Habitually Chic®'s Logo  

Spring Ahead

by habituallychic

03 . 01 . 09
I’ve been out shopping for clients lately and I’ve been noticing that everyone is ready for spring! One of my favorite window displays is at Bunny Williams and John Rosselli’s shop Treillage on Lexington Avenue at 73rd Street with it’s table set with blue and white porcelain and vases of flowers and potted hyacinths. It’s an absolutely beautiful arrangement that would be very easy to replicate at home.

I have a very old set of dishes that are a knock-off version of the Royal Copenhagen Blue Fluted pattern but I am looking forward to checking out the flea markets and thrift stores for vintage pieces to add to my collection. There is something very cheerful about blue and white porcelain, especially for spring.
The reason I was out shopping was to look for faux foliage for two of my clients. We want to add some greenery to their homes but they work long hours and are afraid they might not be able to take care of a live tree. Treillage has a fabulous Sweet Bay Ball Tree that is perfect for those who don’t possess a green thumb. It looks absolutely real and I can guarantee that no one would ever suspect that it was faux. It comes in two sizes including the 3.5′ version shown above.

I was thinking that the taller 5′ size Sweet Bay Ball Tree might be a good option to hide the window air conditioner at the bachelorette pad project. The trees obviously cost more than one you could find in the flower district but they last for years and you don’t need to water them, although you probably should dust them regularly!

Another idea that I had for the bachelorette pad was to display two topiaries on the front entry table. The wall behind the table doesn’t have an outlet so I can’t use a lamp and it might be nice to add a little more greenery to the apartment. Right next to Treillage is Lexington Gardens who create beautiful faux topiaries out of preserved boxwood in square and traditional round shapes and various sizes. I think I would prefer a different planter so I am going to try to look for a pair of vintage urns. I killed my real boxwood topiaries quickly so these might also be a good option for me!

I mentioned previously that we picked out some blue and white porcelain at Pearl River and here is some of it displayed above the kitchen cabinets. We need to buy a few more pieces but what’s there already brightens up the kitchen. I also found a new painter who for double the original estimate will not only paint the kitchen but also the bathroom and will build a radiator cover for the bathroom. He comes highly recommended so I am excited for him to get to work!

Even Williams-Sonoma Home has spring fever! They has a lovely display of their Blue Willow porcelain and flowering branches. I am longing to see the trees in park in bloom but that is going to have to wait since it’s snowing again today! Just another reason to bring the outdoors in!

7 Comments
Comments Closed

  1. Brilliant Asylum March 1, 2009 | 9:15 pm

    If ever there was a chance for retailers to take advantage of my winter blues with the promise of spring, it is now. I would go into copious amounts of debt just to move the seasons along a little faster.

    Williams Sonoma Home looks like a great store. You are so lucky to have the brick and mortar version in NYC.

  2. A Gift Wrapped Life March 2, 2009 | 12:24 am

    You can never have enough Blue & White porcelain. Looks great!

  3. jade March 2, 2009 | 1:53 am

    Pretty pics! I’m craving spring too!! Even though we are expecting this huge snowstorm, ugh!
    Jennifer

  4. The Antiques Diva™ March 2, 2009 | 12:00 pm

    Perhaps Spring is in the air… here in Berlin it hasn’t snowed in over a week! Yahoo!

    I wanted to say I am seriously enjoying watching the shopping for your “bachelorette apartment”. Many of my antique shopping tour clients are expats living in Europe and they want fresh cost conscious ideas for furnishing their “temporary home” abroad. Your Bachelorette Pad has inspired oodles of ideas. Thanks.

    Toma

  5. Anonymous March 2, 2009 | 3:35 pm

    Thanks for the reminder about Lexington Gardens – I used to enjoy peaking in this shop on my way home on Fridays – what a great way to forget about work related things and get the creative process going for the weekend. The Sweet Bay trees are also gorgeous and what a great alternative for drawing your attention away from those hideous but necessary wall air conditioning units. – KBN

  6. A Gift Wrapped Life March 4, 2009 | 3:41 am

    We missed Trelliage last May when in New York. We were heading there and the hotel told us it was the last day for the Kip’s Bay Show House, so with only a few hours before departure we chose Kip’s Bay
    (snuck in a peek to Charlotte Moss’s store too)and put Trelliage back on the list for this May. Can’t wait to see all of them this year.

  7. Rajee Sood March 5, 2009 | 10:52 am

    Hi I just had to put in my two lines here … love…love..love treillage …and I sure am enjoying your shopping … those faux topiaries are really beautiful …