The Journal News
The home-goods shop on Mamaroneck Avenue is one I’m sure you’ll want to visit and besides what I’m posting here, look for a story Monday as it’s going to be the next “Shop of the Week.”
I just loved the typeface of the Milieu sign, a signal of the style inside.
A visit to Milieu makes you want to visit owner Danielle Iaboni’s own home.
That’s because she says she’s filled her three-month-old shop with merchandise that reflects her own decorating approach and point of view.
“You want to personalize your home.”
Too often, she says, people fall back on the safe and familiar.
“Everyone’s afraid of color… everything’s tan and beige,” she said.
Not at Milieu, which definitely breaks out of the chain-store mentality.
As Iaboni says, “At my house, we just sit around the table for hours and hours, so I was thinking how do I want to live?”
It might just be the way one of her many vignettes shows.
Take the casual-chic farmhouse-style table, dotted with accessories picked up in Europe. I just loved the way one side of the table featured a black-and-white checkered bench instead of chairs, the perfect invitation for people to linger around a table.
Iaboni, a former graphic designer who spent a few years traveling Europe (the last devoted to buying and setting up contacts for her shop), has created a space that’s at once airy and welcoming.
It’s all white walls and pillars, which perfectly reflect her varied goods, which range from tabletop items to bedding, furniture to gifts.
Shoppers will find plenty of choices at Milieu, as you see, from this red Majolica pottery service ($30 for a large bowl, $19 for a dinner plate) to Spanish tableware made out of recycled glass.
Milieu, as Iaboni translates as “the totality of one’s surroundings,” offers options for throughout the home.
Customers, she says, have been loving the look of this unusual wine cabinet ($1,900) that looks like an old ice box.
There’s a 70-year-old trough, put on a stand and covered in glass. “It makes a really interesting, unique coffee table,” Iaboni says.
There’s a copper-topped kitchen island ($2,600), steps away from a lemonade dispenser ($129) in the shape of a giant lemon, as Iaboni shows us.
There are pillows and couches, rugs and plenty of art, from photographs to vintage French architectural drafts (another find from Iaboni’s world travels). A Pine Cone Hill duvet cover in a tulip pattern is $198.
Iaboni also offers beds and bedside accessories, such as these funky lamps.
And those looking for a small accent could pick up a candle, book or even a sleek tea-light lantern ($14).
“Good design does not have to be expensive,” she said. Iaboni also offers design consultations, in store or at a client’s home. Milieu is at 157 Mamaroneck Ave. Call 914-315-6090.
Responses To “Home, Stylish Home”
1. Patricia Williams — July 17th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
Hi! I was in visiting for a weekend from the Poconos and visited Milieu and found it to be a wonderful new edition to the stores on Mamaroneck Ave. And what a treasure to meet the owner Danielle, she was quite knowledgeable and personable, with both my sister and I. We wish her all the best with her wonderful new endevor!
2. Mary Shustack — July 17th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
Thanks for visiting the blog- and I’m not surprised that you enjoyed your visit to Milieu. As you can tell, I did, too!
