DALLAS GLAMOUR ON DISPLAY

Everything is coming up glamour in Big “D” at the moment.

First we have the ‘In the Pink’ Dorothy Draper exhibit at the Women’s Museum through Mar. 31.

Then Feb. 4 starts the Balenciaga exhibit, which has a hot pink dress worth walking on hot coals for. (I know. I’m obsessed with pink. It’s just my nature.)

And finally, over at the Dallas Theatre Center the play Moonlight and Magnolias opened tonight to rave audience reviews—and not only for the script. The set is late Art Deco, early Hollywood Regency, set in producer David O. Selznick’s office the week he created “Gone with the Wind.” Mom and I were ogling the very cool gold and teak doors and built-in bookcase with ladder; tres fab. And funny! The play is a riot. A must see!

PRESERVATION ALERT

Just had a meeting with Michael Pumphrey, chief planner for preservation, City of Dallas, and he had some disturbing news to tell…well sort of.

While lamenting the loss of Lincoln Hall, Pumphrey said he has heard another treasured building was about to be bulldozed, but he wasn’t ready to say which one. All he told me was that it is a historic building on McKinney Avenue.

Anybody out there know or want to venture a guess?

KUNG PAO COOL

Okay. So we at D Home prefer to tout local boutiques over the big-box boys. But Pottery Barn’s new Asian takeout collection of dinnerware is too cute not to mention. The white stoneware boxes are a clever take on classic Chinese to-go containers, and the metal handles are removable, making them dishwasher friendly. True, they’re trendy and not the type of servingware you can regularly trot out for dinner guests, unless you enjoy a seranade of yawns. Still, they are fun and different. Better yet? No MSG.

WILLIAM YEOWARD IS STOPPING BY

When I was in London, the rented flat I stayed in was above William Yeoward’s store on the King’s Road, and I remember staring in at his beautiful designs while waiting for the bus. But why go all the way to London, when the noted British designer and man behind the eponymous line of crystal is coming here? Meet him at Madison on Feb. 8 and get him to sign and date the bottom of any piece you buy. And relief, they’ll be carrying some of his Country collection by then, which is less expensive than his traditional pieces.

DESIGN DISTRICT PRICES

Was talking to Ward Richmond last night and he told me that he’d recently sold space on Dragon Street for $120/sq ft, resulting in a million dollar-plus deal to an architecture firm.

Hey Peggy, how does that price compare to your days in the DD?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JOE

Rebecca and I went to Joseph Minton’s birthday last night at his home on Windsor. Rebecca has long told me it’s the best house in Dallas. It is perfectly lovely, a paneled living room with just the right scale and an oval dining room with original painted wallpaper. Wilson McLure built it for himself. It’s not surprising that such a supreme gentleman as Joe Minton would have such a gracious home, but it is surprising (and gratifying) that it wasn’t torn down with an 8000-square-foot faux French villa built on the creek side lot. Thank you.

RE: TOP CHEF

Finale, Todd? I guess you haven’t heard the news.

Top Chef Finale Spoiled Again (Eater LA)
Between 3 p.m. and 3:15 p.m. EST, a “Top Chef 2″ article was posted on the Food & Wine magazine Web site, but was quickly taken down. Why? Because it’s a full-on interview with the Top Chef winner. (MediaBistro)

So, whatever you do, DO NOT click this link if you want to be surprised. And if you do peek, mums the word.

But who am I kidding? It’s not like chefs are known for keeping their mouths shut.

ENERGY LOBBYISTS THROWING AROUND BIG BUCKS

According to an analysis conducted by the DMN, Texas utility companies are ready to offset enviornmentalists by backing their lobbyists with more money than any other industry this year. New coal plants and environmental standards are on the table. The director of a watchdog group is quoted as saying, “What it means is that the average citizen’s voice is drowned out.” Seems to me the average citizen will be heard when they switch over to sustainable energy products. Check it out here.

RENEWABLE RETAIL ENERGY

Candy, if Wal-Mart begins selling renewable energy (aka wind or solar) to its customer base in Texas, we’ll have to drop the word hate altogether.