After this blog post I want to go to Miami and experience the rich and vibrant culture of South Beach. Thank you Dalia from Berlin Designs, Inc. for the wonderful recommendations and advice on everything to do and see in Miami. This is a real treat!

For all you readers out there, we are building our East -2- West series. We want to give our readers their personal connection to global design, create a designer-to-designer network, and provide you with the very best in each city. Leave it to the interior design experts and with that lets return to the series with Miami!!!!  

1. Best antique find in Miami: Right in Design District

SusaneR when looking for very eclectic pieces, This is the way to go!

2. After you have had a morning to shop what is your favorite place to grab a bite to eat and take a load off your feet in Miami?

While shopping right in the district I would go to Michael’s genuine – for a relaxed leisure meal with clients you can sit outside or inside and always run into someone you know. I highly recommended especially for dinner their heirloom tomato & golden beat salad with green beans, hearts of palm and blue cheese crumbles is my fave! Very refreshing for our Miami heat.

 Michael’s Genuine

130 Northeast 40th Street
Miami, FL 33137
(305) 573-5550 

Now for dinner I would venture down to Brickell and try Dolores but you can call me Lolita – their gazpacho is famous and they even give you the recipe (minus their secret ingredient: creme fraiche but don’t say I told you, it’s sumptous!) You pick from column A and then from column B and then desert all for $18. Now with a great ambiance and situated in the original and restored Miami Firehouse (look for the sliding poles) how can you go wrong?

3. What is artistically unquie about Miami? What is the Miami known for?

Oh wow! In Miami visitors must visit the South Beach District. Take a walk on the boardwalk or better yet a walk on the famous pedestrian street Lincoln Road (between Collins and Alton on 17th Street).

Carl Fisher, the wealthy original developer of Miami Beach, envisioned Lincoln Road to be the Miami Beach counterpart to Fifth Avenue in New York, or Rodeo Drive in Los Angeles. And indeed in the boom times of South Beach in the 1930’s, 1940’s, and 1950’s, it could match those upscale fashionable shopping districts. Fisher’s concept was that Lincoln Road would be the way to draw together the east and west sides of Miami Beach.

Today, Lincoln Road is a pedestrian mall between Alton Road and Washington Avenue. It is once again thriving as a shopping and dining area. Unique stores offer items not typically found in malls, and restaurants and cafés are common. Most restaurants offer either indoor or outdoor seating, including in the middle of the pedestrian mall area. And without question, the people watching on Lincoln Road can match any place in the world. There seems to be a constant flow of stunningly attractive women and men passing by, and many wear fashionable clothes with a major dose of sexy.

If you are up to it, a fun and educational tour believe it or not, is the South Beach Duck Tours, which describes all the lines of the miami modernism/deco style architecture while on the bus tour and then it transforms into an amphibious boat and takes you through the backyards of the rich a famous, Shak and the like all while enjoying the bay, reserve a must!

 4. Describe the current design trends in Miami.

I would emphatically have to say that the interior design industry in our area can be surely called the “delano hotel design.”

Like they say if I had a dollar for every time a client has quoted the interior of the Delano hotel designed by Phillipe Stark I would be well who knows.

The Delano was the first hotel in America which featured a true indoor/outdoor lobby, and a marvelous interpretation of bringing the outdoors in. In South Florida where our focal point is always the Ocean, and Mother Nature, we cannot compete with the beauty that G-d surround us with, so instead we bring all of the outdoors in. This then reflects in the color palettes of our design, the billowing white sheers that reminds us of the ocean breeze, and the casual style of the furniture lines even in the most elegant of interiors.

5. The best art gallery in Miami.

Wow so many… too many to choose from…I love the Wynwood area. Take a great pair of comfy shoes and spend the day gallery hopping. Below is a quick guide to help you get started.

6. The one unique thing you can do in Miami is by far to eat at Joe’s Stone Crabs.

11 Washington Avenue
Miami Beach, FL 33139
(305) 673-0365

Reprinted with permission from Eat at Joe’s: The Joe’s Stone Crab Restaurant Cookbook

Joe’s Mustard Sauce

1 tablespoon Colman’s dry mustard, or more to taste

1 cup mayonnaise

2 teaspoons Worcestershire

1 teaspoon A-1 sauce

2 tablespoons light cream

salt

Place the mustard in a mixing bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer. Add the mayonnaise and beat for 1 minute. Add the Worcestershire, A-1, cream, and a pinch of salt and beat until the mixture is well blended and creamy. If you’d like a little more mustardy bite, whisk in 1/2 teaspoon more dry mustard until well blended. Chill the sauce, covered, until serving.

For reviews on the sauce click here.

7. Favorite accessory stores are Urban Art and Jalan Jalan both in the Miami design district. 

Totally unique each in their own way and a must revisit at least once a month for all their new products.

Jalan Jalan

3921 NE 2nd Ave Miami FL 33137

(305) 572-9998

Urban Art Home

Modern ehnic and eclectic a collection for every interior space. They have furniture and art too.

8. The coolest hotel to stay in Miami I would say is the Fontainbleu, in Miami Beach.

Many guestrooms and suites have breathtaking views of the Atlantic Ocean, as well as the twinkling necklace of lights that reveals Miami Beach at night. Rooms and suites are fully equipped with high definition flat screen TVs, advanced sound systems, 20” iMac® and ultra-luxurious amenities. Modern, sophisticated interior designs create an atmosphere of quiet and calm for effortless relaxation.

