ELLE DECOR March 2014

IT'S AN AXIOM IN THE THEATER that there's no such thing as a small part. I am beginning to believe that when it comes to renovations, there is no such thing as a small change. We recently had our dining chairs re-upholstered. We found them more than a decade ago at the Clignancourt flea market in Paris. But after all those years, their springs were going and the off-white fabric on the seats had become more than a bit worn and shabby. What to do? Fortunately, friends had recently opened a design and upholstery shop, Tape Measure, in nearby Pleasantville, New York. After we chose a new fabric, the chairs were whisked away for a month, only to return looking better than they ever had. Our whole apartment seemed renewed,…

IN A NEW LIGHT ELLE DECOR'S design director, Florentino Pamintuan, found inspiration for this month's shopping portfolio—which begins on page 146—in the colorful buildings of Mexican modernist architect Luis Barragán. "The sherbet tones of the products we're featuring lent themselves to Barragán's interiors, which are minimal and clean but with distinctive colors," says Pamintuan. "All of the pieces that Sabine Rothman, our market director, chose could live beautifully in a Barragán home." Working in New York's Industria Superstudio, Pamintuan constructed a set from wood flats to create the illusion of a real space, using proportions gleaned from such photos as René Burri's shot of a Barragán home in Tacubaya, Mexico, bottom. Photographer William Abranowicz, shown standing below, left, with Pamintuan, helped set the scene. "We wanted the light to look…

MAIL Imagine my disappointment with the title of your December Editor's Page, "Is It Possible to Suffer From Design Schizophrenia?" I have a son who suffers from this disorder. Schizophrenia affects the chemistry of the brain and can make even the simplest tasks almost impossible to undertake. When the name of this disease is used in such a way, it only adds to the stigma of mental illness. I am sure that you didn't understand how demeaning your use of the word could be, but please think twice before using the term in this way again. Garland Mattox, via e-mail I meant neither to offend nor promote ignorance, which is exactly what I have done. I do apologize. —Michael Boodro I loved Michael Boodro's editorial about his city home and…

CREAM OF THE CROP For centuries, artists and designers have turned to nature for inspiration. But this spring, rather than looking to the usual flowers, a new generation is reinvigorating the still life with a sprightly harvest of fruits and vegetables. Austrian design firm Mischer'traxler is introducing a line of bowls made from resin-cast produce (pcmdesign.es). Plaster-molded eggplants, cucumbers, and other edibles are the subjects of Margaret Lee's witty installations, on view at New York's Jack Hanley Gallery (jackhanley.com). Pierre Frey has reissued a juicy archival print, drawn by Jean-Denis Malclès in 1942 (pierrefrey.com). And artist Phillip Estlund has covered an Eames chair with mushroom illustrations found in old field guides (shopgreyarea.com). Dries Van Noten's fall 2008 collection. Eggplant (phone), by Margaret Lee. Dejeuner Sur L'Herbe cotton by Pierre Frey.…

INTO THE FOLD For her Earthquake 5.9 line for Budri, designer Patricia Urquiola was inspired to use fragments of broken marble left after the quake that shook northern Italy in May 2012. Slabs of white and green polished marble are joined to form the Origami cocktail table, which measures 35" l. x 31" w. x 12" h. and costs $8,775. A larger version made of white and coral-color onyx is available for $9,675. 877-388-7373; thefutureperfect.com 1 / ANGLE OF REPOSE The Auguste chair, part of Jacques Garcia's furniture collection for Baker, unites rustic hand-forged iron with angular Bauhaus design. The leather seat and back come in three colors, including Porcini, shown. The chair measures 28.5" w. x 29" d. x 30.5" h. and costs $5,261. 800-592-2537;…

A dazzling exhibition traces our centuries-long obsession with finding the picturesque in decay and dilapidation "The ideas ruins evoke in me are grand," French philosopher Denis Diderot wrote in 1767, in an era when the excavations of Pompeii and Herculaneum caused an international sensation and visitors to Greece and Rome pondered the lost majesty of ancient civilizations. "Everything comes to nothing…only time endures." Poets and artists have long found ruins a reminder that nature trumps culture and power—as well as a source of melancholy beauty. More than 100 works depicting cracked stone, forlorn landscapes, and all-out fire and destruction are featured in "Ruin Lust" at London's Tate Britain. The exhibition spans from J.M.W. Turner's lush 1790s watercolors, depicting Tintern and other British abbeys succumbing to weeds and rot, to Jane…