Hudson Grace brings West Coast style to Atlanta

Monelle Totah, a Louisiana native, and Gary McNatton are the founders of California-based Hudson Grace. The retail veterans recently opened their first store outside California on Atlanta’s west side. Contributed by Laura ten Pas, courtesy of Gensler

Monelle Totah, a Louisiana native, and Gary McNatton are the founders of California-based Hudson Grace. The retail veterans recently opened their first store outside California on Atlanta’s west side. Contributed by Laura ten Pas, courtesy of Gensler

California-based Hudson Grace, a go-to shop for curated tabletop goods and entertaining essentials, has brought its luxe-yet-livable West Coast style to Atlanta.

The store: Hudson Grace opened in mid-October in Atlanta's designed-focused Westside Provisions District. The home décor shop offers a collection of dinnerware, glassware, table linens, candles and other entertaining accessories. The company, founded in 2012 in San Francisco, has five locations in California. The Atlanta shop is the company's first location outside of California.

The look: With its black interior, white hex tile floor and black grout, the city-chic shop features floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides and a welcome "hello" in the floor tile as you enter the front door.

The founders & owners. Monelle Totah and Gary McNatton are friends and avid entertainers who have had long careers in retail, ranging from product development, merchandising, plus marketing and design. Prior to teaming up at Hudson Grace, they worked with companies such as Williams Sonoma, Banana Republic and Gap Inc.

Popular gifts:

  • Signature candles ($65), including the newest scent "Savannah" to celebrate the Georgia store.
  • Berry bowl ($38). The multiuse bowl was inspired by a French antique found in a Paris flea market.
  • Marble cheeseboards ($48).
  • Wine Chiller ($68), made of resin and cement.
  • HG dish soap ($24), which looks great on the counter and has a tart kumquat scent.

Favorite items in store: MT: White dinnerware and the garment-dyed, oversized linen napkins in 24 colors. GM: The mix of modern and vintage (antique silver martini shaker and hotel silver), plus the company's signature candles. A favorite of both: the everyday wine (or juice) glass ($3.95), designed from a simple glass in Italy.

Favorites

- Blogs or websites: MT: Habitually Chic; Mark D Sikes; Keep It Chic by Preston Davis. GM: Kevin Sessums and Dixon Rye.

- Instagram: MT: Mrclintsmith; apartment_34; smitten kitchen; lulu powers; milieumag; and belleannee, a New Orleans food writer living in London (my two favorite cities). GM: The fascinator; worldofinteriors; and the cool hunter.

- Atlanta area home/design stores (other than our own): Bungalow Classic and Dixon Rye.

- Places for unexpected finds: (in Atlanta and other cities): Sid and Ann Mashburn in Atlanta; Ottolenghi in London, a foodie must-see, and the design shops on Pimlico Road; flea market adventures in France. This year we went to Amsterdam for inspiration.

Current design obsession(s): GM: Black on black on black. MT: Fresh topiaries in the entryway and a great kitchen.

New (or re-emerging) designs/looks we like: Juxtaposition and finding something in an unexpected place.

… and designs/looks we are glad to see go: Fake anything.

Best design advice: MT: Chuck Williams (founder of Williams Sonoma) once said, "We can sell anything, but we don't." He taught me to edit and stay true to who you are as a person and a brand. GM: Take something away and then take something away.

Find Hudson Grace at:

Facebook: Hudson Grace

Instagram: hudsongracesf

Website: hudsongracesf.com