Pedro Friedeberg Hand Chairs

I have a running list of furniture pieces that are on my dream apartment wish list.  One of those is the Pedro Friedeberg Hand Chair.  A great room often has a surprise, and these whimsical chairs certainly fit the bill.  There are many variations of the chair.  Some, as you can see, have a hand and foot and they are made in a variety of materials ranging from fiberglass to gold leaf.

I am only scratching the surface here.  To see more of Pedro's work, head over to his website and have a look.

Image Credits:

1. Room designed by Jonathan Adler

2. Room designed by Kelly Wearstler via Elle Decor

3. Room designed by Lenny Kravitz for Kravitz Design

4. Room designed by Gwynn Griffith via Elle Decor

5. Room designed by Bibi Monnahan for John Demsey via Elle Decor

6. Room designed by Sig Bergamin via Architectural Digest

Food for Entertaining: Sweet Corn Quesaditas

Summer is here and so is the produce.  And with the warm weather comes laid-back entertaining with friends.  These quesaditas (mini quesadillas) make perfect party hors d'oeuvres and they are a great way to highlight the delicious sweet corn that is now in season.  When you top them off with a dollop of sour cream, a spoonful of homemade pico de gallo and a crumble of queso fresco, you have a mouthwatering bite that is really something special!

Recipe after the jump.

Tiger Is the New Leopard.

Let me preface this post by stating that I'm not one to jump on every animal print bandwagon that rolls by.  I never signed up for the fuzzy leopard print coats that were everywhere a couple of falls back; I liked them but when I tried one on, I felt like a bit of a poser.

But I have to say, I am loving tiger print this spring and summer.  My first crush was this trench by Michael Kors but alas, it was not to be.  (Read: it was not in my spring clothing budget.)  And then I saw the jacket above, which according to Zara's website, is coming soon.  

Well, sign me up!  I'm not sure what "soon" means but I will be checking daily.  

Summer Hair: Top Knots

While the official start of summer may be a few weeks off still, this weekend marks the unofficial beginning!  I, for one, am very excited but I know that high heat and humidity are soon to follow.  The key to great summer hair, in my opinion, is getting it off of your face and neck.  With top knots popping up everywhere right now, there's no better style to stay cool while looking chic!

Image Credits:

1. Jessica Hart

2. Karlie Kloss

3. Meet Me on the Streets

4. Miranda Kerr

5. Glitter Guide

6. FashnChips

7. Jamie King

8. Kate Bosworth

9. Susie Bubble

10. Nicole Richie

11. Chanel Iman

Vintage Decanters and Bottles

So this is the way my mind works.  I started thinking about the summer cocktail series, which went off with a bang last week with these watermelon margaritas.  Then I started thinking about home bars.  And then my mind went to decanters, which quickly narrowed to vintage decanters.  And the next thing I knew, I was scouring eBay for vintage decanters which also led me to some amazing bottles and jars.  Some you could actually incorporate into a home bar, while others are purely decorative.  

Someone should be the beneficiary of these amazing vintage finds.  Some are (admittedly!) a bit pricey while others are a steal.  As of this morning, they were all still on eBay so start shopping!

1. Venini "Canne" Decanter for Murano (Signed)

2. Mid-Century Art Glass Decanter

3. Lalique Crystal Wine/Liquor Decanter

4. Blenko Pulled Pinched Decanter (Opaline Yellow)

5. Baccarat Cut Crystal Tallyrand Decanter

6. Cobalt Blown Glass Decanter

7. Waterford Crystal Glandore Cocktail Shaker Decanter

8. Italian Green Art Glass Decanter

9. Blue Art Deco Glass Decanter

10. Vintage Crystal Decanter

11. Art Deco Bohemian Smoke Glass Decanter

12. Antique Liquor Bottles with Carrier

13. Empoli Italian Glass Apothecary Jar Decanter

Note: If you like what you see and want to see more, just search for "vintage decanter" on eBay and I promise, you'll hit the motherlode!  I only began to scratch the surface.

