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Slide Show: Trend Crossover Stripes

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 02:46:00 -0700

Stripes sashayed down the spring runways. Here's how to line up this trend for your interiors, too...

Judkins Park Modular Home

Mon, 10 Sep 2012 16:33:00 -0700

A prefab house that’s both stylish and sustainable.

Slide Show: 77 Elements of a Practical and Stylish Seattle Life

Fri, 14 Oct 2011 12:00:00 -0700

Destination: Madrona

Fri, 22 Apr 2011 12:00:00 -0700

YOU MIGHT TAKE the name literally. Guesthouse (1135 34th Ave, 206-462-1351; guesthouseseattle.com), the decor studio in Madrona, would make a stylish home base ...

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Haute Seats

Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:00:00 -0800

THE DESIGNER-FOR-HIRE TREND? You’re sitting on it. Or you could be, at Roche Bobois (1015 Western Ave, Downtown, 206-332-9744; roche-bobois.com), where Jean-Paul Gaultier updated the brand’s modular, iconic Mah Jong sofa pieces (prices start at $1,765). The man who coned Madonna’s breasts and designed crocodile bomber jackets for Hermès puts tattoo art, the almighty dollar, and—so Material Girl—lace in your living room.

Natural History

Mon, 15 Nov 2010 10:00:00 -0800

Image: Charlie Schuck

Family ties  Harper Welch and Tessa Clements make themselves at home at Black Ball Line.

TESSA CLEMENTS didn’t grow up in a typical household. A taxidermic lion—up on its hind legs, arms outstretched, and not in a cuddly way—greeted guests at her family’s Greenwood home. Fashion buyers and boutique owners came over for lavish, Liberace-themed parties. And, in the era of Kurt and Courtney and Sleepless in Seattle, Clements had two fathers; her biological one was HIV-positive.

When Marc Clements passed away in 2003, Harper Welch, his partner in life and in Smash, the now-defunct but once-ubiquitous design-and-build retail and residential interiors firm, was working out the aesthetic of an ambitious vintage home furnishings store that just this month became Black Ball Line (1400 Alaskan Way, Downtown, 206-849-7953). Welch didn’t know it would be more than seven years in the making, but grief is difficult to hurry along. So is acquiring a 6,400-square-foot waterfront showroom and warehouse and filling it with highly collectible studio pottery, Northwest modernist fine art, and low-slung stretch sofas.

No, the younger Clements didn’t collaborate on any sumptuous Smash projects: the gorgeous women’s boutique Alhambra in the ’90s, Pacific Science Center’s Explore More gift shop (which beat out Niketown for the title International Store of the Year in ’98), or the “modern rustic” vacation home in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, for Seattle arts insiders Stan and Ingrid Savage. But Tessa grew up totally immersed in her fathers’ passions for transformative retail, and she’s spent the last six years selling luxury goods to collectors at Barneys New York downtown. As Welch amassed burl-wood coffee tables and World’s Fair–era lighting fixtures, the new partnership suggested itself.

As maybe the only person in the world who can smile as patiently as her late father would have when Welch decides to rivet giant white steel panels to the space’s 21-foot interior walls to mimic the fleet of vessels in the store’s namesake Northwest shipping line, Clements is well-poised to carry on in the family business.

HOT SPOT

What has 7,000 square feet, 16 dressing rooms, two antique Turkish looms, hundreds of antique sewing machines, and stacks of reasonably priced tough-chic motorcycle boots and drop-crotch harem pants for men, women, and four-year-olds? AllSaints Spitalfields (1511 Fifth Ave, Downtown, 206-508-0018; us.allsaints.com), the British trend-peddler whose takeover of the two-story space on Fifth and Pine suggests that you’re never too young, too masculine, too feminine, or too broke to go for the smartly slouchy, impeccably tattered, so-wrong-it’s-right military-meets-boho vibe.

Party at Your Place

Sat, 06 Nov 2010 05:00:00 -0700

Image: Ryan McVay

Bright Ideas

Mon, 11 Oct 2010 05:00:00 -0700

Laser-cut acrylic candelabra ($245) and glass vase with chalkboard coating ($90), Liave. Hand-stitched felt octopus by Seattle’s Devout Dolls ($18), Schmancy. Locally made oak and powder-coated steel bench ($475), Iacoli and McAllister. Ralph Lauren shearling-lined slippers ($195), Neiman Marcus.

Image: Ryan McVay

Store Directory

Butter London butterlondon.com | Chartreuse International 2609 First Ave, Belltown, 206-328-4844; modchartreuse.com | Chukar Cherries chukar.com | David Lawrence 11111 NE Eighth St, Bellevue, 425-688-1669; david-lawrence.com | Etta Bloom etsy.com/shop/ettabloom | Evo 122 NW 36th St, Fremont, 206-973-4470; evo.com | Far 4 1020 First Ave, Downtown, 206-621-8831;far4.net | The Field House 5465 Leary Ave NW, Ballard, 206-297-6093 | Great Jones Home 1921 Second Ave, Belltown, 206-448-9405; greatjoneshome.com | Helen Sharp Knitwearhelensharpknitwear.com | Hermès 11111 NE Eighth St, Bellevue, 425-467-0500; hermes.com |Iacoli and McAllister iacolimcallister.com | Izilla Toys Multiple locations, izillatoys.com | Liave1205 Western Ave, Downtown, 206-364-0748; liave-home.com | Mario’s 1513 Sixth Ave, Downtown, 206-223-1461; marios.com | Metsker Maps 1511 First Ave, Downtown, 206-623-8747;metskers.com | Neiman Marcus 11111 NE Eighth St, Bellevue, 425-452-3300; neimanmarcus.com| Peter Miller Books 1930 First Ave, Belltown, 206-441-4114; petermiller.com | River Song 2816 E Madison St, Madison Valley, 206-829-9089; riversongjewelry.com | Roche-Bobois 1015 Western Ave, Downtown, 206-332-9744; roche-bobois.com | Schmancy 1932 Second Ave, Belltown, 206-728-8008; schmancytoys.com | Tiffany and Co. Multiple locations, tiffany.com | Totokaelo 913 Western Ave, Downtown, 206-623-3582; totokaelo.com | Tuuli 1407 First Ave, Downtown, 206-223-1112; pirkko.com | Tune Hi-Fi 2121 First Ave, Belltown, 206-283-8863; tunehifi.com | Urban Hardwoods 4755C Colorado Ave S, SoDo, 206-766-8199 and 1924 First Ave, Belltown, 206-443-8099; urbanhardwoods.com | Useful Vintage Goods 5531 Airport Way S, Georgetown, 206-403-3240.

