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JULY/AUGUST | PAGE 21 | 2016 D an & Joseph's studio is located in the back room of Steffen's 1920s Oak Cliff bungalow, which acts as a cozy, colorful backdrop for their leather goods. In the front room, a kaleidoscope of wacky fascinators dangle from the ceiling like a Calder mobile, and there are styled displays of structured handbags and eccentric top hats. In the living room, pink and orange patent-leather Dan & Joseph pillows are piled on the sofa, and prototypes for leather bears perch on tables. The house is a groovy salon of sorts, a place for artists, friends and style-makers — such as Sam Saladino, Ken Downing, Colby McWilliams and Rob Dailey, who live nearby — to stream in and out, often lingering into the night, sipping cocktails or sampling fruit tarts or pies Rodriguez makes from scratch from figs, pecans and plums growing in the backyard. In April, artist Samantha McCurdy helped turn the house into an art installation by painting it pink. "Pink House" was inspired by a vibrant frock by Isa Arfen, which McCurdy saw at TenOverSix, where she works. She's created five monochromatic pieces to go with the show, and they hang throughout the house, along with works by artist, Gina Garza, and the Dan & Joseph collection. "Pink House" will remain up until the end of August, with a short reprieve in July for a pop-up in New York City of McCurdy's works and Dan & Joseph's leather goods. "We plan to roll out other pop-ups in the coming seasons in Chicago, L.A., San Francisco — all the major markets where we already have established connections with artists and clients," Steffen says. "It's a fun way to get our brand out there and get people talking." Dan & Joseph is poised to go bigger. "We're talking to investors about taking the brand to the next level with a national retail and wholesale presence," says Steffen. "It can't just always be the two of us hand-sewing hats and bears in a back room." They are mum for now on whom the investors might be, but if all goes as planned, their new national venture will launch in August 2017. Top hats and fascinators may not be for everybody, but Dan & Joseph targets an artistic, cool crowd of people who might spend as much on a fun accessory as they do on a work of art. We'll tip our hats to that. Above: In the living room, the brass trunks were vintage market finds. Vintage onyx and 14K-gold- plated Italian telephone belonged to Steffen's grandmother. Rabbit-fur and lambskin teddy bear, $1,200. Vintage chair with Dan & Joseph patent-leather pillow, $175. Gina Garza artwork, $1,800. Joseph Steffen, holding his Pomeranian Cha Cha, wears a Dan & Joseph sequined police cap, $425. Dan Rodriguez with a Dan & Joseph Day-Glo orange patent-leather top hat, $550. Artwork from Samantha McCurdy's "Snugs" series, $5,000. Right: Dan & Joseph Trellis fascinators, $500. Far right: In the entry is an artwork from Samantha McCurdy's "Snugs" series, $2,500. At the Pink House opening party, L.A. artist Rachel P. Harris wears a Dan & Joseph fascinator, $375. In a hallway leading to the studio, the 19th-century French mirror is an estate-sale find. One of a pair of elephant urns, which were brought back by Steffen's grandfather from India. The sofa in the living room was discovered by Sam Saladino and re-covered in pink floral fabric as a play on Diana Vreeland's "garden in hell." Vintage lamps and tables. Dan & Joseph pink and orange patent-leather pillows, $175 to $595.