A Designer After My Own Heart

Bamboo prints are one of my all-time favorites. Imagine my excitement when I was reading the August issue of House Beautiful and found this Atlanta home decorated by John Oetgen. The kitchen (shown above) has walls and ceiling papered in Cowtan & Tout's "Bamboo" wallpaper. You'll probably need to click on the picture to clearly see the print on the ceiling. (I'm also crazy for the custom zinc stove hood!) And then, on the screened pavilion at the back of the house, there is a great bamboo print by Kolo Collection on the wicker sofa. I know we've been having a "bamboo moment" for a while now, but I think that these prints are true classics!




Another image of "Bamboo" from the Cowtan & Tout website

Photos of the home from the August issue of House Beautiful

High-Dowager Decor

A few weeks back I posted about old fashioned prints, and it reminded me of the Upper East Side home of Camilla and Carl Sorenson (published in Elle Decor, Dec/Jan '05). With the help of designer Steven Sclaroff, they set about decorating their apartment using "high-dowager decor". Inspired by the very English rooms at Chatsworth, they used a melange of old-fashioned prints; florals, stripes, and Chinoiserie prints are used together to give the apartment a slightly eccentric, slightly matronly, and altogether fresh look. What I like most about this home is that the overall design scheme gives a nod to the history of this pre-war building in a slightly cheeky way. This dowager decor will definitely grow old gracefully.

(To read my related post on old-fashioned prints, click here.)


The dining room is papered in a 1940s Chinoiserie print purchased from Secondhand Rose. The fabric on the sofa is Christopher Hyland's "Giuliana", and the armchair is upholstered in Maharam's Aria cotton velvet.


For a similar look, Secondhand Rose has this vintage Chinoiserie print on their website.


Another shot of the dining room, and a view of the living room with some fabulous gray and white cabinetry designed by Sclaroff. The armchairs' striped fabric is "Rayure Chenille" by Clarence House.


Top left: the master bedroom's sitting area with a sofa upholstered in Colefax & Fowler's Beaumont cotton-viscose fabric.
Bottom left: the dressing room with Clarence House's "Gothik Fretwork" wallpaper.

Photo at top: Another view of the living room; the sofa is upholstered in Scalamandre's "Foret" cotton.

Offices with Style

Most of us have home offices- places where we pay bills, use the computer, and possibly even blog. Offices have to be functional first, but this does not preclude one from injecting style and beauty into them. Here are some of my favorite offices (all are home offices with the exception of the office of Mary McDonald); my little desk looks nothing like these, but perhaps this post will inspire me to get my act together!

Gorgeous and feminine office of designer Mary McDonald


Nick Olsen's chic little tented office area in his chic little apartment.


Aerin Lauder's office in her Park Avenue home (that fabulous desk is a Gabriella Crespi).


Ruthie Sommers snappy striped office


Barclay Fryery's office tablescape


Emma Jane Pilkington's classic office

Image at top: Ultra chic office in the home of Charlotte Moss

Katie Ridder Style

I've long admired designer Katie Ridder's work. Her rooms are always tasteful yet never boring. There is always a sense of adventure and fun to her rooms, but there is also an intellectual streak that runs through them. Ridder never seems to employ any gimmicky decorating tricks, which in essence truly make her rooms timeless!









(Photos from Katie Ridder's website)

Patriotic Decorating

Small spaces can be tricky to decorate, so keeping a cohesive color scheme is a must- too many disparate colors can look choppy. Designer T. Keller Donovan was faced with a challenge when he decorated his three room apartment, but in order to keep some continuity between the rooms, he chose a very tight color palette- red, white, and blue. If this all seems quite patriotic, it is- Donovan was born on the Fourth of July.

Everything in the living room is red and white. All of the major furniture, especially the upholstered pieces, are red. Even the accessories- the picture frames, fire screen, bowls, and vases- are red too. The kitchen with its soothing blue and white color scheme is a nice counterpoint to the snappy living room. Again, the kitchen accessories such as the Spode china are all blue and white. I'm quite taken with the blue and white African print fabric on the kitchen chairs- it looks rather Alan Campbell-ish, but if anyone knows what it is, please let me know.

Finally, the bedroom is blue and white, but in reverse from the kitchen. Calm white dominates here. And don't you love the books behind the bed? They definitely add a lot of visual interest to what would otherwise be a rather boring wall!

Stylish Home- Mathilde Agostinelli

One of my favorite homes in recent years is the Paris apartment of Prada executive Mathilde Agostinelli. The home, which was a collaboration between Agostinelli and Jacques Grange, is a stylish mix of bold contemporary pieces tempered by traditional accents. Agostinelli calls herself a "shocking pink woman", and the color has been used to great success in the apartment- nothing saccharine here.

References to design great Madeleine Castaing, an old family friend, are found throughout the home: the Castaing designed rug that was laid throughout the apartment (thus unifying the various rooms), the greenery striped fabric (another Castaing print) that covers the master bedroom walls, and the tole Wedgwood style urns which were once owned by Castaing and which are on display on the mantle in the living room. Other blue chip pieces in the home include tables designed by Claude and Francois-Xavier Lalanne (whose designs are in great demand right now), Emilio Terry chairs, and a portrait of artist/designer Christian Berard.

