Schindler, but on a much smaller scale

R.M. SCHINDLER, the architect whose Cubist structures speak volumes about Southern California Modernism, was an unheralded furniture designer. From the late 1920s to the early 1950s, L.A. physician Basia Gingold commissioned Schindler to design an office building and interiors, projects that included a rarely seen collection of more than two dozen pieces. These items go on display tonight at the L.A. furniture showroom Reform and will be sold at Los Angeles Modern Auctions on Dec. 3. “This is a unique opportunity to see how Schindler’s architectural vision worked on a smaller scale, translated into furniture,” says Reform’s Gerard O’Brien, who served as the catalog author. The auction also includes the pieces shown here, designed for the Manola Court apartments in Silver Lake, where Gingold lived. The table is expected to sell for $25,000 to $30,000, and the chair is estimated at $30,000 to $50,000. An opening reception runs from 6 to 9 p.m. today at Reform, 816 N. La Cienega Blvd. The exhibition will run through Nov. 25. For auction information, go to www.lamodern.com.

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SEEN

Fa-la-la before the gobble, gobble

Thanksgiving may be two weeks away, but Rolling Greens thinks your halls are screaming to be decked. The Culver City nursery will supplement the usual boughs of holly and wreaths with tchotchkes from around the world at its annual holiday preview Friday and Saturday. Among the finds: blown-glass and hand-painted ornaments, mercury glass candlesticks and votives, glass “diamonds,” iridescent frosted grapes, beaded baskets and antique Texas farm tables to hold everything. Look for artificial pine sprays, rosebuds, succulents and even tulips in the “fauxliage” department. 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. 9528 Jefferson Blvd., Culver City; (310) 559-8656.

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HAPPENING

An eclectic mix of tastes

What’s in a name? The Los Angeles Interior Design and Antiques Show was a mouthful. This year, the annual event opens Saturday and Sunday as the West Coast Style Show, with more than 50 exhibitors from across the state selling Deco designs, Imperial Russian baubles, vintage floor and wall coverings and rare books. Interior designers such as the California firm Bauxmont Flynn Sagrera Brazil, whose work is shown here, will create vignettes for the show. Guest lecturers include Angi Ma Wong, a feng shui expert, and Suzanne Slesin, founder of the decorative arts imprint Pointed Leaf Press. Admission is $10. Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St., Santa Monica; (310) 455-2886; www.caskeylees.com/shows/10/antiques/la.

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FINDS

Keep it clean, quirky

The Thank You Mart, a Westwood Village shop specializing in $3.99 dorm decor and vintage clothing for UCLA students, has come into a cache of cartoon hand towels by the Japanese cuteness factory Cram Cream. Certain to charm the PhD candidate researching the cultural ramifications of Hello Kitty, the long, thin velour towels are festive in the guest bath or useful in encouraging the kids to clean up. 1138 Westwood Blvd.; (310) 208-8963; www.thankyoumart.com.