For a little Friday fun, I thought I’d find some pretty baubles to celebrate summer and sunshine. After all, tomorrow is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year.

What gem could possibly evoke summer and sunshine more than the citrine?  I’m just so, so fond of citrines.  Many people associate them with the fall since they’re  November’s birthstone, but for today’s purposes, that’s irrelevant.

For more than you ever wanted to know about citrines, check out this link to the International Colored Gemstones Association.

But on to the fun stuff. . .  

This ring isn’t my usual style, but there was something about it that just seemed very casual and summery.  When I first saw it, I pictured natural linen and tan cork wedge sandals with some wood bangles, but then I saw the sandal and ended up with a more tropical look.  

For a  different look completely, imagine how gorgeous this bracelet would look on a tanned arm with white pants and these sandals at an elegant summer party: 

Who needs highlights or bronzer with these glowing from your ears?   The sandals complete the look literally from head to toe!

This ring is quite unusual, and while I can’t say I love it, I’m quite intrigued.  I’d love to try it on and see how it looks and if the beads are at all floppy.  I can’t tell from the photo if it will turn out to be too “retiree in Boca” or a sophisticated, interesting conversation piece. 

Have a great weekend!

Because I am very busy and have no time to compose a post for today, I will let a picture say a thousand words. . . .

Behave yourselves while I’m gone.

I love books.  I’ve always loved books.  I think that every house should have at least one bookcase displayed semi-prominently in an appropriate location.  I’m not even very picky about what kind of books it contains.  Some people would turn up their noses at a shelf full of Grisham, Binchy, and Shreve.   I don’t care if they are cook books, sports books, or comic books as long as they are somehow reflective of the occupants of the house.  Books warm up a room and lend character and history to a space. I find a house without books to be rather soul-less.

Consequently, when I was looking through last month’s Traditional Living, I just was so annoyed by the room featured below:

Here’s a couple closer views (please forgive the bad scan):

Why are all the book wrapped in white paper?  What earthly good does that do?  I’ve seen this done on shows like “Sell This House” which is fine.  That’s for a specific, temporary purpose.   But as a design concept for a room in which people are allegedly supposed to live?  No.  It’s not only stupid from a practical standpoint, but it defeats the entire point of having books in a room.   Talk about soul-less.  I’m just disgusted.

I was Googling for something which I can’t recall at the moment and ended up at the blog, desire to inspire, where I saw photos of work of design firm, S. Russell Groves.  While mid-century modern isn’t my style, I definitely have an appreciation for it.  It looks like S. Russell Groves does a nice update of the style rather than the kitschy replication that I so frequently see.

But this post isn’t about mid-century modern.  It’s about the conversation sofa I saw in this photo featured on desire to inspire:

I’ve seen antique versions of this two-way style sofa, and I love them every since time I see them.  This is the first modern interpretation I’ve seen, and I have to say I love it too.  Notwithstanding the lines and angles, there’s just something so cozy and inviting about the design.  Just looking at it makes me want to plan an intimate cocktail party immediately.

Inspired by this photo (hey, their site works!), I went looking for other conversation sofas.   I didn’t have much luck, but I did find some alleged “conversation sofas” at Horchow and Neiman Marcus:

This is very different than what I’d consider a conversation sofa.  It definitely does not have the same ”come and chat with me” feel.  However, imagine if you had a library!  This would be perfect.  But I really think it should be called a “Tandem Reading Sofa” instead. 

I’m going to be on the prowl for conversation sofas now.  It’s a thin line between inspired and obsessed.

A big fat Pottery Barn sale catalog arrived this weekend.  Like Crate and Barrel, Pottery Barn’s style doesn’t general really speak to me, but I like to look at the catalogs to get a sense of the zeitgeist.  Moreover, it will frequently have some clever gadget or item that I really need – like the Bedford Charging Station which I bought last year in white.  Apparently, it now also comes in black, red, and two shades of brown too:

The charging station is great although much larger than I expected.  I currently have a very petitely scaled cottage kitchen, and this takes up more counter space than I’d like.  However, since I consider my living arrangements to be quite temporary (let’s not discuss the fact that I’ve already been here for almost five years), I don’t worry about it.  In fact, I’m hoping that in my next house, I’ll have a kitchen where I can install the Smart Daily System. 

This is the one thing from Pottery Barn that I’ve lusted after for years (well, this and the ruby cut-glass martini shaker from last Christmas that sold out before I could get my hands on it).  The Smart Daily System makes my compulsive little heart go pitty pat.  Charging stations, key hooks, mail caddies, pen holders, bulletin board, and calendar - not only all-in-one but customizable.  What more could a girl want?!

