Mr & Mrs Smith NYC Contest: Clue #2

Last week, I kicked off a new trivia contest in conjunction with Mr & Mrs Smith. This time around, we are featuring a hot hotel property in New York City. The objective is to guess the name and location of the property I am describing. I will post a new clue at the beginning of each week during a four week period, which began last week. At the end of the four weeks and after the four weekly clues, a winner will be selected at random from all of the correct entries and will receive a $100 gift card from Mr & Mrs Smith good towards a hotel stay at the location of your choice!

Clue #2: This lavish hotel is located in one of the most fashionable areas of Manhattan with close proximity to some of the best shopping, dining, and clubs New York has to offer. It maintains its exclusivity through its discreet location (it’s slightly difficult to find) and the fact that it is only open to guests and paying members. It is housed in an old warehouse and looks rather unassuming from the street, but once you make it inside, you will be greeted by some extraordinary interiors, including green Swarovski crystal chandeliers in the restaurant. Members of this hotel / club also have access to its sister houses throughout London.

If you think you know the answer, send an e-mail to LDVcontest@gmail.com. Write "Mr & Mrs Smith" in the subject line and make sure to include your first and last name, the country you live in, along with the name and location of the property you think I am describing.. Also, please let me know if you would like to receive more information from Mr & Mrs Smith, including insider travel tips and details on exclusive member benefits. To be fair, only one entry will be allowed per person per contest and please be sure to use a valid e-mail address because the gift card will be sent to the address you provide!

Sample e-mail:
My Name: Jane Doe
Country I Live In: USA
My Guess: Blakes Hotel in London, England
Yes, please tell me more about Mr & Mrs Smith

Click here to read the first clue about the hotel, which was once featured on Sex and the City.

This Week's Quote

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough"~Mae West

Happy Easter!

Wishing everyone a Happy Passover, a very Good Friday, and a lovely Easter! I hope you enjoy this very special weekend.

Image via Rosenow Floral

Jet Set: Heidelberg Suites by Michele Bonan

The Heidelberg Suites is ultra-chic, as is typical of Bonan's designs.

The Heidelberg Suites Boutique Hotel opened in the fall of 2008. It is an extraordinary hotel property located in one of Germany's oldest and most charming cities. It is composed of villas from the turn of the century which were restored and furnished by world-renowned architect and interior designer, Michele Bonan. You may already know and love a couple of his projects, like the JK Place Firenze in Florence and the JK Place Capri.

A Suite at the JK Place Firenze

The Reception Area at the JK Place Capri

The Heidelberg Suites, illuminated in the evening

According to TripAdvisor.com, who named the city of Heidelberg a Travelers Choice Award Winner in 2008, "Home to the oldest university in Germany, Heidelberg suffered during 17th-century wars and was rebuilt in the 18th century, using the old Gothic street layout but with Baroque buildings. The historic city center's Gothic streets are easy to navigate on foot. Fourteenth-century Heidelberg Castle is the symbolic heart of the city. Alte Brucke is a beautiful 18th-century bridge. This university town also has a historic Student Jail, for visitors who take both their history and education seriously."

Sounds charming, doesn't it? The Heidelberg Suites is situated next to the "Old Bridge" and overlooks the Neckar River. Every room in the hotel features an incredible view of the Castle as well as the "Old Town". It is also located within walking distance from all of the historical sites. The hotel also features a rooftop terrace, garden, and spa.

Michele Bonan was inspired by the history of Heidelberg when creating the hotel and focused on a vision of "German Romanticism meets Italian Architecture. Bonan emphasizes this through his choice of colour and the interior design. According to the architect, an ideal synthesis has been composed of 'Heidelberg’s historicism', 'Florentine elegance' and 'refreshing naturalness'".

The Heidelberg Suites is purely Bonan's vision. In addition to designing the architectural elements of the villas, he designed the interiors along with every single piece of furniture found in the hotel, which is available for purchase, if you are so inclined.
A sitting area in one of the suites overlooks the Neckar.

Bonan's Italian influence is very evident in this room. Notice the pattern in the rug. It is the same design he used for the hotel's logo. Everything was custom made.


