SPRING AT HILLWOOD

at the moment I am thrilled to be participating in The Artistic Table at Hillwood. Hillwood, the Washington D.C. home of Marjorie Merriweather Post, is a magical place to visit and this Spring is no exception!

The Artistic Table features tables inspired by and using Mrs.Post's porcelain. Selecting from her extensive collection, designers—Timothy Corrigan, Barry Dixon, Charlotte Moss, Alex Papachristidis, P. Gaye Tapp, Hutton Wilkinson and Josh Hildreth, have created settings that are "of the moment."

From writing about Baroness Pauline de Rothschild for my book, How They Decorated, it’s only natural that I turn to her legendary Grand Mouton tablescapes for The Artistic Table inspiration. Never one to shy away from mixing periods and objects, the table blends Danish Modern-used for the salad plates and for flowers pots, Asian influences-Japanese teacups are used for mosses and twigs, practical red wine stemware, (noted in de Rothschild's tablescapes), vintage pottery water glasses, murine dessert plates, and a mix of modern everyday flatware with heirloom pieces.

 Read the Washington Post story for more details about the exhibit here.

& at AD here.

HOW THEY DECORATED AT THE TABLE, HILLWOOD, March 28th

Part of the Artistic Table Lecture Series.

While setting a table has a formal protocol, today it should be fun. It’s another way we can express ourselves. The sixteen women of How They Decorated were no different. This lecture speaks to their table style: Pauline de Rothschild’s famous tablescapes, Louise Vilmorin’s family dinners, or Sybil Connelly’s Irish inspired collection for Tiffany. All were natural aficionados at making any table in their homes beautiful—it’s just how they decorated.

I will be giving this lecture on the 28th—and would love to see you there. More Details here.

the beautiful rendering of my table is by friend Jimmie Henslee who did the illustrations in my book.

WEDGWOOD, not your Grandmother's Porcelain

A new book—WEDGWOOD A Story of Creation & Innovation, by Gaye Blake-Roberts Curator of the Wedgwood Museum in Barlaston, Stoke-on-Trent, is masterfully laid out, designed, photographed, & styled. Blake-Roberts with her collaborators has breathed new life into your grandmother's Wedgwood.

With more and more throwaway design, the artistry of Wedgwood is a treasure, as is the book. It's beautiful.

I've long found the dusty colors of WEDGWOOD magical. Josiah Wedgwood's 5000 trials between the years of 1772 to 1774, are a testament to his determination to perfect his Jasper production.

 trays of Jasper Trials (below)

The book's section with pages from the Wedgwood pattern books, catalogs, and archives is a study in the illustrations of the pieces proposed and the abundance of creative minds that designed Wedgwood.

 the Fairyland Lustre Pattern Book, c 1915

 one of Wedgwood's 26 "JAPAN" patterns, c 1815.

Two designs for a Toilet Ewer in the Cornflower and Strawberry patterns, c, 1917.

A Wedgwood centerpiece bowl in detail— with blue jasper overlayed in a white and yellow strapwork basketweave pattern. The full-blown bowl, c 1790, appears to echo the elaborate nature of the Prince Regent's Brighton Pavilion that was being built in 1787.

Having just returned from Hillwood, Marjorie Merriweather Post's Washington D.C. estate with her extensive (is it 1700 pieces?), I have a greater appreciation for the intricacies and artistry of porcelain, and the book WEDGWOOD is a porcelain lover's dream—book.