Reflections on the Holidays and my Second Home, Interieurs

Saturday morning I woke up to a beautiful pure blue sky. Going outside I felt the crisp cold air of late November here in the northeast and suddenly felt the spirit of the coming holidays sweep over me.

I really love the winter holidays, especially Christmas when its time to decorate the tree, my house and especially finding new and creative ways to gift wrap Christmas presents.

When my children were young, every Christmas over a period of now uncountable years, we hosted "Christmas" lunch for all our friends. Often we would have as many as 28 people (of all ages, shapes, sizes, hues and faiths) trek out to Connecticut from Manhattan for a stunning feast prepared by my husband and we would luxuriate in the gifts, food, wine and, most importantly, companionship. Often my parents would come from France and my mother-in-law would come down from Newport to join us. These celebrations gave my sons a great sense of comfort and community. They now tell me how much they long for and will always remember those great Christmas parties past. Alas, now, almost all of those friends and their children (now all grown up) have scattered to new cities and countries, so re-capturing those times can only be done from our memories and photo albums.

As our friends began moving away in the years after September 11, we left behind the large dinners of Fondue Chinoise (or Canard-a-L'Orange, or Beef Wellington), Rose Champagne, Bordeaux wines, foie gras, salmon roe caviar and chocolate/hazelnut Buches de Noel.

In 2004 we started a new family mini-tradition of traveling to Asia where, that first year, we spent Christmas Day in a Dayak village in Kalimantan (See my post Deep into Kalimantan). For a period of several years afterward we went to Asia every year for the holidays (except 2007 when we went to Whistler B.C. after a very quiet Christmas at home). Last year we spent Christmas in Bangkok and New Year's Eve in Phuket having already fully pre-paid the trip just before the economic tsunami hit here at home.

This year we will spend Christmas at home, something my now college student sons Alex and Hadrian actually look forward to, as do my husband and I. After so many years of semi-nomadic holiday traveling, we look forward to a quiet regrouping of our emotional and financial resources. As I'm sure most if not all my readers can readily agree, 2009 has been a really tough year. Celebrating the holidays at home, with loved ones and close friends will be a wonderful and welcome change.

As I reflected on the holidays, I realized that Interieurs really is my second home. It also dawned on me that I have never fully introduced you to that part of my life, so Saturday morning I headed down to the Manhattan Flower Market district where I loaded my trunk with greenery to style my Showroom's windows for the Holidays. As I worked along, I took a few snapshots of the space to share with you here. If you are planning to be in New York, I hope you'll stop in for a visit.

Interieurs... My TriBeCa Showroom

My Welcome to the Holiday Season

Jose Esteves' "Peace Bird" greeting the
holidays by our "Audrey" Sofa

Interieus' Bamboo "Marcelle" Bed named

for my paternal Grandmother

Interieurs' "Julien" L-Shaped Sofa with re-purposed
industrial furniture from the South of France

I love these old hand Re-bound books.

Our "Aurelie" Sofa and "Antoine" Bamboo cocktail table

The "Jason" Steel Sandwich table.
Most "Jason" tables are unique pieces made
from re-claimed industrial parts here in the U.S.A.

Interieurs' Walnut or Oak "Armande" four post bed

Below, the same showroom, styled for an advertising photoshoot to introduce our Le Bambou Interieurs furniture line. Photos: Michael Grimm, another of my favorite commercial photographers.

Living With Wine - A Great Turnout & Lots of Fun

Over the years I've had more than a few large parties and exhibit events at Interieurs, but this one easily beat all past events in attendance - In all we had 250+ RSVPs for the party, and I think nearly everyone actually managed to come down to TribeCa for the launch party. The book is stunningly beautiful. Here's a link to buy it online at Amazon, or Barnes & Noble or Borders.

Samantha at Work

Interieurs new intern Valene, with a wine loving guest

Samantha with friends

De rigeur in New York, pooch party guests

Showtime TV contingent

Samantha with Fans

Antoine Bootz, Photographer extraordinaire.
The "Mystery Hand" on his shoulder is mine.

LIVING WITH WINE Book Signing Party at Interieurs Wed Nov 18th | 6-8:30 PM

come celebrate
wine and design

As Francine Gardner
Toasts Samantha Nestor
and Alice Feiring
on their new publication
Living With Wine

Book Signing and Reception
Wednesday, November 18th
6:00-8:30 Pm

Interieurs
149-151 Franklin Street
New York City

Rsvp: By Tuesday, November 17
info@Interieurs.com

More Information/Press Inquiries
Carol VanderKloot 212 300 4609

ADIEU METROPOLITAN HOME MAGAZINE

As a young newlywed in Boston, the first design magazine I purchased was Metropolitan Home where I found inspiration for our new apartment.

Many years have elapsed since then and my relationship with Met Home evolved from a mere reader to a design contributor.

I have a very special bond with Met Home's incredibly talented team. Several years ago, Donna Warner came to my house for tea and immediately suggested that the house be featured in Met Home. I was stunned, flattered and very excited by the opportunity to showcase my work in such an eminent design magazine.

Since then over the years, I have worked closely with Met Home, especially Linda O'Keeffe, the magazine's incredibly talented Creative Director who featured several of my projects.

I was - and remain - shocked and very saddened when I received an email last week from Donna announcing the closing of the Magazine. Met Home brought to America its modern design voice, always finding new talent and motivating designers to do their very best work.

My United States of Tara space will be featured in Met Home's final issue (December 2009).

Met Home, you will be badly missed; the modern design world will be at a loss without your voice.

