It’s tour season and two of my favorite tours–the San Francisco Designer Showcase and the Garden Conservancy Tours happen this month.  The Showcase House runs through May 28 and the Garden Conservancy Tours run in May and June in the East Bay, Marin, Santa Cruz and Mendocino.

This Saturday, May 12, take your mom to the Garden Conservancy tour happening in the East Bay. One of the four featured gardens is landscape designer Keeyla Meadows‘s garden in Albany.  Full disclosure–Keeyla is a friend and also designed my garden.  She’s a multi-faceted artist and her garden is always a delight to visit.  Look at these beautiful blooms planted in colorful pots or in front of fabulous sculpture all made by Keeyla.  Think Monet meets Gaudi.

Find out more about Keeyla’s garden and the tour in this recent SF Gate article. I’ll be working as a docent in Keeyla’s garden Saturday. Hope to see you there!

Every time I attend the San Francisco Decorator Showcase I come away inspired by big design concepts and small design details.  My travels have delayed my attendance so far this year, but these photographs by San Francisco photographer David Duncan Livingston make me eager to catch this stunning showcase before it closes on May 30.

I want to take in the spare white elegance of Antonio Martin’s living room design and the curvy details in Martin Kobus’s dining room.

I suspect the muted persimmon and slate blue of the traditional rug laid the foundation for this striking office design by Stephen Jones.

As did the dramatic kelly green and cobalt blue zigzags in Kyle Bunting’s rug for this glam retreat by Nancy Evars and Dimitra Anderson.

But when it comes to color inspiration, who could resist the delicious rainbow sherbet palette of this girls room by Ann Lowengart.  Isn’t that Sol LeWitt-inspired ceiling scrumptious?

On the second floor hallway Livingston is showcasing some of his own fine art photography–including this effervescent image of the Eiffel Tower. “It’s like a birthday sparkler celebrating France and summer,” says Livingston who uses motion blur to give the fine art print a painterly feeling. Because Livingston’s wife is French they often travel with their young son to Paris. “Before I got married I’d visited the City of Light many times as a solo tourist but now when I visit with my family we’ll have lunch with Grandma, see old friends and just hangout between other travels in France. Paris is THE hub for all things French.”

To see more of Livingston’s exceptional work be sure to follow him on instagram @daviddlivingston.  And for details about the SF Decorator Showcase—running through May 30—go to http://decoratorshowcase.org  Hope to see you there!

I’ve subscribed to a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) box for decades.  Every week I pick up a box full of organic vegetables and from May through September I can also receive a bouquet of flowers grown on the farm (Full Belly Farm north of Sacramento). These gorgeous sunflowers were today’s bouquet.

Arranging them in a vase at home, I thought of my sister Jayne’s wedding last weekend outside of Boise.   I worked on flower arrangements for the wedding site with my sister-in-law Saren and my mother-in-law Jackie (it was a big family affair!)  Jayne chose sunflowers as the dominant flower in the bouquets and provided several bunches from her local Costco.  Alas, most of them were pretty droopy.

After dealing with sunflowers from the farm over the years I knew that the woody stalks would need more than a quick trim to help them drink water.  This was news to the rest of the family florists who looked aghast as I pounded the ends of the stalks with the handles of my clippers. But bludgeoning sunflower stalks really does help them take in water.  It’s an easy, aggression-dispelling thing to try at home.

Cut the sunflowers to their desired length.  Smash them with a blunt instrument.  (My bludgeoning tool of choice is a little hammer or mallet.) Your sunflowers should now be able to drink enough water to stay fresh for a week–though it’s still best to change the water and trim and smash the stems again mid-week.

Here are some other helpful things from this week–

One man’s French pottery collection.

West Elm’s VP of Furniture and Lighting Design shares his 5 Favorite Things. 

How a self-taught photographer staged a wedding and ended up as a pro.

Carly Fiorni’s Look At This Face ad.

What we can learn from doomsday predictions.

Medieval students’ letters to their parents asking for money.

This pretty video that has something to do with a seed.

