HOME AND GARDEN

The latest home and garden news and updates

A local design "contest culminating this week has all the edge-of-your-seat elements of a "Project Runway" or "America's Next Top Model, though its contestants are designing furniture instead of showcasing fashion.

Billes Products' furniture design competition isn't being filmed, but its format is familiar: Nine student finalists, each the creator of an innovative piece of furniture or home accessory, are being grilled by a national panel of experts on concept, form, function, line and purpose.

What was the thought process behind this particular piece? Would the creator be willing to change this part, or that? How about a different color? Is it derivative -- too Eames or Roche-Bobois? Too outre?

Continue reading "Design school students dream up furniture of the future in Billes Products contest" »

If you were to read only general-interest gardening books or articles by Northern garden writers, you would think that summer was the only time of year to work with annual bedding plants. That, of course, is because winters up north are cold and hostile to annuals.

Continue reading "Southern gardens can be a winter wonderland of flowers" »

If she'd known her journals were headed for posterity, Genevieve Munson Trimble says, she'd have watched more carefully for dangling participles and split infinitives.

I know the feeling. There's something both life-enhancing and fear-inducing about the longevity of the printed page, the timelessness of the library shelf. For writers, words are children, often unruly but always beloved.

In Trimble's case, the words were inspired by a passion of a different sort -- twin passions, in fact: gardening in general and Afton Villa Plantation in particular. For four decades, she has carefully documented the restoration of the plantation's lavish landscape. Now, at the suggestion of Ruthie Frierson, library committee co-chairman of the New Orleans Town Gardeners garden club, she is giving her Afton Villa garden journals and supporting materials to Tulane University's Garden Library.

Continue reading "Tulane Garden Library grows with Afton Villa plantation journals" »

At Archbishop Chapelle High School in Metairie, a chain-link, 10-by-10-foot pen resembling a kennel sits outside the cafeteria.

Built by classes of juniors and seniors, under the guidance of their environmental science teacher, Joann Haydel, the pen is the start of the school's first wetlands nursery with Louisiana State University's Coastal Roots program.

Continue reading "Wetlands nurseries get Louisiana students involved" »

NOTE: When we last visited James Perry a couple of months ago, his home repair project was on hold pending resolution of his Road Home appeal. Now, an unpleasant surprise from Entergy has convinced him to move forward.

An oven, or insulation? Such is the choice facing James Perry.

Continue reading "Road Home delay leaves New Orleans homeowner with tough choices" »

THE NEIGHBORHOOD: Parkview, a historic district added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. The district has an odd shape. A narrow finger stretches from Orleans Avenue on the north to Lafitte Street on the south, and from North Rocheblave Street on the east to Bayou St. John on the west, wedged between the Esplanade Ridge district to the north and the Mid-City district to the south. The larger portion, where our Street Walk block is located, is a roughly triangular area bounded by North Carrollton Avenue and Bayou St. John on one side, City Park Avenue on another and Lafitte Street on the third. In this area, City Park is just a couple of blocks to the north, and the streetcars and restaurants of North Carrollton are a few blocks to the east. Though the National Register listing for Parkview states that some residential development occurred in the late 19th century, most happened in the early 20th century after drainage improved and City Park came into its own as a recreational destination.

Continue reading "Parkview neighborhood holds a wealth of housing styles" »

THE PIECE: A 2-foot-tall bronze and zinc figure of Andrew Jackson, modeled after the 1853 original by Clark Mills. A brass foundry plaque says it's from Cornelius and Baker of Philadelphia; inscribed "Patented, May 15, 1855."

Continue reading "Andrew Jackson statuette brings big price tag" »

At the Old Metairie home of Terence and Henrietta Hall, handsome interiors open onto landscaped exteriors accented by a grand oak and a sparkling pool. But as Terence Hall will tell you, what you don't see may be almost as interesting as what you do.

It's the history of the house and the origins of its design that he thinks make the best story.

The Halls' home will be one of five on Friday's Metairie Park Country Day School fall home tour. Hall, a Country Day alumnus, said that he and his wife bought the property from a neighbor in 1982. But the house grew much more intriguing soon afterward, when he stumbled upon information about its origins.

