Sweet Green Dreams

Inspiration: Four beds all lined up with matching coverlets look fun with contrasting shams amidst the three shared night tables with matching lamps. The striped wallpaper pulls all the colors together and creates a visual lift from the dramatic horizontality of the beds in handsome alignment.

Image from Merimekko.

Visiting Pompeii Before Dinner

Need a little archaeology fix today? Take a stroll on Google's Street View of Pompeii and don't worry about the crowds of tourists, your passport or the exchange rate. The 360 degree panoramic street-level service of Pompeii is so fascinating to visit, you'll probably want to make several excursions.

Life in the ancient Roman city was wiped out by the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. The volcano deposited 20 feet of ash, killing everyone in Pompeii and nearby Herculaneum. The disaster preserved the remains of the city until it was rediscovered in the 18th century. Archaeologists of the last 250 years have been studying the ruins to better understand Roman life in the first century.

These are the actual buildings and ruins that survive today. No need to rely on sterile looking reconstructions or sharp, linear computer generated images to imagine for yourself the texture and scale of the houses, storefronts and civic structures. One perk of virtually visiting Pompeii, is seeing the real thing.

Bon voyage and don't miss the wall paintings!

Strawberry Hill - A Gothic Confection

Strawberry Hill, the 18th century summer house of Horace Walpole was undoubtedly an exuberant experiment in Gothic revival. In 1748 Walpole purchased the house built in 1698, and set out to make "a little Gothic castle" with the help of 2 talented friends, referring to themselves as a Committee of Taste. In several phases of improvements over 30 years the house grew and changed. There did not seem to be a fixed plan and additions were made based on loose interpretations of earlier baronial architecture he admired, as the chapel at Westminster Abbey and engravings of chimney pieces from early churches.

The house, just outside London, was widely visited although not entirely appreciated. Some thought it a folly and a disgrace. In addition to his mixing styles and periods, he used details from the exteriors of churches on the interiors of his house. It was, at the time, greatly discussed. And now, not surprisingly, it's recognized as one of the most influential houses of Georgian Gothic style.

Gothic became a popular architectural theme in the nineteenth century, perhaps in part because of Walpole's Strawberry Hill. What was unheard of in his choice of blending and recreating ancient styles and details of various periods has now become common for draftsmen and builders of new suburban construction and developments of mini mansions marketing grand traditional homes.

Fortunately, Walpole's writing, many of his collections (over 4,000 were displayed in his home for tours during his lifetime), architectural drawings, engravings and the house itself survive to visit and enjoy.

The house is under restoration and shall reopen to the public in the fall of 2010. The V & A is presently hosting an exhibit on Walpole, the collector through July 4.

Images of Strawberry Hill courtesy of the Lewis Walpole Library collection at Yale University, top to bottom: The Tribune, 1789; View of the Great North Bed Chamber, n.d.; The Great Cloister; Sketch of the Gallery, 1759; The Round Drawing Room, n.d.

Subway Car Transformed

Imagine stepping onto a New York city subway car and entering the visual delights of a Dutch collector's salon. Take the S shuttle from Grand Central to Times Square before March 4 and you can experience the fabulousness for yourself. Mahogany wainscoting, damask wall covering, paintings by Dutch masters, even ceiling medallions and tufted seats have all been thoughtfully faux furnished to invite you away.

The wrapped subway shuttle has reawoken in color and style thanks with the The Netherlands Board of Tourism marketing campaign, "Just Be. In Holland." The three different themed cars (decorated inside and out) represent the city's cultural, classic and contemporary attractions and include translations of fun Dutch phrases and words. Catch it, if you can!

Image courtesy of PointClickHome

Interior Details

In this photocollage from the 1860s, the artist painted the interior scene and added photographs of 14 family and friends (including the pooch) to liven things up a bit.

Some nice details to admire include the curtains hung over the mirror above the mantel, the lovely blue carpeting and matching hearth rug, the openwork, woven plant stand with greenery and the oval frames hung from the decorative, maybe wallpapered, picture rail and ornamented with ribbons and bows.

Thank you Lady Filmer for sharing your real or imagined Victorian parlor.

Photograph courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art:
Mary Georgiana Caroline, Lady Filmer (English, 1838–1903)
Untitled loose page from the Filmer Album, mid-1860s
Collage of watercolor and albumen silver prints; 8 3/4 x 11 1/4 in. (22.2 x 28.6 cm)
Paul F. Walter

Log Cabin Envy

Cabins, huts, tiny houses and work spaces in winter sheds offer an appealing place for quiet, focused time. Recently, I've enjoyed catching up on a blog called Shedworking. Each entry brings new inspiration on the endless possibilities this form of architecture may yield. The log house above is a garden house and music studio on wheels in the Netherlands. For more photos, click here.