Happy Weekend All!

Recently I was invited to dinner at the offices of my niece’s hi-tech start up in the booming South of Market area of San Francisco. The on-site food was some of the best I’ve had and the interiors more upscale than many tech companies I’ve visited.  But during the after dinner tour of my niece’s office I noted a familiar mix of serious and silly design elements.

For example,  stacks of The Paris Review and MIT Technology Review magazines were prominently displayed in the reception area.  Upstairs, in an open gathering space oversized stuffed animals in tasteful earth-tones served as throw pillows.  And throughout the loft-like space, colorful commuter bikes complimented the fun, smart, ironic design that is SOMA style. It was a treat to see this latest incarnation of innovation.

But you don’t need to step inside the doors of a start up to get a taste of this tech-driven eclectic design.  A tour of San Francisco’s vibrant South Park neighborhood will give you a sense of how innovation and design interact here in the Bay Area.

South Park gets its name from a small, oval-shaped park bordered by South Park Street which runs around the park.  The area is bounded by Second, Third, Bryant and Brannan streets.

The neighborhood was originally developed as an exclusive residential community in 1855 by English entrepreneur George Gordon. It was the first neighborhood in San Francisco to incorporate paved streets and sidewalks and a windmill in the center of the park pumped water for the original mansions and townhouses.

The 1906 earthquake caused significant damage to the area and subsequent reconstruction emphasized warehouses, light manufacturing companies and nightclubs.  Today you’ll find a bit of all these things still happening around this historic park.

The mix of architecture—everything from Victorian homes to contemporary gems like the private residence/public art gallery Gallery House by Ogridziak Prillinger architects—is particularly fascinating.

Many design professionals work in the area.  For example, architect Toby Levy of Levy Design Studios lives and works in this striking contemporary structure.

Other design professionals produce their wares here.  For example, you can catch a glimpse of the fabrication space at Sand Studios.

Where this dramatic light fixture was created.

Or pick up some cutting edge art of your own at Gallery 16.

Ready for a break?  Stop for a bite to eat at some of the fine restaurants in the area like The Butler and the Chef Bistro or assemble an impromptu picnic at the upscale grocery store Small.

While you’re lunching, imagine what some of the multi-million dollar residences around the park look like from the inside.  Here’s a glimpse into an extraordinary South Park property developed by MT Development Company and designed by the architects Geddes Ulinskas and Cass Calder Smith.

The living  and dining areas look out over South Park.

Geometric niches throughout provide plenty of display space.

And the expansive floor plan allows for multiple seating areas.

An interior atrium sheds light throughout the multi-story space.

Multiple balconies open the home up to the urban SOMA views.

No matter how you look at it, a century and a half later the Victorian start up known as South Park continues to surprise and delight.

Thanks to Lisa Boquiren, marketing maven and associate editor of the soon-to-launch Marin At Home magazine, for her expert tour of South Park.

Today the air smells like smoke and the sky is buzzing with helicopters.  I suspect they’re monitoring the fires north of us that are burning out of control. I am watching them circle the Bay and thinking about the Oakland Hills Firestorm in 1991.

We didn’t lose our home but close friends did and I remember the shock and confusion as we sat together in our front room and watched the television reports of their neighborhood burning. The afternoon sun glowed red in a sky turned black.  For days ash rained down on our cars, yards and homes. For months afterwards the burn area looked like a moonscape.  You grew quiet when you drove through it.  Out of respect.  And also because you felt relieved and somewhat guilty that you’d been spared.

For now our house seems to be safe, but my new garden is suffering. The deer have become more aggressive—eating newly planted bushes they’d left alone until now. Perhaps they would have anyway, drawn by the apples ripening on the front yard tree, or maybe the fires are driving them closer to the water.  Just to be safe.

Some other things I tracked this week.

Keeping gravity at bay with the Lexus Hoverboard.

Some nifty summer drink ideas (including non-alchoholic or easy to make so options) here and here.

Would it be optimal to die at 75?

Smart talk about Jon Stewart.

