Posts by Mary Jo Bowling
In 1943, a former butter-and-egg salesman was down and out, depressed and living in a rented home because he couldn’t afford to buy one for his family.
After accepting an invitation to take part in California Home+Design’s very first showhouse, interior designer Christopher Kennedy decided to refine the layout of the living room and the dining room in the 1,400-square-foot space. To do it, he channeled both his strong sense of style and his inner child—the one who loves vintage sitcoms.
Erinn Valencich is busy at work, pulling together the master bedroom and bath she’s creating for California Home+Design’s first ever showhouse. The space weighs in at just 1,400 square feet, but Valencich looks at it as welcome challenge rather than an impediment. We caught up with her for a sneak peek at her spaces.
The art may steal the show, but frames complete the picture. No need to think basic when bold will do. See some of our favorite finds!
It would be easy to be disappointed in Cavalier, the new store from interior design star Jay Jeffers and retail guru Michael Purdy. If it were any less spectacular than Jeffers' interiors (many have been featured in the pages of California Home+Design) or not as innovative as Alabaster, the late, great Hayes Valley store that Purdy managed, then their fans would be let down. But if you make your way to this about-to-ignite design hotspot at 1035 Post St. when it opens Tuesday, you will leave inspired. The store is fresh, surprising and insanely creative.
For inspiration, this artist looks to her own family tree.
Walking the streets of San Francisco after work, I sometimes get glimpses of the city's great private art collections—a corner of a painting, the top of a sculpture or a bit of a photograph—visible through distant lit windows. But, once a year, I get to walk into some of these amazing homes instead of walking by them, thanks to one of SF's best fundraising events: Private Collections.
If you dream of hanging an Andy Warhol, Chuck Close or Gilbert & George on your wall, but your budget isn't cooperating (and mass-market posters from big box stores make you cringe, try going big.
If your heart beats faster at the sight of a hand-lettered banner reading "flea market today" and aisles of booths get your pulse pounding, you have probably been to the Alameda Point Antiques Faire, Northern California's not-to-be-missed monthly treasure hunt (the next one happens on April 1, but you knew that). To get your flea market fix during the rest of the month, you probably swing by the not as large Alemany Flea Market which happens every Sunday at the foot of Bernal Hill. But if you are looking for something a little off the beaten vintage goods path, try these.
Jason and Laura Oronzi were just two weeks from having their first child, and they were more than ready. The doctor had told them months before that they were having a little girl and they had created a lovely pink nursery—complete with a custom sign emblazoned “Chloe” (a name they’d agonized over) and a legion of pastel stuffed animals. Then they got the shock of a lifetime, one that sent them back to square one.
