We started Lookiloos to indulge the inner lookiloo in all of us, to showcase beautiful homes and gardens with original photos and stories, to give decorating tips and remodeling ideas and create a community to share our stories of home. Peek inside with us.
A couple of years ago a very good friend introduced me to Whitney Smith Pottery and I’ve been smitten ever since. From the cool colors to the clean lines, this pottery sucks you in. Her designs are influenced by shapes found in nature, but also Art Nouveau and the Arts and Crafts movement.
The cupcake stand with matching bell jar is a new design. This would make wonderful birthday gift, but you should fill it with a delicious cupcake. One of my favorite pieces is the nesting Lotus bowls. The lines are mesmerizing.
You can find Whitney’s work online at her Etsy shop and some brick and morter establishments. She also welcomes studio visits. I think it would be fascinating and intend to visit this coming new year. As Whitney says on her website, “Please call first to make sure I am at the studio and not hanging around my local coffee joint poisoning myself with caffeine.” And if you can’t get to Oakland be sure to check out Whitney’s etsy shop.
Whitney Smith Pottery
Studio Address:
539 Athol Avenue
Oakland, California 94606
510.208.2824
I got a tip from a new friend, who said, “You’ll love this place.” So, off I went to check it out. As I approached Vintage and Vogue, I knew I wasn’t going to be disappointed. The front window was amazing. I couldn’t wait to get inside.
There I found Linda, her daughter and business partner Devon and best friend, Rhonda all working away. Happily. That’s what I noticed– everyone was so happy and cheery.
Linda Sullivan had been searching for a storefront. A place to set up her new venture. A friend suggested the spot on Campbell Avenue.
“I thought it was rented,” said Linda “but I called the owner anyway and I got it.”
So this past June, Vintage and Vogue opened its doors. The store has a mix of new items, as well as vintage finds that have been brought back to life. I think that is why this shop is so different. It’s the use of the treasures they find. Mixing them up by restoring these pieces with that special eye to detail and creativity. This shop is playful yet sophisticated.
Devon has refinished and repainted retro pieces of furniture and has turned them into works of art. My favorite is a dresser that has been painted in a bronze color. It’s gorgeous. The color varies ever so slightly as the light changes. It has a fleur-de-lis emblem in the center top drawer. I think this piece could work well as a buffet in a dining room or as a bedroom dresser, its original purpose.
Linda has a knack for finding perfect fabrics to suit the personality of any upholstered furniture. There are two pieces that I can’t stop thinking about. The first was a black and white polka dot chaise. It would work perfectly in a bedroom. I see myself lounging with a good book next to a fire. The second is an armchair, covered in a charming pink and black fabric that depicts some famous Parisian monuments. The tufted chair is piped in a tiny black and white polka dot. It had a cute envelope pillow in the same fabric.
Currently, Vintage and Vogue is decked out in its finest Holiday treasures. It’s a sight to see. If you are headed to a holiday party, and who isn’t this season, the perfect hostess gift awaits. There are plenty of other gifts as well. From framed 1960 Chanel advertisements to silver trays, you can find that special gift for any occasion.
You can find Vintage and Vogue at 241 E. Campbell Avenue.
Editors note: I left with one of the framed Chanel ads. I couldn’t help myself. And I love it.
Whether Steve Webster is painting a portrait of a house on a hill or a Dalmation sitting at the kitchen table, he knows how to capture a mood.
The house on the hill? Football season in New England. The Dalmation at the table? A dog without guile.
The San Jose artist paints from photographs, but you get the feeling he either lives in the house or owns the dog. The portraits seem intimate, warm, playful.
A graduate of the University of Connecticut art school, his love of painting took a back seat to a career in technology. But when his wife essentially dared him to paint a portrait of their bichon frise, he rediscovered his passion. He’s been accepting commissions ever since, with prices ranging from $500 to $1,500 depending on the size and complexity of the piece.
His work has been featured at the Autumn in the Rose Garden Homes Tour boutique and Bark in the Park festival. One of his home portraits was commissioned by a realtor who presented it to her client as a closing gift.
When the former visual director of Neiman Marcus in Palo Alto throws a party at his house, you’d expect the decor to be something special. But would you think he’d empty his Menlo Park cottage of furniture and transform the place into a swingin’ white cocktail lounge?
