Being full of holiday goodwill, Steve’s gone wild and the most of the store is 25% off (some exclusions apply). Visit us the shop on Dec. 28 – 30 for best selection, and online savings with the code WILD2017, expires midnight 1/1/2017. Start 2017 off right by saving!
25% off some exclusions apply including Match Pewter, Le Jacquard Francais, Gien, Royal Crown Derby.
Wishing you and yours a joyous holiday from our team here at steve mckenzie’s! May your Christmas be a meaningful celebration with family and friends and may you savor every wonderful moment.
Please see a reminder of our holiday hours below…
And if you find yourself wanting to take part in a little post-holiday retail therapy, we invite you to enjoy our improved shopping experience on the steve mckenzie’s website. We think you’ll find something you’ll love to treat yourself to after the holiday commotion has ended. 😉
We hope to see you in store after Christmas – and please keep steve mckenzie’s in mind as you plan your New Years celebrations. We have plenty of goodies to make your evening sparkle!
Thank you to all who enjoyed our tour of the SCAD FASH Museum exhibit!
We strive to bring you interesting design ideas, destinations and plain old fun people and places to know. Let us know what’s caught your eye lately too!
Without further ado, the five winners are: David D., Farris H., Robyn J., Betsy G., and Cathy M.
I’ll be emailing you all shortly with details. Thank you again for spending time with us.
It’s that time of year… The time magnolia leaves find their way indoors and sprinkled throughout our holiday decor. Perhaps you procure yours from a nearby tree in your community in the dead of night (not that we’d know anything about this or condone this illicit behavior!) or from a magnificent magnolia right in your own backyard. But, one thing’s for sure – they aren’t as beautifully curated as Weston Farms‘ magnolia creations.
Today, we’re sharing a little Q&A with Weston Farms’ Creative Director, Erin Weston. Her work has graced the pages of many-a-shelter publication, and is truly stunning. We’ve had the good fortune to work with Erin and have her in the showroom hosting magnolia arranging classes. She’s an absolute delight to be around and her work is truly inspirational! We hope you’ll enjoy getting to know her and her amazing arrangements as much as we have…
Named “The New Face of Gardening,” by Carolina Gardener in 2010, Erin Weston is the creative director at Weston Farms. Art, Nature, and Horticulture inform her work at Weston Farms.
In 2002, Erin Weston moved from New York City to North Carolina to help with her family farm. She wanted to create a luxury farm product grown and cultivated at Weston Farms that utilized her art background and incorporated her father’s horticultural knowledge. The Southern Magnolia wreaths, garlands and natural accessories from Weston Farms best express this desire and put a new spin on a familiar southern tradition.
Weston’s art direction of the “Horticultural Holidays at Weston Farms,” utilizes the best cultivated varieties of trees and plants chosen for color, texture, and rarity. Weston Farms grows highest quality Southern Magnolia exclusively for their wreaths, garlands and cut arrangements. Weston studied Art History at UNC-Chapel Hill and garnered her horticultural education by surrounding herself with the best and the brightest in the field.
sm’s: Can you please share a bit about your background/where Weston Farms began and how you gained the courage to break out on your own?
I studied art history at UNC, moved to Philadelphia, then NYC to work in publishing. Believe it or not, I was actually interviewed by MSO (Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia) on the day she was accused of inside trading! While working there, I was able to work closely with my dad (former horticulturist for the city of Raleigh) to create a production schedule with garden themes. I became really excited about all the content there and saw possibilities to be inspired by garden. Around the time Martha Stewart went to jail, my uncle left me 30 acres and my grandparent’s house in the middle of North Carolina suburbia. I worked to get it re-zoned as a farm and started the business with only one magnolia tree (my grandmother’s). From it, I created foliage arrangements to make money for that November/December. People kept coming back. Now, we’ve planted over 10,000 trees to supply foliage for year-round magnolia wreaths, Garland and natural accessories.
sm’s: What inspires you/your work?
The fine arts, museums, travel, nature, history
sm’s: What is your vision, not only for Weston Farms, but also your individual creations?
To create a luxury product defined by quality of craftsmanship, materials and rare ingredients/difficult to produce.
sm’s: Do you have any “mainstays” in your work – is there something you’re always drawn to in terms of arrangements?
Symmetry and asymmetry
Classical motifs
Creating arrangements that would look good in a barn or in a castle setting.
sm’s: What do people need to consider when looking to purchase a Weston Farms creation?
