There's Something About Mary

[Photograph by Miguel Flores-Vianna from Mary McDonald: Interiors: The Allure of Style, 

Rizzoli New York 2010. Click to enlarge.]

[Photograph by Miguel Flores-Vianna from Mary McDonald: Interiors: The Allure of Style, 

Rizzoli New York 2010. Click to enlarge.]

Years ago I received a very funny message from the one-and-only Mary McDonald. With a terrific sense of humor, she generously offered some detailed instructions for recreating a DIY chinoiserie-paper-covered file cabinet similar to her own (published in Domino, January 2006), and right off the bat I detected a passionate, artistic spirit. Soon after, readers of this blog (and I!) expressed interest in a book about Mary's work, so it's been a treat for me to finally see Rizzoli's lavishly illustrated new edition hit book store shelves. (Currently in stock at three Atlanta Barnes & Noble locations as I type.)

[Photograph by Miguel Flores-Vianna from Mary McDonald: Interiors: The Allure of Style, 

Rizzoli New York 2010. Click to enlarge.]

Although Mary's book contains plenty of innovative ideas to steal -- my favorite probably being the bamboo waste baskets from Asian import stores turned upside down and transformed into lampshades -- it's not a step-by-step "how to" guide.  Back in 2001, in a House & Garden cover story about her Kings Road house, the L.A. native described herself as an old fashioned decorator; nine years later in the book she elaborates on her affinity for symmetry saying, "I am so advanced at pairs I have moved on to collecting pairs of pairs!"

[Photograph by Miguel Flores-Vianna from Mary McDonald: Interiors: The Allure of Style, 

Rizzoli New York 2010. Click to enlarge.]

There's no question that she can pull together a classically ordered, visually graphic room, but what always hits me first is her artist's approach to combining colors. Last week Mrs. Blandings highlighted Mary's ultra feminine side and attraction to pink. In contrast, and as a prelude to the upcoming Oasis catologue post, I wanted to share interiors from Mary's Grand Tour chapter. 

[Photograph by Miguel Flores-Vianna from Mary McDonald: Interiors: The Allure of Style, 

Rizzoli New York 2010. Click to enlarge.]

The equally kind Miguel Flores-Vianna photographed all of the rooms above and one vignette below. There's a hint of ikat in some shots and I think the images convey Mary's flair for working with earthy materials like burlap and bamboo (other sections of the book showcase her high glam side, with gilded chairs and glossy patent leather).

[Photograph by Miguel Flores-Vianna from Mary McDonald: Interiors: The Allure of Style, 

Rizzoli New York 2010. Click to enlarge.]

 [Photograph by Victoria Pearson from Mary McDonald: Interiors: The Allure of Style, 
Rizzoli New York 2010. Click to enlarge.]

As a whole, the book is a wonderful scrapbook of her most popular interiors with previously unseen (at least by me) rooms in the mix too. Whether she's doing a kick-off-your-sandals guest cottage or an Old Hollywood house with an entry as big as a hotel lobby, Ming bling, the designer's affectionate term for iconic large-scale Chinese blue-and-white, is a constant (she appreciates both the real deal and gift shop repros).  Most of all, Mary's enthusiasm shines through and that in turn sparks my imagination. Looking forward to some weekend projects.

Related past posts:
Elegant DIY
Scanning Fabric