PIERRE BERGE AND YSL

A book I purchased at the V&A Museum that has nothing to do with British decorative arts, but is my new favorite possession: The Private World of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berge by Robert Murphy. Yves Saint Laurent and Berge spent a lifetime curating the 20th century's most impressive collection of paintings, one of a kind furnishings, curios, sculpture and rare books: their own.

After Saint Laurent died, Berge auctioned off the whole lot, wiping the slate of his life clean and at the same time rescuing the faltering high end auction world. The auction in Paris was said to be, literally, the sale of the century.

Everything they collected was special, exceptional and unexpected. The book, with vivid photography by Ivan Terestchenko showcases (some of) their residences: three in Paris, and one each in Normandy, Tangier, and Marrakesh.

Saint Laurent's cabinet of curiosities.

Levels of taste I can only hope to achieve someday.

One small aside... the preface of the book calls Saint Laurent and Berge "friends and business partners," which I am sure they were. They were also husbands who spent their lives building something truly amazing together. Let's call it what it was, please. In a related note, thanks a lot, Maine.

Images by Ivan Terestchenko via art and auction.com, artnet magazine, Harpers, Interview and artinfo.com

VICTORIA AND ALBERT

I could have spent months exploring the Victoria and Albert Museum.  Sadly I was limited to one afternoon, so I concentrated on the section of British decorative arts 1500-1900.  Fantastic.  To protect many of the works, the museum keeps lighting exceptionally low.  This makes for difficult photography (flash would damage delicate fabrics and paints) but it did mean a really moody time walking through the galleries.  I loved it.

An unusually simple Chinoiserie style British Georgian period chair.

A settee from the Stuart period is extremely rare for its well preserved upholstery and trim.  Upholsterers were the interior designers of the 18th century, and were often responsible for the decor of entire rooms or suites of rooms in estates of the well-to-do.

The Great Bed of Ware, circa 1590.  Famous for its massive size... it was a 16th and 17th century tourist attraction at an inn in Ware, England and is said to hold up to 12 couples.  I didn't ask further.

At some point, Ted felt the need to carve his name in this fine example of Tudor design.  Rude.

My favorite piece was this Victorian period vanity.  Not much to say... it was just exquisite.

EATING IN LONDON, PART II

The real reason behind the trip to London: Fergus Henderson's St. Johns restaurants.  There is St. John near Smithfield Market, and St. John Bread and Wine Spitalfields.  Henderson was one of the originators of the nose-to-tail, locally sourced, traditional and seasonal-centric restaurant trends that, 10 years on, inform all my favorite food spots around the world.  It is like going home to the mothership.  Some people I know call the original restaurant "Big Girl," which I think is very funny.  I couldn't get a table on our open night at the original St. John, but was able to eat twice at Bread and Wine.  Here is the menu for dinner (sorry it isn't a better photo):

A little pate as well as mussels with seaweed to start things off.

Then some beetroot and goat's curd.

The smoked fish with horseraddish was not my favorite, but they were pretty.

Snails and Black Cabbage.  I had it at lunch the following day.

The ox liver, watercress and pickled walnut was also delicious.

A masterpiece: pheasant with kale and bacon.  One of my fellow diners found shot in his bite... which I decided is good luck.

If I lived in London I would eat at these places everyday.

EATING IN LONDON, PART I

I spent the last 6 days with friends and loved ones visiting London.  This is a city that, until this trip, was far from my favorite in Europe.

My first trip, in college, was a disaster.  There was the hostel near the train station, lots of Heinz baked beans and disgusting bland sausages, greasy fish 'n chips, and smelly pubs that closed early.  A second trip a few years ago was better, but still focused around stale, beer soaked venues and pubs.  This time we did it right.  The weather was great, the parks beautiful, the hotel comfortable and well located, there was a nearby coffee place with the best espresso I have ever had, and every meal contained either pork or snails or steak tartare.  Yum.

Dinner the first night was at Bistrotheque in Cambridge Heath.  I had the steak tartate (above) followed by the pork belly (below).  That skin/fat was so sweet and crispy it was like eating candy.  I finished up with a glass of chilled tawny port.

