where we've been

We took some time away from the heat last week and weekend to work, play and celebrate on the East coast. Two of our very special clients and friends tied the knot in Newport, RI, and we were both honored to be a part of the weekend. On Tuesday, Matt and I parted ways - he went straight to Newport to help regulate and coordinate design for the after rehearsal dinner, and I visited my old home in New York before heading over to Newport. It was inspiring to be in the city and wonderful to catch up with old friends.

The after rehearsal dinner, on the other hand, took lots of very hard work from many design teams. Matt's talent was the glue that pulled the details of the event together, and it would not have been the same without his creativity and determination to show Newport how Alabama throws a party! From the lighting (special ordered by MCD, pictured above) to the table settings to the copy on the menu, the event was a creative director's dream.

Now, back to reality.

Image by Pam Poellnitz

thibaut dreams

Paper is back in BIG way. It's been trending for a few seasons now, and we've been riding the wave every chance we get. Thibaut, one of our top wall covering firms has been pumping out classic designs like Tree of Life, Toile and Trellis patterns for over 100 years. We were pleasantly taken aback when we saw New York-based travel and lifestyle writer/decorator, Jason Oliver Nixon's guest room in the most recent New York Magazine, covered floor to ceiling in the Barron pattern. Extremely traditional and almost psychedellic...we kind of like it!

meggie

Marc Jacobs S/S 2011 from Kalvin Lazarte on Vimeo.
Had to share this clip from the Marc Jacobs handbag collection. Friend and Ttown native, Meggie is the blonde beauty. It was shot at the James hotel in NY - we love the modern minimalism, and dream of lounging by a fire surrounded by a herringbone-tiled wall with copious amounts of champagne.

Wishing you the best, Meggie!

au contraire

We stumbled across a fun graphic design blog and wanted to share. Paris vs New York: A Tally of Two Cities launched last fall. Designer Vahram Muratyan explains his work as A friendly visual match

between two cities told by

a lover of Paris wandering

through NewYork.

Très Amusant!

hearst heards them in

Elle Decor was sold to Hearst last night. More details here. We hope they don't change too much...Elle Decor does such a great job paralleling the beauty of fashion, travel and culture with interior style. The team will certainly enjoy their new address at the Hearst Building!

black and white ball

We love this shot of Candice Bergen at Truman Capote's Black and White Ball in 1966. These images from the evening (compliments of Habitually Chic) have inspired a glamorous entertaining concept we're designing for a Tuscaloosa Mag shoot tomorrow. Details to follow!

apt with lsd

Vogue.com launched a new column that we think we're really going to dig. It's called APT with LSD. LSD??? Yep, that's Vogue's uber-socialite contributing editor, Lauren Santo Domingo. She's ducking in some of Vogue's favorite people's homes and apartments. Above is a view from model Coco Rocha's pad in Gramercy, which just happens to be one of our favorite NY neighborhoods.

glorious gloria

NY Mag's Home Design issue is out (well, it's been out for over a week, but being in Alabama we are just now getting around to blogging about it...) and our favorite piece was Wendy Goodman's peek into Gloria Vanderbilt's pad. An eccentric angle on traditional glamor, her Fifth Avenue dwellings are saturated with boldness, out-of-the-box details and design elements evolved from Vanderbilt's colored past. After seeing this fascinating view of Vanderbilt, we can't wait to get our hands on Goodman's new book, The World of Gloria Vanderbilt.

t design fall 2010

The New York Times Style Magazine ( or T magazine as we call it here at Matt Clinton Designs) sent out their Fall 2010 Design issue last week. High design, modern Boho, fancy toothbrushes, and a seven-sided house with a view are a few of the gems you'll find inside. While you're at it, add the ever-brilliant The Moment blog to your list of daily reads.

look book

We're huge fans of Rita Konig and her Inside Out column on The Moment blog (where we swiped the image above). On Tuesday, she posted about something we're quite fond of: filling and organizing bookshelves. When Matt Clinton Designs' interiors team is on a decorating project, no shelf is left untouched. Whether we bring in a few accessories from the owner's attic (or the shop!) or rearrange by size and/or color, fluffing up the shelves is an instant way to add a decorator's touch.

We recently rearranged our bookshelves here at the shop with chromatic groupings, and we must admit, it looks pretty sharp.

au courant

The NY Mag Home Design Issue arrived yesterday (actually, it was issued in NY last week, but being in Alabama, we only received it yesterday...). A series of apartments were profiled as the Neo Classics of New York. Now, we usually yearn for the fresh comfort of English design (and absolutely love Rita Konig and her Greenwich Village abode shown in the feature), but every single facet of Hervé Pierre's Neo Versailles design took our breath away. We'll never be the same after seeing the brilliance of the Balmain Glove and will always hold these words of wisdom: “To live as if you were in Paris, you need Evian, confiture, foie gras, and Céte d’Or chocolate”

In the spirit of our fond love for Lucite-inspired pieces, we also cooed over the translucent Chiavari chairs and the acrylic-top Drafting table featured in The Brat of Classicism.

All in all, four thumbs up from the MCD team – we'll be holding on to this issue for inspiration for years to come.

inspiration from the park

Right about now, New York is probably getting the storms we weathered in Alabama this past weekend. And while showers typically rule in April in Manhattan, there are always a few lucky days of spring-like tolerable weather. This picture of the Plaza Hotel was taken on one of those days (exactly two years ago today) during a visit to the city. The greens against the natural stone and steel tones with the little pops of pink and red inspired one of the flower deliveries we sent out today. We used one of our last few stone containers with lots of young, vibrant green hydrangea and a couple of stargazer lilies - very fresh and pretty with a bit of an industrial edge. There's nothing quite like Central Park in Spring to bud inspiration...except, of course, Tuscaloosa in Spring.

longing for long island

Lunch isn't something we take lightly at Matt Clinton Designs. Neither is food, for that matter! Pictured above is the famed roadside lobster roll shack, Lobster Roll Southside, in Amagansett, NY. From a design standpoint, the retro-Americana look ties in well with the subtle nautical themes our clients and customers gravitate to when the weather heats up.

Back to the food...for those not privy to the New England lobster roll, it's lobster meat, a little mayo and a few other ingredients mixed together (sort of like chicken salad) served on a hot dog bun (or a fancier roll). If you ever get your hands on some fresh lobster meat – which can be quite a feat in Tuscaloosa – we recommend trying this recipe straight from the restaurant. We've also used fresh crab meat or Gulf shrimp. It's not quite the same, but serve it al fresco with some iced tea or a cold beer and it's sure to evoke lunch hour on the East End, or any coastal getaway. Bon appetit et bon weekend!