RIP- Drake's Sandwich Shop Ann Arbor, Michigan

Back in college, walking into his place was the most amazing time warp.  Nothing has ever come close to the uncanny 1930's feel of Drake's Sandwich Shop.  First thing you would smell upon entering was either Campbell's Tomato Soup or frying bacon destined for a BLT, then would come the clattering of jellybeans being poured out onto the scale.  In need of a chocolate covered nutty "Turtle"?  Look no further that the nearest crisp white cardboard box, filled with layers of them, all separated by sheets of waxed paper.  Sigh....   this place was a dream.  It nearly killed me when I went back to Ann Arbor after graduation to find that they tore the whole thing out and put in a Bruegger's Bagel Bakery (at locations across the United States - one near you!).!!

Fortunately, Drake's had lots of admirers, Deborah Drower who posted some goodies on flickr   including the ones pictured below.  There's also a Facebook page with tons of additional shots.  Ah Drake's, we miss thee......

People spend millions these days to replicate this kind of patina

The Front Counter, where you would place your order, always staffed with cool girls

Seating and phone booth were in the back

1992 was almost identical to 1936!

The Martian Room (upstairs)

The classic Drake's candy bag

A Village Stopped in Time

Museum-villages have always fascinated me.  Something about getting a snapshot of a different time is a thrill, be it Venice or Greenfield Village at the Henry Ford Museum.  This one falls up towards the Venice side, and has remained as it was (plus 50 years and millions of dollars in restoration) since some of the last few Shakers sold the place to preservationists in 1960.

I'm currently in love with their built-in and moveable furniture.  So beautifully made, so quiet, so modern.  Someone should explore this in a line of furniture, it wouldn't need much tweaking!
http://www.hancockshakervillage.org/content.php?section_id=13&page_id=23

Hancock Shaker Village:

The Round Stone Barn

Main Dwelling House

The Spine of the Dwelling House is the main hallway, each floor is identical

Some other great samples of Shaker architecture:

Simple Form

Stairwell of a Dwelling House

Van Jacket

I just found out about this cool brand called Van Jacket, which features a Japanese-y über-preppy aesthetic.    Heard of the book 'Take Ivy' yet?  This recently re-issued bible of the Ivy League style was written by three gentlemen who were a part of this company back in the sixties: Shosuke Ishizu, Paul Hasegawa, and Toshiyuki Kurosu.  For all you prepsters out there this is worth a little look-see http://www.van.co.jp/htmls/top.html


For more info on these men, check out The Trad blog's great interview http://thetrad.blogspot.com/2010/09/take-ivy-interview-authors.html

Astor Courts

You MUST SEE this spectacular home near here overlooking the Hudson River.  It's the former private entertainment 'casino' of Ferncliff, the Astor estate built by Vincent Astor - as in Mr. Brooke Astor of philanthropy and society Brooke Astor.  Apparently Brooke didn't really care for Ferncliff so the property was sold off after Vincent's death, and is now in several pieces which include the Casino (now called Astor Courts), a retirement home, Ferncliff Forest preserve and the Astor Tea House (yet another gorgeous Hudson Valley home).

The current owners spent millions restoring it to it's present pristine state, and the swimming pool alone is enough to make your knees wobble.  The house will be auctioned off by a sealed bidding process ending October 14, 2010.  Bidding starts at $7.5 million and could reach upwards of $15 million.  Hopefully it will go to someone with enough furniture and a long enough guest list to fill it.

BTW, this is also where Chelsea Clinton was married this past summer.
http://www.astorcourtsestate.com/description.html
http://www.astorcourtsauction.com/index.php

Lifeguard on Duty

Just came across this book of great photographs by photographer Matt Albiani.  The guys have a super cool-and-easy all-American look that's inspiring ....
You can get the book here http://www.powerhousearena.com/products-page-2/?category=11&product_id=66

Elsie de Wolfe

We love unusual people, and Elsie de Wolfe (aka Lady Mendl) is one of our favorites.  She basically invented the occupation of Interior Designer, and was one of the first to throw out the heavy, smothering taste of the Victorian/Edwardian interior.  She caused a sensation with her decorative scheme for the Colony Club in New York, designed by Stanford White, and rose to fame and riches as advisor and decorator for Henry Clay Frick's new mansion on Fifth Avenue (now the Frick Museum).

All this aside, her personal life is what we really love about Elsie.  Openly living with a woman "friend" Bessie Marbury at the turn of the 20th century, she cultivated the good life like few have before or since.  Later in life she married Sir Charles Mendl, taking everyone including Bessie by surprise.  Installed in the "ugliest house in Beverly Hills" during the war,  she was an early supporter of Tony Duquett and Ludwig Bemelmans, another of our favorite people.  She appears as the centerpiece of Bemelmans book 'The One I Loved the Best', which is also what she had engraved on the tombstones of her poodles, of which there were several -  all named Blue-Blue.

This tidbit from Bemelmans pretty much sums her up:  Her pretty little red Faberge clock "cost a fortune and it's never kept the right time, but I love it.  Besides, there is always someone around to to tell you what time it is.  Coombs, what is the right time?"  The butler looked at his wristwatch and said, "We're approaching cocktails milady."  What's not to love?

Dormeuil cloth - Simply the Best!

Okay, I know that I have a penchant for gorgeous things, but I think I've been outdone by the people at Dormeuil.   I've never seen more beautiful cloth!  In my days of doing custom clothing for Tommy Hilfiger, anytime I had a really special project for a celebrity or VIP I would tootle around the corner to Madison Avenue and see my friend Luke Mays at Dormeuil.  Need a super 120's wool with a gold metallic pinstripe?  No problem.  Need a hot pink vicuña suiting?  Done.  Now that I'm doing my own line of luxury Home Textiles, I'm able to use some of their fabrics again, like my Holland Park pillow.  So chic!

These guys know luxury, and even do special limited edition runs of fabric that can cost up to $1,000 a yard (it takes about 4yds to make a suit).  This is how you know that you are in the presence of a real enthusiast - when someone weaves only enough of a fabric to make a handful of suits.  Talk about luxury!  Recently they announced a new cloth made from a blend of three noble fabrics: Vicuña from the Andes, Pashmina from Ladakh and Qiviuk from Alaska (wool of an arctic ox).  The name for this concoction?  Appropriately: Vanquish.

The 21st Century Yacht

Famed purveyors of gorgeous things Hermes and Wally Yachts have collaborated on the most incredible yacht in the world. It's basically a chic beach house with oceangoing capacity. Not only is it the pinnacle of luxury, but advanced technology was used throughout the ship to improve energy efficiency, including solar panels and the latest generation batteries. If you like the good life, DO NOT miss the chance to see this incredible work of art. Go here immediately and select "Discover WHY, the video" to take a video tour.


Here are some images from the WHY website.  Yes, those little specks are lounge chairs.