Pebble Beach 2010 Concours d’Elegance

Why no posting for a few days? I was on a non-interior design holiday. Cars are my other passion and the 2010 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance was the place to be. However, the 50-60 degree weather in California, though a nice change, felt a bit cold.

Test drives, auctions, car shows, car memorabilia, celebrities, motor racing, almost everything automobile was packed into six days in Carmel, Monterey and Pebble Beach, California.  Just driving down the road was a car show.  The annual Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance was the proverbial cherry on top of a very rich and fattening daily indulgence of car events which made up the hot fudge sundae.  Hannah Elliot of Forbes has some cute posts of the weekly highlights if you want the juicy details.I did manage to take hundreds of pictures which will take me a month to title and catalog (in January).  Those heavy auction catalogs we lugged back will come in handy.   Actually I love reading the individual stories about the cars.

Honestly I really do attend these things for the love of four wheel art.  Those old Packards, Duesenbergs, Rolls, Bentleys, and more from the 20’s – 40’s give me chills when I see and get to examine the meticulous detail of the exterior and interior design.  Especially the work of Jacques Saoutchik.  Love it, love it, love it.  Book matched veneers, woven silk hand holds (from Scalamandre), Lalique mascots (hood ornaments), real gold interior hardware, upholstered walls, sumptuous seating, custom lacquered panels attributed the Art Deco artist Jean Dunard… uh, yeah this all relates to design.  Let’s call it “idea central.”  After all I did sketch some furniture and molding details for later use.

Here are a few things I found inspiring:

1949 Delahaye 175S – Saoutchik designedAlfa Romeo Bertone concept car

Jean Dunand panel on 1930 Rolls Royce Phantom ll Cabriolet De VilleReal woven leather seating… in a convertible.1929 Rolls Royce Phantom ll Torpedo Tourer built for an Indian Maharajah.Genuine Lalique rooster car mascot.

1937 Bugatti 575 Atlantic, simply stunning.What a cute little Ferrari, and its not red.A gorgeous racing Alfa Romeo.

Can’t forget the seals in Monterey Bay!Of course I had the most fabulously fashionable military inspired jacket on… underneath the raincoat – but still cold. Many women opted for the last-minute flat comfortable shoe for the soft wet grass. Thank you to Louis Vuitton for comfort and dry feet! Can you believe there is a joke(?) in Carmel about needing a permit for heels?

Oh, and a piece of trivia guess which stars of Antiques Roadshow fans are also Concours judges? The Keno Brothers!