Michael Taylor's Softer Side

If you were faced with decorating a Victorian townhouse, what you do? Back in 1973, Michael Taylor decorated the San Francisco living room of Mr. and Mrs. Warren Clark, and the result was a room that Mark Hampton once deemed "the prettiest Victorian room ever seen." Victorian is definitely not my look, but if all Victorian looked like this, I might become a convert. It's also interesting to see Taylor's version of Victorian, especially in light of his later, California cool look.


The living room is a sea of pinks and greens in both pale and bright shades. Inspired by 18th c. Chinese wallpaper, Taylor commissioned a muralist, Garth Benton, to hand-paint wallpaper with leafy trees and birds in flight. The green moire sofa supposedly once belonged to Greta Garbo. I like the shape and tufting of the sofa, although I could do without the white bouillon fringe. The chair to the right of the skirted table was slipcovered in a cabbage rose chintz. And note too the straw rug, which prevents the room from skewing too sweet.



On one side of the living room was a bay window. Two blackamoor jardinières stood guard over the bay, while a pale yellow silk sofa was placed within the niche. The tassels on the front of the sofa were an interesting touch, although I believe that I've seen a Syrie Maugham sofa that featured similar tassels. Speaking of which, the Syrie Maugham armchairs here were upholstered in dark brown cotton velvet.

I guess the moral of the story is that not all Victorian is doom and gloom.

(All images and Hampton quote from Michael Taylor: Interior Design by Stephen Salny)