Another item in this edition of the catalog which I’ve marked for future reference are the Terry Chaise Covers:

How handy are these?!?  Clean, absorbent, easily removable, washable.  No need to fuss with the crud that gets stuck in the creases of patio cushions or with dirtying up an extra towel just by lying on it. In addition, they look quite easy to put on.  Plus monograms!!  

Hmmm, in addition to a larger kitchen, I guess I also need a patio/pool at my next place. . . .

Speaking of next houses, in my family, we have a mythical “beach house” for which cast-off furniture, dishes, and other accoutrements have been saved for decades.  While the beach house has yet to become a reality, I think we’ve probably hypothetically decorated and redecorated it a hundred times.  

While I probably wouldn’t buy Pottery Barn furniture for an everyday house, I saw a huge number of things in the catalog that would be perfect for an imaginary beach house. Of course, I’m talking about a quaint, cottage-y beach house with a big porch as opposed to a sleek, white Malibu or Miami spread.

If this is not a beach house living room, I don’t know what is:

Where else would Nautical Rope Tables ever be appropriate but at a beach house?  Or a Nautical Console Table?

Actually, I just can’t go there with the last two items.  It’s just too theme-y.  I think that’s the probably reason that the console table is on sale. It’s just over the top.

These enamel-finished steel dishes could work well for a beach place that would be rented out – no possibility of breakage!  Just don’t put them in the microwave.

While the mini-colander is adorable, I’m not sure what purpose it serves in a place setting.  Nevertheless, the set is awfully cute though I wonder how chip-resistant the enamel is for long-term rental use.

And for the beach itself, this looks like a great beach bag with a pocket and plug-in speakers for your iPod. 

There are also these adorable lime/navy and lime/pink monogrammed drink cozies in the catalog which don’t show up on the website.  I’ll have to see if I can link them later. 

That was fun!  I always enjoy mentally redecorating the mythical beach house.

In 1997, I saw an article (or maybe an ad) in Town & Country that featured beautiful Cartier rings made of chocolate and champagne diamonds.  It was love at first sight.  I tore out the page and posted it on the fridge where it stayed for ages. 

The picture has long since disappeared, but the love remains.  Yes, I know chocolate, champagne, and cognac diamonds are a gimmick – a marketing ploy to move lower-quality diamonds.  I really don’t care.

This ring isn’t really anything like the Cartier rings I remember which were less conventionally designed, but it was the best example I could find at the moment.  Few months ago, I spend the better part of an afternoon browsing chocolate diamond rings at my favorite internet sources, and there were quite a few that really caught my eye.  When I went back again in recent days to find the photos, it appears that all of the good specimens have disappeared and been replaced by some monstrosities of unspeakable proportions.  I present the following for your viewing displeasure:

Who would wear these? And what is with the animals?!

Talk about a gimmick.

Reader, cj griffin, commented on My Dream Bed post as follows:

We do not share the same taste in furniture — I like mine plain and unadorned — but I am very enamored of the idea of a bed that has a little sofa back built into it so you can sit up and read.

which I took as a challenge to see if I could find a simple, stylish bed that had a modern recamier look. 

I’m generally not a huge fan of Crate & Barrel furniture, but their last catalogue had some interesting looks which I vaguely recalled as possibly fitting cj’s criteria.  Let’s see what she thinks of these (you can click on the thumbnails to see larger photos):

The first one doesn’t look like much in the photo linked here but cleans up quite well if you check out the Room Views available at the C&B site.  Restoration Hardware also has a number of upholstered beds, but the headboards are rather high which undermines the lounge-y look.

This Horchow bed (Lexington) certainly ups the drama level, but I’m not sure it invites one to curl up with a book.  A martini, maybe.

Ballard Designs, one of my favorite catalogs, arrived in the mail a few days ago, and I just had a chance to sit down and go through it.  It consider it my idea book, and I frequently dog-ear pages and hang onto them for future reference.

I don’t know whether it’s that I’m so familar with the catalog or whether it’s not just not a great issue, but I was underwhelmed this time.  Usually, there’s at least one section that makes me take a second and third look - whether it’s bright, cheerful, exquisitely organized laundry room or a charming kitchen nook that sends me into fantasyland.  Unfortunately, I was left rather uninspired this time.

I also noticed that there seemed to be a significantly higher level of kitsch in this issue which I found a bit disturbing.  I mean, what are Tole Topiary Plaques and who thought they are a good idea?

I’m against faux anything pretty much on principle, but these are just baffling.

On the faux front, I just have to say no to these Faux Bois Log Planters too.  Just no.

