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Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly's move to take over as White House chief of staff leaves a Cabinet vacancy that must be filled "as quickly as possible," according to a key Senate Democrat.

"With the threats facing this nation, I urge the president to nominate a qualified secretary to replace General Kelly as quickly as possible," Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., the top Democrat on the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, said Friday evening.

Kelly, a retired Marine Corps general, was one of the few members of Trump's Cabinet to receive a speedy confirmation. Others dragged on for months, in part because Democrats used procedural powers to slow-walk the nominations. Thus the decision to replace former chief of staff Reince Priebus with Kelly could lead to difficulties for Senate Republicans, who are already pressed for time to pass key planks of their legislative agenda before the end of the year.

Deputy DHS Secretary Elaine Duke will serve as acting secretary while a replacement is found.

McCaskill isn't the only senator with an eye on the nomination. Kelly's successor will move through confirmation hearings overseen by Republican Sen. Ron Johnson who, like Priebus, hails from Wisconsin.

"Reince Priebus is a good friend," Johnson, chairman of the Homeland Security panel, said Friday. "I thank him for his service and wish him the best of luck going forward. Secretary Kelly is an outstanding leader who has served his country honorably and I know he will do an excellent job at the White House. I look forward to working with the administration as they choose a new leader for the Department of Homeland Security."

Trump considered an array of contenders before tapping Kelly to lead DHS. The list of possibilities reportedly ranged from traditional Republicans such as Texas Rep. Michael McCaul, who leads the House Homeland Security Committee, to less conventional options such as Milwaukee County (Wis.) Sheriff David Clarke. Rudy Giuliani and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie were also regarded as contenders for multiple Cabinet posts, though they didn't end up receiving jobs in the administration.

Kelly, as head of DHS, was responsible for broad aspects of Trump's immigration and border security policy. Nevertheless, his reputation and experience working with lawmakers during his time as a top commander in the military allowed him to enjoy a "love fest" of a confirmation hearing.

That goodwill didn't stop Democrats from challenging some of his policy decisions once he took office, however. As Trump searches for a successor, he may have to balance between finding a nominee who can be confirmed quickly, but also be trusted to implement his agenda and appeal to Trump's core base of voters.

Senate aides declined to speculate about how the confirmation process might unfold. "We don't have a nominee," a Senate Republican aide told the Washington Examiner.

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Claire McCaskill wants DHS replacement 'as quickly as possible' - Washington Examiner

Marcus Hutchins, the British researcher who stopped the May WannaCry hack, has been arrested by the FBI in Las Vegas for allegedly playing a role in creating the "Kronos" malware that targeted bank accounts, per The Guardian. The WannaCry attack crippled healthcare operations in the UK and hit dozens of countries.

About Kronos: It spread between 2014 and 2015 through emails with malicious attachments, such as compromised Word documents, with the aim of getting banking credentials. New infections occurred through 2016.

Hutchins' charges: The Department of Justice released the allegations about Hutchins' role in the Kronos hack, claiming he helped create, spread, and maintain the hack. Hutchins faces six counts of hacking-related charges. There is another, unnamed co-defendant, who allegedly tried selling the malware on AlphaBay, a darknet marketplace, which was shut down July 20 when the FBI and European authorities seized its servers.

Note: Ryan Kalember of Proofpoint said "This could very easily be the FBI mistaking legitimate research activity with being in control of Kronos infrastructure. Lots of researchers like to log in to crimeware tools and interfaces and play around."

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Trump's missing vote - Axios

Homeland Security Secretary John Kellys move to White House chief of staff is ushering in a cloud of uncertainty at the department that has led some of President Donald Trumps most controversial undertakings from its roundup of undocumented immigrants to his travel ban and proposed border wall.

It may also set the stage for a brutal confirmation fight if President Donald Trump tries to replace the retired Marine general with an outspoken opponent of illegal immigration instead of a seasoned bureaucrat or lawmaker.

Story Continued Below

A person close to Kelly said it's unclear who will replace him.