The Spa at the Heidelberg Suites

The hotel features four types of suites ranging from a Standard Suite to the Penthouse Suite. Though they vary in size, every suite features a unique view of the castle and the "Old Town" along with two rooms, a fully stocked pantry kitchen with an espresso machine, and state of the art electronics. More importantly, they are dressed in Bonan's signature style of mixing a bit of modernism with classical romanticism.


The Rooftop Terrace

Staircase

The reception is the area of the Heidelberg Suites which reminds me most of Bonan's JK Place Firenze and JK Place Capri.


How romantic is this courtyard? I love the white buildings with the painted black shutters and black and white awnings. The little benches and vintage bicycles complete with wicker baskets add the perfect touch.

An Alternate View of the Beautiful Hotel

A View of the "Old Bridge" and Castle from the Heidelberg Suites.

I cannot adequately describe how much I love Michele Bonan's work. He is the person I would turn to if I ever needed someone to design a dream villa or hotel for me. Notice I said "dream"! I can't imagine he comes cheap. I adore his aesthetic and think his work is absolutely brilliant.

As you may have noticed, there was no installment of my Jet Set series last week. I hope that this week's featured hotel, the gorgeous Heidelberg Suites was worth the wait! I don't know about you, but I am definitely wishing I could book a little getaway to Heidelberg right now. Seriously, doesn't it look romantic?

Images via Heidelberg Suites, JK Place Florence, and M.A. Belle (JK Place Capri image)

California Chic meets Capitol Style

The May 2009 issue of Elle Decor features the beautiful home of actress Alexandra Wentworth and her news-anchor husband, George Stephanopolous. Wentworth recounts the various interior design incarnations she has lived with in her homes over the years. "I have moved six times. Each relocation has resulted in a complete reinvention of my surroundings, from neutral linens and bohemian block prints in Los Angeles to nailhead furniture and bold colors like eggplant in Manhattan." A few years ago, the family finally settled in the Georgetown section of Washington, D.C., where most homes are extremely traditional. Picture "paintings of fox hunts amid an explosion of chintz". Wentworth decided she wanted something completely different and called on San Francisco-based interior designer and longtime friend, Elizabeth Martin to help design her home. The result is a home that is at once beautiful and graceful as well as cozy and inviting.

Martin began by selecting the colors which would be used int their "Georgian Revival", the first of which was fuchsia, an homage to the couple's young daughters, Elliott and Harper.

Wentworth has collected seashells and coral since childhood and knew that she wanted to incorporate them into the new house. Upon moving to Washington, her collection doubled in size when she inherited specimens left to Harvard University by her grandmother "who explored the Far East in the 1920s for the National Geographic Society." Martin decided to paint the walls a gorgeous greyhound color with lavender undertones (it's much prettier than these scanned images would have you believe) and they turned a wall of the living room into "a museum of natural history".

The living room features chairs by Baker and fuchsia John Derian Moroccan-style poufs. The silk gunmetal-colored curtains are by the Silk Trading Co. The foyer features a Lucian Freud drawing, a chandelier by Ironies, and a table by Gregorius Pineo. The walls feature grass-cloth wallcovering by Donghia.

The massive family room was divided into more manageable areas. This area features sofas and a wool rug from ABC Carpet & Home. The pillows are Ankasa. The deep chocolate color walls have inspired the family to call it "The Godiva Room".

The dining room is anything but "typical Georgetown". Remember, the hunting images and chintz? Instead, RJones chairs are paired with an antique dining table from Liza Sherman Antiques. The focal point of the room is a tangerine African featherdress, which actually plays into the home's coral theme quite well. The zebra-skin rug adds another bold element. The second half of the family room features Lee Industries chairs upholstered in Brunschwig & Fils fabric and an ottoman from ABC Carpet & Home. I'm not sure if you can tell in this small image, but the interior part of the bookshelves is painted in the perfect shade of orange, creating a rich color combination.

The office is dressed in "Winter Solstice" paint (an icy greyish-blue hue) by Benjamin Moore. The mirror was purchased at the Brimfield Antiques Fair and both chairs are vintage. I'm all for letting things show their age to an extent in order to add character, but do you think they've taken it a bit too far with the club chair? It's falling apart!

The foyer features a faux-python console table purchased on eBay. The powder room features wallpaper by LuLu DK.

