little augury: a lament

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I never saw an ugly thing in my life:

for let the form of an object be what it may-

Light,Shade, & Perspective

will always make it beautiful.

John Constable

the loss of an Aesthete is lessened by having been given in abundance his boundless knowledge, generosity & friendship.

Light be the earth upon you,

Lightly rest.

Euripides

read An Aesthete's Lament here

post Spry

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"One arranges flowers as the spirit moves you; to obey some inner prompting to put this colour with that, to have brilliance here, line there, a sense of opulence in this place or sparseness in that; to suit your surroundings, your mood, the weather, the occasion. In a word, to do as you please, just as, if you could, you might paint a picture."- Constance Spry

I am flying through the Surprising Life of Constance Spry, by Sue Shepard & Yes, I am surprised. A must read, You will be surprised too. and I am not giving anything away.(read my post here) I did run into Beverley Nichols. No surprise-He described the art of flower arranging as 'pre-Spry' and 'post-Spry.' saying of his friend- 'Constance has the supreme gift- which is really the core of all art and all invention- of seeing things for the first time in a new way, and seeing them whole and seeing the isolated from convention.' 

my intention in sharing a few quotes from the book have gone very much astray-but I think much more interesting because of the garden path.  When I asked to use the image of a beautiful painting Debra had in a recent post, she replied of Course. In her original post here on her blog PARIS ORIGINALS and excerpted here- (as I am trying to make this winding path one less turn) Debra writes about the painting:
' I was inspired by the flower paintings by Gluck, the butterflies of Vertes, and the paintings on foil by Jose Marie Sert. This painting is oil over white gold leaf on wood  ( a flower Icon).I finally had it framed this past month, I hung it in honor of Spring's reappearance. The frame is simple white.However; I  wish I had an original "Gluck Frame"!

Hannah Gluck- Gluck to you- painted & in 1932 when she met Constance Spry she began painting flowers. They were beautiful and Spry quickly saw the potential for using them in the homes of her noted clientele.

Debra's Exquisite Painting

100 cm. X 75cm

 Debra wrote in an email:

'There is such profound power and magic in Mrs. Spry's arrangements even through they are transmitted  to us through time via photography. I fell under her spell in the 1980's when I found her book Flower Decoration. She trained my eye in a new way.I was better able to look at photos of vintage interior's, and understand her Impact.'

 Gluck's Cactus Flower from Christie's here

 Debra continued:

'Gluck also fell under her spell. Gluck, never would have put the butterflies in a painting, or have painted on gold leaf. She was the Annie Proulx of painting, precise, eloquent, and almost  austere. She destroyed most of her flower paintings when her friendship with Mrs. Spry ended. Gluck tried in vain to buy the Vernon Picture back. (the Gluck calla lilies were commissioned for Lord Vernon in 1937)

I have studied her paintings for years. I love this period for its coolness.'

 Image courtesy of the Fine Arts Society it is titled

The Vernon Picture.1937,  it is in a private collection.

This book has more in store for me-as I am sure reading these additional things will benefit you-
terrific information about Constance Spry here
read about the GLUCK frame from An Aesthete's Lament here
& here
I hope your comments will keep the path open, and long winding.
I hope you read the book too.
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DV RE: THE BATHROOM

a terrific series of photographs of DV here

as I've said before- DIANA VREELAND is an infinite inspiration for aspiring aesthetes. All my favourite bloggers have written at least 1 post about DV-if Not ,Get Busy! I've been going through my Visionaire 37 Diana Vreeland Memos,* most of us know DV's- Why Don't You? columns. The Vreeland Memos are glimpses into the thoughts of this iconic fashion Diva. If only Diana had been able to Email- Imagine the ideas that would constantly being tossed about and out. There is a wonderful stream of consciousness in the memos that reveal a vitality, a passion for the business of fashion and an iron will to insure her staff knew what she expected, and it was all delivered with an exuberance that must have been infectious. Mrs Vreeland was always thinking,thinking, thinking. I hope to share some of the DV memos that amuse, some that are vague-odd, random, and some that are truly brilliant over the next weeks & months.

(this memo went out to Madame De Langlade, Mrs Schiff, Mrs. Di Montezemolo, Mrs. Butler, Mrs. Mellen, Mrs. Lloyd, Mrs. Tuten  from Mrs. Vreeland dated April 11, 1969)

RE: THE BATHROOM

Jay Canne is very interested in great

bathrooms anywhere - Paris, London,

Rome, San Francisco - anywhere.. We will

send people to photograph them.

