Saturday, October 08, 2011

A (Decorator's) Walk Through Georgetown

On our whirlwind US trip last week, I had a few hours to stroll through glorious Georgetown. Georgetown is a charming colonial neighborhood in northwest Washington DC, full of stunning historical buildings, beautiful townhouses, cobblestone streets, wonderful antique and art shops (Wisconsin Ave), gourmet shops like Dean & Deluca, and lots of great clothing stores (mostly along M Street).

I thought you might enjoy a brief decorator's tour of Georgetown!

I snapped this charming glass doorfront at Fleurgreige, a gorgeous flower boutique (and floral design school):

I admired the art at Addison Ripley through the windows (sadly, it was closed). They had an exhibit of vibrant sea and skyscapes by Maryland artist Mary Page Evans:

I visited the always-refined Baker furniture showroom on M Street, and fell in love with their Rebecca sofa. It is my dream sofa - I can imagine it in my ideal home in a study surrounded by vast bookshelves, tall ceilings and chevron floors (but sadly it's a little over budget at $10,300).

I also fell for this lamp. At $900, it wasn't coming home with me either:

My favorite find of the day was a new antique store called Comer & Co., owned and operated by two very talented Washintonians (their original store is down the coast on Chesapeake Bay in Kilmarnock). On this day, the store was staffed by a lovely young lady who told me all about the owners and their business and let me take several photos!

The store is beautifully styled with 18th to 20th century antiques. It occupies a charming two-story Georgetown townhouse:

I loved this vignette in black, white, and gold set against a backdrop of perfect grey walls, in Benjamin Moore's Revere Pewter (I asked):

I loved the lines of this reupholstered Art Deco armchair (they had a pair). They were a smidgen over budget at $6500 each. I think they're swell:

The upstairs was just as charming, and featured lots of white and gold elements, set against dark patinaed wood:

This blue antique dragon wanted to come home with me:
I can't wait to visit Comer & Co. again! Inspired by all their pretty blues, I did buy one thing...a pair of blue beeswax candles that I will show you soon.

Next I stopped briefly at John Rosselli Antiques (another lover of blue Chinoiserie and husband of Bunny Williams, in case you didn't know). In his Georgetown store (there is another in NYC), I admired posh designer fabrics (that I don't often see in Canada) in the back room:

Next I visited the somewhat more affordable Random Harvest, a Washington-area decor store specializing in both antiques and reproduction pieces. I liked this shield mirror and soft blue armchair. Too bad they won't ship furniture to Canada!

Next I visited with the lovely Catharine at Catherine Roberts/Moss & Co./Oliver Dunn, a trio of shops housed in one delightful space (notice her dog Sophie waiting in the window):

The shop is large, with several rooms over two floors, and chock full of old world linens, ironstone, seagrass, weathered woods and unique vintage finds:

I liked everything about Catharine's brocante section of the store:

These great candlesticks would really suit a character home:
I seriously loved this vignette of tufted armchairs and sconces. The sconces were $250 each, so they didn't make it into my suitcase either. The next day, I was sooo close to going back for them...

I also visited another new shop run by a lady shopkeeper I had met on my last trip. She now runs "The French Apartment", which is seriously cool. She is a stylist nonpareil...

I liked the mirrored cube in this autumnal vignette...

I also popped into the exquisite Marston Luce, which specializes in antiques from France and Sweden. The store is always quiet and serious, so I don't take many photos here. But I did snap a pair of fabulous lamps...

My last stop was at Susan Calloway Fine Arts. Susan has a deep and incredible array of contemporary and antique art available at her lovely Georgetown gallery. I didn't take any photos this time (darn), but always find something to covet. This time I chatted with Susan about her paintings by Robert Rea (for sale here). If you recall, Rea's Georgetown home, designed by DC designer Frank Babb Randolph, was featured in April's Veranda magazine:


I hope you enjoyed your tour of historic and always-inspiring Georgetown!

11 comments:

  1. Wow, very impressive places! It's funny, the second I saw those paintings, I thought of Frank Babb Randolph. I love his work.

    I think you should get that Baker sofa. It's lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  2. seriously? one store is after the other and ea so fabulous. how lucky to have been able to visit them all. and such restraint! thanks for taking the time to photograph and share these. i saw so many things i'd love to have.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous1:51 am

    I love this post! Any idea on where to find small bulbs like the ones in the John Roselli light fixture.I hate the ones on the market .I look forward to catching up on your blog.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love your trip photos. Lovely blogging!
    The store reminded me a bit of Pier dieux
    Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  5. Boy, oh boy - that was some tour. You are making me homesick for the East Coast! I love the interior brick wall and could easily live in the building that houses Corner & Co. .... so much beauty to take in - I share your love for that dream sofa. Beautiful. All the giltwood has my heart racing!
    xo isa

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great tour of Geo'town. Guess I better get over ther soon, nothing like seeing the familiar thru others eyes!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for the tour, Terri! My favorite kind of day is one where I can just wander in and out of design/antique shops and art galleries. I know you had fun. Thanks for taking us along with you! Ann

    ReplyDelete
  8. A bit high and refined for this country gal, though I can certainly see how you enjoyed it very much. Gosh, 10,000 dollars for that sofa? I wonder why...
    (Next time you visit, you'll need to arrive with a u-haul. Wouldn't that be fun? =} )

    ReplyDelete
  9. What a fabulous tour Terri- you have me drooling here!! Looking forward to hearing about the rest of your journey.
    xo~
    Tricia

    ReplyDelete
  10. Very cool. Georgetown has always been lovely but it has changed a lot since I was growing up. I am now an hour + away and I want to go soon, especially to Comer & co. They have gotten some local media attention recently.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Such a fabulous tour Terri. Such wonderful shops and galleries. Sadly, I've only spent a couple of hours in Georgetown a few years ago. Not enough time to really explore all it has to offer.

    ReplyDelete