Continue reading "An Old Metairie manse traces its roots to California architect Paul Williams" »

Early last week, young people being trained by the Louisiana Green Corps for jobs in energy-efficient construction were learning how to install a window frame using salvaged materials.

But the trainees weren't working on an actual home; they were putting the finishing touches on the Alliance for Affordable Energy's BuildSmart demonstration home, a model house set up in the nonprofit group's headquarters off Earhart Boulevard.

Continue reading "Alliance for Affordable Energy's BuildSmart model home shows off green ideas" »

THE ARTIST: Tevis Vandergriff III

HIS CRAFT: Plastering

YEARS IN THE TRADE: 30

WHY HE DOES IT: 'When you're in the trade, you can look at your work and know you did a good job. That's one of the great things about it.'

Continue reading "Plaster made perfect: At The Historic New Orleans Collection, history is re-created by master plasterer Thevis Vandegrit III" »

In this week's InsideOut, find out the intriguing history behind a gorgeous Old Metairie house that's opening its doors for Friday's Metairie Park Country Day School Tour of Homes. If history is your thing, you'll also want to turn to the Varied Treasure column, which describes the works of jeweler-to-the-czars Peter Carl Faberge going on view at the New Orleans Museum of Art.

Garden columnist Dan Gill tells how to turn delights from the garden into holiday decor, and home-staging experts offer tips on making your house sell faster in Insight.

-- KAREN TAYLOR GIST

For years now, I've believed the designers' creed that says my home should make a statement about who I am. Continue reading "Home staging when a house is on the market isn't the same as 'homey'" »

THE HOME: An A-frame in Pearl River

THE RESIDENT: Larry Bridevaux

THE SPACE: His second-floor bedroom

WHY HE LOVES IT: 'I'm torn between the bed and the fireplace. Both give the room that feeling of being comfortable and at home.'

Continue reading "Pearl River resident is oceans away from his former FEMA trailer" »

Over the years, I have relied on a wide selection of dried plant materials for holiday decor. By using dried materials, decorations can be put up in late November and they will still look great in late December or early January.

Continue reading "Dry your flowers for beautiful holiday decor" »

NOTE: In the past few weeks, Tana Barth has worked with architect John Wettermark to refine plans for her Gentilly home, all the while managing a demanding schedule with two jobs.

When Tana Barth was ready to start thinking about rehabbing her Katrina-flooded Gentilly home, she didn't even consider working with an architect on the plans. But her friend Charlotte Bass-Lilly had other ideas.

Continue reading "In rebuilding flooded house in Gentilly, architect adds new perspective on old space" »

THE NEIGHBORHOOD: Lakeview, an area bounded roughly by Robert E. Lee Boulevard on the north, I-610 on the south, Orleans Avenue (and its canal) on the east and West End Boulevard on the west. The area that is now Lakeview was a low-lying marsh until the early 1900s, when drainage innovations made new land for redevelopment. The original houses were predominately modest cottages built in styles popular from about 1900 to World War II. Craftsman bungalows, split-levels, small Mediterranean-style villas and eventually ranch houses formed the fabric of the neighborhood. Even before Hurricane Katrina flooded the area, some residents were installing larger homes on the spacious lots. Since the storm, the new-and-bigger trend has continued, though some residents have opted instead to renovate (and sometimes elevate). Lakeview is a work in progress, with activity -- renovation or new construction -- evident in every block I visit.

Continue reading "Lakeview's Memphis Street is a work in progress" »

THE PIECES: A diverse collection of decorative items by Peter Carl Faberge (1846-1929), including the Bismarck Box (1884) and a silver gilt and enamel frame containing a photograph of Czar Nicholas II of Russia (1906).

