Category Archives: Business

Pictures of Gardens-I

Next week 1818 West 35th Street (Austin) that was once home of GARDENS will become GILDA GRACE a dress shop and lifestyle store. I thought it would be fun to share some images of GARDENS where I worked from 1999 – 2005 as the visual merchandiser, retail manager, and buyer. It was a wonderful place to go to work everyday. The other night I was introduced to Nere Emiko, the proprietor of GILDA GRACE and it sounds like she will infuse the space with a new creative spirit.

The shop was filled with bulbs potted in beautiful vessels… the staff wrapped lovely packages with simple paper and twine and a little silk ribbon.
Special letter press note cards in a steel tray on a teak bench…
James David and Gary Peese intertwined their lives with the business… adventuring, exploring, and bringing back beautiful objects to sell.
I have had these little mice since I was a very young… sometimes they would sneak in front of the camera!
A beautiful Magnolia blossoming in the nursery…

A Picture of Gardens- II

The bath area was home to amazing scents… Santa Maria Novella from Italy, oils and cremes from France in beautiful glass bottles, and lovely candles….
This table was set in front of the picture window… James found this amazing spot light that added great drama…
Gary loved his orchids and would bring in lovely specimens that we would place in vessels such as jade bowls, thick glass hurricanes, or resin boxes…
Mell Lawrence designed the shop when it was ultimately remodeled. The furniture in the shop was for sale and would always be reconfigured in the shop to create a dynamic space. Customers would love to come in on a weekly or bi-monthly basis and experience the shop or nursery in a different light. The shop was always fresh and new feeling…
About this time every year we would be busy receiving merchandise, much of it from Europe, and having great fun merchandising the store and nursery. It was an intense job but one that I never tired of. It was always paramount that the store was exquisite and full of life and energy balanced by simplicity and tranquility. I loved that combination and find that it is what one should always strive for in design.

A Picture of Gardens- III

GARDENS was a place where one could spend a few dollars on a wooden spoon from Southern France or $20,000 on a beautifully crafted table from Belgium or a wooden toy truck from Germany…
Playing with color and themes… chop sticks, bamboo trays, incense and tea, little mirrors with Asian emperors…
Enameled dinnerware in sunny and sky colors from a Brooklyn designer on a French farmhouse table…
Display case near the register holding a combination of glass from England, porcelain tea pots and bowls…
The ‘kitchen area’ was home to teas and chocolates from around the world, fine linens, plastic plates, copper cookware, danish kitchen accessories…

Well… there you have it… 3 posts to fit these pictures in… I wasn’t very good at narrowing them down. It is always fun for me to revisit these images. Working at GARDENS was a great chapter on many fronts. As I started out saying, I am so happy the beautiful space will be vibrant once again.