To be prepared for an abundance of exquisitely designed and cultivated ingredients, and to appreciate the time of craftsmanship it took to create.
sm’s: What’s on the horizon for you/Weston Farms?
Marry me Magnolia! (TM)
A foliage, bouquet, wreath and Garland line available year round based on our signature magnolia.
sm’s: As an artist/business person how do you recharge?
Travel, nature, art museums
sm’s: Anything else you our readers would enjoy learning from you?
If something seems too hard for too long, step back and modify your course.
After reading our Q&A session with Erin and looking at those supremely gorgeous designs, are you ready to introduce magnolia into your home – perhaps year round?! We are! It’s amazing what even a small Weston Farms arrangement can do to elevate a space. It’s magnificent!!
A couple of weeks ago, Steve and Jill, along with a neighbor visited SCAD’s “Threads of History” exhibit, currently on view through March 19, 2017 at the SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film in Atlanta. The trio absolutely adored it and we wanted to share it with all of you – along with a giveaway of five general admission tickets!
Photography by Raftermen Photography
Beautifully curated, this exhibit is guided by very knowledgeable student docents who add in depth details, which truly bring the garments to life.
The craftsmanship that went into the accessories on showcase is absolutely awe inspiring. While this may not be your typical museum exhibit, fashion is certainly an art form!
Photography by Raftermen Photography
The above images share some garments that symbolize the shortening of hemlines at a time our culture was in a season of change. Aren’t they lovely?!
From SCAD about “Threads of History:”
This is a sartorial voyage through style and time celebrating the power of fashion and its capacity to reflect historical and cultural trends. Featuring rare European and American garments from the 18th through 20th centuries, the exhibition illuminates society’s shifting values as it traces the evolution of historic dress.
Photography by Raftermen Photography
“Threads of History: Two Hundred Years Fashion” offers viewers the unprecedented opportunity to examine womenswear, menswear and children’s ensembles from a range of distinctive periods, from the ornate Rococo era and the grand Belle Époque to the glitzy Roaring ’20s and the elegant New Look revolution following World War II.
Many of the garments on display appear courtesy of world-renowned Italian fashion professor and collector Raffaello Piraino, whose legendary collection, housed in Palermo, Italy, consists of more than 5,000 garments and accessories that belonged to the Sicilian aristocracy and bourgeoisie. Notable items from the SCAD Permanent Collection punctuate the exhibition.
And, for our local Atlanta friends, the SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film is accessible in the heart of Midtown and offers (bonus!) easy parking. While the “Threads of History” exhibit is included in general museum admission and is worth every penny, we’re thrilled to offer five you of a chance at winning free admission! Simply enter using the widget below and winners will be randomly selected on Monday, December 19th – good luck!!
We can’t wait to hear what you think of the exhibit, so please share a comment if you visit SCAD FASH or let us know next time you’re in the steve mckenzie’s showroom.
This year, we’re helping you cross off any and all recipients who may be remaining on your holiday gift list with our rundown of the top five gifts of 2016, currently available at steve mckenzie’s. No matter who they are, what they enjoy or what their age may be, there’s a fit for everyone on our 2016 top gifts list (and maybe a little something to gift yourself with as well :-))…
PUZZLES! Y’all, who doesn’t love a puzzle?! And this one just happens to feature holiday highlights from across the United States. We think this finished puzzle would even make a fun piece of seasonal wall art! Not to mention all of the fun that’ll be had putting these 1,000 pieces together. It’ll give and give for hours on end!
Acrylic Wine Glasses. We don’t have enough good things to say about these glasses! They’re gorgeous, first of all, and coming in at a close second is they’re virtually unbreakable AND dishwasher safe. While these glasses will add a beautifully refined touch to any celebration, we think the recipient on the other end of these glasses will be celebrating the glasses themselves!
Catchall tray. These fun lacquer coated fabric trays are like small works of art for your flat surfaces… They feature a Steve McKenzie’s work of art in an indigo loop pattern and because of pattern placement are all a bit different. Put on an entryway table, on a bedside console, even a dining room buffet, there are endless uses for these fantastic trays!!
Christmas serving plate and bowl set. Think Santa would mind enjoying a bit of crudité instead of cookies this year?? When served on this delightful set, we think not! Chips and dip, veggies and hummus, crackers and cheese and oh so much more will be thoroughly enjoyed this holiday season on such fun dishes!