But several White House and former DHS officials proffered a slate of names of possible replacements for Kelly, with Texas Rep. Michael McCaul, the Republican chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, emerging as a leading candidate.

Other potential picks include Thomas Homan, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who accompanied Trump on Air Force One on Friday, and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, an outspoken opponent of illegal immigration who is helping to lead the president's controversial commission on alleged voter fraud.

Separately, department staffers have been talking about the possibility that the role might go to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, according to two sources with contacts at DHS, but a person close to the Trump administration said he's unlikely to get the job.

Which direction Trump takes could have a dramatic effect on soothing or stoking the uncertainty gripping his White House.

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"So much of Trump's agenda is tied to DHS," said one Republican lobbyist close to the White House. The consultant added: "Kelly was one of the best decisions he has made thus far. Considering how central DHS is to his agenda, he's got to make another great decision."

Homan got praise from one former DHS official, who called him a career tough guy who plays right to Trump's sweet spot. ICE is the agency leading Trumps street-level enforcement push, and Homan traveled with Trump on Friday to Long Island, N.Y., where the president spoke about the link between street gangs and illegal immigration.

Kobach, on the other hand, would ignite a firestorm among Democrats, who accuse him of carrying out an agenda of denying voting rights to minorities. Seth Stodder, who held assistant secretary roles at the Homeland Security Department from 2015 to this year, said a Kobach pick would be radioactive.

It would be one hell of a confirmation hearing, Stodder said, adding that he would probably oppose the nomination himself. I just cant imagine that happening.

Picking Sessions, meanwhile, would empower Trump to select a new attorney general who could exert more control over the Russia probe, perhaps an ally like Rudy Giuliani. But that option would likely set up a major clash with senators of both parties.

One source familiar with the process cautioned that it's "very early," and things could change in the coming hours and days.

For now, the department announced Friday, Kelly will remain in his DHS role through Monday. After that, Deputy Secretary Elaine Duke a Kelly confidante and well-respected leader will become acting secretary.

Duke, who previously worked as DHS undersecretary for management from 2008 to 2010, would be a capable choice in the eyes of some former DHS officials. Juliette Kayyem, a former assistant secretary for Homeland Security in the Obama administration, called her smart but not overly political, a good mix for the department. Still, shes skeptical Duke would get the nod.

[You] couldn't meet a nicer person who has nurtured and managed that department for three different presidents, Kayyem said. Trump doesn't want nice.

Blain Rethmeier, the sherpa who guided Kelly through his confirmation hearing, said that nobody is better or smarter on the policy than Duke, but that she isn't a known brand to the public.

Trump's choice for the next secretary will be crucial, and not only because of the agencys sprawling portfolio, which includes border security and visa processing along with airport security and disaster relief.

Kelly successfully piloted the presidents immigration crackdown under his watch: ICE has arrested roughly 75,000 undocumented residents to date. At the same time, reports of people trying to enter the U.S. illegally have fallen dramatically. Now Kelly's departure for the West Wing will leave a void as the department deals with the details of enforcing Trumps travel ban, his proposed border wall and terrorist threats against aviation.

Kelly is seen inside and outside the White House as a capable manager. Even some Democrats see him as the most palatable member of the Cabinet. But that is likely to change once he enters the White House, where he'll become a political target for the left.

McCaul, meanwhile, may have the easiest path toward being confirmed as Kellys replacement.

The Texas Republican competed for the secretary role in November. He introduced an immigration bill on Friday that would provide $10 billion for Trumps border wall, a pot of funds that would pay for a mix of wall, fence, technology and aerial surveillance over four years, while boosting Border Patrol by 5,000 agents the level Trump called for in a January executive order.

McCaul even published an op-ed on Fox News in December that pledge his support for Trumps signature project.

We are going to build the wall. Period, he wrote. In the process, I pledge to stand side-by-side with the Trump administration to throw out Obamas reckless immigration policies and start enforcing our nations laws.

He followed up Friday with another Fox op-ed that praised Trump's approach to foreign policy as "strong and decisive."

"The Trump White House relishes American exceptionalism and enjoys promoting Western values," McCaul wrote, citing examples such as his handling of ISIS. "It clearly understands that there is no such thing as leading from behind when it comes to tackling the most pressing international security issues."

