On a warm evening in Los Angeles, most of the Los Angeles design community turned out for La Fete de la Musique, a summer party Western Interiors & Design hosted at the new Exquisite Surfaces showroom on Robertson Boulevard. The new space, showcasing an amazing selection of the finest stone, wood and tile from around the world, is incredible, located in a beautiful brick building that had been nearly derelict for years before Exquisite Surfaces acquired it and did a complete renovation. I arrived at 6:00pm sharp, and was able to sip some wine with owner Paula Nataf , her sons Franck and Alexis Nataf, and marketing czar Gavin Carey before the inevitable crush.  Paula started the business in 1997, and she’s steadily built Exquisite Surfaces into an internationally known design resource. Impressive!

There were busy bars and lively musical groups both on the first floor and up on the fabulous rooftop deck, and wonderful hors d’oeuvres were being passed continuously. As the sun lowered and the heat outside subsided, I made my way up to the roof deck and into one of those glowing Los Angeles evenings that make living here so alluring. Who was there? The trim and fashionable Luis Ortega; the debonair Tim Clarke; the impeccable Douglas Marsceill; the glamorous Jaime Rummerfield and Ron Woodson; the talented Robert Zamora; the cinematic Tom Boland (he designed the wildly popular interiors for Something’s Gotta Give and Holiday); the peripatetic Barclay Butera; the architectural  Jim House; the lighting impresario Kevin Kolanowski; the ethereal Katerina Tana; the aesthetic Richard Johnson; the San Franciscan Michael Booth; the earthy Art Luna; the sparkling James Magni with his lovely associate Penelope Francis; the Design Mart’s Jeff Sampson; the innovative Steven Bryer; the influential Nancy Joseph; the charming Brendan Butera; the accomplished Mark Cutler; the stylish Bryan van Thun; the inventive Hanson Hsu; the delightful Tina Wakino; the Western Interiors editorial wizards Laura Mauk, Caren Kurlander and Brittany Kaplan; our own artistic Carly Hebert and advertising-savvy Debra House; and many more (there were at least 200!) too glamorous to mention.

Exquisite Surfaces is a new partner of Western Interiors, and La Fete de la Musique was a wonderful way to kick off our relationship. Paula, Franck, Alexis and Gavin put so much creative energy into the evening that it was assured of being a resounding success. And it was gratifying to have such a strong turnout from our friends in the design community as well.

To see pictures from the Exquisite Surface party go to http://www.westerninteriors.com/events/index.htm