Jane Churchill channels illustrations and Scandinavia for newest fabrics

On Monday, we offered a taste of what's coming from Colefax & Fowler this season to Cowtan & Tout showrooms. Here are some highlights of the walk-through with designer Sarah MacGregor of the new collection.

"Jane Churchill is always known for being playful and this season that includes 1) the illustrative and 2) more Scandinavian references.
Silverly is a design that was first printed using handmade lino blocks. Brightwood, a cotton-linen blend, is an adorable country scene seen here on the shade.


Here's Willowbrook, available as both a cotton-linen blend fabric as well as a wallpaper:


Jane is known for her love of aquas and this year it's complemented with a fresh range of pinks. The curtains are in linen-blend Hayden.


"Vintage Daisy was inspired by a textile document we actually bought on a trip to New York."


Thinking back to those practical weaves that we seem to snap us here in the US, there are 28 colors of polyester-blend weaves and 11 colors of a windowpane woven, which are certain to be hits with their durability and good price points.


Two new chenilles: embossed Kirkley and the slightly gauffraged Samford.
Lisson is a lovely Italian cotton with a slightly vintage finish that we know will be snapped up for upholstery, and in such a lovely palette, seen here on the red pillow at the bottom of the stack:


Craving something more neutral? Leafield is pictured on the chair at left, and Tellina on the right:

Don't miss the cotton check and stripe book, which feels quintessentially English. There are pinstripes and ginghams in nine colors, including two sizes of checks, some of which are seen in these adorable stack of pillows. Don't you just want them all?




And the candy-like decorative velvets, like Medley Spot that channels Paul Smith, and Honeycomb with a nod to David Hicks' favorite shape. We bet you can pick them out of this stack:


The chair is upholstered in a vibrant Furrow Stripe, which is available in six colors and a fun way to add movement to a traditionally boxy chair shape:


Stop by the Cowtan & Tout showrooms at the PDC (Suite B647), DCOTA (Suite B254), and DDB (Suite 1020) to see the entire wonderful new collection.

Brand new from Colefax & Fowler

Last week we told you about our recent quick visit to London. One of the highlights was the time we spent at Colefax & Fowler, where we spent a couple of hours catching up with Trudi Ballard, Head of PR and Advertising, and C&F's designer Sarah MacGregor.

They were kind enough to walk us through the new collections, including Jane Churchill, which we'll share with you later this week. Apparently we were the first international press to see it! The C&F photography is always sublime and does quite a job capturing the textures of the collection. The curtains pictured above are in a dramatic color of Bovary linen embroidery.

Sara did a great job capturing some of what distinguishes the US from the UK market, something that is clearly important when you're a storied UK company who needs to make sure to keep up with what a large market like ours in the US is ordering.

This is Francesco, a luxurious cotton-silk blend damask on a satin weave for a textured ground:


"The woven category is really important, and increasingly growing, especially in the US where it still seems everyone wants plains and solids. We're moving the emphasis away from embroidery, and presenting a velvet book that includes not just solids but lots of bold patterns. In the UK, because we don't have showrooms and rely on our traveling salespeople, we need to think of groups -- we have the constraints of needing to introduce enough of something so that it can make up a whole book."

Can you say wow to these velvets - chair upholstered in a rich color of Marlowe velvet with pillow in Wilde?


"This season, blues are big for us, which continues to be the US's favorite color. It's new for us to use it as a ground color and not just the complement or accent color. There are also a lot of smaller designs this go, which are still strong enough to be the lead design in a room."
Witness this Aqua colorway of of Cressida with its three-dimensional cording and embroidery:

How about this Heywood paper, printed in the UK as are all of its designs, with an ottoman in the cut velvet Marlowe and pillows in Keats velvet and Hugo linen-cotton blend:


We loved the color Sara described in as endearingly British "lettuce head yellow". There's also this divine silk Lucerne, which is available in 60 different colors.



We just wanted to offer a little tease here. You really must see it for yourself, and they'll be at the Cowtan & Tout showrooms at the PDC (Suite B647), DCOTA (Suite B254), and DDB (Suite 1020) over the next few weeks.

A visit to Colefax & Fowler in London!

Last Friday, on a quick visit through London, we spent some time with Colefax & Fowler. The firm you no doubt know for its delicious weaves and prints, and wallpapers, too, started as a decorating firm of Sibyl Colefax and John Fowler in the 1930s and was regarded as the foremost English firm throughout the 20th century. It remains an institution, with a nearly cult following, today. On our way to see the newest fabric introductions, which we'll debut here next week, we stopped in to see its famed antiques shop in the heart of London at 39 Brook Street. Here's a virtual visit to send you off into the weekend.

A desk to greet you at the entry, pictured above, with a leather-bound volume filled with some of their completed projects.

Here's a charming room at the back overlooking a small garden. We loved the mix of rich, high-gloss chocolate brown walls with the casual rattan chairs:


And don't these split-pea-green walls in the stairwell feel typically (delightfully!) English?


