The JVT Collection is a Hit In Prague!

I’m ready for my close up Mr. Demille – or at least my Les Fleurs I pillow in magenta is.

I was beyond thrilled when a style editor from Marie Claire CZ (Prague) contacted me about including my pillow in a feature for their April issue on new romanticism. It is extremely difficult to get the word out about new products without a giant PR budget (which I do not have) so I’ve been doing everything on a shoestring and somehow through the magic of blogging and the internet this lovely editor (who obviously has fabulous taste) saw my new line and liked it.

Here is my little beauty of a pillow – doesn’t she look pretty amongst all the other romantic, girlie stuff? I think I need that pink perfume…..

I have no idea what this article is saying ( if you can speak Czechoslovakian let me know will ya?) but I believe the gist of it is something like; what new romantic items would the modern Marie Antoinette wear and surround herself with in her home.

While I can’t read the text the message is clear; pretty is pretty in any era. Romanticism is back to stay.

The new romantics are paired down versions of the old, over the top, designs of the past. They are feminine but at the same time bold and empowering.

Here is a larger image of the Les Fluers I pillow in case you had trouble seeing the tiny picture in print.

And of course I have to show you Peanuts glamour shot posing with some pink pillows from the collection. She’s all girl!

See my entire collection of pillows on my website at www.jackievontobel.com and thanks to Marie Claire CZ for showing off my pretty pillow…

Chic in LA: Peter Dunham and Hollywood at Home

After Almont Yard, I highly recommend a visit to La Cienega Boulevard. It's chock full of great design shops including interior designer Peter Dunham's chic shop Hollywood at Home. It used to be in Almont Yard so make sure you know that it's moved!

When you walk in the door and turn to your left, you're automatically transported to Marrakech through Martyn Lawrence-Bullard's fabulous fabrics! The print upholstered on the walls is called Majorelle and the one on the ceiling is actually called Marrakech!

Sorry this photo is a little dark but I wanted you to be able to see the ceiling.

Hollywood at Home represents quite a few textile lines including Jed Johnson Home seen above, Carolina Irving, Lisa Fine, Martyn Lawrence-Bullard, and his own Peter Dunham line. That's him posing above.

Hollywood at Home also sells custom furniture that Peter found hard to find for his design business. They draw on "a blend of Spanish, mid-century Mediterranean, and Anglo-Indian influences."

I love that most all the LA design shops have wonderful seating areas for meetings and socializing! Also, the How to Marry a Millionaire Rush Side Chair above is one of Peter's most popular and well known designs that is a re-edition of one bought at auction that was seen in the Marilyn Monroe movie. The original is attributed to T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings.

Peter Dunham also designed the family home for Juicy Couture co-founder Pamela Skaist-Levy that was featured in Harper's Bazaar magazine.

I really wish New York showrooms hung their fabrics from grommets and hooks. I love that you can take them down and see them in different light before you request a sample you might not want.

The front entrance to the shop is this beautiful and flattering pink color. Pink is definitely starting to grow on me! Oh, and the mirror is for sale through Hollywood at Home too!

More fabrics are displayed behind the reception desk.

While Christian, Andrea and I were hanging out chatting with Peter, Madeline Stuart came in with one of her assistants. As I mentioned previously, Madeline recently moved her office to La Cienega and it's across the street from Hollywood at Home. We joked that she was following us but she really came in to shop for fabrics! A designer's work is never finished!

Photos by Heather Clawson for Habitually Chic

Chic in LA: Madeline Stuart

I know some of you are probably over my trip to LA so I promise I'm going to try to wrap it up soon but I met so many wonderful designers and store owners that I can't help but want to share them all with you! One person who stood out and whom I could have spent all day chatting with was über chic interior designer Madeline Stuart. It didn't hurt that her office was drop dead gorgeous too!

I love this photo of Madeline because I think it illustrates her fun personality and great sense of style. She's also extremely intelligent when it comes to design and I think her floor to ceiling bookshelves might have something to do with it! Her husband, Steve Oney, is a writer who authored the talk of the town story in LA about the con artist/interior designer Craig Raywood. The story actually came up as a topic of conversation quite a few times on my trip! You can read part one in the November 2008 issue of Los Angeles magazine online and part two in the December 2008 issue online. It's definitely worth it!

Madeline Stuart and her staff recently moved into this office on La Cienega and wanted to make it clear that they had not completely unpacked and things weren't perfect but they looked pretty fabulous to us! You also have Madeline to thank for the first movie version of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory! She was too modest to tell us this herself but someone else we met informed us that Madeline had read the book and pitched it to her director father, Mel Stuart. She also appeared in the film. How cool is that?!

Inspiration boards are very popular with creative types and I loved checking out what was tacked to hers!

I loved all the stacks of books and objects in her personal office and throughout the the rest of the office as well!

She has space for even more inspiring images so I think this is only the beginning for the board!

The back wall was already mirrored when Madeline moved into the space so she decided to have her built in bookshelves installed in front of it. I've seen the backs of bookshelves papered and painted but never mirrored. I actually love this idea and will be filing it away as an idea for a future project!

On the other side of Madeline's office is this stunning Chinoiserie screen and beautiful lavender settee. The color combination was even more stunning in person!

I think it would be very relaxing to sit at the desk and stare at that screen all day, in between working of course!

Even the bathrooms were chic! The ladies room was papered in a salmon pink grasscloth and the woodwork and shutters were painted to match.

The mirrored wall extended the tiny space as well!

The men's room was decorated in brown grasscloth. I love that she painted the ceiling and vanity base in matching brown paint. It also makes this tiny space appear larger.

It's very hard to photograph powder rooms and bathrooms but I had get a shot of these rust look sculptures on the vanity. They add to the masculine feeling of the men's room.

This isn't the best photo I've ever taken but I wanted to show you the conference room. The walls are upholstered in linen and I am wondering if the mirror was original or brought in later. I forgot to ask. I really loved all the details that you would find in a home.

In the hallway outside the conference room were these framed letters of the alphabet.

The entry included this beautiful artwork and chairs. The flowering branches and flowers throughout the office added to the welcoming atmosphere in the office.

I thought this white tableau was especially beautiful as is the white sculpted version of Madeline's dog that also stands in the entry below! Her real dog had gone home for the day so we missed him. I didn't know much about Madeline Stuart before this visit and I'm so happy to have met her. She's not only a wonderful designer but I really lovely person. Every time we mentioned meeting her afterward, everyone had nothing but nice things to say about her and I think that is a true measure of a person's character. And as you seen from her office, she's a really talented designer!

Photos by Heather Clawson for Habitually Chic

Chic in LA: The Getty

I didn't spend all my time in LA shopping or visiting design stores, I did make time to visit the breathtakingly beautiful Getty Center museum. The museum was designed by architect Richard Meier and is perched on a hill overlooking the city and ocean, when you can see it through the smog, I mean fog. It's probably the only museums that has views outside that rival the artwork inside! Christian of Maison21, my tour guide, told me a story about how the entire museum was supposed to be built out of Meier's signature matte aluminum siding but the residents of the area had different ideas so most of the buildings were clad in travertine instead. The undulating museum connects better to the natural landscape and sits like a modern day Acropolis surveying the city below. It's definitely worth a visit on your next trip to LA, in between shopping and design stores of course.

Photos by Heather Clawson for Habitually Chic