And while there’s a small, teeny-tiny, perhaps even infintesmal part of me that says that maybe, just maybe, there is a garden somewhere where the Mosaic Toad House could possibly be considered charming, overall, I have to say that it’s just beneath the standard I expect from Ballard Designs.  It’s the kind of thing I’d expect to see in Winterthur or Lillian Vernon catalogs instead.  However, since I can’t find the Mosaic Toad house on their website, I’m hoping they’ve rethought the idea, and we can pretend it never happened — although that won’t prevent me from scanning and posting the picture later - just for posterity.

 Edited:  Here’s the Mosaic Toad House!

Forty-five pieces of Christina Onassis’s jewelry were auctioned yesterday at Christie’s in London.  The vintage jewels auction took place almost 20 years after Christina Onassis died of a heart attack at age 37.

The highlight of Christie Jewels: The London Sale was a pear-shaped, 38-carat diamond pendant necklace owned by Ms. Onassis.  It was estimated to sell for between £1,800,000 - £2,200,000 ($3,513,000 - $4,294,000) but ended up selling for almost double £3,625,250 ($7,083,739).  As you can see from the photos below, it’s an exquisite and incredibly impressive piece.

Another key piece of Christina’s collection was a sapphire and diamond necklace by Harry Winston estimated to sell for between £120,000- 150,000 ($234,000 - $293,000) and which actually sold for £337,250 ($658,987).   

 But I think my favorite piece of Christina’s jewels was a ruby and diamond necklace by Van Cleef and Arpels which was estimated to sell for £30,000 - £40,000 ($58,500 - $78,000) and actually sold for a mere £97,250 ($190,902).

The remainder of Christina’s collection included dozens of rings, bracelets, watches, necklaces, and a jade-coloured bowenite Buddha by Peter Carl Faberge (of Faberge egg fame) which had a pre-auction estimate of £250,000 - £350,000 ($487,000 -  $681,000).

Christie’s expected the sale of Christina’s jewels to bring a total of £7.9M ($15.6M), but the final total was £6.8M ($13.3M). 

Though I’m always glad to have a chance to get a closer look at such spectacular jewels, auctions like these always make me sad.  According to The Daily News, Athina Roussel, Christina’s daughter, sold the jewelry because it is “irrelevant to her lifestyle.”  I have to say that it seems like such a shame.

I picked up a 1973 edition of Know Your Antiques by Ralph and Terry Kovel in an antique store a few years ago.  I took it out the other day to look up the style of a friend’s dining table and was struck by the following passage:

Furniture designing is much like dress designing; if the hem is down, the only thing to do is make it shorter; and when it is short, drop the length of the skirt.  If the furniture has been light in weight with straight legs for twenty-five years, then make the legs heavier, curve them, and use dark colors; if massive designs were the style, then develop simple, lightweight chairs.  A few outside influences will always vary this pattern, but furniture design has gone from heavy to light to heavy to light, both in color and weight, since 1600.

According to a recent, very unscientific survey of my favorite home magazines, we’re definitely heading into a period of lighter, simpler design which, frankly, is a huge relief.  I’ve gotten so tired of the massive, oversized, dark wood furniture that peaked in popularity early this decade and the now-standard kitchen  consisting of dark wood cabinets, dark(ish) granite counters, and stainless steel appliances.    

Knowing that all design is cyclical and that it costs tens of thousands to “update” a kitchen which will only become dated again in a matter of years, I’ve been trying to think of ways to avoid the problem.  It seems to me that the best bet is to skip current design trends entirely and design a classic/retro (depending on the era of the house) kitchen that looks like it’s always been there.  I’ve seen original kitchens from the 20’s with white Carrara marble countertops which have withstood the test of time and the vagaries of style and just look fabulous.  Likewise, hardwood and marble flooring never dates.   With classic elements like these, walls and cupboards can be easily updated with a can or two of paint.   

As for appliances, stainless steel will eventually become the harvest gold of 2020 (or sooner).  In a retro/classic design, there’s always the option of going with actual vintage appliances.  Unfortunately, this really only works best with ovens.  Vintage ovens can be restored, reinsulated, and/or recoated and end up working very well and quite efficiently.   Refrigerators are another story entirely; it’s almost impossible to make them energy-efficient.   And the issue is moot when it comes to dishwashers, microwaves, wine captains, and other modern appliances for which there is no functional “vintage” equivalent.

There are a few manufacturers who make modern appliances with a retro look:

Big Chill

 Elmira Stove Works

Or taking the retro/classic look to a whole other level, La Cornue:

Gorgeous!