And a cozy spot to read with a very unexpected (and fun!) light:


Talk about texture! We loved this sideboard and its elements, especially those vibrant paper lampshades:


In the same room we thought, Why not hang a mirror over a seldom-used door!


Same with the African-esque pillow on the Victorian-style chaise:


Get a taste of the Colefax & Fowler style on our side of the Atlantic at the Cowtan & Tout showooms that distribute the line at PDC (Suite B647), DCOTA (Suite B254), and DDB (Suite 1020).

Cowtan & Tout introduces vinyls

For the first time in the company's history, Cowtan & Tout will offer a line of vinyl wallcoverings.

This is Shagreen, available in two colors:


Twenty-six patterns capture a variety of textures, like wood grain and shagreen and even mimic materials like leather, raffia and linen for a wonderful trompe l'oeil effect.

And Summer Tree:


Best of all, since they're vinyl, they're perfect in damp environments like bathrooms, and since they simply wipe clean, they're perfect for households with young kids.

Raffia Damask really captures the look of an embossed fabric:


For a more masculine look, try Quadro, available in two colors, which mimics a wood veneer:


Stonework, at back, comes in two colorways; Shagreen sits on top:


More great news? They're available NOW at the PDC (Suite B647), DCOTA (Suite B254), and DDB (Suite 1020).

Shopping the PDC with Trip Haenisch

Fresh off a vacation in the Hamptons, we managed to catch up with Trip Haenisch. The L.A.-based interior designer's work has been a favorite of Architectural Digest, which selected him as one of the top 100 architects and interior designers. His work has appeared in over 70 publications worldwide, including Elle Decor, Interior Design, W, Vogue, House Beautiful, House & Garden, The New York Times, Harper's Bazaar, Los Angeles Times and numerous coffee table books. No doubt this helped earn him such plum clients as Christina Aguilera, David Arquette and Courteney Cox, Hank Azaria, Cher, Producer Leonard Goldberg and wife Wendy, Merv Griffin, William H. Macy and Felicity Huffman, Chris McMillan, Edward Norton, Aaron Sorkin, John Stamos and Rebecca Romijn, Cheryl Tiegs, and William Morris Endeavor Co-CEO Patrick Whitesell and Lauren Sanchez.

Here's one of his serene spaces, photographed by Tim Street-Porter:

We tagged along on one of his weekly visits to the PDC. Here are his own snapshots of showrooms he never misses.

"Thomas Lavin is my go-to place for fantastic fabrics, and especially linens."

"I love David Sutherland for their outdoor furniture and they have innovative outdoor fabrics as well. Their outdoor furniture is so versatile it can be used indoors and out. I love this white sectional - it's quintessentially California."

"Cowtan and Tout has a great selection of fun, fresh fabrics – the interiors are like going through a fantastic maze."

-Kneedler-Fauchere is another one of my favorite showrooms.  They have great furniture and fabrics from traditional to high glam.

Here's a look at another one of his residential projects, photographed by Patrick Cline:

Check out his firm's website and be transported to California (it's not all beach-chic!) no matter where you live.

July 26: DCOTA presents "Outdoors"

We hope you're already scheduled on July 26: for the DCOTA International Design series devoted to the Outdoors, of course!
We've already told you about events on July 12 & 19. Here's what to expect.
At 11am, join the DCOTA's Marketing Director, Josh Fein, Lee Menichella from Chella Textiles, and Eugene Freeland, President of Link Outdoor as they explore the design and manufacturing process of outdoor fabrics and what works best in our warm sunny climate.



Keynote lunch reception to follow at Jeffrey Michaels & Co, Suite A-168

1–3pm
Decorative Crafts, Suite B-218 • Meet the Artist, Cesar Barroso
Artist/journalist/photojournalist Cesar Barroso presents large-format photographs of botanicals in black & white and color as well as visions of the architecture of downtown Miami. He just ended a two-month exhibit at the Coral Springs Museum of Art.

1:30
J. Batchelor, Suite A-160 • Secret Garden by McKinnon and Harris
Tour through and learn about the most exclusive outdoor furniture in the world, including what's pictured at top.

3–4pm
Cowtan & Tout, Suite B-254 • Presenting DeLany & Long
Cowtan & Tout is proud to present DeLany & Long. Join us to sip mojitos, while viewing this elegant and beautiful collection of fabrics for outdoor/indoor living.

Spotted!

We're just back from a whirlwind visit to Sweden. One of the highlights was a one-night stay at the beautiful Kragga Herrgard mansion. Just about any horizontal surface would be inviting after a long flight on a jet-lagged first day, but the salon here was the tops. A highlight: this gorgeous sofa upholstered in Colefax & Fowler's iconic Malabar in coral.


Here's a look at another sitting area, slightly more Swedish!



If Sweden isn't on your itinerary, stop by Cowtan & Tout at the PDC (Suite B647) and DDB (Suite 1022). And to get a sense of the inviting interiors from this boutique hotel group, stop by their one location outside of Sweden: The Maidstone.