Vertical Garden: Capitol (Charlotte, North Carolina)

My good friend Harriet sent me these photos thinking that I would love them.  (I did!)

In case you are unfamiliar, Capitol is the uber-chic boutique in Charlotte, North Carolina and Laura Vinroot Poole is its equally chic owner.  So naturally, one would expect the courtyard at Capitol to be something special.  Poole worked with French landscape designer Patrick Blanc to create this amazing two-story vertical garden.  The result is truly spectacular.

Click here for more photographs.

Spring May Flowers

The flowers are so amazing this time of year that I thought I would hop down to the grocery store, grab a few bunches and do a little flower arranging.  I found these gorgeous peonies and orchids and thought they would brighten up our bedroom for spring.

With the peonies, I made a simple arrangement in my hand, rotating the arrangement around as I added flowers.  I removed some of the leaves but left a few at the top of each stem.  I then tied the arrangement, cut it to the desired height and put it in a six inch tall cylinder vase.  (I believe I used about eighteen stems.)

With the orchids, I just arranged the stems so that they all fell in the same direction.  I cut the stems to the height I needed and laid them to one side in a simple rectangular glass vase, no tying necessary.  I used ten stems - two bunches of five, which is how they came.

Overall, I was pretty happy with how these turned out!

Belts For All Occasions: Get Waisted!

Do you ever find that when you go shopping, you spend your entire budget on the big ticket items only to realize later that your wardrobe is missing key accessories to pull it all together?  Out of all accessories categories, I find my belt selection to be the most lacking.  

These belts are designed to take you everywhere this summer, from the most casual weekend day to a really big night out.

1. Pamela Love for J. Crew Chevron Belt

2. Topshop Skinny Patent Bright Belt

3. Nicholas Roxanne Thin Rose Gold Plate Belt

4. Madewell Perfect Leather Belt

5. Topshop Skinny Eyelet Belt

6. Asos Metal Keeper Super Skinny Waist Belt

7. Linea Pelle Military Linked Hip Belt 

8. Zara Chain Belt With Tassel

9. Hoist + Lee Colorblock Belt

10. Ralph Lauren Blue Label Interlaced Leather Belt

10. Asos Chain Gold Metal Buckle Waist Belt

Summer Cocktails: Watermelon Margaritas

My morning began with a trip to the pediatrician's office with a sick baby.  This was followed by the slow realization that I, too, was coming down with a bit of a bug.  (Not so fabulous and thank goodness for naps!)  But I promised summer cocktails today and by gosh, I am going to deliver.  I am a girl of my word.

I do know that it's not summer yet, by the way, but it is warm and wonderful in New York City, and for me, that's enough.  So sit down and start making your grocery list, friends, because these margs are ten kinds of delicious!  I plan on having one this evening the minute I put the boo-boos to bed.  The vitamin C from the limes and watermelon has to be good for me, right?  : )

(Hey, at least I won't get scurvy!)

Enjoy!

Recipe after the jump.

Kips Bay Decorator Show House 2012

Entry by Bryant Keller

A Living Room by Bunny Williams

A Living Room by Drake Design

A Bedroom by Coffinier Ku Design

I had hoped to write a regular post out this afternoon but I got sidetracked midday when I attended the Kips Bay Decorator Show House.  It is fantastic this year.  I could have spent twice as long there as I did.  If you are going to be in New York between now and June 14th, I highly recommend it.  While you'll find lots of pictures online, you can't appreciate all of the amazing details without being there in person.  For example, in the bedroom pictured above, the walls were covered in a sumptuous Missoni knit, something that is hard to pick up in photographs.  And in the entry by Bryant Keller, you miss the gorgeous cabinet immediately to your right as you walk in.

In addition to the rooms above, which were favorites, I would add Neal Beckstedt's Conservatory and the foyer by Thom Filicia.  But it's hard to choose because all of the rooms were wonderful.

