Table of contents for Spring 2014 in MILIEU

When I need inspiration, I look to Paris. There is so much to adore about the city, and what I appreciate the most is that even though it is a place with ancient roots and traditions, the Parisians lead with forward-thinking, new designs. They respect the integrity of the architecture and work to preserve it, and understand the effects of mixing old and new. On a recent trip to Paris, MILIEU attended the annual Maison et Objet show, where we discovered the best new home and design products. While strolling the Rive Gauche, we previewed lines at fabric houses, discovered antique shops, and enjoyed Parisian fashion. No matter where we were in Paris, pinks were plentiful. It is the color of the season and reminds us of the movie Funny…

MILIEU celebrated the launch of its Winter 2014 issue with two events in Dallas. It was cold and snowy around much of the nation, but all was winter white and warm at both fetes. Jan Barboglio, whose lovely Dallas home was featured in MILIEU’s Winter issue, hosted an evening of Mexican fare, margaritas served in glasses that required two hands, and mariachi players dressed in white. Jan’s home was ablaze with candles, casting a glow on the guests and her beautiful designs. Meanwhile, at The Mews, Doris Hart opened her doors in honor of the magazine. Pamela Pierce, MILIEU’s founder and editor in chief, mingled with designers from around the country. MILIEU thanks Jan, Doris, and their friends and colleagues for such a warm Dallas welcome.…

“THE HOME dictated what we did. Its lines, its architecture, SPOKE TO US throughout the process.” When Dallas-based designer Ladye Kay Allen began working with close friend and client Kay Walker on the interiors of a recently purchased home, the women decided to have the residence tell them how to proceed. “The home dictated what we did,” says Allen of the O’Neil Ford–designed residence that Walker and her husband purchased in the city’s Turtle Creek Park neighborhood. “Its lines, its architecture, spoke to us throughout the process. We knew that we wanted to stay true to the period — 1936 — so every piece we chose was well thought out and special.” So deliberate was Allen in finding the appropriate details for the interiors that it took two years to…

COVER Photography: Maxine Helfman, maxinehelfman.com. Background fabric: Alessandra Branca, Design name: Anna Damask, Color: Acid Green, SCHUMACHER, schumacher.com. On model: Christian Fischbacher, Jamila Silk, Color: 123, DAVID SUTHERLAND, davidsutherlandinc.com. Samuel & Sons, Design name: Cabana Tassel Fringe, Color: Fern, CULP ASSOCIATES, culpassociates.com. FASHION MEETS FURNISHINGS Written by: Suzanne LeVert. Photography: Maxine Helfman, maxinehelfman.com. Pages 20-22 Tish Cox, info@tishcox.com, tishcox.com. STEPHEN SHADLEY Q&A Written by: David Masello. Photography: Scott Frances, scottfrances.com, David Glomb, 760-408-4031, Gross and Daley, grossanddaley.com. Pages 24-28 Stephen Shadley, Stephen Shadley Designs Inc., stephenshadley.com. FRENCH FLAVOR Written by: Jean Bond Rafferty. Photography: Clive Nichols, clivenichols.com. Pages 32-36 Safran Coeur Val de Loire, safrancoeurvaldeloire.com, Dominique Blanchard, +33-247-30-1766. MONASTERY REBORN Written by: Raphael Kadushin. Photography: Claude Smekens, claudesmekens.be. Pages 38-40 The Little Monastery Bed and Breakfast by Brigitte Garnier, thelittlemonastery.be.…

The drive to The Little Monastery might feel like a kind of pilgrimage. The most scenic route to the bed and breakfast begins in the medieval town of Bruges, a place of hump-backed bridges and classically gabled canal houses From there, a journey along a country road, sandwiched between poplar trees and a glinting canal, leads to the village of Damme, where visitors pass the Gothic town hall and a windmill, its sails whirling like a lazy lowlands ferris wheel. By the time you traverse the front drive of the Little Monastery, you’ll feel like you have already entered an Old Master Flemish landscape, but no museum guard is going to stop you. Owner Brigitte Garnier will likely be on hand instead, flanked by boxwoods, hydrangeas, and some squawking chickens.…

Ray and Charles Eames no longer live in their Pacific Palisades, California, house, but they are always at home. Visitors are welcome — though a call ahead is all they ask. The husband-and-wife team of visionary and forever-influential furniture, graphic, and industrial designers lived in their home overlooking the ocean from the time they completed it in 1949 until they passed away (Charles in 1978, and Ray, ten years later to the day, in 1988). Their property endures as a National Historic Landmark and its upkeep is administered by the nonprofit Eames Foundation, overseen by Eames Demetrios, their grandson, as well as other family members. Just after World War II, before McMansions and split-levels began to line America’s suburban streets, the magazine Arts and Architecture invited notable architects and designers…

The fact that this couple chose not to TEAR THIS DOWN and to celebrate its architecture was INSPIRING. Many guests at this Houston home wind up becoming a part of the décor. The homeowner and her husband entertain frequently, particularly in their step-down, oak-beamed living room, where they keep a camera. As a gathering of friends unfolds, the hostess snaps away, recording moments of joy that take place in the room. A basket on a tabletop contains scores of such shots. When the couple relocated with their young children from California to Houston, they focused on a 1927 Mediterranean Spanish-style dwelling designed by Charles Oliver, the “in-house” architect for River Oaks, a 1,100-acre enclave noted not only for its wealth, but also for its expertly rendered period architectural styles. From…

A lthough interior designer Stephen Shadley counts many Hollywood personalities as clients, it is often they who are starstruck by the work he does. Shadley believes in letting the home and its owner’s personality dictate the work to be done inside. MILIEU recently met with him in his loft office in New York’s Flatiron District. You have a starring lineup of clients: Diane Keaton, Jennifer Aniston, Woody Allen, Robert Altman, Matthew Modine, and others. Why so many film and TV stars and personalities? I sometimes wonder why myself. Ever since I was a child, growing up in Los Angeles, I have been fascinated by movies, cartoons, and Walt Disney. I wanted to be an animator, so the celebrity of Mickey Mouse was a big deal to me, even though he…

Customers and clients are key to the success of any business and nowhere is this truer than in real estate. At Boulevard Realty we are committed and focused on how we can better serve YOU. • Staying informed. At Boulevard Realty we continue to broaden our knowledge and keep up with trends, not only in the housing market, but also pricing, remodeling, interest rates and more. Our clients know they can depend on our reliable resources.• Communicating effectively. We listen to what others are saying, ask appropriate questions, and convey information successfully. These skills, along with an open-minded approach, are important skills in business and in life.• Keeping it real. Our core values stand as the foundation and the “stake in the ground” for everything we do. Number one to…

Greg Yale knew that despite its sixteen-foot ceilings, paneled walls, and soaring mullioned windows, something was still missing in the great room of a home in Southampton. “The homeowner, who’s both a friend and now a dream client, turned to me one day and asked, ‘Tell me, what’s wrong with this home?’” Yale, the founder of Southampton-based Yale Moyer Lighting and Greg Yale Design, took in the room’s details — a sofa in the center, three paintings hanging haphazardly, a billowing armchair, a marooned coffee table — and declared, “This room has no purpose. People walk in and they don’t what to do or where to go.” With that statement, the mission for the room, and the place as a whole, was established. In some ways, this second home for…