On Thursday, February 6, Dwell with Dignity launched this year’s Thrift Studio season with the first of two kickoff parties at Cantoni Trade in the Dallas Design District. Here’s a report from the field:
2020 Thrift Studio Honorary Chair Shay Geyer added “jet-setter” to her résumé as she raced back to Dallas on a private jet, hoping to attend the Thrift Studio Designer Kickoff Party at Cantoni Trade. Although she wound up missing the party, 230 guests — many of them from the interior design and home furnishings industry — packed the Cantoni showroom to celebrate the launch of Thrift Studio’s fundraising season for Dwell with Dignity.
Cantoni General Manager Tony Smock and Dwell with Dignity Executive Director Ashley Sharp greeted the guests who mixed, mingled and admired the chic, modern furniture on display. Chef Justin Box of Lockwood Catering provided gourmet bites like Charred Chicken Salad with smoked pecans, gorgonzola, and Profound Farms violets and Smoked Beef and Potato Skewers with sage mayo and herb crumb. The Dragon Juice signature cocktail made with vodka, peach liqueur, cranberry juice, and orange proved especially popular, as did the tasting with Pegasus Brewery craft beer.
Among those enjoying the event were Tina Jeppesen, Allison Berry, Regina Bruce, Nicole Cullum Horn, Lindley and Stroud Arthur, Morgan and Thomas Farrow, Laura Runge, Carolyn Joe Daniel, Holly Huff, Sarah Singer and Brigitte Hook.
The guests learned that, in addition to Shay, the 2020 Thrift Studio team includes the ALG Collective (artists Anna Curnes, Annie Griffeth, Christi Meril, and Melissa Ellis), which is serving as Art Chair. Vignette designers include Cathy Kincaid; Leslie Jenkins; Mia Brous, Kerri Goldfarb and Louise Marsh of Madre Dallas; Monica Wilcox of M. Wilcox Design; Morgan Farrow; Josh Pickering of Pickering House Interiors; Lindley Arthur, and Twelve Twenty.
Lisa Robison, with the support of Kim Turner, founded Dwell with Dignity in 2009. Both were interior designers who believed that good design improves one’s quality of life and breaks the cycle of poverty. They worked with families — often single women with children — who finally secured a job and saved enough money to rent their first apartment but couldn’t afford to furnish it. Dwell with Dignity and its volunteer expert designers furnish the home including all furniture, art, bedding, kitchen supplies, food in the pantry and their first night’s meal.
Thrift Studio is Dwell with Dignity’s largest fundraiser. It’s a 30-day pop-up shop held in April that offers steep discounts on donated luxury home décor, furniture and original artwork, with 100 percent of the proceeds going back to Dwell with Dignity. Big-name local interior designers team up with retailers to create stunning vignettes to showcase and sell their high-end goods, plus original artwork from a select list of local artists.
Those local participating artists were to be announced at the second Thrift Studio kickoff event, called the Art & Color Party, on Thursday, February 20, at ALG Collective in the Design District.
* Photo credit: Bob Manzano