With the Winter  Olympics opening this weekend and the weather in Raleigh becoming ever more blistery- our thoughts turned to the Winter Wonderland that is Salt Lake City, Utah.  For this new series, Design Lines is interviewing our friends in other cities.  I had the pleasure of interviewing designer Kathryn Evans of Denton House Interiors.

1. Best antique store in Salt Lake City, Utah?

Housed in a historic Greek revival mansion, Anthony’s does not only unique and ultra high quality antiques, but some lovely fine art as well. For eclectic items in a lower price range, Salt Lakers are also big on consignment shops, with the charming Emilee Jayne leading the way. My favorite thing about Emilie Jayne is the way its organized, all vignettes are arranged by color and the displays are flawlessly styled by the shop owner.

Anthony’s Antiques

401 East 200 South

Salt Lake City, UT 84111

801.384.2231

Emilie Jayne Home Consignment

801 South 800 East

Salt Lake City, UT 84102

801.359.3356

2. After you have had a morning to shop what is your favorite place to grab a bite to eat and take a load off your feet?

The perfect lunch spot for the truly weary shopper is Cafe Niche. With a simple yet elegant menu (And brunch on the weekends! Yum!), the cafe is also adjacent to a fabulous salon. Dexterity (http://www.dexteritysalon.com/) is the perfect after lunch relaxation with a whole selection of “quickie” services, like a half hour massage, express facial or express pedicure.

Cafe Niche

779 East 300 South

Salt Lake City, UT 84102

801.433.3380

3. What is artistically unique about Salt Lake City, Utah? Or what is Salt Lake City, Utah known for?

Most well known as the headquarters of the LDS church, Salt Lake’s rich history is exemplified in its historic downtown area, the heart of which is Temple Square. The most visited place in all of Utah, Temple Square is a 10-acre enclosure with meticulously cared for gardens and centered around the stunning 6-spire LDS temple a granite feat that took Utah pioneers over 40 years to build. If you visit around Christmas time you are in for a special treat as the whole area is lit up with hundreds of thousands of lights, a life-size Nativity scene and regular musical performances.

My favorite modern bit of architecture is the Salt Lake City Public Library. Designing by Moshe Safdie of Habitat ‘67 fame, the structure is spiral shaped and ethereal, with a five-story curved glass wall making up the front facade and a spiraling grand staircase. The library also houses an art gallery for local artist’s work and a rooftop garden with a path that walks you along the ridgeline of the descending spiral and lands you back on the ground at the end.

(Image by Rick Satterfield)

Temple Square (Visitor Center)

50 West North Temple

Salt Lake City, UT 84150

SLC Public Library

210 East 400 South

Salt Lake City,  UT 84111

4. Describe the current design trends in Salt Lake City, Utah.

As any mountain city would be, Utah style is typified by a rustic Western American look, especially in its posh ski resorts in and around Park City (which is just 20 minutes up a canyon from downtown Salt Lake). As we say in my office, “very Ralph Lauren.” However there is a growing trend towards more transitional, luxe looking pieces. The perfect example of this is the gorgeous Alice Lane Home Collection in Orem, a short 45 minute jaunt down south and well worth the trip. A little modern and a little vintage, Alice Lane speaks to the next generation of taste makers in Utah.

Alice Lane Home Collection

1350 South State Street

Orem UT 84097

801.802.6266

5. Best art gallery in town?

With its architecturally striking space and unique collection, A. Gallery is our go-to place for fine art and custom framing. The staff is extremely knowledgeable and professional, I did a job with over 150 images with them last month and they were wonderful to work with.

A. Gallery

1321 South 2100 East

Salt Lake City UT 84108

801.583.4800

6. What is one unique thing you can do in your city?

Salt Lake is fantastically located within easy distance of a number of outdoor activities. Park City, with its 5 world class ski resorts and high-end shopping is only 20 minutes away. There are also literally hundreds of other spots for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and snowmobiling, and during the summer there are any number of water activities on the various lakes and reservoirs, as well as plenty of rock climbing, hiking and backpacking. Downtown Salt Lake has the perfect “Little-Big City” feel with restaurants and clubs and concert venues, its always full of life but without running the risk of feeling over crowded.

7. Top 2 favorite accessory stores in Salt Lake City, Utah?

Hip and Humble A jumble of collectibles, many on consignment. This place is true to its name!

1043 E 900 South

Salt Lake City UT

801.467.3130

Light Spot THE spot for all designer favorite modern brands, like B&B Italia, driade, Tre-P, movi and Gallotti & Radice. Plus their space is stunning, a simple visit is sure to inspire.

2927 South Highland Drive

Salt Lake City, UT 84106

801.355.1553

8. According to you, where is the coolest place to stay in your city?

The Peery Hotel is a charming boutique hotel in a wonderful building that is actually on Utah’s National Historic Register. From the romantic facade to the crisp white bed linens, this hotel is all about understated elegance. And when you stay there you must go across the street to Setebello, Salt Lakes only true Napoletana style pizzeria. Unfortunately the decor does nothing to whet your appetite, but the margarita pizza is to DYE for!

The Peery Hotel

110 West Broadway

Salt Lake City, UT 84101

801.521.4300

Settebello

260 South 200  West

Salt Lake City, UT 84101

801.322.3556

9. What is your connection with Design Lines, Ltd?

My best friend and college roommate,  Brittany Ruch, has been working there since we were both starry-eyed interns in the summer of 2006. A few times a year I make the trek down south and have had the wonderful opportunity to meet the other designing women of DLL.

Be sure to check out Denton House’s You Tube channel.

-Brittany