Anthology Magazine May Just Be the New Domino

By Lexi Green
November 11, 2010

If you’re a fashion design hound like us, you probably spend your time scouring the Internet for style inspiration. Further, with the death of so many beloved shelter magazines in the past few years (fare thee well, Domino), it's likely you miss the feeling of clutching the glossy printed pages of your favorite fashion magazine, ripping out and filing away those beautifully laid-out pages for possible later use.

Cry no more, dear design lovers: Anthology, a new shelter and lifestyle quarterly magazine, just hit newsstands in October. The publication, subtitled "Living with Substance and Style," offers a narrative approach to coverage of home décor, travel, fashion design, entertaining, and culture We're completely convinced that Anthology is a front-runner in the race to finally fill your need for a total dead-stop design trend overload.

Anthology magazine founders Meg Mateo Ilasco and Anh-Minh Le (Images provided by Anthology magazine)

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Anthology magazine Cover
Photo Credit: Kris Atomic
A spread from the magazine of a home in Berkeley, CA.
Photo Credit: Thayer Allyson Gowdy
The living room of the Berkeley apartment.
Photo Credit: Thayer Allyson Gowdy
A living room n a Los Angeles home, featured in Anthology.
Photo Credit: Jen Siska
The dining room of a San Francisco, CA home, featured in Anthology.
Photo Credit: Kelly Ishikawa
A San Francisco, CA living room, featured in Anthology.
Photo Credit: Kelly Ishikawa
Erica Wakerly's Spiral wallpaper pattern features prominently in Andrea Arria-Devoe's home office in Venice, CA, pictured in Anthology.

Photo Credit: Laure Joliet
From an Anthology feature: During a party with fellow foodie friends, Caitlin and James Freeman put the clay oven they built in their backyard to good use, churning out delicious made-from-scratch pizzas (and serving them on simple Heath Ceramics plates).
Photo Credit: Thayer Allyson Gowdy

And because the folks at Anthology know you still need your design fill daily, they've also launched a highly addictive blog in the same style as those beautiful printed pages. Recent Anthology blog posts have covered fantastical work produced by creative studio Toogood, "carpets" made of bricks and cotton cleaning products (like swabs and pads) by We Make Carpets and minimalist furniture by Swedish designer, David Ericsson.

The San Francisco-based founders of Anthology, Anh-Minh Le and Meg Mateo Ilasco, were well-equipped to start a shelter magazine. Ilasco is a designer, illustrator and author, and owns her own stationary and accessories line, Modern Economy. She also just finished a home décor book called Crafting a Meaningful Home. Le is a writer whose “Stylemaker Spotlight” column appears weekly The San Francisco Chronicle and who has also contributed to Apartment Therapy, ReadyMade and Decor8blog.com. Recently, we got a chance to sit down with Le and Ilasco in order to get a better look at the magic behind Anthology.

A promotional video produced by Anthology for the magazine's launch

The Inside Source: What is the mission of Anthology?

Anh-Minh Le: Maybe it’s because we’re both writers, but Meg and I have always been interested in the back story. We knew that we didn’t want to create a design magazine filled with merely page after page of beautiful photos—although we certainly appreciate visual eye candy. So with Anthology, we delve into the story of the designers, homeowners, and products we feature.

Meg Mateo Ilasco: I think one of the biggest differences between us and other shelter magazines is that we’re not trying to create or promote a particular home trend. We’re hoping to inspire our readers with stories and beautiful images without being prescriptive. We’d like your home to be a process of self-discovery and individuality. So we’re never going to have an article that helps you "steal the look" of a home.

The Inside Source: Why did you decide, especially at this point in magazine history, to start a print publication focused on design ideas?

Anh-Minh Le: Meg and I met about five years ago, when I wrote about one of her Modern Economy sample sales for decor8. Then, this time last year, I seriously began thinking more and more about launching a print magazine. I mentioned this to a dozen or so people, including Meg. It turns out she had been considering starting a magazine, too, and our ideas just meshed really well.

The Inside Source: Why name the magazine Anthology?

Meg Mateo Ilasco: Actually, when I wrote Crafting a Meaningful Home last year, the working title for the book was initially "Anthology," since I felt the book was a collection of short stories. At first, I was bummed that the Anthology title didn’t stick with the book—but it turned out to be a good thing. Anthology fits the approach of the magazine perfectly.

The Inside Source: How would you describe your personal design style? Did you have to compromise at all between your different tastes when putting the magazine together?

Anh-Minh Le: My fashion and home aesthetics are pretty similar: casual and fairly neutral, with a few hints of color or a standout piece or two. In my living room, there’s a chocolate daybed and a cream sofa. But, the cream sofa is draped with a red and white Otomi textile that we picked up in Mexico. And there’s a sculptural chaise in the corner that I absolutely adore.

Meg Mateo Ilasco: I tend to have lots of vintage. Our personal aesthetics do differ, but when it comes to the magazine, in the end, we always reach the same conclusion.