Still, the congressman faced backlash from border hawks when his name was floated for the DHS role after the election. Activists in favor of lower immigration levels tweeted under the hashtag "#NeverMcCaul" and derided him as soft on the issue.

Daniel Lippman contributed to this report.

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Who will replace Kelly at Homeland Security? - Politico

The Sharif family, however, is unlikely to lose its grip on power for long.

The Supreme Court ruled last week that Nawaz Sharif had been dishonest to Parliament and to the judicial system and was no longer fit for office. He stepped down, quickly selecting his brother to replace him.

Speaking after the vote, Abbasi denied he was only a temporary prime minister. "They say, 'Oh he's only here for 45 days.' I say I may be here for 45 days or 45 hours, but I'm not here to keep the seat warm," he told reporters.

"I intend to work and get some important things done if the cabinet supports me in this."

The younger Sharif, who is currently serving as the chief minister of Punjab, can't take office immediately as he isn't yet a member of Parliament.

He's expected to run in -- and win, handily -- a September by-election for the former prime minister's seat in Punjab, in a district loyal to his brother's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party. The vote is similar to a special election in the United States.

Opposition leader Imran Khan, a cricketer-turned-politician, has criticized the nominations of Sharif and Abbasi, calling them both corrupt and called for cases of corruption against them to be reopened.

Shoo-in

So, while Shahbaz Sharif waits to be elected to Parliament, in steps Abbasi.

He needed a simple majority, and as the PML-N, which nominated him, holds 188 of the Parliament's 342 seats, he was expected to win easily.

Following his confirmation, Abbasi will now nominate a cabinet, to replace the one that was dissolved on Friday by the courts.

Analysts say Abbassi, a party loyalist, is unlikely to object to a short-lived stint in the top job, with this kind of horse-trading common in Pakistani politics.

"He'll step up to the plate. He's a politician's politician," said Ahsan Butt, an assistant professor at the Schar School of Policy and Government, GeorgeMason University in Virginia.

"(He's a) reliable character as far as the PML-N is concerned," added Butt.

Clean sweep

Just as Abbasi's elevation to the job was considered a foregone conclusion, so is the Punjab by-election.

It's a fairly safe PML-N seat so, barring any surprises, the younger Sharif is expected to coast to victory there.

"The PML-N is very strong in that region, they've controlled it even when they're not in control nationally," says Butt.

"It's a traditional party stronghold. One or two opposition parties will field candidates, but they'd be lambs to the slaughter."

Following the election, Parliament can confirm him as the new leader, with the US-educated Abbasi stepping aside.

As a sweetener, the short-term replacement could be offered another cabinet position, or his existing role -- until last week he was the minister of petroleum and natural resources.

He could even keep the portfolio during his brief tenure as Prime Minister, says Butt.

General elections, to be held next year, could then see the younger Sharif returned to power.

If he is re-elected and sees out a full term, he would be the first civilian prime minister in Pakistan ever to do so.

Dynasty diverted

Six months ago, the obvious successor to Nawaz Sharif, who had ruled the country since 2013, was his daughter, Maryam Sharif.

But her elevation to power looks to have been scuppered by the corruption scandal that brought down her father.

The leak sparked mass protests in Pakistan and calls from opposition political groups for a panel to investigate Sharif and his children over their alleged offshore accounts, eventually bringing him down.

And the ongoing investigation into Maryam, her husband Safdar Awan, and her brothers Hassan and Hussain, is likely to extend past the deadline for nominations for next April's general election. They have denied any wrongdoing.

Analysts say her uncle, who will likely already be Prime Minister by then, will stand and, given the ongoing popularity of the PML-N, win the vote.

The Sharif name has already proven to be remarkably resilient.

The recently-deposed Sharif has served as prime minister twice before. He saw his first term end prematurely amid allegations of corruption, and his second end in a military coup which saw him jailed, then exiled, before returning to perform yet another political comeback.