I know that Miss Canne has spoken to 

several of you about this but nothing

yet has come in or been accomplished.

We must work on this every day in every

way and call everyone we know everywhere

in the world.

We really want beautiful bathrooms.

We would like to call these bathing rooms.

Voila! A perfect 'bathing room'- first introduced by An Aesthete's Lament (read more here)
DV would have thoroughly  approved.

Divine!

described by An Aesthete's Lament:
Pierre Sciclounoff's... master bath, in which walls of smoke-grey velvet frame a delicately modelled antique chimneypiece. Especially inspiring was his decision to install two tubs, each encased in minimalist polished-metal surrounds. The taps of each are arranged at opposite ends, so the occupants could face each other and converse while soaking in fragrant bubbles. And just out of view is a seating area for aprés-bath relaxation. 

 *This collection of Vreeland memos compiled from her years at Vogue were written to editors, assistants recording her current obsessions from on high-actually DV dictated them to a secretary from her home or in her office in the Graybar Building on Lexington Avenue. Loosely bound and wrapped in red ribbon, "Visionaire 37" reproduces 150 of the 400 surviving memos that detail Vreeland's absolutely definitive thoughts about fashion,photographers, models, and the inner workings of the world's most powerful fashion magazine.
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Moses circa 1823

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an Aesthete's Lament's latest post Cut and Paste-(here) marking the opening of Met's "Playing with Pictures: The Art of Victorian Photocollage, prompted me to post this little gem.

Though my little treasure is circa 2000-it still maintains a touch of the sentimental attachments that are characteristic of the Victorian photocollage. My treasured friend-Dorothy- who has done some extraordinary collages on this order presented this to me-it features my MOSES circa 1823.

here are delightful photographs of some of the works on display at the Met show from the NYTimes article Playing with Pictures here.
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what I'm reading now : wilde cromwell

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What would Little Augury be without a book posting now and again? I am coming off a WOLF HALL- Hilary Mantel- loving Thomas Cromwell moment. Not laborious, but maybe a bit too long, OK-I am convinced Cromwell was a dear-an aesthete even. I suppose I will be obliged to read the next Mantel book a continuation of the very man.
See the prettiest cast of TUDORS ever you'd want to see Here.  I don't think Booker Prize winner Mantel was tuned in.

Along with WOLF I am reading Joan DeJean's THE AGE OF COMFORT: WHEN PARIS DISCOVERED CASUAL--AND THE MODERN HOME BEGAN. Witty writing and chock full of dainties about all things pertaining on the topic-recommended by An Aesthete's Lament.

I will be finishing at least one when Oscar Wilde arrives.

'murder is always a mistake-one should never do anything one cannot talk about after dinner.'

That's Oscar Wilde- the detective.
You didn't know he was a sleuth?
Ah, not surprising-I think there is still much to be learned about this great aesthete. I caught up on the trail of OW detective from le style et la matiere this summer. The OSCAR WILDE MYSTERIES are by Gyles Brandreth.* His latest is the Dead Man's Smile.
I started reading the mystery genre in my teens-with I think- one of the best- Agatha Christie. Surely-haven't read them all, but many- Hercule Poirot is my favourite. No, I never read Nancy Drew or the Hardy Boys-no offense to either. Of course Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle are quintessential reading for sleuth lovers- and Conan Doyle works through ideas with our Oscar in Brandreth's books, as does Bram Stoker and Robert Sherard-Oscar Wilde's loyal friend who plays "Watson" to WILDE"S "Sherlock."
The result of my loving a mystery is such that any historical figure attempting the noble profession in fiction- I am fascinated by.
No they are not all exceptional- but still, I am greatly diverted.
I would have been a detective if interior design-another mystery-had not beckoned.

Oscar Wilde and the Dead Man's Smile

Oscar Wilde and a Game Called Murder

Oscar Wilde and a Death of No Importance

The second book ...a Game Called Murder finds Oscar Wilde coming off the success of Lady Windmere's Fan  and hosting a dinner party where he proposes a game called “Murder.”
Murder poses the question:

Who would you kill, if you had no chance of being caught?

no,no-Don't answer that! Unless you are compelled beyond reason-
Rather answer this age old question:

If you had to dine with one famous historical figure who would that be?

Isn't my answer obvious?