I had the pleasure of speaking with several of the designers at the Show House, but I wanted to give a special mention to Bryant Keller who took time to chat and offer his insight and expertise.  He is one of the nicest people I have met in the world of design.  (Without meeting him, I might never have learned that some of the famous Scalamandré zebras were once missing a stripe!)  Thanks, Bryant!

The photographs above are from the New York Times and you'll find lots more if you click here.

Here are the details in case you would like to visit.

Kips Bay Decorator Show House

The Aldyn Residences

60 Riverside Boulevard (between 62nd and 63rd Streets)

Monday through Saturday 11:00 - 5:00

Tuesday and Thursday evenings until 8 pm

Sunday noon - 5 pm

And just a side note - tomorrow I am kicking off a summer cocktail series!  The featured cocktail will remain a surprise until then, but in case you are in the mood to start early, feel free to check out my Margaritas, Made From Scratch.

Taste of Tribeca 2012

If you are in New York City this weekend, head downtown on Saturday for Taste of Tribeca.  Taste of Tribeca is an outdoor culinary festival featuring live music together with some of the best dishes of top downtown restaurants.  (And as the mother of two, I would be remiss to mention the event without also mentioning that there is a fantastic Kids Zone.)  A $45 advance ticket gets you six tastes from any of the restaurants featured and it all goes to benefit PS 150 and PS 234.

You can check out the menu and participating restaurants here.  The weather forecast for this weekend looks great and I, for one, will definitely be there.  I plan on sampling the Duck Meatballs from Locanda Verde and the Esquitas Tostada from Super Linda.  I am guessing I will be stopping by the Marc Forgione booth, too, since he can do no wrong in my opinion!  

For more details and tickets, visit the Taste of Tribeca website.

Vintage Shopping: Bracelets

For me, vintage shopping is a treasure hunt.  It is so much fun and it's also a great way to shop on a budget.  (While some vintage items are expensive, you can also score some incredible bargains.)  I admit that it can be time consuming to wade through loads of things I don't want but when I score a great bracelet for less than six dollars, I feel like I beat the system!

There are amazing vintage shops in and around New York City, but I also love shopping eBay.  It's perfect when I have a limited amount of time.  I just get online and off I go.  These are some affordable vintage bracelets that I have gotten there over the past couple of years.

Some quick tips for vintage jewelry shopping on eBay after the jump.

Inspiration Board: Blue "Big Boy" Bedroom

Our two boys share a bedroom and given how close they are in age, I plan to keep them in the same room for a long time to come.  As they move further into toddlerhood, I find myself wondering what their bedroom will look like as it shifts from a nursery into more of a "big boy" room.  We'll hold off on any major changes for another year when we'll most likely move to a larger apartment, but it's never too early to start getting inspiration.

Complete product list after the jump.

Get the Look: Max Out!

Is there anything better than a great maxi dress for summer?  You can be cool and comfortable and still look effortlessly put together.  I love the easy shape of the French Connection dress above.  Add a few simple accessories and you're all set!

French Connection Sun Gaze Maxi Dress

Alex Monroe Feather Earrings

Jerome Dreyfuss Momo Karung-Trimmed Leather Shoulder Bag

Mettle Gladiator Cuff

See By Chloe Wooden-Heeled Leather Sandals

Ugallery: Hal Robert Myers

Ruby's Diner, Newport Beach, California, 2006, Hal Robert Myers

No Lifeguard on Duty, Newport Beach, California, 2006, Hal Robert Myers

Moonlight Over the Bay, Newport Beach, California, 2006, Hal Robert Myers

Mausoleum, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 2009, Hal Robert Myers

I mentioned last week that I am on an art hunt for our apartment.  I was browsing Ugallery over the weekend when  I stubbled upon these wonderful photographs by Hal Robert Myers.  Ugallery is a fantastic source for affordable art.  The photographs above start at $150.