Last night we previewed our latest interior installation with a coterie of friends and neighbors. The food was Yummie thanks to the LSI team. YES, we can style your parties and events too. Beauty is our middle name and it does not end with the interior of your home.

We have a late post today because it was a late night but oh so fun. Check it out!

Don’t typecast – Chests, dressers, bookcases, even desks are wonderful understudies for the role of “nightstand.” Think outside the box. Be mindful of scale and proportion. Look for pleasing shapes and functionality.

Think fraternal twins – Typically, for sleeper convenience, nightstands flank each side of the bed. But, they needn’t match like identical twins. Let the incest end. Shake up the DNA. Mix and match.

Set the stage – Create an amazing nightstand tablescape. Favorite objects, books, flowers, a crystal goblet for a midnight sip of water — add layers of meaning and beauty to your bedroom.

Images via Pinterest

Your partner and your bedside table are among the first things you see every morning and before you doze off every night. Choose wisely!

Over the years our MD gifts have run the gambit – from homemade cards to bouquets bristling with baby’s breath (so sorry about that) to hankies (seriously?) and parfums (from dime store to couture). This year, we’re actually reverting back to a “homemade” gift. The gift of our time. No it’s not a watch. It’s a one-on-one Mom Makeover customized for the family matriarch.

For one lucky mom, it means pruning the garden. For another, rearranging the living room. For another, getting rid of those six boxes in the attic filled with high school yearbooks and the like. One lucky mom’s getting eggs Benedict. Another’s getting her oven cleaned. Here’s to you mom. This stylish day’s for you.

This past weekend found us curbside at a market in Charlotte, North Carolina. So much to devour – figuratively and literally. We are strongly considering swearing off super markets for the season. This week’s menu will include a romaine salad with roasted asparagus (sprinkled with olive oil, salt and pepper and in a 425-degree oven for about fifteen minutes – so fast and easy) with falafel from our friends at the Mediterranean booth. Local strawberries are still ripe and plump. A perfect topping for morning granola (also from the market) and over-the-top deliciously paired with shortcake and whipped cream.

What’s your menu like this week?

Caveat Emptor: Beware of faux famer’s market produce. We did spot the occasional coconut, pineapple and banana for sale at the Charlotte market, hardly macrobiotic fare! Common sense rules, but when in doubt about food origin we always ask.

Any info on the source would be appreciated. I shot it with my phone while perusing a homeowner’s book in Provence.

We have admired Celerie from afar and we’re delighted to report that she is just as engaging and talented in person. She wowed the room and the LSI team with design insights and observations. We found ourselves nodding throughout the presentation, as Celerie’s perspective is amazingly like ours.

To share some Celerie-isms where LSI is quite likeminded…

1.  Celerie says,”you should walk into a house and feel you know someone better.” We concur. Absolutely. Personality shines through in great design. It’s our job (and delight) to tease out the details.

2.  Celerie says she sometimes feels like she has a “multiple personality disorder,” as her style constantly evolves based on client needs. Likewise, we sometimes feel like design chameleons because we shift and reshape to express the homeowner’s point of view.

3.  Celerie says she likes to “break rules” (apart from the fundamentals of good design). She mixes verboten colors and styles openly and to great effect. To this we say, yes, it’s the mix that matters!

4.  Celerie confesses she’s a “maximalist.” She loves full-bodied rooms with contrasts and variety.  “Juxtaposition” is our middle name at LSI. We are picky, picky editors, but love well-articulated spaces.

P.S. A parting gift to the enthusiastic audience was a copy of her new book, Black and White.  It’s an inspired study in contrasts.  If you don’t have it, get it now!

TRIBAL -  Ahhh, the Tribal trend continues to resonate. Who knew loincloths would be a Market hit? The ever-innovative Merrie Shinder at Canopy Designs adapts loincloths into lampshades as shown here. Each execution is unique.

And underfoot, rugs have also beautifully succumbed to the Tribal influence. Natural, organic, and un-manufactured, the size, color and pattern variances just amaze us.

ICONOGRAPHY - The Noir showroom delights us at every turn. Familiar forms and symbols – the icons of our modern life – are given new expression.

Thumb’s up for the oversized peace sign.

We love the dimensional plus-sign light.

And, (alas poor Yorick) we’re not yet over skulls.