There’s a store you went to once. A marvelous store. In your mind’s eye you can picture the colorful objects, the mix of textures. You always meant to go back. That’s how it was for me with Berkeley, California’s Ethnic Arts (1314 Tenth Street). Part store, part global museum. All wonderful. One of numerous fantastical puppets from the Bozo tribe of Mali in West Africa […] Read more »

Thanks for hanging out with us by video last week, as we scored vintage furniture and accessories at the legendary Rose Bowl Flea Market. With renowned designer and TV host Kenneth Brown as stellar guide, we delighted in our finds and honed our shopping skills. This Market is massive and we only covered a fraction of its home decor possibilities, but saw more than we […] Read more »

Let’s spend a Design Junkie’s dream day together in Pasadena, California as we scour a world-class marketplace for decorator finds with one of the planet’s top designers. Watch and learn from Kenneth Brown, acclaimed interior designer and host of HGTV’s reDesign as he shops the legendary Rose Bowl Flea Market. We get up with the sun and comb the Rose Bowl with Kenneth, a member […] Read more »

We had a ball tooling around Pasadena, California this weekend, savoring the sunshine, the food and the magnificent architecture. The city of the Tournament of Roses and the Rose Bowl is blessed with abundant, awesome design. Photographs by Lisa Gillis My cousin Larry Martin (aka ‘Mr. Pasadena’) served as stellar tour guide, showing us all the sights. We rode, walked, munched, drank and talked. Loving […] Read more »

As travelers move away from the uniformity of mass tourism in favor of more individualized experiences, we are seeing the trend of stylish, nomadic guest accommodations. Rural property owners and boutique guesthouses are starting to offer luxurious nature experiences in ready-made units that can be placed anywhere. Case in point is the Carré d’étoiles (cube of the stars) from French company Bocages. Conceived by Louis […] Read more »

This year’s San Francisco Decorator Showcase is packed with creative solutions from talented designers. Here are some ideas you might put to use at your place. Shadow Mural In her Sports Room, stuffed with equipment to enjoy recreation with family and friends, Audrey Brandt brought the outdoors in with this subtle, effective wall treatment. The tone on tone glaze over latex paint resembles the shadow […] Read more »

Prepare to be impressed by the designs at this year’s San Francisco Decorator Showcase, where 37 of the Bay Area’s top designers have remade a gorgeous four-story, 10,000 square-foot Pacific Heights mansion. The Showcase, a benefit for San Francisco University High School’s financial aid program, opens this Saturday, April 25. Here’s a peek at some choice vignettes from the house—watch for more to follow! My […] Read more »

The Grand Californian, Part Three With the Artisan Program, Disney extended an open invitation to modern-day masters of the Arts and Crafts genre to create work for the hotel. From over 5,000 applicants, 30 artisans and craftspeople were chosen. Here are just a few glimpses of their fine craftsmanship. I was surprised that Janice McDuffie’s formidable Roycroft Pottery vase in the Great Hall is out […] Read more »

The Grand Californian, Part Two Sometimes you know right away that a space is special. That’s how it is with the Great Hall at The Grand Californian Hotel. It begins when you enter through a kaleidoscope in art glass, this spectacular portal fashioned after the Gamble House Doors. An awesome example of a structure inspired by the California Arts and Crafts movement, Disneyland’s Grand Californian […] Read more »

The Grand Californian, Part One You can find great design in the most unlikely places. Like smack in the middle of the mother of all theme parks in Anaheim, California. This Spring-Break week we’ve been hanging our shingle near Toon Town, just this side of Pirates of the Caribbean. It’s been heaven for our tween and our baby seems content anywhere, strangely even during the […] Read more »