See Gyles Brandreth take a walk on the Wilde side:

 

*Gyles Brandreth is a former Oxford Scholar and President of the Oxford Union and worked in theatre, television and publishing before becoming MP for the City of Chester in 1992. He held a number of junior ministerial appointments before becoming a Government Whip. In the run-up to the 1997 General Election he was Lord Commissionar of the Treasury with special responsibility for the Chancellor of the Exchequer (Kenneth Clarke), the Cabinet Office, and the Deputy Minister (Michael Heseltine).

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upon a New Year-Little Augury turns 1.

in thinking about a post for this day- I stopped. What could I say that I did not say last year? Little.

the real voyage of discovery
consists not in seeking new landscapes 

but in having new eyes.

Proust

Here is the first post of little augury written last December 31st. Much is the same with me, along with an afterward.

What moves us to reach out to others with our thoughts, opinions- our suppositions? For me- I have been continually inspired by one particular blog all year- An Aesthete's Lament. Thank you.

I also begin with an ending of sorts- a dear friend and sometimes mentor died on December 15th and I made a promise to keep just a bit of his wit and wisdom alive by sharing it whenever possible. Hopefully this Little Augury will do that and more. Surely it will evolve- follow along if you'd like to see just how.

a toast to S.Peele and you...
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,

And never brought to mind?

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,

And auld lang syne? ~rabbie burns (1759-96)

afterward-
I read several blogs in 2008 before I began my own- I never commented on a post before I started writing my own.

TOASTS to, Jason Clark, Pamela Terry & Edward, PVE, An Aesthete's Lament, House of Beauty and Culture,Rosie, Elizabeth Avedon,Lauren Hutton, Kelly Smith,Elizabeth Floyd, Architect Design-Stefan, Agnes, le style et la matiere, masion 21,balsam fir, rurritable, meg at pigtown designs, Home Before Dark, Paul Pincus, LBG, Jezebel, Mrs.Blandings, Topsy Turvy,Cote de Texas, The Peak of Chic, Emily Evans Erdmans, Debra, Janet of JCB, Maison Bleu, Jesma, StyleCourt, B.Cushwa, Pooka, Hels, mamacita, Vicki Archer, laura-what I like, Ulla of Model's Own,Sanity Fair,Penelope Bianchi, LIZZIE, Martha, Columnist, tartanscot, Hill Country House Girl, Denise of a Swelle Life, Clarity.
These Lovelies commented on posts the first 6 Months of 2009-& for that my gratitude.

I didn't do any Counting of Visitors on little augury until the end of OCTOBER- and my advice to anyone starting a blog is-Don't. Unless you have a wonderful Entre into that world, focus on what You want to say and Others may want to read-Not what you think other Bloggers want to read.

Do you have resolutions?

I do.

I will.

I want to focus more attention on design in my postings. I have a great series of posts planned - the Most Devastating Beauties of the Last Century. Look for these posts to begin in early January.

I asked Fabulous Augurs for their lists:An Aesthete's Lament,Emily Evans Eerdmans, Rose C'est La Vie, A Bloomsbury Life, Architect Design, Houseof Beauty and Culture, Paris Originals, Le Style et le Matiere, Elizabeth Avedon, Model's Own, InDecorous Taste, The Blushing Hostess Entertains, Lucindaville, and perhaps a few surprises. No?

(I ask them to submit up to 10 Names for compiled List of 10 Devastating Beauties. Ask 10 people and get 10 unique answers- YES! There is some small consensus- But mostly an INTRIGUING MIX. I hope you will stay in touch.

winter 1670.
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Favourite Post TOPIC for 2009, more please.

My own personal favourite post topic for 2009 was?
- guess?

Yes,
DV.
Diana Vreeland.


I made DV my post topic 5 times. (6 as of today)
Bloggers-please consider taking a look at DV her work, her life, her style often in 2010. A never ending source of inspiration and entertainment.

DV

and my posting friends ?

the great Aesthete posted about DV 3 times here

Mrs B-3.  here

lovely Lisa of bloomsbury 2 here

an English Rose posted on DV 2 times here

gorgeous Ulla here

my dog ear pages here

lady Emily posted about DV just once here, 

oh
and here too.

Judith in her studio posted about DV here

and my favourite DV here . this post  from Lisa of A Bloomsbury Life, combines everything I like best when I read a blog story and when I try to write something of interest.

attention.
did you dish about DV in 2009? I would love to know, please leave me a note and link if it's handy.

additions to DV-follow...

