SAMPLE SALE: DESIGNER FASHIONS — BELOW WHOLESALE PRICES

As an unspoken rule we do not discuss fashion here. But mondo sales are a another matter. If you are in Snider Plaza today between 11 and 7 there is a huge sample sale (mainly women’s clothing, some men’s and children’s). Sale goes on through Monday. Juicy Couture, PJs-2-Go, Yanuk, Joe’s Jeans. John Carlisle, Anik Denim, Ultra Nectar, C&C, BellaBlu, G1, Danang, Tom K Nguyen, Mimi Diblasio, etc, etc.

Slightly offbeat, arty looks for people who don’t need a label to make themselves feel pretty or secure. A woman from the West Coast puts this together; this is her first time in Dallas. I found tons of great stuff.

6828 Snider Plaza at Milton Street (next to CVS).

VIEW OF THE BRIDGE

The lights were on at the Dallas Design Group Christmas Party. That is, search lights, as in the lights outlining the future Calatrava bridge that Christine talked about. Wow! From the deck of their building the view is stupendous. Because of the perspective– at Glass and Levee– they are very close, the bridge seems to dwarf downtown Dallas! Could it be King Kong–The Bridge?

The aforementioned deck has been constructed with a future residence in mind.
(more…)

DINING ROOM JEWELRY

Check out the latest issue of Bon Appetit. The decorating spread is lovely–hmmmm, looks like Trade Secrets to me. But, the best is this chandelier by Tord Boontje–light, glittering jewelry for the dining room. I first saw his work in Milan–his signature laser cut organic shapes in paper and felt with crystal flowers–and fell in love. But, pricey. Well, he’s knocked himself off and this chandelier from Artecnica sells for $75.00! That’s less than chandelier earrings! Go to artecnicainc.com to see more of his amazing collection

ALL WHITE-Y THEN

Scott+Cooner definitely wins my nomination for best invite of the year. (And to our friends at Scott+Cooner: A big congratulations on turning ten!)

GIFT ALERT! ONLY 9 DAYS LEFT!

Looking for something chic and sweet? How about a luscious pair of dark chocolate truffles? Local chocolatier NOKA sells two of their Grand Cru single-orgin chocolate goodies in a stainless-steel box for $45. It’s a gift of exceptionally good taste for the most finicky of palates. You can order then online or find them at Cymbidium at Mockingbird Station.

A QUESTION FOR “ASK DAVID”

Where in the h-e-double-hockey-sticks are you?

IT’S A-MAZE-ING

Jack Frost is nipping at our noses (for Dallas, anyway), so what better way to enjoy the season than by visiting our arboretum? We tend to forget about our flower-power friends this time of year, but the place is just as interesting in the winter. “Holiday at the Arboretum” features a giant Christmas tree maze, John and Kim Semyan’s private holiday collection, and family-fun weekends (which end this week). Head out on Sunday, and you’ll even get to see and pet a real reindeer. Hey, it might not seem like a big deal to you, but tell little Suzy that it’s Dasher and watch her go nuts.

LOVE THY NEIGHBOR

Todd, now that you’ve beautified Kessler Park, can you come up to my ‘hood and consult with SOME of my neighbors on their (um, tacky) Christmas decor? (I am actually thrilled that half the ‘hood is non-Christian.) To boot, my neighbor’s next door line their fence (parts of it) with blue lights and put out the same old Santa who obvi needs a spruce-up. (Maybe someone bought up all the blue lights?) I have found salvation with three websites: NeighborfromHell.com, annoyingneighbors.com, and Why I Hate my Neighbor.com.
Now that I’ve put everyone in a wonderful holiday spirit….

A PICTURE OF AN AWARD-WINNING HOUSE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS

Todd, may we see this award winning house? Congratulations to you and Tom, and I just hope for your sake that there is no local competition for GroundHog Day.

I’M A WINNER!

For those D Homeys who read our humble publication regularly, you might have perused my Homefront column in the Nov/Dec issue. It was about how I live with a holiday decorating addict. Well, guess what? Our house just won the East Kessler Park holiday lights award. First, I’d like to thank the guy at Target that dragged down the last box of blue lights from the top shelf. Second, our loyal electrician who installed another dedicated outdoor line just for our lights. (Yes, I said “another.”) And, finally, Tom. Without his excessive decorative flourishes, this award would not have been possible. Cue cheesy award show music.

CLASS ACT

For those of us design devinators always looking to the past to predict future trends, this new book is enlightening. Class Act: William Haines, Legendary Hollywood Decorator shows the beginning of Hollywood Regency in the 30’s - light and airy in contrast to the dark, heavily draped homes of Los Angeles in the 20’s. Haines was a movie star who came out of the closet decades before it was acceptable.

No longer a candidate for leading man, he turned to decorating and introduced a new style where he literally opened walls of windows, used Chinoiserie wallpaper on remaining walls, streamlined seating with banquettes, and used signature occasional seating pieces.

My favorite is called the elbow chair which is a lowbacked, armless chair which any woman seated sideways with her elbow perched on it looked “particularly alluring.” Bring it on! I hope to find this book in my stocking. Or maybe not, my stocking is small - much more suited to gifts in small boxes.

MEA CULPA

This is REALLY awful: apparently the Golden Retriever pups-for-adoption BLOG I posted this weekend is a hoax! My law-student daughter checked it out. I am so sorry. Who in the world would lie about a basketful of cute puppies saying they were for adoption?

I will strive to present only the truth and thankfully, have a sharp daughter who will help! Go sue ‘em, Cass!