Color of the Year

It's not surprising that the color Pantone, the professional color standard, has selected for its 2010 color of the year is: sort of green. But it's green made better, with a blend of blue and called Turquoise or 15-5519. It evokes the calm image of tropical waters and the vacation we so desperately need at this time of year. (Okay, well maybe I should only speak for myself).

For more info on this or any color, visit Pantone.

Domestic Design: Significant Parts

Victor Hugo's Banister from Maison de Victor Hugo6, Place des Vosges, 4th Arrondissement, Paris


Sir John Soane's House, Pitshanger Manor, Walpole Park, Mattlock Lane, London

A shrine is a place preserved for history. A shrine may be where someone important and worth remembering once lived. A shrine is usually preserved to remember a place in time - a long time ago.

I recently came across a book of beautiful photography of everyday objects. The handsome and utilitarian objects are things like architectural details, teapots, clocks, and writing sets. The objects were selected because they were touched by great men.

These objects were touched by great women, too.


Photos from Dr. Johnson's Doorknob and Other Significant Parts of Great Men's Houses by Liz Workman, published by Rizzoli, 2007.

Mid-Century Kitchens

Vintage advertisements featuring interiors are so delightful. This stylish, fantasy kitchen featured bright white cabinetry trimmed in saucy red, boldly trellised wallpaper and open cabinetry. You can imagine what the dreamy adjacent rooms could have looked like.



An advertisement from a gas company. Don't miss the backyard view through the low windows.



An advertisement for appliances. The second and third images appear courtesy of See Saw. There are more vintage kitchens ads over there.

A Canopy of Glass

Over a decade ago, I once sat in a beautiful courtyard in downtown Washington DC. The grassy courtyard had lots of trees and park furniture and paths leading to the entrances of the museum buildings around it on all four sides. Now the courtyard of the Old Patent Office Building has been made more beautiful still and transformed into a delightful new public space with a few improvements, most notably a glass canopy.

The Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard of the Reynolds Center of the Smithsonian Institution may be more familiarly known as the short-cut between the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The museum complex is housed in a fine 19th century Greek revival structure, a National Historic Landmark, begun in 1836 under architect Robert Mills and completed in 1867 as one of the city's first public buildings.

In its history, the courtyard was also the site of President Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural ball in 1865. The glass and steel canopy was designed by Foster + Partners. "Given the importance of the Old Patent Office, the design was wholly driven by a deep respect for the existing building," Sir Norman Foster said. "It was decided that it should not touch the building at any point but instead float above it like a cloud over the courtyard." The curved glass top, supported by 8 unobtrusive columns, fills the space with light and a feeling of weightlessness as you walk through the 2,800 square foot space watching the shapes of the grid work above appear to undulate.

Landscape architect Kathryn Gustafson contributed to the interior of the space, with the selection of large trees and shrubs and the inviting seating, which are really planters carved of marble. She also designed four very shallow pools of water, adding great drama to the courtyard. Her signature water scrims seem to disappear into the stone floor when not in use.

The space is a remarkable example of history and modern architecture in harmony for the increased usability of the space. And the fabulous result is a place worth visiting and lingering.


Top photo courtesy of David Y. Lee and The New York Times
Bottom photo courtesy of Tim Hursley and the Smithsonian Institution

Lunch is available daily in the Courtyard Cafe 11:30 to 4.

Typewriter Style

The height of modern industrial design and portability were exemplified in this new design of the Olivetti Lettera 32 typewriter in 1963. Weighing in at about 13 pounds, this diminutive beauty was a great convenience for students and journalists. With a flick of a switch, the type changed from black to red or no ink for carbon copies.

Design conscious from early on, Olivetti was founded in Italy in 1908. From the 1940s to the 1960s Marcello Nizzoli, (1887-1969) one of Italy's most influential designers, directed product design including the iconic early Letteras. In addition to his role as head product-design consultant, he also worked for Olivetti as an architect, designing housing for employees (1948) and office buildings (1960s).

Click here for a delightful gallery of Olivetti's portable typewriters at the Portable Typewriter Reference Site.

Below are some vintage images of earlier brands of typewriters and their typists/writers and assemblers.

Typing pool, circa 1890

Sales office, circa 1900

Assemblers, circa 1911

These images appear courtesy of The Virtual Typewriter Museum. Please click on over to see all their collections.

Back at 973, the little Olivetti sits out with a piece of paper in the roller at the ready. The grocery list grows; a reminder to return a call is added; and other terrifically important notes are kept in one convenient place in our writing machine.

It's still a great way to communicate!