Reproduction vintage lightbulbs courtesy Rejuvenation, 2910 First Ave, SoDo, 206-382-1901;rejuvenation.com.

Sail Away

Mon, 17 May 2010 05:00:00 -0700

ANCHOR-AND-HEART PENDANT AND CHAIN

$255, Kimberly Baker Jewelry
617 N 36th St
206-545-1145

Kimberly Baker sterling silver dipped in 18-karat recycled gold vermeil anchor-and-heart pendant and chain.

ALL-COTTON TOWEL

$62, Bitters Co.
513 N 36th St
206-632-0886

All-cotton towel made by women’s cooperative in Ethiopia.

TOTE BAG

$22, Kinokuniya
525 S Weller St
206-587-2477

Nîmes tote bag

PAPER STRAW HAT

$28

Jessica Simpson paper straw hat at Macy’s, visitmacys.com for locations.

CHAMBRAY SHIRT

$188, Field House
5465 Leary Ave NW, Ballard
206-297-6093

Women’s chambray shirt by Steven Alan.

KEY FOB

$3, Bitters Co.
513 N 36th St
206-632-0886

Unsinkable key fob made with recycled flip-flops.

CANVAS DECK SHOES

$75, Blackbird
5410 22nd Ave NW
206-547-2524

Men’s Zuriick canvas deck shoes.

LEATHER HUARACHE SANDALS

$116–$124 , Flora and Henri (Closed)
919 E Pine St
206-325-5520

Italian-made leather huarache sandals.

WOODEN TOY SAILBOAT
$35, Clover
5335 Ballard Ave W
206-782-0715

Wooden toy sailboat.

MELAMINE PLATE SET

$40 for set of four, Velocity Art and Design (Closed)
251 Yale Ave N
206-749-9575

Thomas Paul melamine plate set.

HALTER AND ALL-COTTON CAMP SHORTS

$48–$52 and $66-$70, respectively, Flora and Henri (Closed)
919 E Pine St
206-325-5520

Sailor-stripe halter made by women’s cooperative in Madagascar, and all-cotton camp shorts.

In Good Shape

Tue, 11 May 2010 09:00:00 -0700

Image: Ryan McVay

IT TOOK AN Idaho girl inspired by Seattle style to startle some life into the dying art of handmade lamp shades. At Lit on Capitol Hill, Dawn Bassett fashions bold lighting decor for retailers such as Revival Home and Garden and remakes the rooms of her private clients’ homes with couture, custom creations.

Personal style in three words Eclectic, feminine, purposeful.

Working one’s assets I’ve  got an hourglass figure with an extra half an hour. It’s about recognizing what makes you beautiful and special, and  using it.

The skirt Vintage Valentino. All this silk and color— and the pockets? I love being able to tuck my hands into the pleats and pull out a lipstick or a tape measure. So girly and so convenient.

The shoes Gucci heels from Nordstrom Rack. You have to go on Wednesdays, when they get the new stuff.

The dog He’s a service dog, but Nikki’s also my best accessory. He was named for Niccolò Machiavelli; big ears, big ego. We shop at Mes Amis on Queen Anne because they have the cutest top-stitched ribbon leashes and modern bowls. But he also has a little turquoise-blue collar from Tiffany. On days when I’m not all the way turned out, at least he is.

Go-to boutique I’ve had  great luck at Atlas Clothing lately. They’ve been bringing in  a lot of high-waisted skirts and  ’60s dresses that work really  well for my shape.

Summer look I’m so into the extra-long earrings from the local line Grace Gow. We carry them at my shop. They’re going to be so amazing with my polka-dot bikini and nothing else.

Home decor accents Women need to just buy their own flowers. Megan Mary Olander does the ones for my shop. Her pieces are wild and gorgeous; she creates these crazy shapes. We used to be neighbors down on Pioneer Square, but she’s moving up here to 19th Avenue, too.

Stylish hangouts My girlfriends and I always sit at the bar at Dinette. On Sunday afternoons we love nothing more than a sugared-rim cocktail, some delicate little toasts, and then we stop at the little secondhand shop a few doors down before proceeding to the Saint or Captain Blacks.

READ MORE CONVERSATIONS WITH THE PEOPLE SHAPING SEATTLE STYLE.

Home

Slide Show: Trend Crossover Stripes

Judkins Park Modular Home

Slide Show: 77 Elements of a Practical and Stylish Seattle Life

Destination: Madrona

Haute Seats

Natural History

WELL RED

HOT SPOT

Party at Your Place

GROWING PAINS

Bright Ideas

Store Directory

Sail Away

In Good Shape