at home with sofia coppola: get the look

I am by no means a graphic designer, but I fell so in love with SC’s apartment that I had to create une petite "get the look" roundup. Here are a few items that, in my humble opinion, capture the essence of her space...

One: Start with a beautiful, oversized sofa in a shade of pale blue. Sofia’s is by George Smith, but the one pictured here is a George Sherlock (my dream sofa maker). Two: Simply drown yourself in pink peonies. Real ones are lovely, but the Diane James variety never dies :). Three: Get thee an Elizabeth Peyton print. I didn’t find any great ones available for online purchase, so I would suggest picking up this book and framing one of it's pages. Who’s going to know? Four: Line your lingerie drawer with paper scented in Diptyque’s Olène Perfume (Sofia’s favorite). Five: Light up a big... candle! A.P.C.’s are different and delicious. Six: Extend the life of your tables with Sugar Paper's gold polka dot coasters. They're very Coppola-esque, don't you think? Seven: According to the New York Times, SC purchases stationary at Paris' Benneton Graveur Stationery. I would image that the above correspondence card and envelope is one of their designs. Eight: This pretty ginger jar lamp by Lamps Plus reminds me of the one in SC’s living room. Whether your style is traditional or minimalist, you truly can't go wrong with ginger jar anything. Nine: Hang a vintage blonde fur coat on the back of a door. Instant luxury. Ten: Paint your walls a warm white, like Farrow & Ball’s Pointing. Eleven: Track down a Power, Corruption & Lies record on eBay or at a local record store. Frame it. Twelve: Wear black ballet flats around the house... Repetto’s are super chic. Thirteen: Use an address book. At one point, Sofia used this one from Smython but any brand will do!

And there you have it! For those of you who read, thanks for indulging me :)

at home with... sofia coppola

Prior to writing this post, I studied these images of Sofia Coppola’s old Manhattan apartment for hours. I so admire her clean, feminine style and wish I could adopt it for myself (but as I’m an antique hoarder, this isn’t possible). If you squint, you can read the text… her penchant for big, pink peonies, delicate china and Elizabeth Peyton makes me adore her even more. Hope you enjoy as much as I did :)

(via House & Garden, November 2006)

at home with... gucci westman

Who doesn’t love Gucci Westman? The celebrated makeup artist and global artistic director for Revlon was profiled years ago in the January 2007 issue of House & Garden (you know, the one with Chloë Sevigny on the cover?). Upon rediscovering it, I had to scan + post! It’s always fun to get a peek into creative’s homes, no? The little snippets that we see here - that floral wallpaper, the lace tablecloth... - is enough to make one think that her entire townhouse must be phenomenal! Hopefully one day, we’ll see it in its entirety in one of the glossies.

c.z. guest's templeton

One day (and I’m sure you all are with me), I would love to attend a dinner party at Templeton, the Long Island estate formally belonging to C.Z. Guest. The estate, now home to C.Z.’s daughter, Cornelia, was decorated by Stéphane Boudin (and later Paul Manno) of Maison Janson. Though filled to the brim with museum-quality furniture and art (did you get a look at the portrait of Mrs. Guest by Salvador Dali?!), Templeton was a country home. The leopard carpet served to camouflage mud trekked in by the Guest’s pups; flowers from C.Z.’s garden were displayed in flimsy plastic pots next to exquisite porcelain ginger jars imported from China. The grand estate stands today as a relic of classic WASP culture. It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I find it simply divine :)  

(Images scanned in from House & Garden, June 2004)

the vanity project

One of the features I miss most from “House & Garden” is the magazine’s “Vanity” market piece. Though a “Vanity” page didn’t appear in every issue, when it did it was beyond! A scanned in a few of my favorite vanities from my magazine archives. They’re all wonderful, but I just die for the first vanity - the scene was inspired by decorating doyenne Dorothy Draper. Which do you prefer?