Now it seems likely that his brother will keep the name relevant in Pakistan's power circles, and political analyst Butt says it would be foolish to rule out a comeback for Maryam at some point.

"I won't say (her political career is) dead in the water. In Pakistan politics, forever is a long time."

Originally posted here:
Pakistan chooses new leader, but Sharif family waits in wings - CNN

Ornamental ponds are beautiful way to transform your yard into a relaxing oasis for entertaining or just enjoying the end of the day. The trick is to choose equipment that will ensure sparkling healthy water with minimal upkeep. At Aqua UV we do the research, design innovations and do testing so you can just sit back, relax and enjoy your pond.

A UV Sterilizer eliminates the algae, ugly green water, that makes it difficult to see and enjoy your fish. A larger benefit of UV is that it controls bacteria and parasites reducing the spread of fish disease.

The Ultima IIs patented design does the work of two filters, removing debris and nitrifying ammonia from fish waste. Simply backwash once a week.

We will even help you choose the UV and Ultima Filter for your pond,Call 1-800-454-2725 to speak with a technical support person weekdays 8:00-4:30 PST.For where to buy in your area click on our Dealer Locator.

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Ponds industry | aquaultraviolet.com

360 Interiors is an established interior design company based in the North West, and we have worked extensively in the Manchester, Liverpool and Preston areas but we have recently completed projects in London and abroad. We offer a personal and flexible service whilst providing innovative design solutions to both residential and commercial clients.

All of our interiors are designed to our client's brief and budget, from initial concept to completion. The design is meticulously thought about, to create stunning yet functional spaces, making all of our interior design projects unique. We have excellent relationships with our suppliers to enable us to offer individual design solutions to our clients at competitive prices.

So whether you are looking to update a room, completely redesign and redecorate, or simply need our house doctor service to help sell your home, we have the knowledge and expertise to make it happen. Each interior design project, large or small, is approached with the same level of professional integrity and creative flair.

Call us now on 01772 877024 or 07789 884454, or email us at

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Interior Design Manchester | Interior Designer Manchester ...

President Trump incited outrage this week after it was reported that he allegedly told a group of members at his New Jersey golf club that the reason he visited so often was because that White House is a real dump, according toGolf.com.Trump has since tweeted that the report is totally untrue.

Michael S. Smith, the Obamas White House decorator, is speaking out about the presidents statement and his own feelings about Americas most famous home.

RELATED:7 Photos That Show the White House Is Definitely Not a Dump

I had the great privilege of working in the White House for eight years, and everyone I know who visited was filled with a sense of awe and patriotism from the moment they walked into that storied structure, Smith tells PEOPLE exclusively. The designer, who has decorated homes for countless high-profile clients and been honored as a member of Architectural Digests AD100, outfitted the Obama familys private quarters including their dining and sitting rooms, the Treaty Room, the Yellow Oval Room, the master suite, as well as bedrooms for Malia, Sasha, and Michelles mother, Marian.

He notes of his time at the White House, I was always deeply aware of the extraordinary events that had taken place within those walls over the yearsevents that defined our countryand how every decision by any former president, and the actions of his family, become an essential part of the living history of our nation.

Before beginning the decorating project, he told AD, he read every letter and note from Abigail Adams,Jacqueline Kennedy, Sister Parish, Stphane Boudin, Kaki Hockersmithanyone who had ever contributed to the history of this building.He even had calls withNancy Reagan and a lunch withLee Radziwill, Jackie Kennedys sister.

Of course the first familys residence is much more than a home. Smith adds, The White House itself is part office, part museum, part residence and its gloriously emblematic of the best of American style. It is beautifully cared for by a remarkable staff, and its rooms are filled with the treasures of presidents past.

This sentiment was shared by many who reacted to Trumps reported dig on social media. Former White House photographer Pete Souza,shared a photoof the famous faade on Instagram, writing, What a shameful thing to sayIt belittles the honorable men and women who make the White House the exemplary historical place it is. And Chelsea Clintontweeteda message of gratitude to the White House staff for all you do every day.

