Scalamandre by Lenox Tabletop Collection

Posted on February 20, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Lenox, America’s leading brand of fine tableware and gifts, has partnered with Scalamandré to adapt five signature designs and bring a complement of beautiful dinnerware, stemware, flatware and giftware. The collection is offered exclusively at Bloomingdale’s, nationwide and on bloomingdales.com.

In case you missed it, earlier this month, the Bloomingdale’s 59^th Street Third Avenue windows featured vignettes by design icons Jamie Drake, Kathryn Ireland, Richard Mishaan, Charlotte Moss and Bunny Williams to bring the ‘Scalamandré by Lenox’ tabletop collection to life.

Photos and descriptions courtesy of Scalamandre/Lenox/Bloomingdale’s

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Jamie Drake selected Lenox’s striking Stravagante pattern, a hyper lush, ravishingly drawn Italian Baroque still life based on a document from Scalamandré’s Medici Archives. In a distilled, graphic and dreamlike tableau, Stravagante imaginatively comes to life with five winding, serpentine stems, tendrils and leaves covered in Scalamandré’s Citrine Upcountry cotton velvet and Rasone, a solid cotton sateen. Five electric blue Morning Glory blossoms in the blue cotton Cento are adorned with butterflies and bear Stravagante plates.

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A painted English stately home with a requisite fountain and lake is the charming backdrop for Kathryn Ireland’s picnic vignette. Appointed with the enchanting Love Birds china pattern, this perennially fresh design is from one of Scalamandré’s earliest and most cherished reproduction fabrics. Her inviting plein-air tablescape features pillows covered in Scalamandre’s Love Birds, Bizarre, Sami Ikat and Lillian. A tablecloth in blue Serendipity is layered with a coral strié lampas, Uppsala and at the cloth’s edge, is a fetching parasol covered in Sami, in blue. A one-hundred-percent beautifully drawn linen, Baroque Floral is draped over the picnic basket.

Richard Mishaan created a chic, urban dining aerie to showcase those iconic Zebras that once graced the walls of the late, lamented Gino’s Restaurant in New York City. Lithely eluding arrows with grace, speed and endless charm, Scalamandré’s irrepressible Zebra wallpaper in the signature Masai red serves as dramatic backdrop for an intimate dinner. A complement of Zebra china, accessories and giftware is set on table with a red silk tablecloth of Scalamandré’s Shangri-la overlaid with the finely woven Herringbone di Lusso. Two cubes upholstered in the graphic Zebra linen emerge from under a console and a three-paneled screen featuring a dozen Zebra Accent plates finishes this dramatic and swank vignette.

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Bouvier, based on a superb 18th century French design from Scalamandré and known as Jardin de Tuileries, has graced the homes of some of America’s great style doyennes, among them Jacqueline Onassis, Bunny Mellon and Marie Harriman. Designer Charlotte Moss took her cue from Jacqueline Kennedy’s childhood in East Hampton and created an equestrian scene with boxwood hedges, pole jumps and an impromptu luncheon. Bales of hay serve as seating and are covered with tufted cushions of Scalamandré’s smart outdoor Boxwood Stripe. Miss Bouvier’s monogrammed quilted horse blanket is made of navy Guadeloupe with brown detailing and a monogram. An awning, also fabricated in the navy Guadeloupe appears above this sophisticated, sunlit setting. Placesettings of Bouvier and a complement of serving pieces, flatware and silver are displayed on a folding table.

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Renowned designer Bunny Williams created an exuberant, tour de force homage to Lenox’s Toile Tale. Adapted from Scalamandré’s Pillement Toile, the pattern features a fanciful Chinoiserie landscape of enchanting flowers, fretwork, figures, pagodas and parasols. Framed by antique gilded palm trees, a carved and painted curio pagoda cabinet showcases a selection of Toile Tale’s captivating dinner plates, bowls and accessories. Suspended above, a host of multi-colored silk lanterns herald the Chinese New Year. Scalamandré’s warp silk Paradiso covers the upper walls and the striped silk Sunset adorns the lower third, each anchored with elegant fretwork molding. Turkish floor cushions covered in Scalamandré’s luxe Tigre finish this exotic, enticing meal for two.

Any of these gorgeous patterns are magnificent for entertaining at home. Do you have a favorite?

Posted in Decorating | Tagged fine china, Lenox, Scalamandre, Tabletop Collection | Leave a comment

Happy Friday: 2/15/13

Posted on February 15, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Good morning! If I could send you flowers, I would pick these.

The winner of the Valentine’s Day Giveaway is Mary Harris. Thanks for participating.

Posted in Decorating | Tagged Giveaway, Valentine's Day | Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Inspiration – Day 14 Giveaway

Posted on February 14, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Happy Valentine’s Day!!! Share the day with someone special, take care of yourself and love one another. In case you forgot to buy something for yourself, enter to win the following from two of my favorite shops:

$50 Gift Card from Furbish

Stella and Dot – On the Mark Necklace

On the Mark Necklace

Winner takes both. Leave a comment today, 2/14/13 by 9:00 pm, Eastern Standard Time. I will announce the winner on the blog tomorrow 2/15/13.