Stefan resident DC- AD  here

& Daniel of hh here

& I knew that LucindaV. had to have posted on DV,alas NO, and now I KNOW! today it's here

some interesting other sites -
Johnny Edward Heys DV here
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Nicky Haslam, Nicky Haslam

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The bespoke name on every design devotee's lips this month will be Nicky Haslam, Nicky Haslam, whether shouted to the rafters or whispered in hushed tones- talk will be all about REDEEMING FEATURES- Haslam's new lush and luscious book.

 image from

Why?


Just ask The Errant Aesthete, Rose C'est la Vie or An Aesthete's Lament. Read their  NH stories here  here and here & do read the comments too- wonderful!
New blog posts may go begging this week- and not just because of the holidays-but Nicky Haslam.

His first book on his design work is fantastic. His ongoing publication  in World of Interiors-one of his best friends is Minn Hogg,founding editor of the magazine- keeps me dog earring pages. I refer to this book always.

Nicky Haslam will be everywhere- so be prepared, but indeed- Enjoy.
In W, Haslam talks about his encounter with Sasha Baron Cohen.

"One of the most unpleasant men I've ever met in my life. He's called Sasha Baron Cohen. He was so horrible. I hated hime. Wretched mind, with dirty hair and dirty new clothes."

not being acquainted with SBC- I can not say for sure- But I think I agree 100% with Nicky Haslam.
Outrageous, irreverent and most often- always forgiven. A charmer  (NH that is)

Watch out for Haslam Overload
...but I thinking we will never get enough.
oh, and NH has a blog-check out the One Entry dated July 22, 2009 here

& a candle too-of course here.

 the Haslam interior that I refer to time and time again. And Again.
from the website NH site here
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what they're READING now

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I checked back in with my reader's from the Summer Reading Series. Here's where they are and what they said-

An Aesthete's Lament


The one I am reading right now? I just finished (last night) "Rage for Fame," a biography of Clare Boothe Luce ... The next book I shall read is "Conversation Pieces" by Mario Praz ...

theHouse of Beauty and Culture

There is a growing stack (In House, More is More - Tony Duquette, and the new book on David Hicks among them) that I have not even had a chance to look at. This is a very bad habit. I still haven't yet read Pat Montadon's book (2007) or Kevin Sessum's Mississippi Sissy (2007). And, the books I ordered last week (Divas on Screen being among those) are due in on Tuesday! But I digress, in answer to your question I am currently reading: Madeleine Vionnet by Pamela Golbin (new), Wallace Neff and the Grand Houses of the Golden State by Diane Kanner (2005), and Mother of Sorrows by Richard McCann (2005)

And undoubtedly next week I will look at the bookcase with all my unread books and think, but, there is nothing to read! Oh, the caprice of it all.


JCB
Oh, I am never reading just one book! Right now: Angela Davis-Gardner, Plum Wine.

"A mystery that unfolds as beautifully, delicately, and ceremoniously as a lotus blossom. One of the most memorable novels I have read in many years." —Lee Smith, author of The Last Girls

& Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Blithedale Romance. I am organizing my book week for next month...and will finally write that little piece on seasonal reading you suggested (inspired by the Paris Review interviews).le style et la matiereBooks? You do mean books, don't you? The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins (rereading - inspired by a certain LA post); The Art of Arts by Anita Albus profound reflections on painting, art, symbols of human life through an examination of Dutch art and thinkers of various cultures; Decorating is Fun by Dorothy Draper (I understand Jennifer Boles' inspiration; they are both light and breezy but get down to important brass tacks in an original way); Ghost Stories by Edith Wharton (seasonal yes, but I'd never read these and they are worth reading at anytime)... Mrs BlandingsI am reading the Cecil Beaton biography by Hugo Vickers &Emily Evans Eerdmann’s Classic English Design and Antiques. Can’t wait to see what else is on everyone’s bedside tables!& MeIf nothing else-checking back in with all makes me know I am not alone. As HOBAC says of his growing stack-And undoubtedly next week I will look at the bookcase with all my unread books and think, but, there is nothing to read! Oh, the caprice of it all.Currently reading- Clarence John Laughlin Prophet Without Honor by A.J. Meek, along with reviewing his published photography books. When I want to switch it up- I go to Ottoline Morrell: Life on the Grand Scale by Miranda Seymour.On my groaning bedside table, next up- Journey Into The Mind's Eye by Lesley Blanch and The House of Life by Mario Praz. Both books recommended by AAL and the Lesley Blanch book by Lucindaville. On the book's jacket, Blanch writes "My book is not altogether autobiography, nor altogether travel or history either. You will just have to invent a new category." In the fiction category-Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel the 2009 Booker Prize winner.