Peggy, worry not: I cannot see, I cannot hear, but I sure am gullible!

SPELLING MIS-HAP

And I was the spelling champion of Ridglea Hills Elementary School in Fort Worth. I wonder what else has fallen out of my brain?

DELIVERY LIMITED APPOINTS NEW PREZ WHOSE NAME REMINDS US OF THE 19th CENTURY POET

Elizabeth “How Do I Love Thee” Barrett Browning

Delivery Limited, Inc. one of the top estate relocation and fine art and antiques delivery services in the country, has named Elizabeth Barrett its new prez and CEO. Ms. Barrett, not to be confused with Elizabeth Barrett Browning, was a key player at The Container Store and part of the team responsible for making it #1 on Fortune Magazine’s “Best Places to Work.” Delivery Limited is headquartered here in Dallas and a big favorite of D Home readers and designers.

BEFORE I GO HOME TO CLEAN MY HOUSE FOR THE HBA PARTY TONIGHT

Hostess with the Mostess is having over friends from the Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas tonight. We’re doing Mexican. Anyway, I just wanted to say that Jacklyn Butler, who did the floral and party design, is a genius. She is a person who for example “did” Tom Hicks’ 50th birthday party. And does Eleanor Mowry Sheets’ Christmas house, which is one of the most elegant and beautiful I have ever seen. For us she brought in painted pottery, santos, black Madonnas, roses and marigolds. It is enchanting and happy.

Hasta manana. Late. As I am serving margaritas.

POP QUIZ FOR PEGGY

I am from New York. Maybe we do things differently there. But we spell weird W-E-I-R-D. Even when describing places like Austin.

A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS

Belmont lobby, in Oak Cliff.

RE: BELMONT DALLAS

More like “Keep Oak Cliff Small-town.” That’s a lot of the area’s charm: historic homes, Jefferson Boulevard, the Bishop Arts District. All parts of Oak Cliff that are free of big-business mentality (not that there’s anything wrong with that). Many of the new developments — the Belmont, Kessler Woods, the Lake Cliff Tower — are sensitive to the neighborhood and its funky, diverse charm. I know some are concerned about the Perry Homes townhouses on Bishop Street and the Trinity River townhouses. And some hated to see the Bronco Bowl be replaced by a Home Depot (though I wasn’t one of them). As long as projects are unique and not homogenous, they will be welcome to the Cliff.

BELMONT DALLAS

So finally Dallas has a funky, hip hotel, check it out at www.belmontdallas.com. It sort of reminds me of the San Jose Hotel in Austin. So is Oak Cliff the new Austin? And, instead of the motto “Keep Austin Wierd”, what is the Cliff’s? “Keep Oak Cliff Wild”? What do you think, Todd, our resident Cliffie?

TRINITY DESIGN

Like Christine, I was so enthused by Ed Oakley’s passion for this project. He has spearheaded it and clearly loves to explain it to the probably 90% of the population that don’t really get the scope of it. Go to www.edoakley.com to find out more of his projects.

Industrial Blvd - brings to mind car parts, auto salvage and large oil cans full of industrial waste. They just don’t fit the new Trinity image, sorry, you’re history! And sorry, too, to see the demise of all those nude modeling studios. Who speaks for them??

The Industrial meeting will probably go on for about 40 days, can you imagine all those people trying to decide on a name? But, I loved the idea of including area school children in choosing the right name. Any ideas, anyone??

THE RESURRECTION OF THE BELMONT

Those of us who live in North Oak Cliff have been closely following this project. The Belmont was a long neglected motel that sat at the corner of Fort Worth and Sylvan Avenues. It was designed by renowned architect Charles Dilbeck in 1947 and boasts grand views of Downtown Dallas. Many of us in the OC see the Belmont as a key element to the revitalization of Fort Worth Avenue — a major thoroughfare that skirts along the edges of West Dallas and North Oak Cliff. The area is rough. But the newly redone Belmont is a beauty. Very hip. Very mod. Dilbeck would approve. A restaurant and townhouses are soon to follow. Read more about the Belmont as well as recent Oak Cliff developments here.

HOUSE PLANTS III

I am not fond of houseplants, either. When we moved, I had a Baker’s rack (remember those?) of houseplants that had taken over. That’s what houseplants do when you let them in – they grow, they cling, they wrap themselves around legs and rods like serpents or drunken teenagers; they collect dust. Once you let them in, it’s all over – Fatal Attraction. You give them away but they come back as cuttings.
(more…)

RE: RETURN OF THE HOUSEPLANT?

Those poor, poor plants. I’ve never been a big fan of houseplants but those sickly things need to be put out of their misery. As an art director, I would assign photography like that if I was designing a hard-hitting, investigative piece on houseplant abuse. But to encourage a trend, I would think lush, beautiful photography would be the right call. But what do I know? I only work for the best H&G magazine in the country — nay, in the world. (And speaking of raises, Christine…)

LUNCH WITH ED OAKLEY

Today I had lunch with Councilman Ed Oakley (pictured above, with his hand in a chocolate cake) and Peggy Levinson. We ate at Al Biernats. Ed ordered a cup of the blue-cheese-and-potato-soup and chicken caesar salad. I love Ed. I wanted to talk to him about a couple of things. Here’s what he had to say about the Dallas Design District and his beloved, The Trinity.
(more…)

GOLDEN PUPS

Just in time for Christmas, all these precious Golden Retriever puppies need to be adopted lest…the terrible. I cannot bear to think of it. If you would like to adopt one, please contact gaellewenger@hotmail.com.