I spent a glorious 3 days in New York City at the end of March with some new friends! I go to the City about 4-6 times a year but this trip was different and I absolutely adored it!! I had the pleasure of being invited on the fantastic tour of New York by Steven Nobel, industry consultant, via my friend and LA designer, Fernando Diaz. Thanks Fernando! The lovely Plaza Athenee was the home base for our talented group of designers but we were hardly there because our experience was jam-packed with art, culture, design and fun!

Design in New York began with a tour of Christie’s Auction House and a lecture in the Christie’s board room by author David Garrard Lowe on Beaux Arts and Art Deco Architecture in New York.  The charming lecture was full of David’s great sense of humor and anecdotes about the society folks of New York during that time period including the Rockefellers and the Vanderbilts. We then proceeded to a private showing of the collection that was going on the Christie’s block a few days later followed by a lovely lunch at Rockefeller Center across the street, one of the most notable examples of art deco architecture in New York.

Our group included Suzanne Furst, Fernando Diaz and Connie McCreight all of Los Angeles, Kelly Proxmire of Washington, D.C., Alicia Shearer of New Jersey,Fabric Designer Laury Barnes of Newport Beach, Kips Bay Alum Michael McKinnonof New York, and Louise Neyer of Palm Desert.

A guided tour by Steve Nobel of the MOMA was next on the agenda, and even though most of us have seen these amazing works of art many times,  it is amazing how you always see something new or get a fresh inspiration by visiting the MOMA again.

33 variations, the spectacular Moises Kaufman play staring Jane Fonda, capped off the evening.  This amazing performance about Beethoven’s 33 variations on Diabelli’s symphony was one of the best shows I have ever seen.  As is the trend on Broadway these days, 33 variations had a very limited run and I am sad that many, many more people were not able to see this extraordinary play!! I had the fun experience of sitting just a few rows behind the great fashion designer Diane Von Furstenberg.

Day 2 of Design in New York began with a private tour of the Frick Museum, followed by browsing the gorgeous antique shops on the upper East Side and lunch at the Asia Society. Of course I squeezed in a little bit of shoe shopping at the Louboutin shop on Madison Avenue!!

An informative tour of the New York School of Interior Design followed lunch.  We were greeted by Robert Kaner an alumni of NYSID whose work was part of a stellar alumni exhibition on display at the school.  The impressive body of work includes many nationally published interior and furniture designers.

A private cocktail reception that evening at the Chanel Boutique on Madison was tres chic! We were greeted with champagne while the lovely staff gave us an interesting presentation on the design of the boutique and how it was inspired by Coco Chanel’s Paris apartment.  Next we were permitted to try on selections from the Chanel fine jewelry line.  I tried on a fantastic pearl star burst broach that sells for just under $200,000 and then fell in love with a camilia design pearl ring that was a mere $25,000.

Dining by Design was a fun highlight of Day 2.  We were hosted at the Event by Kravet Fabrics who had a gorgeous table full of bright and cheerful indoor and outdoor fabrics. I loved seeing several of my New York designer friends at the event and a few others from across the country like Barclay Butera from Los Angeles.

And on the agenda for Dinner, the superb David Burke Townhouse on 63rd street. I have eaten here many times and it is always still a treat.  Mary Kindel Libby from Christie’s joined us for dinner and was a joy to say the least. Her personality is infectious and I am just sad that I was not seated near her at dinner so I could have heard more about her amazing life experiences!!

The final day of design in New York culminated in a Business Forum at the Decoration and Design Building. The dozen or so participants in Design in New York came together to share ideas, business practices and goals! There is nothing like sharing ideas with a group of your peers for finding new inspiration.  A beautiful lunch was catered for us by Kravet from Balthazar, my favorite SoHo eatery, and we loved browsing the gorgeous Kravet showroom. Thanks to Kravet for being such a big part of our lovely few days in the city.

After lunch we were introduced to a few showrooms by New York Designer Michael McKinnon. Some of these  were not on my radar screen but now are some of my favorite new resources including Orley and Shabahang rug company.  Last but certainly not least was a lovely champagne and desert reception for us at the Bernardaud China Showroom.  Here we were able to hear about all the custom options for lighting, and accessories that are available from the French tabletop company.

To read more about Design in New York visit Steve Nobel’s blog for Kravet called Inspired Talk and if you are a designer and want to be part of similar experience in New York City contact Steve for more information. Design in New York was certainly an inspirational experience for me!! Thank you Steve Nobel, I look forward to exploring more of the World’s most interesting cities with you in the future!