Spot a flash of pattern zipping down the streets of Milan? That’s J. J. Martin, the design and fashion journalist who does double duty as the founder of the retro-resplendent retailer LaDoubleJ. With a collection of cohorts ranging from buzzy Dimore Studio founders Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran to the queen bee herself, Nina Yashar of Nilufar gallery, when it comes to the Milan design scene, this American turned Italian is the resident expert. So in the midst of the insanity that is Milan Design Week, we caught up with the princess of prints to get a look at her agenda during the busiest time of the year. The lesson here? Every great design-scouting day should start with meditation and end with bologna. Case closed.
7:30 a.m. “Design week in Milan is intense. It’s a lot like fashion week—back-to-back appointments, events, openings, parties, dinners. I always want to do more than I am capable of, so the best thing is to start the morning calmly at home in Milan with a little bit of meditation out on the terrace. It sounds counterintuitive, but these crazy colors and prints are actually quite calming to me. Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran of Dimore Studio—my partners in maximalist crime—designed those floral outdoor cushions to go with my happy Gio Ponti tiled tables.”
9 a.m. “First stop is a PR meeting at Pasticceria Marchesi on Via Montenapoleone, which Prada lined in a fabulous silk floral jacquard. I’m a big fan of mixing patterns, so here we have a LaDoubleJ Editions dress made with vintage Mantero fabric and some juicy jewels from Pomellato.”
9:30 a.m. “Once caffeinated, it’s off to see some good design, which I find in my very first stop at Spazio Pontaccio. I love this stained-glass credenza that Patricia Urquiola designed with Federico Pepe.”