Today, the remarkably talented James Swan graces us with a heartfelt piece about the importance of caring for ourselves. Hi genuine eloquence is always a breath of fresh air to us here at Pandora de Balthazár Lifestyle. James is the brilliant mind behind Million Dollar Decorating, which is simultaneously a treasure trove of design advice and a peek into the lifestyles of some of our industry’s movers and shakers. His vision provides one of those rare experiences that those of us who live lives devoted to the field crave. A remark he made sparked a dialogue between us—leading to this piece—and we are so thrilled he agreed to share his philosophy about how important it is to care about the...
This is the first diary entry in our series showcasing design talent. Today we've chosen to feature North Carolina-based designer Leigh Jones, who exemplifies the talent exceptional designers have for placing very fine things in their clients’ homes and commercial spaces. This makes the name of her storefront and studio, The Very Thing, Ltd, so apropos. Her auspiciously refined destination, located at 2100 South Church Street in Burlington, has been a fixture in the community since 1926 when it was founded as the Neese-Shoffner Furniture Company. Quickly developing a reputation as the Piedmont area's premier furniture store, the company sold some of the region’s finest home furnishings and accessories until it was revamped in 1974. The reinvention included renaming the business and...
Charleston, South Carolina-based interior designer Amelia Handegan begins the introduction of her beautiful book, simply titled Rooms and published by Rizzoli, with this anecdote that provides ample insight into her talents: “One of my clients would frequently question my reasons for choosing a specific color palette or certain furnishings or textiles for his home. Eventually, he stopped asking. ‘Get back to me after you put on your swami hat,’ he started staying, ‘because I know you can’t explain it.’” The Tranquil Sophistication of Amelia Handegan Handegan admits to always having been more of a visually connected person as opposed to a verbal one, not a surprise given that when powerful interior design succeeds, it does so through the intuited visual...