The master bedroom features lush, pecan-colored carpet and a café au lait color scheme. The leopard spot curtains are made of Nancy Corzine fabric and the armchair is upholstered in a fabric from Raoul Textiles.

All images via Elle Decor.

Seeing Double

A Chic Room Featuring Twin Beds Designed by Barrie Benson

Growing up, I had twin beds in my bedroom. I never shared a room with my sister and to be quite honest, I wished for one big bed for a long time. However, in hindsight, I have realized how charming and practical twin beds can be. Most often, they are used in children's rooms. Perhaps two siblings have to share a bedroom or maybe they are meant for having friends sleep over. I am not a parent, so I can't say I have ever really thought this out completely. Despite the fact that twin beds tend to be seen most often in children's rooms, they are popping up in adult spaces more and more.

First, let's take a look at some children's rooms:

This is one of my favorite Domino rooms ever. The pale blue wall color is gorgeous against the ultra-dark wood floors. The beds with their zebra headboards are just darling and the pink sheets complement the pale blue rather nicely.

Amanda Nisbet is famous for her use of color. How lovely are the headboards and linens on these beds?

Celerie Kemble takes a more masculine approach in this room through the use of chambray upholstered headboards, navy blue, and red. I also love the striped rug and the beautiful linens. Now, I absolutely adore white linens, especially when they're monogrammed, but would you actually use such nice linens in your child's room? Surely, it can't be practical! Maybe if it were for an older, more responsible child, but wouldn't most kids make a mess of them pretty quickly?

I probably don't know what I am talking about, but this is what usually comes to mind when I think of a typical child's room. Cute, colorful, and practical. Moms, do your young children's rooms (ages 3-8) look more like this one designed by Katy Elliott or more like the one above designed by Kemble?

Twin beds are almost always featured in pairs, but every now and then you'll see a room with a single twin bed. The first example (seen above) comes from Amanda Nisbet. Again, she chooses one color and uses it throughout. Notice how the gorgeous headboard, bedskirt, and roman shade all match. This room is decidedly more grown up and would be great for a teenager. Heck, I'd gladly take it!

The second singleton features a soft pink and brown color palette complete with houndstooth bedskirt and patterned rug. Check out the tulip side table. This is such a cute little girl's room. I borrowed this image from Little Green Notebook, but the source is unknown.

As I mentioned before, I have noticed lately that twin beds are being used in more grown-up applications. I think they make a very sophisticated and practical option for a guest room.

I just adore this room by Melissa Rufty. The pink and orange palette is so pretty and the monogrammed linens are divine! It feels modern, but the lamp, antique table, and framed prints lend a vintage quality to the room.

The Arabesque headboards, all white linens, minimalistic side table, and seagrass rug seen here make for the perfect guestroom at a beach house.

Tom Scheerer's Grand Take on a Room with Twin Beds

This room from Living, Etc. is a personal favorite. Have you noticed that most of these rooms have a pink theme? How gorgeous are these linens? I love the continuous use of color throughout the room, along with the lighting, and the little starburst mirror.

Moving away from pink...

This room, also from Living, Etc looks so cozy and inviting. I love the soft turquoise color used here.

This room from COCOCOZY features a similar palette. I love the little, upholstered chairs at the end of each bed.

This room from Domino makes the most of the cramped space through the use of twin beds. The window and convex mirror above it are lovely touches.

This is another personal favorite from Domino. I love the striped rug, pale turquoise walls, and bold upholstered headboards. The result is quite chic.

Another inviting room from the pages of Domino. Again, upholstered headboards are used and the color theme is defined. I love that several of these rooms feature beds separated by a charming little window.

Lastly, this room in the home of Juicy Couture founder, Pamela Skaist-Levy, features antique twin beds.

The beds are separated by an antique ottoman and vintage Louis Vuitton hat box. The home was featured in Harpers Bazaar in 2005.

Tweet, Tweet

I have been trying to figure out this whole Twitter craze to no avail. I signed up and have tried working on my profile, though I still don't like the way it looks. Is it possible to have a white background? Anyhow, if you have any tips or advice regarding Twitter, I would love to hear your thoughts as I am completely clueless. If you'd like to join me on Twitter while I try to make sense of it all, please click here.