Delighted to Find {myself in} Selvedge Magazine!

"The Fabric of Your Life: Textiles in Fashion, Fine Art, Interiors, Travel and Shopping"... reads the Selvedge magazine byline. To be perfectly honest, I didn't even know about this gorgeous print magazine before Kate Cavendish contacted me for an article she was writing about Pascale Palun.

Now, I am so delighted with the writing, the hip graphics and photography, the depth and breadth of the coverage that I've subscribed to the online edition. Dancing just on the edge of "scholarly", this magazine is a rich resource for the history of all things textile, and delights the intellect while it captivates the eye.

Like most interior designers, I adore fabric. It's fascinating how Selvedge celebrates the close ties between fabric and women's lives, across time and many cultures. Selvedge captures that elemental connection and had me from the first page!

these servants's costumes in Russian Ballet, 1920's under the

artistic direction of Serge Diaghliev,

inspired the designer Paul Poirot, whose contributions

to 20th C. fashion have been likened to Picasso's

contributions to 20th c. art

backdrop for Russian Ballet in the 1920's

fragments from costumes from the heyday of Russian Ballet;

restoration has been made of these costumes,

some of which were designed

by Henri Matisse, who had a lifelong fascination with fabric

***

this very happy interior designer-turned-fabric-and-

accessories-designer is profiled in Selvedge

***

an innovative, to say the least, treatment of the

familiar Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman

beloved by virtually every interior designer I

have ever known, including myself!

***

Selvedge reviews books such as this one published by

the Victoria and Albert Museum... and now

on my Christmas list!

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lovely graphics illustrating a story about

the Twelve Days of Christmas

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the cover of the current issue of Selvedge magazine,

published in Britain; you can see the quote by

me on page 45 included in Kate Cavendish's lovely

article about Pascal Palun

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Be absolutely certain that you enter the

Chic Provence Design Tour Giveaway

fora chance to win an

incredible silk filament filled duvet!

Provence, Reinterpreted

I've been deeply involved with my family and doing some traveling these last few weeks. Now September is well upon us. It's a bittersweet, busy time when we have to switch gears from long lazy summer days with a toe in the sand, to get ready for the crisp, business-like, briefer and cooler days of fall. That's the essence of la rentree...our re-entry into our workaday lives after the sonorous summer days.

No longer do we fuss over the al fresco brunch in the dappled summer sunlight; now there are apples to pick and furnaces to service. The steps quicken, the leaves blow around on the wind. These dwindling daylight hours signal a change is in the air.

Looking back to late summer, I loved this 20th anniversary celebration of Côté Sud magazine featuring iconic Provençal items refreshed and given a modern twist by artisans in the South of France just for the occasion; old standbys like the tomettes and cigales are reinterpreted here.

They make me think of an endless summer.

typically in terra cotta, these hexagonal "tommettes" have been found in

Provençal homes for centuries; here they have been

updated with "Profils" to evoke the artistry of Picasso, Cocteau, Chagall

***

Basquaise in origin, this adorable bag features a polka dot base

adorned with flamenco-dress ruffles

***

standing in for doors in the summer, this bead screen is

newly interpreted using the Toiles du Soleil as small

circles threaded together and flowing on the

summer breezes

***

the cigale, or beloved little cricket, is the symbol of Frederic Mistral's

Provence; here the little chirper is saucily interpreted for building bricks

***

the classic Marseillaise dish, bouillabaisse was originally the snack of fishermen;

they would dip their fish in the broth when boiling and reduce the heat when

reboiled, hence the name "bolhabaissa" is Occitan Provencal. This set is inspired

by an 18th c. version is cleanly designed

***

this "light as summer" sarong is a reinterpretation of an 1825

print found in the Fragonard Museum and made

into this lovely tribute to the Indian origins of Provençal prints

***

used for keeping wine cool for the farmers returning from the

hot fields at noontime, these iconic pourou from Roussillon

have been interpreted in fresh modern colors for

the 20th anniversary of Côté Sud

***

the Carmargue Cross symbolizes the three virtues:

the herdsman, the anchor of hope,

and the charity of Saint Mary;

here the symbol is placed in bas-relief

on colorful stoneware

***

the classic straw market basket made popular by Brigitte Bardot

and Jane Birkenis reinterpreted here in yellow goatskin and lined with

a beautiful old vintage kilim remnant

get the original from my friend Andrea at The French Basketeer!

***

traditionally seen in earth colored clay and glazes of

green and ochre, these olive oil jars have been

modernized with refreshing white and fresh colors

***

a market umbrella evokes the 50's with its

vintage fabrics and colors on the cool beaches

of the French Mediterranean coast

***

all images Côté Sud

Picasso & My Mirror

Vallauris is a small town in the South of France where Picasso lived and worked around 1949 in his ceramics studio. You can still visit the studio today and buy limited editions of some of his pieces. The ceramics are relatively affordable and make wonderful additions to interiors. They bring a touch of Picasso's work at a great value. Above is a vase in the shape of a large owl, and below is an oval dish decorated with a bullfight, one of Picasso's favorite subjects in his art.

Sorcerer's Eye, or Sun Mirror, Vallauris France, 1949

I found this mirror at the famous flea market in Nice, France, which is very close to Vallauris. I fell in love with it immediately and took great pains to carry it onboard my Air France flight home to San Francisco. This mirror embodies much of what I feel about design and I have chosen it for my symbol because:

1. it is a beautiful symbol of the sun

2. it's a found object given a new life in my designs and logo

3. it's very artistic and creative

4. the convex mirror provides a wider vision

5. it looks fabulous in many different settings

Who can say for certain that Picasso himself didn't pause for a moment in front of this very mirror somewhere to check the tilt of his beret before heading outside for his "randonee" (afternoon walk) along the Mediterranean Sea in the summer of 1949?

vintage poster for a

Picasso exhibition

in Vallauris in 1958

.........................................

in 2010, it's:

Kit Golson Design

for elegant, sustainable and pragmatic

Chic Provence Interior Design