The following night we ate at St. John's Bread and Wine, in Shoredich.  This meal was secretly the impeuts for the trip, and deserves it's own entry, coming soon.

For fun one afternoon, we had high tea at Claridge's Hotel in Mayfair.  I realized that sometimes ritzy in London makes ritzy in New York seem like ritzy in Erie, Indiana.  

London has a wildly large selection of ancient, traditional shops focusing on the finest quality goods available anywhere.  Shops like George F. Trumper, James Lock and Co., Fortnum & Mason, Paxton & Whitfield, and, of course, Harrod's have been selling the best of their respective bests for as long as the US has been a country.  When you come accross a sundries shop that is older than your nation, it really can make you feel you are in the most civilized city in the world.  I won't be moving any time soon, but I officially like London.

Scone, clotted cream, stawberry preserves and Marco Polo tea.  Fan-cy!

HOUSE PLANTS

As fall sets in and the outdoor garden dies back, I focus my energies on the indoor plants that will keep the apartment feeling clean and fresh during the winter.  Cactus, furns, and some exotic tropicals are the bright green guys that keep the gray of winter at bay.

Staghorn fern.  Just soak in the kitchen sink once a week.

White cinnamon tree.  It needs lots of water in summer, and almost none in winter... just like in its native Florida.

This hibiscus is a new addition this year.  We'll see how successful it is as an indoor plant.

THE NEIGHBORHOOD: PART III

Can the new-arrival-on-the-scene cheese shop compete with Big Mama? It will be a challenge. Bedford Cheese at 229 Bedford Avenue is consistently rated one of the finest cheese shops in the city. Look below to understand why.

I could crawl inside and take a nap! The descriptions are witty and yet straightforward and unpretentious. I had to pick up some cheese, just enough for a snack.

Ok, I'll take some baguette, salami and thick sliced prosciutto as well. Let's just make it dinner.

What is a dinner of cheese and meats without wine? Not dinner. Local favorite Blue Angel Wines, at 638 Grand Street, had a tasting of and a special on Clos Roche Blanche Cuvee Pif 2008. Yes, thank you.

The cheeses were: Pau (left) a Spanish goat's milk; Vermont Shepherd (right) a sheep's milk (which I don't usually like, but this one is great); and Grayson (center) an Virginian cow's milk whose scent will slap you in the face, but that goes down real smooth. Yum!

The last stop on the weekend of errands was local bookstore, Spoonbill & Sugartown at 218 Bedford Avenue. The shop is best known for its art books and obscure local magazine, I just wanted to pick up some travel guides because the looming task for next weekend is to plan and book all of our hostels, cars, ferries and activities as well as do research on great eats and sights for our upcoming trip to Australia, New Zealand and Tahiti. I can't wait! Just for the planning! You know me.

THE NEIGHBORHOOD: PART II

After the hardware store, I headed to Beacon's Closet at 88 North 11th Street to sell some old clothing.  Beacon's is a zoo.  Avoid it on the weekends if you can.  Right next door, however, is my favorite building in the neighborhood.  The landmarked No. 100 North 11th Street is the former Hecla Iron Works building, where much of the decorative iron work on the city's late 19th century construction (including the St. Regis hotel) was fabricated.

The interior is now apartments (of course) but this incredible quasi-neo-gothic arch work remains.  An apartment in the building was featured in Nest magazine (RIP).  If anyone knows which issues, please tell me!

I then stopped by Woodley & Bunny at 490 Driggs Avenue for some fancy guest hand soap for the bathroom.  They no longer carry my favorite kind, which has the world's most beautiful packaging, so I got a substitute.

I was almost late to a haircut at the no name haircut place at 150 Ainsley Street, above (forgive the picture, it was raining hard).  I got a quick, inexpensive trim, and learned from Tom, the guy who cuts my hair, that a space under renovation just around the corner from our apartment is going to be, get ready for it: A CHEESE SHOP.

Here it is.  Fine cheeses will be this close to my doorstep!  How soon will it open?  Will they have more than just cheese?  And the biggest question of all... will it hold a candle to the city's greatest cheese emporium, the Bedford Cheese Shop.  More about that tomorrow, stay tuned.

Images via Waterfront Alliance and Keyring.com