Color trends through the decades with Keith Recker

On Tuesday, as a part of the DDB Design File Series, Cowtan & Tout hosted a presentation by Keith Recker, International trend forecaster, editor and founder of HAND/EYE Magazine and coauthor of Pantone: The 20th Century in Color.



Keith Recker presented excerpts from his newly acclaimed monograph with an overview of the colors of 20th Century design. The informative, funny talk featured slides Recker pulled from his book, with a decade by decade exploration of color trends in fashion, interior and culture.

Here are some notable examples:

1950s: Classic American red, which was epitomized by Elizabeth Taylor, Marilyn Monroe and their iconic red lips. Here's an example of an interior, photographed by Horst P. Horst, which encouraged the use of cottons in interiors. The contrast to this was a love of pastels, which Recker tied to the technical revolution in color film, taking the medium from technicolor to a more subtle, fragile glamour, with examples of Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly. His suggestion: "Go to YouTube and type in Pretty in Pink and Funny Face for all of the color advice you need." Larsen's 1954 Spice Garden fabric captures the pastel influence:



1960s: "Jackie Kennedy's 1962 state visit to India brought color consciousness to our American eyes."



You can see the color inspiration in Larsen's Tapestry design (pictured below).


Likewise, Sheila Hick's Kerala captures the love of the pink and green combination. "Warhol was another influence, with his juxtapositions of blood red with softer lavenders."



And Larsen's Mid Summer velvet and the Landis upholstery seen on Braniff Airways seats shows how pervasive that palette was.

1970s: "Avocado green and burnt gold was everyone's favorite, spurred by the environmental movement and passage of Clean Water and Air acts in 1970. Open plan houses reflected our interest in the exterior world." Here's an example of a Larsen printed velvet from 1970.
"Simultaneous to this was an obsession with French Country (it was around the time that Pierre Deux was born), and it wound its way into the sensibility of Laura Ashley and Terence Conran's Habitat store.

1980s: Preppy! "Princess Diana epitomized this look, with countless outfits of hunter green and crimson. In the home world, look at Hutton Wilkinson's pavilion or Mario Buatta's chintz. There was also a love of mauve, the follow up to avocado. It was grounded and earthy, and seems to have come to the national attention with the traveling Georgia O'Keeffe retrospective which brought her Santa Fe colors around the country."

1990s: "Celadon followed mauve as the a la mode color. Martha Stewart's zen, restrained palette and aesthetic was juxtaposed with the growing popularity of gold and bling, as seen with Michael Jackson and Gianni Versace."
It was a fascinating look at how color trends might not be random after all. Ultimately it's hard to notice when you're in the moment (but we all know right now it's neon!) so pick up the book to delve deeper.

As seen in: Elle Decor

Earlier this week we saw some great DDB showrooms and products in the May issue of Elle Decor. Thomas Jayne and Katie Ridder selected an armoire by Julia Gray, and a Ralph Lauren Home end table, below:


Ralph Lauren Paint:




Romo:


Maya Romanoff:


Fabrics from Duralee, Clarence House, Ralph Lauren Home, Kravet and Manuel Canovas, Brunschwig & Fils, Fabricut, de le Cuona, Pollack and Zimmer + Rohde:

What you missed: Westweek keynote recap

Margaret Russell, Editor-in-Chief of Architectural Digest, kicked off Westweek at the Pacific Design Center with a keynote presentation in the Silver Screen theatre. The standing-room only event, drew over 400 attendees. Here is Russell with Charles Cohen, President of the PDC:







Russell discussed the latest trends in architectural and interior design photography with photographers Roger Davies (below left) and Grey Crawford (below right) offering their expertise and insight into how they capture the "right" images (hint: fresh air, sunlight and beautiful staging).







Here are some takeaways for those of us who missed it:
1. Take multiple photos of the same room from the exact same angle, on a tripod, and combine them to create perfect lighting of various elements, to show how a space looks in reality. Take a photo with the room well lit, and another in the same spot with natural light from the window window and combine in Photoshop to show the true feeling of the space.

2. Make minor changes in styling to change everything. Small changes in floral selection or pillow placement can make or break a photo. Also, books, flowers and a cashmere throw do wonders for a photo.

3. Look at the space from all different angles.

4. Watermark any image you put online. That way, any of your work that gets re-posted on blogs, pinterest, etc., will always have a small watermark in a corner, so people will easily know the image source.



Cowtan & Tout hosted a reception immediately following Russell's keynote speech. Over 200 guests paid tribute to AD's Editor-in-Chief and celebrated the admired the vibrant new Manuel Canovas collection, devoted to L'art de vivre à la francaise. Elegant designs with ravishing color and pattern provide the essence of French decorating chic. Highlights of the collection include the exuberant silk damask Charlotte, the painterly print Dara featuring Mughal warrior princes and the exotic print inspired by an antique Ikat coat called Boheme.

Here are Russell, Davies and Crawford at the reception, with the cotton-print Dara on the right: