Dawnridge

Dawndridge is the former home of Tony Duquette in Beverly Hills. Duquette was one of the century's most eccentric figures in the world of decoration and design. He was known for his ability to put on a dazzling show with nontraditional materials salvaged from unlikely sources, such as the jade colored Chinese fretwork screen made out of plastic building materials. He famously mixed high and low, the costly and the found, the rare and the common.

The property now belongs to Tony Wilkinson, who is a longtime friend, protege, and business partner of Duquette. Dawnridge is very "Hollywood Chinoiserie". It is surrounded by brightly branched coral, mother-of-pearl and Eastern exoticism mixed with "let's-put-on-a-show" old Hollywood. Each area could be a dramatic spot for plein air dining, from the banks of a small lake with its own Vietnamese wedding boat to the oriental pagodas, arbors and summerhouses hidden among the alluring palms and bromeliads.

Foremost, no white napkins allowed. Using a vast collection of china, flatware, and figurines inherited, create a fantastically colored landscapes for the table. Floral centerpieces are rarely used, instead decorative objects.

Wilkinson has decorated the property with a lot of coral red that he mixes happily with jade green, cerulean blue and, of course, gold - lots and lots of gold.

Just order wonderful takeout, dress up a little and set a marvelous table, and no will know the difference.