RELATED:Inside the Obamas Private Quarters at the White House: It Has Truly Felt Like a Home for Our Family

Smith allows that, Each successive president and his family have left their own historic imprint on the White House, just as President Trump and his family will. Melania Trump reportedly hired decoratorTham Kannalikham to bring a seamless integration of elegance and comfort into where the president, the first lady, and Barron will be spending their family time, a senior advisor to the first lady told WWD.

Smiths takeaway is one likely shared by each previous White House decorator: Im extremely proud of the warmth and inclusiveness that defined the White House during the years in which I was involved, he says.

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The Obamas' Interior Designer Responds After President Trump Allegedly Called White House 'a Dump' - PEOPLE.com

Though he was one of Italys most influential mid-20th-century architects and interior designers, very little is known about the inner world of Turinese legend Carlo Mollino. Born in 1905 in the northern Italian city of Turin, Mollino became a figure of fascination for design enthusiasts worldwide, many of whom were transfixed by his hidden private life and ability to create dreamy, sensuous spaces inspired by his various obsessionswhich ranged from the voluptuousness of the female form to symbols and talismans of witchcraft and the occult. At a time when the style of the day was, for the most part, defined by a movement known as Rationalism (led by fellow design giants like Gio Ponti and the Castiglioni brothers, who looked to architecture primarily as a self-effacing entity, created more for streamlined functionality than for decoration), Mollinos work was particularly unique, overtly romantic, and a far cry from the goings-on in Milan.

Carlo Mollinos RAI Auditorium, built in 1952.Photo: Courtesy of Oscar Humphries

After graduating from college, where he studied engineering, architecture, and art history, Mollino began working for his fathers architecture firm. There, he entered several design competitions and won for projects like the Agricultural Federation in Cuneo, Italy, and the Turin Equestrian Association headquarters, both of which, for buildings intended for public use, were unusually artsy and illustrated his predilection for sloping forms and circular spaces. After Mollino left his fathers firm, he spent the rest of his life picking and choosing his own projects, many of them commissions for private homes that were hidden from public view. His most famous work, the grand Teatro Regio in Turin, an opera house, is one of his only buildings still standing today.

As Mollinos oeuvre has grown in appreciation over the years, the scarcity of what is available to view and acquire has only added fuel to the fire. In 2005, a Mollino table earned a record-high sale for 20th-century furniture at Christies, going for $3.8 million. Its great appeal is the immediately seductive look, a former director at Christies, Philippe Garner, told The New York Times in a 2009 interview. The fact that virtually every piece can be traced to a specific commission and that production was very limited add the appeal of rarity.

The chairs in Carlo Mollinos RAI Auditorium.Photo: Courtesy of Oscar Humphries

It was only until Mollino expert and curator Fulvio Ferrari and his son Napoleone discovered and restored an apartment Mollino had been secretly working on did the doors to the architects world open. A social recluse for most of his life, Mollino spent years creating and decorating a home for himself on the River Po in which to live out his later days. Inside, both his dark strangeness and genius were revealed: Rooms immaculately decorated, strange voodoo imagery hung on walls and ceilings, and hundreds of erotic Polaroids taken of women who modeled for him were found. Obsessed by the Ancient Egyptian mummification process and beliefs, Mollino also created a wooden boat-like bed that served as a symbolic vessel of passage into the afterlife, placed in a room prepared meticulously for his death. Though he never actually lived in this apartment, it spoke most aptly to his deep love of all things beautiful, revealing how carefully he tried to construct the world around him. It is within this spacenow known as the Museo Casa Mollino, a highlight for visitors to Turinthat Mollino has been brought back to life.

In a beautiful new short filmdirected by Felipe Sanguinetti, produced by Oscar Humphries, narrated by Fulvio Ferrari, and given exclusively to Voguewe are offered visits to Mollinos Teatro Regio and Casa Mollino. It provides private insights into Mollinos mind and how he saw the world. Shot from around corners and through half-opened doors, the visual narrative is atmospheric in its secrecy, just as one would imagine for spaces of Mollinos. His presence is palpable and, in many ways, evidently vulnerable in the navigation of the cameras lens: As viewers, we get the distinct impression that we are walking side by side with Mollino himself, reseeing the spaces so close to his heart.

