April Musings: From The Southeastern Designer Showhouse to Angelina Jolie’s New House

Are you following the the 2017 Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles Southeastern Designer Showhouse? Located in a historic James Means-designed home in the heart of Buckhead, Atlanta, it features the work of many of my favorite designers, including Margaret Kirkland, Sarah Bartholomew, Phoebe Howard, and Huff Harrington.  The all-star team preserved the historical integrity of this beautiful home while seamlessly bringing it into the 21st century.  Here are a just few highlights…

The Showhouse is open for tours through May 14, and you can follow on Instagram for continued updates.  To see the house in it’s original state, click here to view the real estate listing.

Speaking of Sarah Bartholomew, did you catch the beautiful spring tablescape she designed for Tory Burch? Sarah’s inspiration included legends Bunny Mellon and Audrey Hepburn, and the result is fresh, timeless, and oh so pretty. The glasses are from Tory Burch, and the bamboo flatware is Juliska. Click here for additional details, more on Sarah’s inspiration, and for her fabulous table-setting tips.

While you are over at Tory Burch, you will want to check out the new Spring Garden Party collection… Absolutely scrumptious, I want one of everything!

If you are on Instagram, no doubt you noticed highlights from the 2017 High Point Market. Two new furniture collections that particularly caught my eye are Carleton Varney‘s latest additions to the Dorothy Draper Kindel Furniture Collection and Melea Markell‘s new collection for Bradburn Home.

Did you see Aerin Lauder’s new AERIN Collection for Williams Sonoma? I ordered way too many pieces (see my favorites here)!  When designing this collection, Aerin was inspired by her family home in Palm Beach, featured in Architectural Digest. I learned something from this feature… Aerin’s home is located directly next to the home that once belonged to her late grandmother Estée.  The neighboring properties are bordered to the left by The Breakers resort. Concerned that The Breakers would use the property to expand, Estée purchased the property, which was designed by society architect Marion Sims Wyeth in 1924, and boarded it up.  Aerin’s parents turned it into a family home in the 1990s with the help of decorator Victoria Borus and the legendary Jacques Grange.

You can tour Estée’s home which now belongs to her elder son, Leonard, here. I can see definite inspiration from both homes in the AERIN Collection for Williams Sonoma.

Now that “Brangelina” is no more, Angelina Jolie has purchased a stunning 1925 Los Angeles home that once belonged to the late Hollywood director Cecil B. DeMille. I wonder who she will choose to decorate?! Click here to take a tour.

Mother’s Day is May 14, and I have included some lovely gift ideas in my new Shop! I am also loving these beautiful Mother’s Day gift boxes from Huff Harrington. My favorite includes a mini X necklace from Carla Caruso, a blue Rockflowerpaper scarf, and flavorful Verbena hand cream from Mistral. Shipping is free or choose the “pick up in-store” option if you are in Atlanta.

For additional Mother’s Day gift ideas, I recommend all of these new books for spring or any of these options from my Amazon library. Pair it with a bar of Claus Porto Madrigal (Water Lily) Bath Soap, Patricia Altschul’s favorite (source).