Windsor Smith on Design

Windsor Smith is a designer whose career is on fire. In addition to her interior design work, she just debuted a fabric collection, a furniture collection, and a rug line as well (whew!). I recently had the opportunity to speak with Windsor and it was quite a treat. Her personality is as warm and sparkling as her interiors.

To borrow the tagline from the National Enquirer, "Inquiring minds want to know", and that's the way I feel about design. So I decided to get Windsor's thoughts on anything and everything design related.


On Her New Fabric Line:
Windsor's new fabric line for Kravet has received rave reviews, and it's not hard to see why. The fabrics that caught my eye were her bold and graphic prints. But don't think that these are "in your face" prints. Windsor likes the snap and pop of strong pattern, but she chose to render them in soft colors like celadon and clove. And she wisely chose to use no more than two colors per print. The result? Prints that are classic and easy to live with. (Fabric available through Kravet showrooms and through her website.)

"Insignia" in Seafoam


"Continuum" in Chestnut

On Mixing Prints...With Style:
One question that I am asked often is how best to mix prints. I'll be the first to tell you that I'm not completely comfortable with doing this myself. Fortunately, Windsor shared some tips. First, mixing florals can be difficult, so you might want to stick with just one. Also, stripes, especially tone on tone, can work with a variety of prints. And if you're mixing multi-color prints, proceed with caution! Windsor advises using no more than two. Interestingly enough, Windsor gives the green light to mixing vintage fabrics, saying "anything goes". Her rationale? Vintage textiles become found objects and art and should be displayed almost like a collection. In her mind, Lynn von Kersting's work is a great example of this kind of mix.

See how well this gray and white striped fabric works with the pink and white paisley print? Windsor obviously practices what she preaches!


And look at the smashing combo of the green tonal stripes with the punchy pink print.

On White... and Blue:
It seems that every designer has one color which they add to every room. For Albert Hadley, it's red. For many others, it's black. For Windsor? White! As she says "the absence of color makes other colors sing!" That said, she also admits that she has a weakness for blue.


Blue and white in an East Coast Traditional home à la Windsor Smith.

On the Stars of her Collection:
So unless you've been hiding under a rock, you know that Windsor recently introduced her new furniture collection. And just what are her picks for the stand out pieces?


Brittany Secretary. Works as a TV cabinet, desk, or in bathrooms to hold makeup and towels.


Slim Chaise. Looks especially good nestled at the foot of a bed.


Entry Round Settee. Looks very "Grand Hotel" to me!

On Her Dream Clients:




(Jane Birkin- in case you're wondering)




Legendary style icon Slim Keith

On Her Current Favorite Design and Architecture Books:


An Affair with a House


Vogue Living: Houses, Gardens, People

On the Details that Make a House a Beautiful Home:

1) Art and found objects that reflect the personality of the homeowner
2) Large bundles of the same type flower in a casual vase
3) Lighting that makes a room come alive day and night
4) Floor plugs




Windsor has some wonderful Found Objects for sale on her website, including this Early Chippendale Table and the Antique French Fireplace Canopy

On the Future:
So what's next for Ms. Smith? Plenty. She's working on some amazing projects including a late 1940's equestrian estate. And, big things are in the works for her website. In addition to her online shop, there will be decorating advice, newsletters, and video. I'd say Windsor is in need of a vacation.

Frederick P. Victoria & Son and the Famous Billy Baldwin Bookcase

Last week I posted about Ventry Ltd. and their Billy Baldwin Collection. I mentioned the Porter étagères- those famous brass bookcases that Billy Baldwin designed for Cole Porter's Waldorf apartment.

Tony Victoria of Frederick P. Victoria & Son was kind enough to provide me with the history of this piece. The brass étagère originated in the workshop of F.P. Victoria as a collaboration between Baldwin and the venerable furniture studio. The piece was inspired by an English Regency shelf unit that was owned by F.P. Victoria (the Baldwin étagère was obviously designed on a larger scale than the shelf unit). According to Victoria, what made the design of the étagère unusual was the fact that "in order to give the structure the maximum rigidity, there were half round moldings that formed an “X” attached to the underside of the shelves AND soldered to the leg post knuckles. This was no mean feat, requiring a specially tooled and conforming element to be made in order to permit the crossing member to get over the other one without a break. This design factor is, by the way, how one can tell originals from later copies: the latter just have moldings that butt up against each other on the underside and that are not soldered to the posts (if they have anything underneath the shelves at all), it being much too costly to do that work in more recent times."

