We've seen the re-branding of Restoration Hardware over the past few years from a kind of upscale Pottery Barn—all shiny pewter knobs and right-angled dressers—to an aesthetic that can best be described as rustically and fancifully urbane. But Resto's new Baby & Child Gallery in Corte Madera, which opened last week, takes it to another level.
Imagine a pregnant Marie Antoinette readying a corner of Versailles for her royal bundle of joy, and you'll have some idea what to expect at the Baby & Child Gallery, located just across the way from Resto's regular showroom at the Village in Corte Madera. Even the store's facade looks like a miniature palace. Inside, don't look for sailor motifs, primary colors, or polka dots. Instead, a long, chandelier-graced hall leads into vignettes on either side in a neutral palette of white, cream, and blue-gray. The cribs, whose shape and detail render them irresistibly touchable, seem fit for William and Kate's progeny; the twin beds sit ready for a musical or math prodigy to lie his little head down at night; the undersized side chairs make it appear as if the Eames had hidden away a Hobbit Collection, unseen until now.
"We've challenged ourselves to imagine and present a level of design, taste, and style unseen before in this marketplace," says Resto CEO Gary Friedman. That's for sure. I guarantee you've never seen a nursey like this.
