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DECORATION Dutch MASTER During the golden era of cabinetmakers (the 18th and early 19th centuries), England had Sheraton, Chippendale and Hepplewhite — but on American shores, the name to know was Duncan Phyfe. From 1792 to 1847, this Scottish immigrant plied his craft in Lower Manhattan, operating a factory and showroom on Fulton Street. Fashionable Phyfe furnishings — Phyfe & Sons' Grecian Bedstead, 1841. Collection handcrafted from exquisite hardwoods The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC. and veneers including satinwood and rosewood, often with gilding — garnered his firm commissions ranging from Southern plantation Millford in Pine Woods, South Forma Revivo Carolina, to the august du Pont family. Yet this renowned designer's work was last showcased in a museum retrospective 90 years ago, when the Metropolitan Museum his is not your mid-century of of Art highlighted his early-19th-century Grecian styles. (That 1922 exhibition birthed aqua, boomerang tables and kitsch a new industry for finely honed reproductions and a penchant for all things Phyfe, plastique. Instead, Forma Revivo — from his trademark lyre-back chair to his splay-legged dining table with its emphatic the newly opened-to-the-public '50s pedestal base.) Now you can see Phyfe's craftsmanship in a new retrospective at the and 60s furnishings destination — Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The biggest surprises here are Phyfe's original tool offers a sleek, serious and clubby take kit and his dramatic high-post bedstead, as well as stylistic discoveries such as his on the golden decades of the 20th extravagant archaeological pieces, whose ornamentation, gilding, hand-painting and century when master cabinetmakers in Scandinavia stenciling mirror the excesses of the Empire period. The show is co-organized by the and America ruled. The resulting beautifully MFAH and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where Phyfe originally had his day; the restrained creations made sitting, lounging, dining Dutch Small co-curator is Bayou Bend Collection's Michael Brown, whose decorative-arts career and cocktailing art forms in themselves. Forma began with a thesis on Phyfe for the University of Delaware Winterthur Program. Revivo's man at the top, Dutch Small, has a coastEight years in the making, this presentation and its catalog (Metropolitan Museum to-coast following, thanks to his connections with a Manhattan gallery that represents his of Art, $65) offer a fresh take on America's most celebrated furniture-maker and finds, as well as a celebrity clientele ranging from Naeem Khan to Wes Anderson. What may spark yet another Phyfe revival. "Duncan Phyfe: Master Cabinetmaker in New makes Small's curated stock stellar is his astute eye combined with ongoing research, and York," through September 9, at the MFAH, Beck Building, 713.639.7300; mfah.org. the careful restoration of each piece to museum perfection before it's offered for sale. Catherine D. Anspon Armed with a wealth of information about the finest designers of the era, he specializes in rare masters such as Hans Wegner, Harvey Probber, T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Edward Wormley and Milo Baughman (the latter, showcased in an August exhibition) in lieu of the brilliant but ubiquitous Eames. Thus, his ambitious 3,500-square-foot space, designed by Barbara Hill at David Adickes' SculpturWorx complex (entrance on Crockett Street), promises to be a hot showplace for the authentically modern and significant Wrinkles do add character. (price points $150 to $32,000). And did we mention Small's family ties? His career was Cappellini's ingenious new meant to be: Maternal grandfather Allen Newby did custom work for the King — Elvis, Garment club chair has a that is — restoring Graceland's over-the-top furnishings and interiors. 2500 Crockett St., single piece of textile loosely 713.936.0762; formarevivo.com. Inaugural show: "Form, Fiber, Finish — An Exhibition of folded around a distinctive Important Mid-Century Design" (through July). Catherine D. Anspon geometric molded-polyurethane foam form. The construction and loose handkerchief cover allow for creases to become part of the character of the chair. The cover can be easily removed and interchanged, based on season or fashion. Varying fabrics available; chair and cover $4,079, at Internum. Holly Moore JENNY ANTILL JENNY ANTILL PHYFE & Drum (Table) T Chair JENNY ANTILL DESIGN Buzz JENNY ANTILL DRESS Kirby and Company If you've driven West Alabama lately, searching for clever home-design finds on what's become a trove of house-centered shops, you've probably noticed a new shingle at 2027 West Alabama. Dennis Brackeen, Linda Chan, Blake Karambis and Jenna McPhail — who own Kirby and Company just next door at 2031 West Alabama — have moved their design offices here. They also use part of the 1,900 square feet as more showroom space for overflows from Kirby and Company, including a chic mix of contemporary, vintage and antique pieces … Monsour Taghdisi, president of Prestige Builders, unveils a design showhouse next spring. Working in tandem with decorating wiz Lucinda Loya and her eponymous firm, the duo will outfit a 5,000-square-foot contemporary town house in Tanglewood built by Prestige. The opening party will benefit Legacy Community Services, a nonprofit that provides low- or no-cost health services to those in need. For more details, go to presigebuildersinc.com. Laurann Claridge Dividing its ROOTS IN TWO Boxwood Interiors, 1839 W. Alabama, 713.528.1501; B2, 1320 W. Alabama, 832.582.8785 boxwoodhouston.com For six years, Bret Duhon and his sister Mimi Wadsworth have been entrenched in the Houston design community, running their stylish home shop, Boxwood Interiors, on Dunlavy. Now that the original location is being redeveloped into a retail/residential center, the duo has divided Boxwoods and is re-envisioning the store in two separate locales. An intimate space at 1839 West Alabama retains the Boxwoods name, as well as home furnishings, lighting, pillows and accessories galore, all arranged in fetching vignettes. This space also stocks the famed Farrow Mimi Wadsworth, Bret Duhon at Boxwood Interiors & Ball paints (last year, Boxwood was named the British brand's number-one stocking dealer in the States). Just down the road at 1320 West Alabama, a sister shop known as B2 is situated in a former convenience store and the house behind it. Here you'll find a new design center created as a spread-out-your-project resource to help decorating-minded shoppers find everything from fabrics to wallpaper, with customization of lamps, pillows, painted furniture and upholstery. Laurann Claridge