“If you have information to send out through space and time, you must build it a story that knows how to motor.” On symbolism and metaphor–author Neil Gaiman by way of Justine Munk.

I bet this is what surfing feels like.

WAVEFORM from O’Neill on Vimeo.

Happy Weekend All!

If this year’s San Francisco Decorator Showcase is any indicator, color is making a comeback.  The hushed neutrals of the past have been replaced by sumptuous hues and bold graphics that feel fresh and invigorating.  For example, in Cecilie Starin’s black and white dining room the abstract murals by San Francisco street muralist Ian Ross along with inventive art pieces (see above) made from street artists’ spray paint cans embrace the unconventional.

Which is only fitting since this is a home that celebrates a famed woman architect’s progressive vision. Julia Morgan designed the house in 1917 for “Dried Fruit King” Abraham Rosenberg and his wife Alice specifying an unusual choice of material–concrete–for the Tudor style home. You can see some of Morgan’s own quotes lining the entrance stairway designed by Candace Barnes.

Upstairs on the press preview day, designer Will Wick hung one last piece of art on the moss green walls of his elegant master bedroom. The soothing but sophisticated wall color combined with cream accents sets off the art beautifully.

Next door, designer Tineke Triggs paired an emerald green chaise with graphic tile and Keith Haring-like art.  When pressed Triggs revealed that the large photo of the cat-eyed woman–inspired by a Vogue magazine cover from the 70s–was Triggs herself!

Adjacent dressing rooms feature neutral backdrops with subtle swaths of color. Hers is a soft cocoon of pastels while His features edgier grays and blacks.

Teen boy’s gear references the colors in the custom bed coverings made from fabric designed by Jean Paul Gautier and discovered in France by fabricator Susan Chastain.  Decorative painter Willem Racke’s lacquered ombre’ finish on the walls was inspired by rock striations along the California coast.

Two upper rooms showcase whimsical wallpaper.  The laundry room features bright butterflies on the walls and custom drying racks above the washer/dryer.

A smoochy wallpaper covers the walls in the upstairs bath and seals the whole showcase with a kiss.

The lip colors recall the palette of the glam living room by Philip Silver Design.

As well as the merlot colored walls of the game room. “We decided to embrace Pantone’s controversial color of the year,” says designer Jeff Schlarb. “It’s actually quite lovely to watch it change throughout the day.”

If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, plan to tour this beautiful showcase house before it closes on May 25, Memorial Day.  Details can be found at DecoratorShowcase.org.

It’s been a while since I shared any remodeling news.  That’s because most of the interior work we wanted to do on the new house is done and we’ve been enjoying a respite from projects beyond the ongoing purging and organization of stuff.  But an early spring is upon us and a wedding party is happening here in June so I’m starting to focus on the garden and outdoor spaces.

As you may recall from earlier posts, the house was built in 1979. Set on a hillside and designed by architect Jim Jennings, it consists of 3 separate rectangles that connect at the entrance. The first rectangle houses a two story living room, the second the street level garage above a small laundry/pantry space and the third and largest rectangle features bedrooms above and below the kitchen/dining/family room.

The original design also included 3 deck areas – a narrow bridge-like walkway from the driveway to the front door, a triangular deck off the main level entrance on the view side of the kitchen and living room rectangles, and a small square deck between the family room and the wall beneath the garage.  Still with me?  3 rectangles + 3 geometric decks = 1 pristine modernist structure.

Then came Owner #2 who hired a landscape firm in 1991 to create more garden space.  A new deck and arbor were added to the front (you can see the bright blue line outlining the additional front deck dimensions above) and a series of bridges, walkways, staircases, seating areas, fences and shade trellises were built around the back to create a garden and access more of the remarkable view of the San Francisco Bay and the wooded canyon heading down to the water.  I call it the Swiss Family Robinson school of architecture.  It has a ramshackle, build as you go feeling that is clearly all wrong for the clean lines of the original 3 + 3  house.  But as we contemplate repairs and reconstruction of the deck I find that part of the charm of the outdoor space is the tumble-down nature of these secondary decks. I’m pretty sure a modernist architect like Jennings would rip them off in a heartbeat.  But I’m reluctant to let them go.

