Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/126364
SIMON GENTRY FULTON DAVENPORT D ATELINE CAT SPRING. I found a farm for the summer, and it's all I thought it would be. I'm rediscovering stars, frogs and crickets, dew, sunsets (I have not rediscovered sunrises), crowing roosters, spiderwebs and beautiful natural grasses. I was very lucky to be able to lease this slice of heaven from a wonderful friend, Elizabeth Moore Arnold. She named it Panther Farm, although we have not seen panthers — only deer, hogs, squirrels and one copperhead that so terrified the horse I was riding that he threw me and galloped off to the barn. I wanted to do the same. The farm is like a Seinfeld episode … it's about nothing. We might have a beer on Saturday afternoon at Cat Spring "Country Club." (You'll see a photograph of this in a fall issue of PaperCity — an age-old gas station and ice house.) On Friday nights, they have a fish fry there, which I understand is very social. I coerced our PaperCity delivery-van driver, Bryan, to deliver a huge gas grill to the farm, but we eat out there as much as we do in Houston. Buffalo Creek Winery, a few miles from Cat Spring, is a favorite at sunset, where you can sit on a covered P aperCity's role for our clients is simple: We help grow brands and sell merchandise. But, boy, has the process in the retailing world been turned on its head by the internet. A recent article on CNN. com called "Will 'Showrooming' Kill Businesses?" caught my attention. Seems there is a growing trend whereby consumers waltz into retail stores, take pictures of items they are coveting, ask salespeople questions, touch and feel merchandise, then leave and search online for the same item to purchase — hopefully at a lower cost or for easier delivery. One store owner said he knows this is happening when he gets a call from someone who asks for an exact style name or item number — he knows they are typing the information into a search engine! Shame on that customer. Stores provide a retail experience. Beautiful, well-merchandised stores provide a respite from the outside world and allow you to dream of what that couch, dress or TV may mean in your life. "Retail therapy" deck; or Carol's for dinner; Galileo's near Bellville for the best Tex-Mex I have ever had; and Royer's in Round Top, because everyone goes there. The children, Ben and Olivia, put pennies on train tracks — so many, in fact, that I lie awake at night worried that the train will skid off the tracks. They ride around in the Kubota and put out deer corn and Pig Out pig food and strap infrared cameras to tree trunks to see the deer and pigs feed at night. The next morning showed only the horses and a donkey stealing the goods. I've planted flowers and tomatoes, visited Rachel Ashwell's new bed and breakfast, The Prairie, in Round Top, and Ben goes covey counting with Mr. Bob Moore, an unofficial ambassador of Cat Spring. I was amazed at the untouched natural grasses and wildflowers on this property, and now I know why. Mr. Moore and many others have done an amazing job with the local Wildlife Habitat Federation. More late-breaking news from the farm in August. To the Holly Moore, editor in chief holly@papercitymag.com JULY 2012 | STYLE | FASHION | SOCIAL COLLECTION KENWOOD HOUSE, ENGLISH HERITAGE; COURTESY AMERICAN FEDERATION OF ARTS in this ISSUE 4 , 6 P O P. C U LT U R E . G O S S I P. 8 10 Party: Dallas Art Fair Preview Gala Style: Summer Olympic Style 13 18 Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams Too Sexy Sadie chair PC House + Art Decoration: Obsessions for the home Manor Born House: Renea Abbott and Greg Manteris' Lake Austin getaway Calendar Call We've begun harvesting our list of must-attend fund-raisers for PaperCity's Fall Social Calendar, covering the brisk months of September through December. Please submit all the essential details for your charitable tickets — event name; day, date and starting time; chairmen, honorary chairs and honorees; beneficiary; party notes (caterer, theme, attire, special appearances, entertainment); ticket and table starting prices; and contact info, including phone, e-mail address and Web site to Erin Oppenheim, erin@papercitymag.com, no later than Tuesday, July 10. Thomas Gainsborough's Mary, Countess Howe, circa 1764, at MFAH — hello? Don't cut out the merchant who provided that for you. Maybe brick-andmortar stores will need to