Thursday, May 10, 2012

Cinema Style: Design Cues from Dark Shadows! Part II

CINEMA STYLE: DESIGN CUES FROM DARK SHADOWS!  When the sun starts to set, the light begins to play tricks with your eyes -- is it blue, is it green, is it cream, white or gray on the walls of Collinwood Manor?  That's why we love the fabulous range of unique paint colors from Farrow & Ball (1), a company that handcrafts their paints in the Dorset countryside of England (about 186 miles south of Liverpool -- where Barnabas Collins and his family set sail from in 1752 to come to Maine!). Luscious "Cook's Blue," "Castle Gray" and "Cornforth White" (shown here) are a great combination to start with in transforming your interiors into something much more interesting, shall we say? And only 194 miles from Liverpool, you'll find the quaint seaside town of Bournemouth where Nancy Beardall, proprietor of 19th Century Tailoring (2) (formerly for Sutlers) has spent the past 12 years researching, replicating, designing and making authentic uniforms and costumes -- and she creates a wide range of striking period clothing, indeed.  You'll note that Johnny Depp's Inverness Cape in the photo above is a bit tattered (after spending all those centuries in a coffin, no doubt!) -- but Beardall will fashion a spiffy Triple Cape Coat (shown here) just for you that will make Barnabas envious of its genuine detailing and materials.  And we've searched high and low for an heirloom quality frame for that mirror or family portrait -- and we voted for the completely hand-carved, burnished silver leaf Borghesi mirror (3) from Phyllis Morris in West Hollywood -- it's massive and it weighs a ton (we like that!) and it can be customized in any way you'd like (goth it up completely!) -- a keeper for generations of vampires and mortals to come! Perfect for showing off while you take that promenade around the manor grounds are the Barnabas Collins onyx ring and alpaca silver cane (4) that will make you feel timeless and ageless. Don't tell anyone (and we know you always keep a secret!), but we at Studio of Style bought a Barnabas Collins ring many years ago -- and it's fun to take out of its box every now and then and slip it on the index finger of our right hand (that's a must!).  Keep reading below....
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