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E ver since we met the charming Christopher Gardner, life partner of MFAH director Gary Tinterow, we've been waiting for him to reopen his antiques biz that once held court in Manhattan and Bridgehampton. At last, the wait is over: Gardner has unveiled one of the most original antique stops in our city, Gardner & Barrow Ltd. There is no Mr. Barrow; the name is borrowed from a 19th-century woodblock print that serves as the shop logo. Don't expect dusty relics and the ghosts of ages past in this light-washed 2,500-square-foot Southampton space that was previously home to Pattywhacks and Joni (which have relocated farther down the street). Gardner breathes new life into finds culled from history, staging vignettes around disarming, unexpected motifs. The front room beckons with a striped wall in serene sage green (Farrow & Ball Vert de Terre); here, seashells — especially the nautilus — accompany furnishings and art of a faintly nautical bent. A collection of Eiffel towers holds court in another nook. The Sunset-side gallery pairs early Texas painted furniture with a collection of Indian textiles, including exquisitely embroidered caftans and scarves with ombre motifs worthy of Rothko. Paintings are deployed throughout the space to great effect, especially portraits that evoke the drawing-room glamour of a Noel Coward play; the effect is summed up by an untitled work that's rumored to be an early portrait of British novelist E.M. Forster. Everything is arranged with a minimalist eye for the beauty of each piece, inviting the 17th through early 20th centuries to dialogue with today. Our favorite finds are a florid Burmantofts faience jardenière that once graced a Victorian conservatory; a regal 19th-century painted Scandinavian kas, offered at $2,800; a delicate still life of nasturtiums ($650); a stone dolphin from a late-19th-century fountain; a child's double Adirondack chair, circa 1910 ($750); and a Shaker pie stand that doubles as a modernist sculpture. As for their curator, Gardner honed his accomplished eye in New York, London, Munich and Hannover (he was sales manager for Ralph Lauren Home in the latter two). His arrival in the retail design community brings a sense of enlightened discovery to our antiques trade. Egalitarian pricing means that everyone can tote home a treasure, such as the tiny metal mailbox we spotted in the portrait room; modeled after the full-sized U.S. Postal Service classic, it was a mere $75. Needless to say, we can't wait to return. Catherine D. Anspon MAX BURKHALTER JENNY ANTILL ANTIQUES RESTAGED POLIFORM POLLINATES WEST AVE Gardner & Barrow Ltd., 1712 Sunset Blvd., 646.824.7283, gardnerandbarrow.com Renovate, 7413 Westview, 713.269.4417, renovatehou.com Our newest design discovery is the close-in neighborhood of Spring Branch, where Renovate's 800 square-foot carriage house is a Mecca for home furnishings charmingly transformed by a coat of hand-rubbed paint or the application of lacquer. Rustic turn-of-the- century display cases found at Round Top take a stand alongside paintings by Houston up-and-comers and an array of baskets, pottery, garden statuary and handsome lamps, including one fashioned from oyster shells. But this is more than a retail destination. Behind Renovate's beautiful leaded-glass entry is the design-practice HQ of Cathy Robinson, who's been in the interiors biz for 20 years. Her daughter, Courtney Prochaska (a veteran of the Bush White House and Teach for America), directs marketing and convivially oversees the showroom, which is set to double in size this May, adding square footage currently occupied by a landscape architect. But the best calling card for Renovate may be Robinson's own home: a Memorial neo-Georgian manse, which she transformed into a serene aerie via Round Top and Marburger finds, family furnishings tweaked with paint and linen-swathed upholstery, well chosen 19th-century architectural embellishments and textured plaster walls the hue of French bread — all hallmarks of her design practice. (Scroll to papercitymag.com for this featured home, coming this month). Catherine D. Anspon RUSTIC+ POLISHED IN SPRING BRANCH In the coming weeks, watch for the big reveal of Poliform, marking the Italian brand's first freestanding showroom in Texas. Its new home is well positioned: a prime, approximately 3,000 square- foot interior corner at West Ave — yet another design arrival in the shopping enclave's increasingly home tilted mix. Brittany and Adam Branscum of Ligne Roset, upstairs neighbor to the new Poliform, are among the dynamic forces behind this new design destination, which showcases furnishings, light fixtures, Gaggenau and Miele appliances and the innovative, timeless storage systems that are Poliform's calling card. LEED-certified designer Carolina Bobadilla serves as showroom manager. Watch these pages for more details next month. Catherine D. Anspon M att Camron Rugs & Tapestries' new Midcentury Modern flat- weave collection is inspired by iconic patterns and designs from the Bauhaus era, "recolored to make them brighter and more fun," says creative director Sarah Tringhese, whose father, Matt Camron, founded the company more than 30 years ago. In lieu of dark earth tones, you'll see cheerful yellows, reds, blues, pinks and oranges. Hand-woven in Egypt and Afghanistan, these flat- weaves have the casual esprit of a cotton dhurrie or Kilim, but their 100 percent wool fibers are thicker, making the rugs lay better on the floor, Tringhese says. Custom sizes and colors available, with a zippy 10-week turnaround time for an 14' x 8' rug. $2,800 to $5,600, at Matt Camron Rugs & Tapestries, mattcamron.com. Rebecca Sherman WOW-HAUS! E nigmatic Belgian deconstructionist Maison Martin Margiela has expanded its elegantly eccentric reach into wallcoverings. Teaming up with the Belgian wallpaper brand Omexco, Margiela's collection of five patterns incorporates the label's signature poetic, avant-garde qualities. Shape, volume, time, materials and reality are manipulated with trompe l'oeil, optical illusions and the exploitation of recognizable patterns and images. For instance, Paésine was developed from limestone spotted at a flea market, photographed, enlarged and printed on mica dust. Mosaïque is a traditional geometric, marble mosaic print inspired by 18th- century marquetry and enhanced with silver or gold leaf. Rideau is an arrestingly beautiful tromp l'oeil of a staircase winding upwards to the unknown. Point de Croix depicts a dramatic repeat of oversize bouquet of flowers, while Optique is amusingly described as "a deformed herringbone motif with an optical illusion." Optique, Rideau, Point de Croix $60 per meter; Paesine $1,000 per panel, through ROMO, Inc., which owns Omexco; order through Culp Associates, culpassociates.com. Rebecca Sherman WE'VE COME UNDONE Christopher Gardner at Gardner & Barrow Ltd. Cathy Robinson and Courtney Prochaska A Renovate interior Matt Camron Mid-Century Modern flat-weave collection Rideau, by Maison Martin Margiela