TRADING STAMP SAVER BOOKS

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FLEA MARKET FRIDAYS #69

Remember trading stamp saver books that you could get from the local supermarket? 

I have fond memories of helping my grandma fill out these books. Instead of licking, we had bowls of water and wet sponges to moisten the stamps. I felt like this was such an important responsibility that she trusted me with. I would try and do my best and place the stamps as straight in the book as I could. Once we filled out the books, we would spend hours looking through a catalog deciding what to trade our stamp filled books for. Oh boy, a new coffee pot! Something that sounds archaic now, but it sure was fun Saturday afternoon.

Recently I picked up a bag of stamp books at an antique shop. They're from the 1950s and 60s.  

Besides the fun covers, these books are filled with cool mid-century illustrations. Here's a sampling below. For more illustrations, check out my stamp saver set on flickr.  

Habitually Chic Book Announcement

I am beyond excited to finally announce that I am working on a Habitually Chic Book!  I met with and talked to many publishers but felt an instant connection at powerHouse Books.  They got my concept immediately and I could tell that I would have more creative control of the final product. It was my intention to not put out a "blogger" book per se but one that will appeal to Habitually Chic readers as well as those who have never heard of my blog.  I can't give away the exact title or premise just yet but it will include the chicest of the chic from the worlds of interior design, fashion, art, and other creative industries.  I will also be the photographer which is very exciting and nerve wracking.  If all goes well, it will be released Fall 2012.  As someone who loves books, I can't wait to place my own book along side my favorites on my bookshelves and I hope you will too! 

Photo: My bookshelves photographed by moi

New Apartment Pics

It's been challenging to say the least to work on decorating my apartment while keeping up with all my other work projects.  That's definitely why only one side is finished or maybe I should say mostly finished.  I am sure I will make more changes and move things around as I continue around the room.

I am so happy that I purchased the John Widdicomb dresser or commode depending on how fancy you want to sound. I love that the word commode comes from the French word for "convenient" and the drawers on this piece are very convenient.  I like having place for your eye to rest when hanging art which is why there is a bare spot above the lamp but that might change as I add more artwork to my collection.

I also tried to make the television blend into the art installation so it is less prominent. The piece in the black frame might be swapped out after I get another piece of art in my collection framed.

I bought this painting from Belgium on eBay and it is one of my favorites. The little brown leather box with the gold embossed lion contains two sets of playing cards from Piatnik and were made in Austria.  I'm going to have to pull them out and photograph them because the face cards feature royalty including Marie Antoinette, Louis XIV, Maria Theresia, and even Count Axel von Fersen.

Kelly Wearstler's book Hue is also a favorite.

I couldn't think of a better place to hang my Marie Antoinette etching than above my favorite blue chair.  Technically it's from Belgium (via Jayson Home & Garden) but looks French enough.  There seemed to be too much space between the chair and picture so I hung one of my new red Willow plates that I bought while visiting home recently.

As I mentioned, the drawers in the John Widdicomb dresser are very convenient and the second drawer now holds all my stationery, paper products, and ribbon.

I tried using this chair at my desk but it's a bit fragile which is fine.  I think it's more fun to look at it than sit on it anyway.

In my move, I finally found my calligraphy pen and ink.  I also can't wait to use my new orange Smythson notebook that was a lovely gift from the company. 

The bench fits perfectly in front of the bookshelves as I knew it would when I picked it up at the flea market this weekend.

I bought this little painting on eBay as well and wish I could find the artist again.  I just love looking at it.  I just read an article that mentioned scientific research that concluded that "looking at art induces the same feelings of pleasure as being in love."

My bookshelves again.  I'm waiting for a pair for the other side of the room so I can finally unpack the rest of my books.

My prized pile of old Domino magazines.  Yes, I have doubles of some issues and no, you can't have them.

There is a funny story about this painting of a house on the other side of the room.  My parents own this same painting and when I asked if I could have it, they said no.  But my mother commissioned the artist to paint me my own version.  As an only child, this means I will have two of the exact same painting someday which always makes me laugh.

I bought the painting on the left also on eBay for probably not more than $30.  It reminds me of Van Gogh and also makes me happy when I look at it, or maybe it's love if that recent research is to be believed.  The back has a stamp from the Thompson Art Gallery c/o Thompson & Basile, 20 Cornelia St. NYC. It also has tape on it from the Tribune Subway Gallery with the phone number Wisconsin 7-4899.  Very old school and dates the painting to around the mid 1940's.  The other is just a post card in a vintage frame.

I love the sound of my Bose iPod dock.

More books.

My current inspiration board near my desk.  I need to work on that area next and have the skirt made.

I think the chicest thing you could buy for yourself or as a gift are monogrammed matchboxes from ForYourParty.  I love giving them out at events and using them in my apartment. The absolute best thing about my new apartment though is the south facing front windows.  They certainly make up for the one that faces the brick wall in the microscopic kitchen. 

Photos by Heather Clawson for Habitually Chic

Book, Books and More Books!

While searching for a book on Amazon the other day, I came across a plethora of new books coming out this fall.  Good thing I just ordered more bookshelves.  It looks like I'm going to need them! 

