brown's Townhouse

Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles recently featured Robert Brown's Townhouse.

The article explains the new retail experience which provides a place for designers to shop, but also displays Bob's refined menswear-inspired aesthetic.  Robert Brown is also calling his Townhouse a design laboratory.  For example, the bold red living room shows his experimentation of paint color.  Check out more of Bob's furniture in our showroom or next door at Townhouse.

We checked out the Townhouse ourselves, and we spotted some of our furniture Robert Brown Designed for MacRae!

Sara's favorite part was the lamp collection, inspired by John Rosselli's NY Shop-

And, Louisa's favorite part was the red room-