offer "We'll match internet pricing" or "Same delivery as Amazon." Or, maybe customers will have the courage to honor the service that is being provided and buy from the store. Recently, on a lazy Sunday and after several bloody Marys at Joe's, I was wandering the chic fashion and design shops on Abbot Kinney in Venice Beach with a decorator friend of mine (yes, there's much more to Venice Beach than tattoo parlors and Muscle Beach). In one cool interior shop, my friend lingered, took pictures of a couch and other items, and directed a lot of questions to the salesgirl. I thought this was research for a client. But was it …? Jim Kastleman, publisher jim@papercitymag.com The treasures of the great London estate Kenwood House (remodeled in the 18th century by Robert Adam) have arrived at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. It's an embarrassment of riches: 48 masterpieces culled by Guinness brewery kingpin Edward Cecil Guinness, aka 1st Earl of Iveagh, and acquired during the late 19th century in a fierce collecting contest between the earl and American gilded-age tycoons with names such as Frick, Rothschild and Morgan. It's the first transatlantic crossing for most of these canvases, and they begin their American tour in Houston while Kenwood gets a redux. This is really two shows in one. The magnificent action begins with iconic Dutch and Flemish canvases, including van Dyck's 1634 portrait of Princess Henrietta of Lorraine and Rembrandt's sublime self-portrait, circa 1665, presenting the artist with his palette and brushes (this celebrated Rembrandt stopped at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for its own show before coming to the MFAH). Then in the next room, some of the greatest hits of British Grand Manner portraiture make an unforgettable entrance. Starring 18th-century femmes captured by Gainsborough, Romney and Reynolds in fashionable splendor — from their frocks' diaphanous lacy embellishments to the latest in up-dos and millinery — they bring together both regal noblewomen and racy types who rocked polite society, such as Emma Hart, paramour of Admiral Nelson, and bewitching courtesan Kitty Fisher. "Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Gainsborough: The Treasures of Kenwood House, London," through September 3, at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Beck Building, 713.639.7300; mfah.org. Catherine D. Anspon Be a Bendel Girl Mamma Mia, Mamma Mia! Mia's, 3131 Argonne St., 713.522.6427; miastable.com From the Houston native who gave us his namesake Carrabba's Italian Grill (before spinning it into the hugely successful coast-to-coast chain) comes Mia's — a fun, casual eatery a stone's throw from Carrabba's original River Oaks location on Kirby. Poised under the shade of a grand old oak tree, Mia's (named for owner Johnny Carrabba's daughter and designed by Eubanks Group Architects) serves up hearty portions of tasty down-home fare such as mighty cheese-, hickory-smoked and buffalo burgers; addictive fried-chicken baskets served with jalapeño gravy; hand-dipped corn dogs; and, "From the Lil' Red Smoker," pulled pork and chicken sandwiches, plus barbecue ribs. Not quite what you'd expect from the man who gained fame on the red-sauce circuit, is it? Serve-yourself sodas and drinks (save for the shakes and beer) make it easy for mumsy and daddy Johnny Carrabba III with daughter Mia and son Johnny IV to let the kiddos seek some independence, while the wraparound front porch and nostalgic air make the concept seem as rooted in the community as the old oaks shading the two-story structure. Laurann Claridge Henri Bendel, Galleria, 713.439.7462; henribendel.com New York City's famed Fifth Avenue boutique Henri Bendel has opened at Galleria 2, next door to French Connection. The 2,000-square-foot shop, designed like a chic uptown girl's boudoir with charming chandeliers and chocolate and white bold-striped wallpaper, carries accessories from handbags and jewelry to beauty products and gifts, with a bevy of items emblazoned with the store's iconic stripes. We scooped up colorful enamel bangle bracelets (from $78) and oversized cocktail rings (from $68) — perfect to pair with warm-weather dresses — plus luggage tags for summer sojourns (from $28) and scented candles (from $30) from the extensive home-fragrance collection, all making for a wonderful girl kingdom. Kate Stukenberg JULY | PAGE 4 | 2012