"The Grass is Always Greener . . . "

Greetings,

Sometimes design inspirations come from the simplest places.  It can be just as easy as opening your front door.  And then opening your eyes.

And behold . . . .

SMW Design, East Hampton Residence
(photo credit - Scot Meacham Wood)

Sheila Bridges, New York, NY

"Do, Re, Mi."
 from The Sound of Music

SMW Design, Mountain View Residence
(photo credit - Eric Tagan Hooten)

"The Green Room"
The White House, Washington DC

Sherrill Canet, New York NY

Ralph Lauren Advertisement, from 1984

SMW Design, Presidio Heights San Francisco
(photo credit - Nicolas Smith)

Jon Hamm and January Jones, from Mad Men

South Hampton, NY.  June 2010
(photo credit - Scot Meacham Wood)

Kelly Wearstler 

Oscar de la Renta for Lee Jofa
Design by Miles Redd

Cheers,
Scot

"Ready. Set. Summer . . . "

Greetings,

Thought I'd share a few pictures from my visit to the Hamptons this week. The weather was beautiful every day. And a few days visiting with friends in these delightful little towns was the perfect way to get me in the mood for summer. Enjoy.

in Southampton.

Round Swamp Farm in East Hampton.

Excellent homemade desserts and pastries. And amazing fresh fruit.

After a day of antique shopping we needed a stop

for lunch at Lobster Roll.

Yummy.

In Sag Harbor.

And a beautiful afternoon at The Surf Lodge in Montauk.

And hours spent looking out at the vastness of the Atlantic.

slightly sunburned,

tartanscot

all photographs, Scot Meacham Wood

"Dusty, but Neatly Stacked . . . "

Greetings,

OMG - this one kinda crept up on me . . . but, as I look at my calendar for the weekend is clearly says, "New York and the Hamptons." Yay. So, I'm feverishly getting every piece of patch-work madras and vintage seersucker organized and packed for an aggressively preppy visit with friends and clients in NY and the Hamptons.

Planning to get in some theatre. And there's a good bit of shopping on the agenda. Brunch here. Party there. And just being surrounded by all the energy that New York City offers - followed by the wondrous relaxation of strolling around the Hamptons.

And in preparations for the trip - I'm desperately trying to get the house in order. I've got workmen in next week and want to make sure everything is presentable - even in the middle of the project - I need things to look great . . . lol . . . and I insist that I return to a neat and tidy home. It makes that long flight back from the east coast a little less of a drudgery.

And in my organizing frenzy - I ran across a dusty (but, neatly stacked) pile of design magazines. My first thought was, "aw crap! more shelter mags to sort through?" But, as I was flipping through them (in an obvious attempt to delay my cleaning frenzy), it's clear what they are. A missing stack of favourites. I had wondered where they were. Carefully organized. I recognize every single cover. And the well worn spines that simply fall open. Images that make my spine tingle.

Like these from House and Garden, June 2004. God I miss this magazine. It's the Hampton's home of James and Whitney Fairchild. And they practically embody everything that is gracious and lovely about summer. White Linen. Beautiful antiques. Cool marble. Vintage wicker. I can almost feel the breeze wafting through the house.

an afternoon nap during a Hamptons install a few years back.

And with any luck - I can spend part of my weekend napping . . . dreaming of such wonderful places.

So, if you're in New York and think, "Wow, that guy on the vintage bicycle in the patchwork madras shorts looks JUST like Scot," - yell across the street - it might be me!

trying on my seersucker blazer,

tartanscot

House & Garden, June 2004

photography - Francois Halard

"Some Lantern Envy . . . "

Greetings all, For some odd reason - I just seem to love lanterns. I won't try to explain it. I'm not sure I could explain it even if I tried . . . lol. The above lantern, and the wonderful library that it reigns over, is from the East Hampton home of PR powerhouse Scott Currie and is yet another inspiring article from the latest edition of Elle Decor. I'm also loving those bright chinoiserie-styled chairs giving the room some punch.

Scott Currie. Relaxing by the pool.

Yay. Another room - this time the living room - and another antique lantern (a find from the Paris flea market). Once again, I love the use of the bright fresh colours paired with the more sedate furnishings. Oh my. A quick trip out to the back deck for an al fresco dinner, and yay, more lantern (from Beall & Bell) illuminations.

The master bedroom is all its casual glory. The collection includes that handsome antique bed, simple burlap drapes (with grosgrain trim), and yet another charming fixture.

Entryway. Another lantern.

"Weekend in East Hampton . . . "

Yay, it's finally the weekend.  And once again I'm featuring another beautiful 'get-away' residence, but this one's a bit different - it's my of my own, and one of my favourite, projects.  So this week, you'll get an 'insider' tour.

The Living Room.  I was working with existing furniture from the previous residence, but needed to shop for a few specific pieces to complete the design.  I wanted to keep everything crisp and classic - so yards and yards (and yards!) of glazed linen mixed with a variety of antiques.  We did a great deal of shopping here in SF as well a some specific buying in NY as well.

Another image of the living room - featuring the massive antique glass-doored bookcase.  The piece anchors the large room just perfectly.  It's filled with a collection of art books, antique porcelain, and these amazing shell specimens.

The Master Bedroom.  Huge windows over-looking the back yard or looking eastward to the ocean fill the room with the most amazing light.  My hope was to keep it the design classic, and let the extraordinary views steal the show.

The charming Conservatory all ready for an afternoon lunch, a good book, or a lengthy conversation.

As the sun begins to set, the Dining Room becomes just magical.  I still love that gigantic Holly Hunt light fixture!  (not so much having to reinforce the ceiling to support it . . . lol)  No window treatments were needed as I wanted the room to feel totally porous to the outside property.

And the well loved (and well used) Guest/Pool house.  It was just this delightful little two room cottage perfect for guests.  We used all indoor/outdoor textiles so it could be beautiful - and hold up to the constant use during the summer.

I think the project has been on my mind because I had the pleasure of having lunch with my clients a few weeks ago.  We still laugh (now) about the fun we had getting everything read - and our favourite snack from "The Golden Pear" that we'd have in the morning - and the ice cream we'd snack on after a long day.

I hope everyone has great weekend plans.  I've got a bit of training before a race next weekend.  Luckily, we've got the weather just MADE for being outside.

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