Overall, a quirky and sophisticated home that is truly the essence of Parisian chic.


Living room with the Castaing rug as well as a Grange designed sofa


The shocking pink dining room- walls covered in Thorp of London's "Provence Stripe" in Cerise & Sand


The master bedroom with Castaing fabric covering the walls. A Lalanne table and stool are located in front of the window.


Agostinelli's daughter's room- another vision in pink.

Image at top: Another view of the living room with a mica mantel designed by Jacques Grange

(All photos from House & Garden, May 2006)

State of Neutrality

As of late, much of the design buzz has been about color. Fuchsia pinks, vivid blues, oranges, and reds are all the rage. While bright hues are great, we shouldn't forget about the perennial chicness of a neutral palette. It takes skill to create a neutral room that is warm and inviting rather than drab and boring. Mixing creams, taupes, beiges, and browns can be just as difficult as working with color. Adding to the versatility of this palette is the fact that a neutral color scheme is inviting to both sexes. Here are a few examples of neutral rooms done well.

The "Money Room" of Mrs. Vincent Astor (so named as this was the room where Brooke Astor oversaw her late husband's charitable foundation), designed by Parish Hadley.


Living Room in the home of decorator Alexa Hampton (House Beautiful, June '02)


Living Room in the home of Frette designer Cristina Azario (House Beautiful, Feb. '02)


Even swinging decorator David Hicks knew the value of a neutral room

Photo at top: Living Room of Mrs. Gilbert Miller, designed by Billy Baldwin

Vintage Mary McDonald

I finally got my hands on an old November 2001 issue of House & Garden which features the former home of Mary McDonald. Even at this early point in her career, McDonald already had a keen sense of color, although her signature blue and white color combination is evident only in small doses. The gorgeous bedroom was inspired by Dior's Paris salon (which, by the way, has inspired quite a few designers). The white trim, molding, and fabrics provide the perfect counterpoint to the serenely sophisticated gray walls. Other color schemes throughout the house include cream, beige, and white in the living room and aqua and brown in the sitting room. All of these color schemes provide the perfect backdrop for McDonald's antiques, which include inherited pieces of furniture and accessories.





Master bedroom with Benjamin Moore Gull Wing Gray on walls. White pique bed curtains are Country Life's "Birdseye" with lining of Gaston y Daniela's "Ottoman Segura" in silver.


Living Room with mirrored table by Syrie Maugham. Drapery fabric is a Rose Cumming striped print.


The Garden Pavilion which is quintessential Mary McDonald.


Sitting Room with Louis XVI bergere upholstered in Nancy Corzine's "Newport" in Coffee.


Additional views of the living room and the sitting room.


On the left is the guest room; walls and ceiling covered in Manuel Canovas' "Merindol" in Sable. Another view of McDonald's bedroom on the right.

(All photos from the November 2001 issue of House & Garden)

The Fanciful World Of Meg Braff

While reading the June issue of House Beautiful the other night (which, by the way, is a fantastic issue from cover to cover), I was delighted to read about the Newport home of designer Meg Braff. It's so refreshing to see a house full of color and pattern. The look of the house is traditional and preppy (perfect for a town like Newport) and a bit reminiscent of the late, great Sister Parish. I adore the Scalamandre "Shanghai" wallpaper in the dining room (see above), especially when juxtaposed against the vivid Farrow & Ball "Blazer" painted trim and mantel. Patterned walls are also found in the library with Farrow & Ball's "Ringwold" in blue , and again in the snappy office with its Bob Collins' bamboo print "Chinese Lattice" wallpaper. Much of the traditional furniture has been given new life with brightly colored finishes and fabrics. I think what I like most about the house, though, is that there are so many layers to each room that it takes time absorb everything. What an inspiration!

Living Room with Chinoiserie accents


Library with Farrow & Ball "Ringwold" wallpaper


In the Powder Room, "Jardin Chinois Red" wallpaper by Waterhouse Wallhangings


Master bedroom- bedskirt in "Bijoux Stripe" by China Seas; animal print on slipper chairs by Brunschwig & Fils.



Dressing Room/ Office with Bob Collins' "Chinese Lattice" wallpaper.

(All photos taken from the June 2007 issue of House Beautiful)

Tastemaker- Philip Gorrivan

In the new "Tastemakers" issue of House & Garden, designer Philip Gorrivan has garnered the new title "Cosmopolite" because of his ability to create luxurious and sophisticated interiors that are modern and fresh, a look that he achieves by throwing in some traditional pieces for good measure. Not one to shy away from color, Gorrivan punches up his interiors by using shots of bright, bold color. Pattern is also evident in his designs, especially China Sea's Saya Gata print, which Gorrivan has used in a few of his projects. Here are a few photos of his work that I found on his website.













(All photos courtesy of Philip Gorrivan)