Time and money will limit what we do, but my mind is sorting out a direction to pursue.  And so I’m curious.  How have you reconciled the different aesthetic choices that a home with multiple owners will surely manifest? Did you embrace the eclectic mix or work towards restoring the intent of the original architect?

Something I’ve been thinking about this week. Also, these things:

Beautiful meditation on a wordless afterlife.

Falcon perches.

Some background on Bruce Lee’s philosophy to Be Like Water.

Why that WHITE & GOLD dress looks different to the rest of you.

I get it, Melanie.

And finally, this video about making the set for the latest Marc Jacobs fashion show featuring our daughter Claire.  Cool stuff.

Happy Weekend All!

For this installment of Away Things, I’m sharing the fun, fast hour we spent last weekend at the Neon Museum in Las Vegas.

This outdoor museum is not only sassy, it’s also surprisingly beautiful. There’s just something irresistible about these out-to-pasture remnants of Viva Las Vegas.

Also known as the Neon Boneyard, the museum features artfully arranged signage from small establishments like wedding chapels and dry cleaners.

As well as big hotels and casinos like the Moulin Rouge,

Caesars Palace,

And the Stardust Inn, which happens to be as old as me.  Don’t we look fabulous for our age?!

The museum also houses several fiberglass sculptures including a giant skull from the old Treasure Island.  Arrrr!

And this peek-a-boo fellow from The Mysterious East.

I had a hard time paying attention to the very excellent tour guide because I was having so much fun snapping photos of the beautiful shapes and colors in all their decrepit glory. But M.J. tells me that the one hour tour features lots of interesting tidbits about the history of Las Vegas.

As an extra bonus, the visitor center is housed in the restored (and relocated) La Concha Motel lobby designed by Paul Revere Williams in 1961. Williams was a fascinating character — a pioneering African American architect who designed homes for people like Frank Sinatra and Lucille Ball as well as notable public buildings including a portion of LAX. The La Concha Motel is considered one of the best preserved examples of futuristic Googie (think The Jetsons) architecture.

If you have time, I’d suggest popping into the nearby Carson Kitchen—located in a renovated midcentury modern motel known as the John E. Carson building—for some innovative (but not too much so) comfort food. We enjoyed classics like burgers and mac & cheese but the broccoli salad and tempura beans were just ducky–and deserved their own marquee treatment.

Tours to the Neon Museum are available day or night but must be booked in advance.  For more information go here.

Early this morning we said farewell to a member of the family fleet.  We bought this used Audi A6 when Claire was in high school.  She wanted something cooler to drive than the family mini-van or M.J.’s dented Camry. But fourteen years later (and probably close to 150,000 miles–the odometer broke some time ago) the “cool” car was giving us a good deal of grief.

In the past when the car was having troubles we’d take it to a guy named Mike who wore a leather do-rag and had a penchant for fast cars. He’d tinker with the Audi just enough to keep it going, though he could never get the “check engine” light to stay off for long. Which wasn’t a problem until Will drove it to get his driver’s license and the DMV refused to let him take his test because the light was still on. We had assured him that wouldn’t be a problem.  I’m not sure we’ve been forgiven yet.

The Audi was primarily the kids’ car and took all three of them to early morning seminary, school, sports practices, proms and even honeymoons. When they left it became M.J.’s commute car–fine for short drives to catch the casual carpool but without heat or air conditioning not all that fun to spend time in.  With our move up into the foggy hills it became more crucial to reliably defrost the windows. But Mike’s shop had moved to a less convenient location and even if he had been close by, the heating and air conditioning repairs would have been more than the car was worth.  A few months ago the electrical system started to fail so we couldn’t lock the doors or gas tank and in the last few weeks the car alarm started to go off erratically. So we made the hard decision to let her go.