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Revisiting Verrieres

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As with most decorators- I have my favorites. This is my absolute favorite printed fabric. VERRIERES has a glorious history creating some of the most memorable rooms in print.

After seeing the Verrieres covered screen photographed by Horst, with model Verushka in the picture as well- I couldn't resist revisiting its past. Verrieres, is forever bound to Louise Vilmorin- heiress, author, paramour to the famous & the most noted chatelaine of her family Chateau de Vilmorin in Verrieres-le-Busisson. Though she lived many places the family home remained her domain- as six doting brothers saw to it. The main salon of the house was deliciously smothered in the cotton print now widely known at Verrieres. The salon remained unchanged for decades- a testament to the idea that if you get it right the first time- there is no need to make changes in the future. This should be the credo of any successful room-Yes, additions can be made, touches here and there-But leave a good thing as is.

Verushka by Horst, I think Vilmorin would approve

The life of Louise de Vilmorin is a book within itself-An Aesthete' Lament noted the French biography by Francoise Wagener Je suis nee inconsolable in this posting (here) called Jeez Louise. Do go and read this one-it brings the Salon Bleu with Verrieres to life and sweetens things by dishing about Louise de V.'s loves. The post features two wonderful-new to me- Verrieres Rooms. Enlarge the photographs and see the ceiling detail on the Jansen room. The edge of Verrieres has a small scalloped border that creates all the edging details and defines the print. The Aesthete says since posting he has discovered the room was decorated by Henri Samuel- making perfect sense, Henri Samuel's masterful design & the Aesthete's finding this out.

Louise de Vilmorin by Beaton in her Salon Bleu
image from An Aesthete's Lament

Louise was described by Evelyn Waugh to author Nancy Mitford "as an Hungarian countess who pretended to be a French poet. An egocentric maniac with the eyes of a witch. She is the Spirit of France. How I hate the French." With Mitford adding "Oh how glad I am you feel this about Lulu—I can't sit in a room with her she makes me so nervous. And vicious… She is much more like a middle European than a French woman." (Ivry 1996) The inevitable darts get thrown at women whose lives are lived in opposition to polite society and both of these writers had reason to be a bit green where Louise de V was concerned. Their acerbic comments were likely dead on however. The lady described her own passions-that is writing- by saying "Sexual conquest lights my lantern, that's what pushed me to write." Intrigued yet?

The lady and the fabric are inexorably linked. The original, batik inspired print was designed by Jacques de Luze in Switzerland and printed in 1810 in black, white & red on a red brown background. From Switzerland, the fabric made its journey to the fabric house, Le Manach, in France- and is known as "Batik." Brunschwig and Fils now prints the fabric under license in the States in several colorways - It's Vilmorin blue being THE color. Most successful are the rooms that use the fabric on every possible surface in the room full out- as done at the Chateau. Murray Douglas is heir to Brunschwig and Fils and She was niece to Zelina Brunschwig. Her Aunt Zelina took young Murray Douglas to the Chateau de Vilmorin advising her, "Don't Talk, Just Look." (How wonderful!) Douglas describes the experience of meeting the divine Louise and taking tea in the Salon- " I just sat there completely overwhelmed-I guess you could say I was scared blue." Murray Douglas used the Verrieres Blue in her own bedroom and dressing room-the room, the lady and the fabric must have made an indelible impression on Douglas, as it has on countless others.

Louise de Vilmorin photographed by Cecil Beaton, 1940
photo from & Apres

Designer Mario Buatta's Kips Bay room is probably my first exposure to Verrieres. Here, at the 1984 Kips Bay Showhouse, Buatta lavished the room in the B&F Verrieres and the results were stunning. I think this is Buatta's best published room hands down. It captures a mood, a spirit, an energy that makes a room timeless- of course Verrieres helps out loads. The Brunschwig motto " GOOD DESIGN IS FOREVER" echos in this beautiful room. The August 1984 issue of House Beautiful is filled with pages of the Buatta room & an interview with Buatta. Mario Buatta started with Verrieres-it is the room's inspiration. "This is a timeless room. There's no date on it because nothing is faddish. It's a forever kind of decorating."








Mathilde Agostinelli's Jacques Grange decorated Paris home was featured in House and Garden in May 2006. Mathilde Agostinelli planned her daughter's room with Pink Verrieres curtains from her own childhood room. Again Verrieres casts its life long spell. Agostinelli's apartment is one of my favorites in print from the House and Garden archives. Her own past is lined with luminaries in the design world. She is tied to the house of Miuccia Prada in promoting the Prada brand. Her half sister, Victoire de Castellane, is an artistic director at Dior, while uncle, Gilles Dufour is a fashion designer, noted for his stints as creative director at Balmain and he called Chanel home as Lagerfeld's go to guy for years. Matilde is also niece several times removed to the renowned architect and designer, Emilio Terry.

