MILIEU Summer 2021

In the spirit of summer, we wanted to treat you, our readers, to another imaginative story produced by our European Style Editor, Katrin Cargill, and her creative team of Simon Brown, photographer, and Harald Altmaier, floral designer. The idea for this editorial shoot started with a classic tea towel and hand-painted dishes. From there it blossomed as Katrin selected tableware and tea towels from manufacturers, retailers, and antiques dealers all over the world. She and her team fabricated curtains, slipcovers, table skirts, and bedding using the various tea towels, yet she also kept the towels in the form intended for their original use: to dry washed dishes. Katrin shared a live video with us as her team feverishly transformed the original Plain English Kitchen studio, which is now their headquarters, into a…

Fern Santini Fern Santini opened her namesake design firm in 1993 in Austin, Texas, specializing in residential interior design. In addition to projects she has completed across the country, she founded Fern Santini Collaborative three years ago, which focuses on building and completely furnishing custom-curated homes that are later put on the market. The first project, 3705 Meadowbank, in Austin, went on the market last April. Beth Webb Beth Webb is an internationally recognized designer admired for her tactile, serene, and dynamic spaces. Founder and creative director of Atlanta-based Beth Webb Interiors, her body of work is known for its sophisticated and inviting appeal, which is predicated foremost on the desire to foster a sense of well-being. Webb’s work reflects a worldly point of view informed by her wide travels. A veteran of…

BIG EFFECTS Kathryn Ireland thinks big. Really big. Think sky and ocean big. As the Los Angeles–based interior designer says of her new textile collection, Sur La Plage, “I am inspired by big—big prints, big colors.” While conceiving the new textile line, Ireland said she had set out to visit a variety of beach towns on both coasts of America, with a special focus on Maine and Cape Cod, Big Sur and Carmel. In describing the new cotton and linen collection, composed of four lines—Lilac, Bamboo, Leaves, Northaven—she says, “The blues I take from the big skies in California, the greens from my hikes in the state parks. My life is all about summer, but then again who doesn’t feel inspired by long balmy nights, sitting outside with friends while eating,…

The world has changed, and the way we travel has changed. After months of relative isolation, many of us are hungry for a change of scenery, trying to imagine a vacation that still allows for some social distance. What the options we’ve suggested here all have in common is the opportunity to experience the soothing beauty and tranquility of nature, with all its renewing and restorative power. These locales also offer the novelty of lodging in an unusual structure, each one integrated into an environment where you might not expect fine linens, Wi-Fi, and a minibar. These destinations offer a wholly different experience than perhaps any you’ve had before. And whichever option you choose—and whether you plan to travel with family or alone—this is definitely not your typical camping trip. TENTS Under…