A Guide to the Best of Southern California : GARDENS : Urning for Treasures

“I’LL KILL YOU for telling me about this place,” my friend shrieked as she ogled a 1920s classical urn rumored to have once been a fixture in Greta Garbo’s home. One rarely sees such treasures as the intact pieces of old pottery found in D. Miller Antiques, a hole-in-the-wall storefront at the less-fashionable Chandler-esque end of Sunset Boulevard. Clearly, owner Dennis Miller must have fabulous sources. The huge selection of vessels comprises elegant and eclectic vases, pots, garden-size urns, plant stands and one-of-a-kind antiques--items that can transform a merely beautiful garden into an exquisite one.

American art pottery also is represented, as are Craftsman furniture and accessories. The big pieces are primarily early-20th-Century California pottery, including, on my last visit, a set of blond terra-cotta pots from the late 1920s and a colossal-size classical/Deco iron urn with a beautiful surface patina. It’s fun to imagine whose terraces these pieces might have adorned. While such treasures don’t come cheap, they are well below the prices one would pay on Melrose or in a chic Westside design shop.

D. Miller Antiques, 2166 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles; (213) 413-5499.

Jack K. Wong