Continue reading "Fabulous Faberge exhibit at New Orleans Museum of Art not just about eggs" »

It started out as an ordinary 30-foot Gulf Stream Cavalier trailer, the exact sort supplied by the Federal Emergency Management Agency as housing after the 2005 storm and flood. It eventually became an $85,000 rolling artist's studio, complete with drawing table, sculpture workshop and lots of natural light. And somewhere along the line, it came to look like a UFO, with a clear dome on the roof, solar panels angled toward the sun and a 40-foot mast that looks like an antennae for contacting the mother ship.

Continue reading "Prospect.1 installation shapes perceptions of home, lifestyle" »

For several weeks, a white house in St. Roch has been sealed off by a large, circular vault door that's built into the facade, protecting a symbolic "trust fund" for the children of New Orleans.

Continue reading "Prospect.1 'Safehouse' gets the lead out" »

Prospect.1 and companion outdoor exhibitions offer some unique perspectives on home and personal environments. Here are four installations that make statements about how and where we live:

Continue reading "Other Prospect.1 installations not to be missed" »

Years ago, I gave Stewart a pen-and-ink drawing of Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop, the Bourbon Street watering hole where, during his law school days, we spent many an evening sipping wine at the piano and chatting with Lily, the resident chanteuse.

"Great, " he said as he pulled off the wrapping. "Next year I'll get you a basketball."

I haven't given him a "girl gift" since. (If he brings up that Navajo throw rug, know that I consider it a travel memento.)

Continue reading "In New Orleans, even public roads lead to artistic expression" »

THE HOME: A three-story Victorian overlooking Audubon Park

THE OWNERS: Evelyne and Philip Clinton

THE SPACE: The kitchen

WHY THEY LOVE IT: 'I love the fact that people hang out in here. And I like being able to see my backyard fountain from the kitchen, ' Evelyne Clinton says.

Continue reading "Exposition Avenue kitchen calls for Kid Smart art" »

In the North, the primary fall color comes from the leaves of deciduous trees turning vivid shades before they drop. Here in the Coastal South, a wide variety of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants provide color through foliage, flowers and fruit.

Some evergreen shrubs take on new colors as chilly to cold weather occurs. The foliage of some azaleas ('Fashion' is a good example) turns bronze, purple or even chocolate during winter. Some junipers turn purple or bronze.

The most spectacular of these shrubs is the dwarf nandina ('Fire Power,' 'Harbour Dwarf,' 'Woods Dwarf' and others). When grown in full sun, their foliage turns from green with tints of burgundy to bright red, burgundy, gold, orange and scarlet in winter, then turns back to green in late spring.

Continue reading "Fall color on brilliant display down South" »

NOTE: Just two weeks ago, Karina Gentinetta and A.J. McAlear were awaiting the start of the trim-out phase at their Louisville Street home. Now, with wood floors mostly in, ceramic tile installed and Sheetrock floated, they're watching their long-awaited vision take shape every day.

With the final round of construction proceeding exactly as planned at Karina Gentinetta's Lakeview house, she was feeling good about getting what she wanted while keeping careful control of the purse strings.

"You know, one of the things that has been my aim throughout all of this was to build a beautiful home on a low budget," Gentinetta said. "That is quite a challenge."

Continue reading "Creative thinking required when staying on budget" »

THE NEIGHBORHOOD: The Vieux Carre or French Quarter, New Orleans' oldest neighborhood. Bounded by North Rampart Street, Esplanade Avenue, the Mississippi River and Canal Street, the area is the site of the original city, founded in 1718 and once enclosed by fortifications. The Vieux Carre is a national landmark and was added to the National Register in the 1960s, several decades after the Vieux Carre Commission was established by an act of the Louisiana Legislature in 1936. By about 1721, French engineers under the direction of Adrien de Pauger had laid out a grid of streets for the young city. The plan featured an open parade ground, now Jackson Square, at its heart. Much of the area's French and Spanish colonial architecture was destroyed in devastating fires of 1788 and 1794. Nonetheless, Creole cottages and townhouses from the early 1800s mix with later types and styles to establish the Quarter's European flavor. With dining, music and other nightlife activities concentrated closer to Canal Street, the area of the Quarter closest to Esplanade retains a strong residential character.

Continue reading "In Vieux Carre, a Bourbon blend with a unique personality" »