Date Archives October 2009

A Day With Doris

A Lesson in BotanyMary having a cup of coffeeDoris shared that she had a huge crush on Laurence Olivier
Doris with her brick collection and a hat made by a friendI made Doris put on her “Swedish Shades” Peering over her mother’s beloved piano
A Hollywood Moment, Doris as a child Vintage MarimekkoDancing in her garden as a young girl

I feel so lucky to live in New York and have the opportunity to meet such amazing and inspiring people.The other day I was invited to have lunch with two special ladies, Mary and Doris. Doris invited us back to her home for coffee and stories after giving us a architectural tour of her neighborhood. Mary had mentioned that Doris had exquisite taste and I could definitely gather as much, but was nonetheless taken aback by her stunning apartment and magnificent flair for design.

Everything in Doris’ apartment is artfully arranged with her special touch. Its a world where neoclassical and contemporary design elements blend harmoniously with whimsical charm. Miniature chairs sit beside precious antiques and vintage family photos. Fine art pieces are mixed with wonderful drawings and paintings done by artist friends. These works hang on the walls of a place that her boss once remarked, “Where do you think you are, Versailles?” after she mentioned the idea of installing big mirrors in the living room.Doris’ apartment is a reflection of herself, charming and graceful, contemporary and intelligent.

Doris is a natural teacher, storyteller and design wiz. She worked at the Whitney for over 30 years in charge of all museum publications. As we toured her apartment she espoused upon plants, old movie stars, furniture and fashion design and we discovered that we both were born without defined ankles. My grandmother was a librarian and I always thought she knew everything. There wasn’t a question she couldn’t answer. She used to say, ” I know a little bit about a lot of things”, but truthfully she knew a lot about most things. Doris is the same way, an expert, ready and willing to share her treasures, her knowledge. I learned that she pretends not to love chocolate although she really does and that you can transform old bricks into ancient treasures by placing them upon a beautiful antique dresser. I could go on and on, but hopefully these photos will give you a little peek into her magical world!

Recent Reader Submissions

I want to share a selection of some of the most recent reader submissions to Advanced Style. I always love when people send me photos they have taken and find it very insightful to look at what others find appealing and inspiring.

The black and white photo is from a collection by artist Rokas Darulis. It is being featured in Murdock barbershop in London and they thought that we would enjoy it as well. As a traditional barbershop, they service many older clients, who come in for old fashioned wet-shave, moustache trim, and beard reshapes.

The photo of the lovely couple was taken by New Yorker Ben Monnie while on a trip to Cape Cod. He explains, “She smelled amazing with perfume, he only likes to look at photos of himself as a young man.They wanted to know if the blog was for girls or boys.We were in downtown Welfleet, Cape Cod, MA in the parking lot next to Hatch’s fish market and the town hall.

Marie Lindström sent me the photo of a grand older gentleman in a hat, sweater vest and coat from her recent European travels.

Kam Martin sent me this photo of a stylish fellow in Seattle. Check out her style profile of him HERE.

The last photo was taken by T.W. Li of Mimi, from a party in Chicago.

Keep the photos coming and feel free to add some to the Advanced Style Facebook page!