It was nothing but fun for Tim Ballengee, who filled the main rooms with white leather furniture last weekend, including a big round “daybed” in the middle of the living room. Oh, behave!
One of the perks of knowing decorators is getting to know where they find some of their to-die-for treasures. The Lookiloos team took to the tarmac at the Alameda Antiques Faire – a decorator/antique dealer’s secret at the former Alameda Point Naval Air Station
in Alameda, California.
Armed with $50.00 and double espressos we hit the road at 7:30 a.m. to “beat the rush”. Little did we know that the real bargain hunters paid triple the admission price we did to start shopping at 6:00 a.m. to find the best deals. Wow, now that is dedication! We paid the reduced rate of $10.00 and those who entered after 9:00 a.m., paid the rock bottom price of $5.00.
Being the largest antique market in Northern California, vendors come
from all over to show their wares. I picked up a ceiling tile
repurposed into a magnet/chalk board for my home office
and the gentleman who made them packs his truck and drives from
Ashland, OR each month for the opportunity to sell his creations.
According to their website, “Everything sold at the show must be at
least twenty years old and there are no reproductions allowed.”
Team Lookiloos were astounded by how large and diverse the selection was from antique phones and cameras to kitchy dolls and vintage clothing. Experienced shoppers brought carts, cash and had lists of what they were looking for. They walked quickly and surveyed booths with an eagle eye and could ferret out the best deals within moments. Bargain antiques, retro furniture and handmade linens were also in large supply, as well as unique chotchkes that you could only find in a place like this. For example, various bathroom accoutrements, antlers, stuffed crocodile heads and Frida Kalho portraits hidden in planters.
There was such a variety, that any lookiloo is sure to find something that peeks their interest. To get some nourishment, there were a multitude of food booths – the
lemonade was especially divine after maneuvering through the over 800
booths. Of course, if you are in need of cash, there were ATM machines
readily available. And if your car is too small to haul your finds, there are delivery trucks ready and waiting to take your treasure back to its new home. Mark your calendar for next field trip to the San Francisco East Bay!
You know when you see something that you just love, but you don’t buy it, then you can’t stop thinking about it? That happened to me at Addison Antique in Palo Alto _ an eclectic shop with everything from deer-footed lamps to Louis IV furniture. It’s on the corner of Addison and Alma, right across the street from Anthropologie.
Well, there in a dark corner was a dark painting _ but to me it had such life! Couples dancing in an impressionistic bar scene with a small jazz group behind them playing the night away. It reminded me of a painting in the living room of my Lookiloo partner Desiree _ a painting she sees through her front window when she comes home at night and gets the feeling there’s a party going on inside. The painting at Addison Antique is from the 1960s and was about $400 _ more than I was ready to spend. I still think about that painting. And if it’s not there when I’m ready to buy, if I’m ever ready to buy, I hope it goes to a good home.
As many of you know, I have an addiction to Etsy, a site for hand crafted goods by artisans from all over the world. I came across Paul Chung‘s work in my search for Bay Area talent and immediately was impressed. San Jose native Paul Chung creates attractive visually stimulating art that can liven up any room whether it is an office or a child’s room. According to Chung, he begins with an image that “has a sense of style that is classic and timeless” and then with the use of Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator give them his own twist. The result?
In his “American Heroes series” he features a variety of images such as Malcolm X, Susan B Anthony, Cesar Chavez and Cassius Clay. Inspired by world leaders to sports icons, the images highlight individuals that many of us grew up with and looked up to. Just what you need when you need a little extra something to get through the day or the laundry. These prints are made to order. These are $18.00 for an 8×10 print.
A new father, Paul also has a line of illustrations perfect for any child’s room. They range from sweet portraits of a girl at the beach or “Soy Boy” a mini super hero to letters and numbers delightfully adorned with corresponding images. In a world where Disney characters seem to rule the roost, these are a welcome respite for more discerning bedrooms. They range in price from $10.00 to $20.00 for a print.
Paul and his wife Gemmi are both Etsy artists, be sure to cruise by their online stores to support local artists.
We line up for home tours. We brake for open houses. We peek through fences. We fantasize. We want to get in! We started Lookiloos to indulge the inner lookiloo in all of us, to showcase beautiful homes and gardens with original photos and stories, to give decorating tips and remodeling ideas and create a community to share our stories of home. Peek inside with us.
-- Desiree, Julia and Sheila - Silicon Valley
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