Before the tow truck sent by the Red Cross took her away, M.J. laid his hands on the hood and thanked the Audi one last time for carrying all that precious cargo all these years.   And me, well I’ve spent the day feeling a little bereft about the empty parking space at the end of the driveway.

Here are a few other things that carried me through this week.

Mirror, mirror on the (exterior) walls–I could see myself in this reflective house.

Ideas for fireplaces and, of interest to me now, attractive firewood stacking.

Some thoughts on cooking mindfully.

Beautiful images of Vienna, where I studied abroad in the winter of 1978.

Tom Hanks on his two years at my local community college.

Local Idaho boy makes good–this kid’s from my home town!

New Yorker cartoons in response to Charlie Hebdo.

Common and John Legend perform the Golden Globe winning “Glory.”

This was a busier than usual holiday season with all the kids and spouses (and a new fiance!) home.  So I’m just now taking a few moments to ponder some favorite things from 2014.  Perhaps you too are finding this Friday more about retrospection than resolutions.  If so, you might also be thinking about some of your favorite things in 2014. With the help of Goodreads, Spotify and my Calendar 5 app here are my top three 2014 things in a range of design and entertainment categories.

Best International Design Things

This was a year of extraordinary travel for me. It’s hard to pick just three highlights, so I fudged a little here.

Macchu Pichu and other wonders of the Andes  - Peru

Swiss Open-Air Museum – Ballenberg, Switzerland

Porsche Museum + Weissenhof Estate – Stuttgart, Germany

Best Domestic Design Things

Matisse: The Cut-Outs (particularly the “Swimming Pool” dining room installation) – MoMA, NYC

Surf Craft – MinGei Museum, San Diego, CA

San Francisco Decorator Showcase 2014

Best Books

Goodreads tells me that I read or listened to 26 books last year.  Looking over the list I could tell you a few things l liked–and some things I didn’t–about every one of them.  But here are the three books published in 2014 that will stay me.

Frog Music - Emma Donoghue

Levels of Life – Julian Barnes

Station Eleven – Emily St. John Mandel

Best  Cookbooks

Looking back, I primarily cooked from old favorite cookbooks and blogs. However, three new welcome additions include:

Barefoot Contessa: Make It Ahead - Ina Garten

My Paris Kitchen - David Leibovitz

Plenty - Yotam Ottolenghi

Best Movies

Travel and our mid-year move cut down some of our first run movie watching this year, but three films I expect to recall include:

Beyond the Lights

Boyhood

Noah

Best TV

So little time to watch TV, really, though this is the year I figured out what all the buzz about Scandal and The Americans was about. Otherwise, I sat still long enough to watch these new shows/seasons:

Blackish

Hell on Wheels: Season 4

Jane the Virgin

Best Theater

We saw a number of terrific plays last year including a hilarious/creepy/touching community theater production of Side-Show starring one of M.J.’s work colleagues. Here’s the best of the rest.

The House That Will Not Stand – Berkeley Rep

Tribes – Berkeley Rep

Pygmalion – Cal Shakes

Best Music

According to Spotify’s Year in Music feature, a third of what I listened to last year was folk-pop and I mostly listened to it on Tuesday.  Go figure.  Right now I’m writing this post to a new playlist of unknowns that Spotify has produced for me based on my 2014 history.  Lots of folksy pop tunes—pleasant, not-too-demanding stuff to evoke a mood while I think about other things.  Here are three artists and songs that stood out from the lyrical hushed emotions that were apparently the soundtrack of my 2014:

Mary Lambert – Jessie’s Girl

Noah Gundersen – Poor Man’s Son

James Vincent Morrow – Cavalier

Best Live Music (including Musical Theater)

Though I heard lots of good performances in my church community we didn’t attend too many other concerts or musicals (with the exception of the VERY BAD Idina Menzel vehicle “If/Then” on Broadway) this year.  These three were terrific, nevertheless:

Glen Hansard – Fox Theater, Oakland

Into the Woods – San Francisco Playhouse

The California Revels “An American Journey” – Scottish Rites Theater, Oakland

Looking forward to discovering some new favorite things with you in 2015.