IN THE DETAILS: KIPS BAY SHOWHOUSE

Hello readers, Crissie here, from bug&Bear! Last week I had the opportunity to stop by the Kips Bay Decorator Show House, and I'm here to today to bring you a few of my favorite details!

The Show House, a neo-Federalist style home on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, is decorated every year by a group of top designers to benefit the Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club. Each room reflects the individual style and taste of designer in charge of it's appearance, giving the four story mansion a very eclectic and exciting feel.

The Library, designed by Kemble Interiors 

Living Room, by Richard Mashaan Design

Master Bedroom (so fierce!) by Amanda Nisbet Design, Inc

Guest Room (with a very dreamy ceiling), by Barbara Ostrom Associates, Inc

A moment of glam in the Master Dressing Room, by Cayley Barrett Associates 

What's your favorite room or detail??

HAPPY (RECAP!) WEEKEND

I promised a little NYC recap last week, and here I am to deliver (better late than never??)

The quick little trip was a fantastic one, starting from the second I arrived. Thanks to the lovely people at Mr & Mrs Smith, the Rue girls got to enjoy the comfort and glamour of  The Gramercy Park Hotel where Crystal and I immediately indulged in a late night drink at the rooftop bar. The next morning, we were up and at 'em to speak on color trends at an event at NYIGF where we got to pop in to see a few of our favorite vendors including the new fabulous new textiles line by Coco Cozy!

After that it was down to business... pretty party business! Anne, Bri, Crystal and I dolled ourselves up for the Rue Issue #3 party hosted by The New Traditionalists in their gorgeous showroom. It was so wonderful to finally meet some readers and bloggers in person, and the event was a huge success. We ended the evening at the amazing home of Susan + William Brinson (see their space over on design*sponge) who were sweet enough to host a relaxing little after party.

Day two found us buzzing around the city shopping and photo shooting (thank you Trent Bailey!) before heading off to the High Gloss launch party and a very late-night dinner with the team. It was, as usual, an amazing few days in NYC... I cannot wait to be back in that city!

ps - to see all the pics, head over to the coco+kelley facebook page for a visual adventure!

NYC: THE RUE LAUNCH PARTY!

As many of you know, the whole purpose of my trip to NYC was to attend the Rue launch party... never did I dream it would be such a fabulous night!

First of all, I was able to find the most amazing dress by designer Kara Janx that left me feeling like Audrey Hepburn wearing Valentino. Every time I looked down at that big bow, my heart fluttered! Finished off by sparkling heels and subtle jewelry, I was ready to go with my partner in crime, Kelley. (Who says you have to wear black in New York??)

The Rue gals looked every bit as gorgeous, and this happens to be my favorite photo from the evening. The toast in progress! Cheers!

The most fun part, of course, was mingling with bloggers who were old friends and new acquaintances alike! The lovely Laure who I know from back in my LA days, Camila who I was thrilled to finally meet, Mr. Tartanscot who won my award for best dressed that evening (his pants had skulls on them!) and the sweet Julieann with my ever-present bestie, Erin. (Oh, and yes, I have a hand-on-my-hip addiction in photos)

I also got a chance to meet two of my favorites (finally!) - Jaithan and Eddie - who made the time to stop by the party despite their busy schedule.

Not only were the people fabulous, but so were the shoes (or socks, in Jonathan Legate's case!).
Mine are the sparkly pumps!

A few more lovelies - Bri, Crystal and Amy - and of course the fabulous Jaime below.

It's hard to explain the energy and level of talent in that room, but I hope you can imagine it and feel the inspiration that I did after this amazing evening!

NYC: THE DINNER PARTY

It was a warm sunny Saturday when I arrived in NYC with my good friend Kelley Moore who is a fantastic designer here in Seattle. Everything I learned about setting a fabulous tabletop I learned from her. So who better to throw a beautiful dinner party in honor of the launch of Rue and the fabulous ladies and gents who had gathered in the city to celebrate...?
The second we stepped in the door of our SoHo apartment, we set straight to work, rearranging the living room to create this beautiful setting...

Kelley had the linens made especially for this long elegant table, and even packed her antique candelabras to be sure to set the mood right. What made the decor even more stunning was the way the patterns and colors of the room played so well with the tablecloth, dishes, and floral arrangements.

So inspiring! And because Kelley is always one to personalize a party, each guest's 'placecard' was a photo she had made into pop art and placed in these acrylic frames.

As the sun set and our guests arrived they were greeted with a fuschia hallway that was the perfect entrance to this candlelit room (the color inspired the florals, by the way) and the party was underway!


It was such a treat to spend a relaxing evening with the talented Rue team including Crystal (above with Kelley!), Anne, Caitlin, Alaina and Will. Not to mention the lovely Jaime Rummerfield and my bestie Erin.

After a night of champagne, fabulous food, and inspiring conversation, it seemed only natural that we end the evening with an impromptu dance party... and that's exactly what happened just moments after this! (Sorry, loves, no photos of that! A girl has to keep a few secrets.)

If you're dying to see more of the evening, just pop on over to the coco+kelley facebook page later today
for the full NYC trip album!

*all photos by coco+kelley

NYC... THE SNEAK PEEK

It's my last day in this amazing city so I'm getting out to enjoy it and visit some fabulous shops for the next few hours before I hop a plane back to the Emerald City. So, I leave you with this little sneak peek of what's to come...

Details from a fabulous dinner party thrown by the amazing Kelley Moore...

And the Rue gals + a few of us heading out after the extremely successful launch party for a night on the town! The ladies (and gents!) all looked amazing! More to come soon...

xoxo