The completed Teatro Regio, 1973.Photo: Courtesy of Oscar Humphries

Mollino is so famous for the Polaroids he took and his iconic pieces of design, that as an architect hes often overlooked, said Humphries, who shot the film with friend Sanguinetti in June. But he was an architect first, and we wanted to show that.

Of the films humanized perspective, Sanguinetti noted: I wanted to share what I felt in these two spaces. Its unlike anything Ive ever experienced before, and what Mollino brings out in people is such a unique and emotional response to his work. I hope the spectator, when watching the film, can feel that.

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A New Short Film Offers a Private Look Into the Life of an Italian Architect and Design Enigma - Vogue.com

Beautiful Decay watercolor. Image courtesy of Eskayel.

Shanan Campanaro, founder and creative director of Brooklyn-based textile brandEskayel, is an avid surfer. Campanaro regularly explores the worlds beaches, which inspire watercolor paintings that she creates with fluid, aqueous inks. She then prints these abstractions onto eco-friendly fabrics, wall coverings, rugs, accessories, and home furnishingsthat have established Eskayel in the design world.

Now, the brand is launching its inaugural collection of murals. Called Beautiful Decay, the collection replicates patinated exteriors of timeworn coastal buildings that Campanaro has encountered in her travels through Morocco, Croatia, and Italy. Ive always been captivated by weathered buildings, says Campanaro, who we recentlynamed as amust-follow female designer on Instagram. Different patterns and shading emerge from the layers of paint peeling off exteriors.

Five custom engineered-textile murals from Beautiful Decay are debuting atThe New Work Project, a members-only creative workspace in Brooklyn by interior design firmThe New Design Project. Husband and wife co-founders Fanny Abbes and James Davison initially approached Eskayel to help scout a local artist, but a lightbulb moment ensued.

They sent a few inspiration pictures and I immediately thought of watercolors I completed for Eskayels new Jamaa series, coming out early next year, recalls Campanaro. I had discarded these paintings, but they were exactly what Fanny and James were looking for, so I recolored them to match the projects palette. Having a tonal direction makes the collection feel really cohesive. She further notes that despite being a creative departure in terms of scale,Beautiful Decaymaintains Eskayels laid-back look and feel.

Available on a per project basis, Beautiful Decay can be printed on fabric grounds such as oyster linen, organic denim, and a 50/50 linen cotton blend. The collection will be unveiled on August 10 at The New Work Project in Brooklyn.

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Eskayel's Inaugural Mural Collection Channels Decaying Coastal Architecture - Interior Design

What could possibly be more luxurious than a stay at the legendary Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes? Leave it to Kris Jenner to figure it out. After kicking off her vacation in the South of France by staying at the celeb-favorite 147-year-old hotel (where Jenner enjoyed spa treatments at Spa Eden-Roc Sisley), she boarded fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger's yacht, Flag, for a Mediterranean holiday. Also aboard: Hilfiger's wife, Dee Ocleppo, and the favorite designer of the Jenner and Kardashian clan, Martyn Lawrence Bullard. (Bullard has been enlisted by the family on countless occasions: Besides Jenner's home, he has outfitted Khlo's and Kourtney's, and is designing Kylie's glam room).

Jenner wasn't shy about showing off her toned body lying around Hilfigers yacht; she Instagrammed a photo of herself with the simple caption #naptime.. Other stunning images included Jenner enjoying the sun with Hilfiger, Ocleppo, Bullard, and another traveling partner, as well as one of Jenner solo perching on the end of a diving board that extends off the impressive yacht with the appropriate caption: Living life on the edge. Jenners daughter Khlo Kardashian, despite not being on the vacation with her mother, cheekily shared a photo of Jenner showing off her figure in a bikini. Kris Jenner looking like a snack! I see you mommy! #6KidsAndBad! Kardashian proudly captioned the image of her mother.

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Tommy Hilfiger Hosted Kris Jenner and Her Interior Designer on His Yacht in the South of France - Architectural Digest