KREATIV BLOGGER AWARD

My sincerest debt of gratitude goes out to Sarah Klassen who brings us the stunning blog HAUTE DESIGN. Sarah very generously nominated this small venture into blogging for the Kreativ Blogger award. Sarah, I am genuinely touched by the compliment.

To follow in the Kreativ Blogger tradition, I must now tell my readers seven things about myself they do not already know, so here goes...

1. I can't stand Chintz.
2. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a Shrink. As it happens, today, I often play one.
3. Peanuts disgust me, even though I'm not allergic. My kids hated that because they LOVE anything peanut based, especially PB&Js
4. Flying terrifies me. Pray you never end up sitting next to me on a long flight, or you may lose the circulation in your arm.
5. Skiing is my greatest passion. Heaven = three foot deep champagne powder
6. My husband and sons hide on Sundays, knowing that I'll be looking to Shanghai them for garden work, even in BLIZZARDS. I'm a garden FREAK!
7. I'm convinced that in a prior life, I was a mutt.

Part two requires that I in turn nominate 7 other blogger for the award. This is a daunting task as there are so many truly exceptionally talented bloggers. So here it is:

1. Dumbwit Tellher. Deb, I feel like I've known you for years. You do stunning work. I know you've already received the Award before, but, I'm nominating you again, because, well... you deserve it.

2. French Essence. Vicki, Reading your blog is like being yanked back to the South of France. I often wonder, especially on cold rainy New York days, why I don't simply move there for real.

3. Timothy Allen Photographer | Human Planet / BBC EARTH. Allen's photographs are powerful and inspirational. I dream of such a life; maybe in the next one...

4. Things that Inspire. I always look forward to reading this blog. The interiors are always a treat.

5. What Were the Skies Like. This great gardening and horticultural blog feeds my mania.

6. Hirondelle Rustique. Like you I grew up on a farm with flocks of barn swallows. Keep blogging!


7. Aspirations of a Southern Housewife. This is a great blog on living in the South, a part of the country I love, but don't visit nearly as often as I should.

ME, ON SHOWTIME TV

UPDATED...  more video below

Hi All: I was away in France for a bit to be with my mother who had a tough surgery... French hospitals don't have free WiFi like some of our hospitals do here, at least in NYC.

Anyway I've been back several days catching up on work and just yesterday, Showtime TV sent me a disk of my segment to be aired sometime in November. I'll post it up when I know the exact dates. In the meantime, I was able to get a friend (who knows how to do these things) to convert the video to MP4 so here it is:

UPDATE (November 2, 2009)  Also, from Metro Residential TV

 

Tibet: A Spiritual Journey

The Potala Palace Monastery, Lhasa
The winter home of the Dalai Lama before he was forced to flee Tibet in 1959

Waking up to a rainy Fall day, I'm brought back to two years ago when I was preparing to leave on my Tibetan trek in search of ... the ultimate hike, discovery of a country I had long hoped to visit, a better understanding of Tibetan Buddhism, and ultimately seeing the mystical Tibet before China completely siphons away its soul.

My good friend Judy and I were fortunate to be able to see Tibet with Peter Hillary (son of climbing legend Sir Edmund), who was able to share with us his unique perspective and extensive experience of both the country and the mountains.

After weeks of intense physical training, I passed the mandatory cardiac stress test required for high altitude hiking, obtained he necessary visas, and flew off to China (where my elder son was studying in Shanghai).

My first days in the Himalayas were brutal. I had somehow naively thought that having passed the cardiac stress-test with relative ease, that somehow I was fully prepared for what I'd face in these mountains. Was I ever wrong. Crushing headaches, inability to eat or keep down food. My first night at 14,000 feet was hellishly painful, but I pulled through, just barely. The next morning I resolved to visit the legendary Potala Palace Monastery. Taking one step up at this altitude requires full application of will-power; catching my breath was my only thought as I climbed the steps of the palace.

The lessons I learned from this intensely physical and ultimately spiritual journey are the personally invaluable lessons of humility, hardship, physical pain, and Love.... The love of God, something I felt intensely in the sheer stunning vastness and overwhelming beauty of the landscape with the genuinely awe inspiring magnificence of Everest at its center.

I accomplished my personal goal of trekking to base camp, and, following tradition, I tied the white symbolic scarf with the names of all my loved ones floating in the winds of Everest.

Tibetans will walk across their country to fulfill their
lifetime pilgrimage to the Potala Monastery

Tibetan women wearing their traditional braids and robes
haggle at the Barkhor Market in Lhasa.

Drepung Monastery at the base of Mount Gephel

Debating Monks at Sera Monastery

Me at the summit of my first hike at 15K feet
Excruciatingly breathless!

Funeral Procession. The Tibetans leave their dead
on sacred rocks to be consumed by vultures.

Yandrock Lake. Note the nearly surreal colors.

Remains of a Monastery. All but a few monasteries were
destroyed during the Chinese cultural revolution of 1968

Occupied remains of the mostly destroyed NGOR Monastery
where once a thousand monks lived and worshiped before the Chinese invasion.
After our long trek up the Chakla Pass, the 5 remaining Monks offered us tea.

Another view of the ruins of Ngor Monastery

A Man and his young son along the North Road of Shuguha

Tashilumpo Monastery, Shigtase

Trekking through the Himalayas offers stunning but physically humbling vistas

"Green" agriculture

Everest viewed from Lapka at 17,000 Feet. VERY THIN AIR

Judy & I with Peter Hillary still able to break a
smile after a grueling trek to 17K Feet

4:00 AM, preparing for our last Trek. It is a mind-bending cold
at this altitude in the early morning hours.

The sign speaks for itself...

We made it