Agostinelli's Childhood Verrieres

photograph by Francois Halard

Another Pink Verrieres in Cawdor Castle, Scotland. Countess Cawdor picked the B&F fabric for one of the Guest Rooms in the Castle.

... and so the story goes on with Verrieres. Do let me know if you want to be added to the Verrieres legends list? I can assist.



Sources for this post- not mentioned in the text

Brunschwig & Fils Style By Murray Douglas & Chippy Irvine
Madame de by Louise de Vilmorin Seductress: Women Who Ravished the World & their Lost Art of Love by Elizabeth Stevens Prioleau

to see the Agostinelli roooms in House and Garden go to the Peak of Chic for a tour (here)

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Gertrude Reprise

Gertrude Lawrence
Private Lives
Molyneux

"Her manner and charm were such that
by the time anyone found out she was not a Beauty,
it was too late, they were bewitched."
-Madge Garland


Gertrude Lawrence originated the role of Amanda Prynne
opposite Noël Coward in'Private Lives' both in London and New York.

molyneux label

GL in White Satin Molyneux from Vanity Fair Conde Nast (here)

photograph by George Hoyningen-Huené

GL & NC

from Private Lives

Wardrobe by Molyneux

read more at the Fashion Spot Forum(here)

scene from Private Lives
photograph from AAL here

Molyneux in Vogue

Private Lives

Lee Creelman pen and ink illustration from the February 1, 1932, Vogue

Daywear looks of long jackets and midi skirts Edward Molyneux.

from Conde Nast




Model Smokers

The bare backless dress by Molyneux and V neck dress (figure seated)

Lee Creelman pen and ink illustration from the June 15, 1933,Vogue.

from Conde Nast

Read more about Molyneux from An Aesthete's Lament

ELSIE DE WOLFE: Long May She Reign

In light of the recent travails of Elsie de Wolfe's Villa Trianon:

LONG MAY SHE REIGN

Scene from a Dining Room: Walls covered with mirrored panels done in the style of Jean Baptiste Pillement, with the mirror's backing cut away to reveal painted chinoiserie landscapes. This particular scene certainly appears to me-Chinoiserie Elsie on her throne with her subjects kneeling in reverence or in fear.

read
An Aesthete's Lament: Villa Trianon:The Dilapidation


An Aesthete's Lament: Requiescat en Pace:Villa Trianon


An Aesthete's Lament: Up Close: Villa Trianon

(image from Elsie de Wolfe's 1936 design in Beverly Hills for Countess Dorothy di Frasso. A 70 year secret treasure of her work photographed by SIMON WATSON for House & Garden in 2007, "Elsie in Amber" produced by Mayer Rus, written by Christy Hobart.)

Hutton Wilkinson, president of the Elsie de Wolfe Foundation called it "a lost gem" and a "complete surprise. It has all the bells and whistles of her work. It's absolutely extraordinary," The estate was handed over in 2008- for the sale of its contents and the residence. (read more here.)

This de Wolfe creation 70 years in situ-relegated to destruction. Little is appreciated in terms of the work by this legend. Whoa to the similar destruction of a great work of architecture- this is unlikely. Now it seems that Elsie de Wolfe's Villa Trianon will suffer the same fate.

AAL reprise...you're the top

As for my Summer Reading List- it will continue NEXT Week with two more LISTS-

le style et la matiere (here) and Porter Hovey (here).

I also have two of my friends weigh in on what they are reading, along with more Summer Reading posts- from Beverly Nichols editor- authority Roy Dicks (here) about the reissue of Beverly Nichols' otherworldly garden books and the natty author BN himself.


BUT after over 150 posts- 183 to be exact-I don't like celebrations about what I do- I'm a behind the scenes girl- But again am reminded of why I started my blog- If you didn't read my first post, it was the loss of a dearly dearly loved friend- who this blog links me to EVERYDAY, and for that I am beyond over the moon about and also the words of a beyond-worldly wise blogger.

so to sum it up- A God Send of my Favorites in one 2 minute video- Cole Porter, Diana Rigg, Agatha Christie, Hercule Poirot, glamour, and a little German (or maybe I should say a little Belgian)