The bookshelves were handmade in the F.P. Victoria studio by a craftsman named Julius DaSilva. Owing to the retirement of DaSilva , F.P. Victoria decided to give the patterns to Guerin, of which the owner was a close personal friend. And now in 2008, you can buy this design (or some semblance of it) from Frederick P. Victoria & Son, Inc., Guerin or Ventry Ltd .

Tony also emailed me various images and sketches of the original Regency piece and variations of the Porter étagère. If you didn't already want one of these before seeing these images, I think you will become a convert now!

(Image at top: Photo of the famous Billy Baldwin brass étagères in the apartment of Baldwin)

The piece that started it all: English Regency dumbwaiter that had been in the collection of F.P. Victoria and which inspired the Baldwin/Porter étagère. The shelves are made of rosewood.


A variation of the standard Porter étagère that was taller and held more shelves.


Another variation, this time made for Gary Stephenson, a noted antiques dealer. Victoria notes that this photo shows the versatility of the étagères.


A reference sketch of the Regency piece in the files of F.P. Victoria & Son, Ltd.

(All images were provided by and are in the collection of Frederick P. Victoria & Son, Ltd.)

Billy Baldwin and Ventry Ltd.

It looks like Ventry Ltd. has updated their website with new photos of Billy Baldwin designed furniture (some of the pieces may not have actually been designed by Baldwin; instead, he may have lent his name to the pieces). If you've always dreamed of owning Billy B's classic slipper chair, Turkish ottoman, or metal bookcases, then take a look at the Ventry website. And if the unadorned pieces of furniture look a little vanilla on the website, not to worry. Just look at how Billy used these designs in his projects.


The classic Billy Baldwin slipper chair. According to Mitchell Owen's article in the New York Times (Nov. 5, 2000), Baldwin's slipper chair was supposedly designed with Pauline de Rothschild's tall, lean frame in mind (thus making it easier for her to strike a pose and extend her long legs).


Small slipper chair and Porter etagere in the apartment of Baldwin.


Porter etagere from Ventry Ltd. According to Owens, the Porter etagere was originally fabricated by PE Guerin (and is still available through them as well).


Another view of Baldwin's apartment with the Porter etagere and what appears to be a Studio Loveseat


Studio Loveseat from Ventry


The Turkish Ottoman from Ventry...


and in this Baldwin designed living room (the home of Mollie Parniss)


The home of Woodson Taulbee with the larger (?) slipper chair and the Studio Sofa, both upholstered in that famous Tree of Life print.


Large Slipper Chair from Ventry


Studio Sofa from Ventry


These metal tables have been attributed to Billy Baldwin, but there is debate as to whether he actually designed these tables or not. It's possible that he simply lent his name to this design.

Suzanne Kasler for Hickory Chair

Last night I attended a great party at Max & Company in honor of Suzanne Kasler's new furniture line for Hickory Chair. Kasler's gorgeous line made its debut at High Point this past Spring where it generated A LOT of buzz. And it was only natural that the Atlanta party was held at Max & Company, a fabulous shop owned by another Atlanta designer, Phoebe Howard.

I haven't been able to find any images of the new line on Hickory Chair's website, so I took copious photos of the entire first floor at Max & Company. Most of the furniture in these photos are Kasler's pieces. And if you're interested in anything and everything, by all means call Max and Company for info- everyone who works there is very nice and courteous. (Telephone- 404-816-3831). I think it's safe to say that Suzanne's new line is going to be a big hit!

Joe Nye New York

I had the chance to visit the showroom of Joe Nye New York last week, and I was not disappointed! There are so many great pieces there that I was ready to ship half of the store home to Atlanta. Many of the finds can be attributed to Joe himself, while others are courtesy of the guys from Downtown. (I mean really, is this not a winning combination? Joe is the walking embodiment of style with a capital "S", while David and Robert of Downtown know what's going to be hot eons before the rest of us do.)

What really caught my eye was a new line of hand-forged wrought iron and steel patio furniture that is being sold at JNNY. The chairs, benches, and tables (the large basket-shaped one doubles as a planter) are powder coated in a choice of sixteen different colors, although custom colors can be special ordered (all pieces are made here in the States). And they don't rust! To me, the furniture looks a bit Elsie de Wolfe with some Mathieu Mategot and Rene Prou thrown in for good measure. How neat are these shield-back chairs?





Here is just a sample of what was in the showroom last week. If you see anything of interest, I encourage you to contact Karen at the showroom. She is really knowledgeable and nice too! (Tel. 212-486-7551)