Ad Categories: Home and Garden

You can get a butterfly chair for $30 or you can get one for $5,295 (and probably for some other prices in between). This beauty by the Italian leather company Henry Cuir is on display on the first floor at Barneys New York in black woven leather with a gray pillow. Another goodie to file under “cool insect-oriented design”: a collection of striking framed specimens called Pheromones by California-based Christopher Marley; recent arrivals at Barneys.

—GINA BAZER

I’m completely coveting this green garage for our home in Oak Park. Coincidentally, the architect is also from Oak Park, and he sent me these photos of his recently completed garage. It’s the first of four prototypes developed by Tom Bassett-Dilley to address the challenge of how to make a meaningful back yard with what little space remains between garage and house. The firm just won a Green Award from the Village of Oak Park for this design.
    What makes it green? A living green roof, sustainably harvested framing lumber, locally fabricated metal composed of recycled content, and paving salvaged from the previous slab. The L-shaped garage keeps a car sheltered, provides a secure storage/work room, and creates a garden space. “Instead of enclosing the zoning-required second parking space, an open, permeable gravel patio accommodates occasional guest parking and allows for a larger garden with greater solar access,” the press release says. “The green roof covers the low-slope portion, and the rain screen cedar siding provides easy attachment for vining and climbing plants.” On top of all of this, it’s modern and great looking from alley and yard. Genius! My Mini Cooper would be so happy here.

—JAN PARR

Poggenpohl has introduced new colors to its kitchen fronts, all subtle, modern, and all derived from the mineral colors on which they’re based: Cubanite (a beige tone); Oxide (a light blue); Fluorite (a modest green); and Curite (a fresh coppery orange). That’s Curite on the horizontal cabinets in the photo shown here. It’s a sophisticated take on color.

—JAN PARR

Renowned fragrance expert Francis Kurkdjian was in town last week at Neiman Marcus to promote the debut of his new line of home fragrances, Maison Francis Kurkdjian. The recently knighted but entirely unassuming Kurkdjian, who has created more than 20 of the world’s bestselling scents (for Christian Lacroix, Giorgio Armani, YSL, and others), talked about and passed around samples of his candles, perfumed incense papers, and laundry detergent, as well as perfumed bubbles inspired by his six-year-old niece (the bubbles were floating outside the store as we arrived). Besides Neiman Marcus Chicago, the collection is available only at Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills, as well as his new boutique, Maison Francis Kurkdjian in Paris. By the end of lunch, I was convinced that my home should smell wonderful, and that Kurkdjian was the man to help me.

-JAN PARR

It’s no secret that a whole lot of people who love home design also love their pets. Interior designers Todd Haley, Susan Fredman, and the owners of Hudson Home are all gaga about their dogs; I just came across this interview with Nate Berkus about living with furry friends in Tails magazine. Seems like the pros don’t worry too much about dog hair on their furniture or paw marks on their floors. (Cats are a different story… if you’ve got clawing kitties, we’ve got tips here. If you truly love your pet, then perhaps you need a plaque made in its honor. Made by local artist Kristen Romaniszak (out of gouache and ink on paper, glued to wood) these quirky portraits are available through Asrai Garden ($60 for 4-by-4 inch size; $140 for 5-by-7). All you need do is provide a photo of your beloved; delivery time is about two weeks.

—GINA BAZER