Anh-Minh Le: One of the reasons we work so well together is that we really do have the same vision for Anthology—in the type of writing we want to feature, in the way we want the pages to look and feel. It never feels like a compromise.

The Inside Source: What are some of your current design obsessions?

Anh-Minh Le: Funky wallpaper to liven up small spaces. (For example, in my laundry room, I chose a colorful and fun print to add a little cheer to an otherwise drab space—and chore.)

Anh-Minh Le's laundry room, as pictured on the Anthology blog. Wallpaper is the Svanpark pattern by Hannah Werning.

Meg Mateo Ilasco: Worn textures and gray paint.

The Inside Source: What is one home décor item that you cannot live without?

Anh-Minh Le: Throws, especially this time of year.

Meg Mateo Ilasco: Sheepskin rugs—love them.

The Inside Source: What is the most inspiring thing you have seen in the past week?

Anh-Minh Le: There’s a new restaurant not too far from my house called Station 1. It’s located in a cozy, old, rustic fire station—which I just think is wonderful.

Meg Mateo Ilasco: I really enjoyed this short film, Apricot.

The Inside Source: Who is one dream “design personality” (dead or alive) that you would love to feature inside the pages of Anthology?

Anh-Minh Le: Joseph Eichler. Meg and I are actually both fans of his Modernist homes. In addition to the designs, I like the social vision behind his developments.

Meg Mateo Ilasco: Eva Zeisel.

The Inside Source: What can we expect to find in the upcoming issues of Anthology?

Anh-Minh Le: We are currently hard at work on Issues No. 2 and 3. We’ll be expanding our geographical reach in our story coverage all the way to Amsterdam! So that’s exciting. I’ve seen some of the images from the photo shoots for winter 2011 (out in January), and they are spectacular.

The Inside Source: Do you ever use eBay to help you with either your personal design endeavors or Anthology?

Anh-Minh Le: If I see something I want for my house and its way out of my price range, the first thing I do is look for it on eBay. For example, the outsized sunburst mirror above my living room mantel is an eBay score. eBay is also my go-to for unique items. One of my favorite pieces in my entire house is a mid-century Danish rocking chair I found on eBay and then covered with Hable Construction [fabric]. I haven’t seen another one like it at any flea market or vintage store!

Meg Mateo Ilasco: I use eBay to find just about anything. We were once hanging out in Anh-Minh’s room at the Ace Hotel in Portland and there was this cool military field desk at the foot of the bed. I immediately went on eBay after that to get one for our house. And about eight years ago, I purchased a Danish wall unit on eBay for a couple hundred bucks. Later I saw the same exact one selling at a vintage shop for a couple thousand dollars!

(all images provided by Llasco and Le)

Ilasco and Le gave us a peek at some of the eBay items they could see incorporating into their homes or the pages of Anthology.

Ilasco's Picks

Roll over items for details

Kofod Larsen Bent Ply Back Chair

(buy it now price, $525)

Danish Modern Benny Linden Sun Furn Rocking Chair Teak

(buy it now price, $479.99)

Vtg Heath Pottery Ceramic Cups Saucers

(buy it now price, $71)

Sheepskin Rug

(buy it now price, $50.90)

Franco Albini Rattan Ottoman Modern

(buy it now price, $495)

Anthology Magazine May Just Be the New Domino

clockwise from top left:

"This Kofod Larsen chair is just like the one shown in our interview with Grace Bonney from Design*Sponge." Kofod Larsen chairs are also an increasingly popular item for eBay style hounds, with twice as many sold past week vs. week-long period a month ago.

"This vintage Danish rocker is exactly the kind of chair we'd want to sit in and read Anthology!" “Danish Modern” is an increasingly popular eBay purchase. The number of “Danish modern” piece sold jumped 14% this past week from a week long period approximately a year ago.

"Sheepskin rugs warm up any space. And who couldn't use that as the temperatures start to drop?"

"Franco Albini's rattan ottoman functions as a great footrest or side table. And it really works in any decor."

"We love the idea of mixing these vintage Heath pieces with new ones. (You can spot some of the new Heath designs in our recent entertaining story.)"

Le's Picks

Hollywood Regency Brass Bar Nesting Cart

(buy it now price, $225)

Modern Eames Era Lucite Swivel Chair

(buy it now price, $459)

Wormley Vtg Modern Globe Dunbar Eames Knoll

(buy it now price, $859)

NEW Madeline Weinrib "Amagansett" Pillow

(buy it now price, $93)

Vintage Wallpaper Floral Bouquets & Butterflies

(buy it now price, $24.99)

clockwise from top left:

"How often do you see nesting bar carts? When company's over, you can pull out the smaller cart and you've got an extra prep or service area."

"This lucite swivel chair reminds me on the one in the Venica, CA home featured in the magazine."

"Travel is high on our list of priorities. We love this Edward Wormley for Rand McNally illuminating floor globe from the 1950s."

"This colorful and cheery pattern would look great on an accent wall. Or, for a smaller dose, line the back of a bookcase or the inside of your drawers with it."

"This Madeline Weinrib pillow, with its clean, modern, and graphic pattern, is right up our alley!"

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