The first is Live, Love & Decorate by interior designer Maryn Lawrence Bullard.  I think most people were introduced to Martyn on Million Dollar Decorators which I hope comes back for a second season.  I always appreciated it when he would explain his design process to his assistant and clients.  Some called him a "name dropper" but if my clients included Ellen Pompeo, Cher, Ozzy & Sharon Osbourne, and Tamara Mellon, I'd be dropping them too.  Modesty is nice and all but it doesn't pay the bills.  Oh, and Sir Elton John wrote the foreword. 

I love interior designer Katie Ridder's use of color and pattern and can't wait to own her book, Katie Ridder: Rooms.  That wall color on the cover already makes me want to repaint my entire apartment.

Interior designer Celerie Kemble also has a new book coming out November 1, 2011, Black and White (and a Bit in Between): Timeless Interiors, Dramatic Accents, and Stylish Collections.  I haven't seen it yet but the description sounds interesting.  In the book, Celerie "trades in her signature vivid palette for this iconic aesthetic, highlighting the black and white work of design stars and peers. With more than 350 gorgeous color photographs, this is a vividly photographed celebration of a timeless scheme, infused with inspirational tips, glimpses into showstopping homes, and proof that a limited palette is anything but." 

I'm also looking forward to David Kleinberg's upcoming book Traditional Now due out September 27, 2011. David worked for Parish-Hadley for sixteen years and I'm sure he's got some great design advice for us all.

Jeffrey Bilhuber also has a new book coming out on September 20, 2011, The Way Home: Reflections on American Beauty. He also has a wonderful color sense and I'm sure he will also make me want to repaint my rooms.

If you want to learn from the Grande Dame of Decorating, then I recommend ordering Sister Parish: American Style due out October 11, 2011.  Jacqueline Kennedy was a client and that says it all. 

Photographer Ellen Graham is one of the least known photographers of Hollywood but I hope that changes after Talking Pictures is released on October 16, 2011. She also happens to be the stepmother of one of my friends and I got to know her while working on his apartment.  She not takes amazing photos but has impeccable taste as you can see by her apartment that was featured on New York Social Diary.

Nostalgia in Vogue "celebrates the popular and poignant coming-of-age memoir columns that have been enchanting Vogue readers since 2000. This elegant volume collects a wonderful selection of Vogue’s famous Nostalgia columns and the stunning photographs that accompanied them." I look forward to adding this book to my collection of Vogue books when it's released on October 4, 2011.  

Everyone is dying to see what the former editor-in-chief of French Vogue, Carine Roitfeld, does next so I'm sure they will be excited to read her new book.  Carine Roitfeld: Irreverent is touted as an "elegant volume is a visual history of Roitfeld's fearless career" and with Cathy Horyn involved, I'm sure it will be amazing.

I've always loved model Marisa Berenson.  She seems like the only one who made it out of the 1970's and Studio 54 in one piece.  I can't wait to own her upcoming book Marisa Berenson: A Life in Pictures when it's released on October 11, 2011.

I probably should have listed Carleton Varney's new book Mr. Color above with the design books but I was amazed at how similar the cover is to another book below.  Carleton Varney is quite a character and definitely makes this world a more colorful place.  I can't wait to read "The Greenbrier and Other Decorating Adventures." I'm sure they will be hysterical!

On the heels of True Prep and Take Ivy comes Preppy: Cultivating Ivy Style by Jeffrey Banks and Doria de la Chapelle. It is described as the "first definitive and in-depth volume on preppy fashion, exploring its evolution from its pragmatic origins and presence on elite Eastern campuses in America to its profound influence internationally and metamorphosis on the runway."

One of my most amazing moments in New York was walking up Fifth Avenue last May and catching Daphne Guinness coming home in a convertible after dressing for The Met Ball in the windows of Barneys.  Watching her walk into her apartment building was breathtaking. She is a person for whom getting dressed is an adventure in art and creativity as well as elegance. I can't wait to read more about her in Daphne Guinness co-authored with Valerie Steele.

Cecil Beaton was a wonderful arbiter of style who was an illustrator, costume and set designer, photographer, and more, as well as friend of some amazing people.  Cecil Beaton: The New York Years will focus obviously on the "legendary photographer's life in New York City, with many never-before-seen images and reminiscences by his closest friends and confidants" including the illusive Greta Garbo.   

I apologize for the postage stamp size photo of Slim Aarons: La Dolce Vita but it was the only one I could find.  I'm needless to say excited for another edition of this chic photographers work.  This one will include "memorable portraits, across a vast geography of resorts, estates, palaces, elegant apartments, mansions, castles, and other glamorous settings, Slim Aarons's photos define that legendary class known as the beautiful people."

Bare Blass

After I posted the Sutton Place apartment of Bill Blass, a few people mentioned his house in Connecticut.  I was waiting to post it until my copy of his book Bare Blass arrived.  I can't believe I didn't already own a copy.  Not only does he talk about his life and fashion but also his apartments and houses.  I highly recommend it for that reason alone.

"And then one day in 1976, Billy Baldwin and I were out looking for houses for sale in Connecticut, something we did a lot together, and I saw this wonderful old stone house.  It had such a dignity about it - and hideous red flocked wallpaper in the living room.  The place was built in 1770 as a tavern n the old Albany Post Road.  The house came with six acres, and I bought the adjacent apple orchard, or what was left of it.  Twenty-one acres in all.  I moved in a few months later." - Bill Blass