Another One Bites The Dust

 

 

Meredith Corporation announced today that Country Home magazine’s last issue will be this March.  Stunning.  Country Home, with its modern take on the country and cottage lifestyle was a very popular magazine with a readership of over 8 million.   Today Meredith claimed a poor advertising climate forced their hand.   What wasn’t said was that the writing has been on the wall since  Editor Carol Sheehan, author of the popular book “Living with Dogs” left the magazine last year.  Sheehan started at Country Home in 1997, but since her departure the quality has suffered.  While at the helm, Sheehan recruited her friend, author Mary Emmerling to join her at Country Home, and this duo was formidable.  But Emmerling quietly disappeared shortly after Sheehan and the magazine couldn’t survive both their absences.  LuAnne Brandsen took over for Sheehan and after a rocky start, the magazine was finally getting back on tract, but it couldn’t have been easy for her with the two looming ghosts of giants Sheehan and Emmerling.   Brandsen persevered and the last few issues have been some of her best ones.   What a shame.  

 

   The latest issue of Country Home featured this beautiful kitchen.

 

This freefall of discontinued magazines is getting a little scary.  Cottage Living and O Home are two of the latest to shut their doors.   Vogue Living is gone now, too.   House and Garden, finished.   Who’s next?   Along with announcing the death of Country Home, Meredith said 350 employees are getting pink slips.  They predicted that this is not the end – that other magazines are rumored to soon follow.  Hopefully – they won’t be other design titles.

 

It wasn’t your mother’s country at  Country Home – it was a hybrid of Americana, English and French, with a little Swedish thrown in.

Magazines need to get with the digital explosion.   Lately, I’ve been subscribing to as many magazines digitally as are offered.  But, it’s still slim pickings.  Meredith should place their inventory for sale online – it might help.  Digital magazines are green, they save paper, shelf space, gasoline, printing expenses,  distribution expenses and landfills – how more 2000 can you get?  One other advantage to reading digitally is that all references are clickable to their websites – a  huge timesaver.  Digital magazines are the future, so why hasn’t Meredith signed on? 

All I can say is House Beautiful, Veranda, Southern Accents, and Elle Decor better be safe!  

 

And,  in a bit of blogging business and shameless self promotion, I want to thank Terry Sapienza for naming Cote de  Texas to the Washington Post’s Blog Watch:  Top Ten Clicks for 2008!  Thanks Terry so very much!  I am flattered and honored to be named alongside such a great group. 

To read The Washington Post article, please go here.

Carleton V

 

Here come the men in pink!  Famous interior designer, Carleton Varney, stands in the middle – celebrating the publication of his book “In the Pink” written about his mentor Dorothy Draper.

 

“In The Pink” – Varney’s best seller and a favorite with design bloggers.  The cover shows the famous Draper Door.

 

Varney’s newest tome is “Houses In My Heart.”  Did you know he has written over 17 books, mostly on design and now, mostly out-of-print?   A few books he wrote are novels – one is titled “Kiss the Hibiscus Good Night” while another novel is simply “The Decorator.”  My favorite out-of-print title is, of course for my husband, “There’s No Place Like Home.”   Most of these  books are available on Amazon.   Despite Varney’s success as an author, he is decidedly more famous for his interior design. 

 

    

The lobby at The Greenbrier – Dorothy Draper’s largest and most famous commission.  Varney recently completed a renovation of it’s interiors.  Draper’s famous black and white marble floors remain in place, as does the white plaster over mantel seen here - another  Draper trademark.

 

Carleton Varney took over the helm at Dorothy Draper, Inc. after Draper, his mentor’s, death.   He continues as owner/president to this day.  Draper was famous for her Neo-Baroque design style, along with her use of bold colors  in, then odd, combinations such a “pink and aubergine, with a splash of chartreuse and a touch of turquoise.”   She favored huge cabbage rose chintz along with stripes, black and white checked floors, and fantastic plaster moldings – everywhere.   Draper’s influence is still felt today and her designs are as in vogue as ever.   The popular Hollywood Glamour style owes a huge debt to Draper, as do all the white ornately framed mirrors on the market today.  

 

The sweeping stairs at The Greenbrier.  Varney’s restoration was faithful to Draper’s original design.

 

Today, Varney runs his successful business with one eye on Draper’s legacy and another on his own.   While some of his work is a direct nod to Draper, he also designs the Carleton V way.   Make no mistake though, Varney adores Draper’s eye – and her playfulness and saturated color schemes can often be seen in his present day interiors.  Published repeatedly in Architectural Digest, Varney is at the height of his career, still creating and still active, even after almost 50 years at it.  Remarkable!

 

 

Carleton Varney’s latest work, the restaurant Union Prime,  is located on East 16th Street in Manhattan and is set to open next week.  The menu is a marriage of contemporary American steak and modern sushi.  The restaurant’s owners hired Varney to deliver a chic, fashionable and glamorous interior.     With a backdrop of lipstick red, the playful lights, reminiscent of a woman’s hat, are eye catching.  The white scrolling cartouches along the walls are pure Draper.

 

The large cabbage roses, Draper’s famous Princess Grace Rose fabric, provide more chic drama.  This fabric remains one of the most popular and recognizable of Draper’s designs.    To tone down the atmosphere at eye level, Varney uses a modern check in taupe and oatmeal colors.   The deep colored floor and leather chairs forces the eye upward to where all the action is. 

 

 

A close-up of the row of pendant lights, designed by Varney.

 

 

The white plaster mirrors are a further example of Draper’s lasting appeal. 

 

 

The bold black and red stripes are a design element that Draper made famous.   The architecture of Union Prime was created by Scott Bromley, of Bromley-Caldari Architects PC.   And the talented Chef Duhame is behind the menu’s fusion of sushi and steak.    If you plan to be in New York next week, be sure to stop in for drinks and a meal, or just to take a glance at Carleton’s latest greatest.

 

 

Draper’s famous Princess Grace Rose chintz is everywhere these days.   This year, I saw it at Two’s Company showroom used with beautiful, pale turquoise walls.  Without a doubt, this showroom was the prettiest one I saw this season – solely due to the Princess Grace Rose.

Here Carlton Varney designs without the influence of Draper.     This is my favorite Varney room, a French inspired guest room in a New York apartment.  I love the yellow wallpaper used with pink toile and a red indienne fabric.  Just try and count all the different fabrics used in this room – yet it’s effect is serene.  The ability to use a multitude of fabrics in a pleasing combination is a gift of a talented designer. 

 

Another bedroom in the same apartment uses Scalamandre’s Oriental toile paper on the walls.  The owners later moved and Varney designed another apartment for the couple – both are published in Architectural Digest.

 

 

Another recently Varney designed space in lower Manhattan is Ella Bar whose owner is a nephew of Varney’s.  Here, red, black and white, along with a vintage Draper chintz, are used to create an homage to Draper.   

 

 

The black and white checked floor and striped ceiling is all Draper!

 

The white mirrors with their shell motif and large red leather booths create a perfect backdrop for this stylish bar. 

 

For more on Carleton Varney, pick up his latest book, Houses In My Heart, from Amazon here.   Varney has a charming web site here, designed in a Draperesque style.   And if you plan on being in Manhattan, be sure to stop in at Union Prime on East 16th to experience Varney’s wonderful new design in person!