A beautifully packaged, lusciously scented candle. A green fresh cut grass herbaceous blend, topped with a fruity bouquet, of citrus, bamboo, lilac, rose, clove and musk notes. If that scent description doesn’t make you want to run into the showroom and pick up five or six for your go-to gift stash, we don’t know what will! Plus, there’s no need to know a recipient’s size for this gift and after filling their home with a scrumptious scent, it’ll disappear!
And there you have it – steve mckenzie’s Top Gifts for 2016. So, we need to know… Which of these items would top your gift list?!?
Don’t forget, we offer complimentary gift wrapping, so we literally are a one-stop-shop for all of your holiday gifts this season. We look forward to seeing you in the steve mckenzie’s showroom soon!
If you follow steve mckenzie’s on other social media sites, you may have seen us mention Michelle Workman, a phenomenal interior designer, based out of Los Angeles and Chattanooga. Steve was recently commissioned to custom paint the walls in her space for the Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles 2016 Holiday House and we’ve been fortunate enough to get to know Michelle and her work over the last year and she’s an absolute talent! We hope you enjoy getting to know Michelle in this latest installment of our Tastemaker series…
Born in Los Angeles, California, Michelle’s penchant for the craft was almost immediately apparent. Some of her fondest childhood memories were of her mother chauffeuring her about the neighborhoods to take in the endless array of visually arresting homes. As a budding young designer, Michelle frequently took pleasure in envisioning and fashioning her very own custom designed forts.
Described by those who know her as an “easygoing perfectionist,” Michelle’s philosophy is that interior design should embody the spirit and architectural style of the individual whose home is being transformed – literally, a physical manifestation of the client’s most inherent attributes. Michelle’s signature style is a mingling of the modern and vintage. And her engaging personality, calming demeanor and exquisite attention-to-detail continually instill confidence in her clients as she brings into being for them their one-of-a-kind dream home.
1. Three words that describe your aesthetic?
Elegant, Glamorous, Exuberant
2. Would you please share a little about your favorite space/project to date?
Hmmmm. Not sure I have a favorite, each project is so unique and a new adventure, they all have aspects to them that are favored!
3. What’s the source(s) of your inspiration?
Usually the client is the inspiration, but when I do a showhouse or exhibition I make up a person that I want as a client and I design for them.
4. Name three people (alive or dead) you’d invite to your dream dinner party…
Marie Antoinette, I have so many questions for her, politically, but also she was a revolutionary when it came to style. Ginger Rogers, she seems like not only talented but down to earth and bubbly and wise.. I bet she would have great stories about old Hollywood. Alexa Hampton, she’s a great designer but is also very well read and knows everything about design and design history, and she’s one of the funniest people in our industry. I think that would be a lively dinner party!
5. A piece of/type of furniture you couldn’t live without?
A chair. and another chair, and two more chairs, and then one more chair. I like chairs… oh and lamps too.
6. Do you follow a particular set of rules when mixing textures, finishes, etc. – how do they work for you?
I work very hard to bring disparate elements into harmony, the overriding rule is balance.
7. Trending… What is something you are currently “into” and something you are “over?”
Into… ART DECO. Over… gray and beige and taupe, drab, drab, drab.
8. How does artwork fit into your designs?
I try to use local and emerging artists. I love to get original pieces for clients even if they are not investment grade – I like to support young new artists this way.
9. What would be the one thing you would have if you were stranded on a deserted island?
A kindle with wifi.
10. Please share a piece of advice you’d offer to someone looking to break into the interior design industry.
Avail yourself of museums, and historic tours, and anything that will show you the finer things in life. Try to find things for your clients that are unique and one of a kind… not from big box stores.
Thank you Michelle! It’s been such a pleasure working with you and being a part of your outstanding designs!!
This is our third “Best Of” award (previously named Best Tabletop and Best Home Accessories) and we can tell you we are just as – if not more – excited for this award as before…
It is an exceptional feeling to be recognized for being the best at something in our industry, which, especially in the Atlanta area, has an unmatched array of amazing home decor, interior design specialty gift shops. At the winner’s reception we were in amazing company with local favorites such Bjork Studio, DIXON RYE, RedefinedHome Boutique and Cover Books. Simply outstanding.
Thank you to Atlanta Magazine for recognizing all we do and for gracing steve mckenzie’s with such a wonderful honor!
