THE 40/40 CLUB...

I was pleasantly surprised to find a picture of me and my daughter Courtney (r) with Kimberly Ward (c) of Pink Eggshell Blog at the African American Top 20 Designers Event held at the 40/40 Club in NYC last May. (Click here to see my post on that event.)

Most people know that the 40/40 Club is owned by hip hop mogul Jay-Z and his partner Juan Perez.  The club made headlines recently when Jay-Z and Beyonce hosted a fundraiser for President Obama's reelection campaign a few weeks ago. Opened in June 2003 and renovated 2 years ago, the 40/40 club is a 12,000 sf sports and entertainment lounge designed to evoke the feeling of a lavish NYC penthouse and glamorous court side seats.

That lead me to wonder, as beautiful as it is, why did Kimberly, who is based in Atlanta, select that venue for her inaugural AA Top 20 event. Let's take a look... 


 

 Any design aficionado can see why. The photos don't really do it justice. I went there for drinks one Saturday evening this summer before the nightlife crowd poured in. I was able to take in the enormity and grandeur of the place. I get it...

Peace and Blessings,

Tammy

Photos courtesy of the4040club.com and Kimberly Ward



DESIGNER HIGHLIGHT: TOP 20 AFRICAN-AMERICAN INTERIOR DESIGNERS

Welcome to the inaugural entry for the 'The Bold and the Beautiful', a lifestyle blog by me for you, featuring my favorite things from the world of design, art, fashion, food and travel - but mostly interior design, of course.

This first post is old news but I would be remiss if I did not give kudos to the Top 20 African American Interior Designers.  This list was compiled by Kimberly Ward of the design blog, Pink Eggshell.  She hosted a fabulous event last month at the 40/40 Club in NYC to announce this prestigious group of "artists."  So here they are (in alphabetical order)...

 Marian Akinloye of MA Design Studio in New York 

Helen Bailey of Urban Living in Chicago

Michel Boyd of Smith Boyd Interiors in Atlanta

 Keitha Brathwaite of Contrast Design Group in Chicago 

 Sheila Bridges of Sheila Bridges Design in New York

 Howard Brown of Howard Brown Design in Atlanta

Darryl Carter of Darryl Carter, Inc. in Washington, DC

 Anishka Clarke of Ishka Designs, Inc. in Brooklyn, NY
 Joan Goodwin of Verandah Interiors in Columbia, SC
Elaine Griffin of Elaine Griffin Interior Design in New York
Cecil Hayes of Cecil's Designers Unlimited in Miami
Alicia LaMar of Alicia LaMar Home in Los Angeles
Joy Moyler of Joy Moyler Interiors in New York
Janice Palmer of Palmer Design LLC in Atlanta
Roderick Shade of Roderick N. Shade Interior Design in New York
Erin Shakoor of Shakoor Interiors in Chicago
Courtney Sloane of Courtney Sloane Design in New Jersey
Lisa Turner of Interior Obsessions in Los Angeles
Robin Wilson of Robin Wilson Home in New York
Ron Woodson of Woodson and Rum in Los Angeles 

Seated from left: Erin Shakoor, Lisa Turner, Anishka Clarke, Janice Palmer, Michel Boyd,
Ron Woodson, Howard Brown and Joan Goodwin.  Standing from left: Alicia LaMar,
Joy Moyler, Robin Wilson, Kimberly Ward and Elaine Griffin

My GOAL: To be on this list within five years...

Peace and Blessings,

Tammy

Photo courtesy of PinkEggshell.com