Posted in Decorating | Tagged Furbish, Giveaway, Stella and Dot, Valentine's Day | Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Inspiration – Day 13

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Champagne: Making It Pretty

Ice flowers

Cranberry and Rosemary ice bowl

Cranberry and herb infused drink chiller | Studio B Photography

Yum. Find the recipe here

Images: 1/ 2/

Posted in Decorating | Tagged champagne, ice flowers, Valentine's Day | Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Inspiration – Day 12

Posted on February 12, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Valentine’s Day is two days away. I prefer to stay home and enjoy a home cooked meal or cater a meal from one of our great local restaurants. Setting the table for our Valentine’s Day dinner is fun. I’ve round up a few things from the house to set the table for an inexpensive, romantic decorating idea.

I’m feeling crafty today. I used red paper napkins, left over from Christmas, to make heart cutouts, remind him how many days you loved him, Lindt chocolate truffles, movable tape to update my plain white vase, champagne I had in fridge, flowers from the kitchen counter.

Here’s what I came up with.

Pinned Image

Take a look around the house and see what you find. Have fun.

Posted in Decorating | Tagged table setting, Valentine's Day | Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Inspiration – Day 11

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Happy Monday! The snow is still on the ground; this morning we have rain. Don’t let the weather get you down. It’s the start to a new day. Make it count!

Spread the love and follow Relationship Quotes for Quotes.

1/ 2 3/ 4/ 5/ 6

Posted in Decorating | Tagged Monday, quotes, Valentine's Day | Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Inspiration – Day 10

Posted on February 10, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Nothing says “I love you” like a home cooked meal. I’m keeping it basic with a Sunday night dinner that is easy and healthy: Mashed potatoes, Tilapia and Vegetables.

Try this healthy dish full of flavor and nutrition.

Mashed Potatoes:

4 pounds golden creamer potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 cup hot milk, as needed

Put the potatoes into a large pot, and cover with cold water, salt to taste. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 20-25 minutes. Drain them well. Meanwhile, heat milk and butter in a small saucepan. Put the potatoes through a ricer or food mill into a bowl. Add the hot milk a little at a time, as needed. Add salt and pepper to taste. (Servings 6)

Fish:

4 (4ounce) fillets tilapia

Salt and pepper to taste

½ cup – all purpose flour

3 table spoon olive oil

Rinse tilapia fillets in cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Season both sides of each fillet with salt and pepper. Place the flour in a shallow dish; gently press each fillet into the flour to coat and shake off the excess flour. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat; cook the tilapia in the hot oil until the fish flakes easily with a fork, about 4 minutes per side.

Vegetables:

2 table spoons canola oil

1/2 red and green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and julienned

1/2 small carrot, julienned

1 clove garlic, minced

kosher salt and pepper to taste

½ cup snow peas

¼ mushrooms, sliced

2 table spoons water

Start by preparing and cutting all the vegetables and measuring your ingredients so that they are ready to go. Once you begin stir-frying, it goes very quickly.

In a large skillet, heat canola oil over high heat. Add vegetables stirring constantly about 2 minutes, Add pepper and salt to taste. Cook until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.

Assemble dish: potatoes, topped with tilapia, top with vegetables. Serve with side of tartar sauce and slice of lemon.

Posted in Decorating | Tagged dinner, Seafood, Sunday Night, Tilapia, Valentine's Day | Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Inspiration – Day 9

Posted on February 9, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Hope everyone is safe at home and doing well after the snow. Today is my 9th Valentine’s Day Inspiration post. I hope you are getting excited about Valentine’s Day and are inspired to try an idea or two from the posts.

I love this time of year. Don’t you just love the reds and pinks everywhere you look: store windows, cookies, beautiful bouquets? If you have been reading the blog for a few months, you know that I’m crazy for the color pink. So much so, that I bought a pink sofa a long time ago. It stayed pink for many years and then I had it reupholstered in taupe velvet and added nail heads to the arms. I love it more each day. I’ve had the sofa for 16 years. (When you buy quality, you don’t need to replace it.) To update the look, I ordered hot pink fabric for accent pillows.

How do you feel about pink? These pink interiors will inspire to explore the color for your next project.

Images via Pinterest. FOLLOW MY BOARD FOR MORE INSPIRATION.

Posted in Decorating | Tagged pink accents, pink interiors, Valentine's Day | Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Inspiration – Day 8

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Ivy de Leon

Happy Friday! Snow is falling in the Northeast and we are getting ready for a Northeaster. We’ll be home playing board games and enjoining a warm fire. Here are few inexpensive and fun ideas for you to enjoy at home with your sweetheart.

Curl up with your sweetheart and a good book.