In Swinging Acapulco, the Star was Merle Oberon

I'm a little confused about today's post. Last week, I featured a photo of Merle Oberon, which had been taken by Slim Aarons in 1966.  In Aaron's book, A Wonderful Time, the photographer wrote that Oberon's Acapulco house, La Consentida, was considered to be the most beautiful vacation home in the world.  And yet, when I did some sleuthing around the internet, it seems that around this same time, Oberon and her Italian industrialist husband, Bruno Pagliai, also resided in an Acapulco estate called El Ghalal. So, what's the deal?

According to a January 27, 1967 Life magazine article titled "In a Swinging Resort the Star is Merle Oberon" (a title which I borrowed for this blog post), Oberon and her husband built a real showplace of a home in Acapulco called El Ghalal, which is a Mexican-Indian phrase meaning "to love".  The article also mentioned that Oberon, a real social butterfly, liked to end her evenings at a disco called Tequila á Go-Go. I think that is beyond fabulous, but it's also a story for another day.  The Life article makes no mention of a home called La Consentida.

Fast forward to the 1977 book, Architectural Digest Celebrity Homes, which devotes a chapter to Oberon and Pagliai's home, this time referred to simply as Ghalál. The book refers to the home mostly in the past tense, noting that Oberon once shared the home with her former husband. So, I am assuming that when AD first ran photos of the home, the Oberon-Pagliai marriage was intact, but by the time the compilation book was published, the marriage was no more.

Perhaps La Consentida was the home in which the two lived before building El Ghalal. I can't be sure, but what I do know is that the photos featured here do in fact show El Ghalal.  And if some of you are wondering why we should care about a home of an old film star, you just might be interested to know that Merle Oberon and her early life, whose details are murky at best, were the inspiration for Michael Korda's book Queenie, which in turn inspired the mini-series of the same name. (A mini-series, I might add, that is actually pretty good. And Korda, just in case you don't know, is Oberon's nephew.)

According to the AD book, Juan Sordo Madaleno, the home's architect, considered this project to be "the most beautiful house of my career." What was unique about this house was that it was situated so that it received the heat of the afternoon sun, something usually avoided by most when building a home in Acapulco. Oberon wanted the house to have a view of the beautiful Acapulco sunsets, which meant a western-facing direction. The home's outdoor gallery, which ran the length of the house, was designed to be deep so that part of it was always in the shade.

The home was decorated in a British Colonial style, at least according to Ms. Oberon. The actress was a collector of porcelains, some of which can be seen here.

Mr. Pagliai's bedroom, which featured a red lacquered k'ang sofa beneath an Ethiopian painting, looks a little spare.

Ms. Oberon's bedroom, on the other hand, was far more decorated, which was fitting for a movie star. Ms. Oberon's Chinese teak opium bed had a removable center section which allowed for the low table to be used within the bed during the day, while at night, the bed was made up for sleeping.  The actress, by the way, designed the rug.

It looks like there was plenty of space for entertaining and sunset viewing.


All photos from Architectural Digest Celebrity Homes, Max Eckert photographer.

Classic Acapulco

I'm sorry to say that still to this day, I associate Acapulco with The Love Boat.  Sad, but true.  But in the mid-twentieth century, the Mexican resort town was a hot bed of social swells, models, and movie stars who basked in both the sun and the limelight, partying practically non-stop while wearing very chic resort wear. Or so it seems that way to me.

According to Slim Aarons, the most popular person in Acapulco was actress Merle Oberon.  Aarons also mentioned that Oberon's Mexican villa, La Consentida, was considered to be one of the most beautiful resort houses anywhere.  (I'll show photos of her villa on Monday.)  And it seems that others agreed with Aarons' assessment, including Town & Country, which also touted her as one of Acapulco's most gracious hostesses, although the magazine referred to her by her married name, Mrs. Bruno Pagliai.  I admit that when I first saw the T&C piece, I didn't make the connection.

There were lots of other socialites who spent time in Acapulco, including Baron de Redé, Emilio Pucci, and Mrs. Yul Brynner, all of whom were photographed by Aarons while dancing, drinking, and having an all-around good time.

Image at top: Guests gather at the home of Merle Oberon. That looks like Oberon, the second from the right.

Mrs. Bruno Pagliai, aka Merle Oberon, in her Acapulco home

Andrew Goodman of Bergdorf Goodman

From left, Suzy Gilly, Anita Colby, Mary Wells Lawrence, Sloan Simpson, and Mrs. Yul Brynner

There was certainly a lot of bare flesh at this party, which took place at the home of Melchor Perusquia.

Marie-Hélène de Rothschild and Baron de Redé. De Rothschild looks demure compared to the others.

Wouldn't we all have liked to attend this luncheon hosted by Pat de Cicco, especially considering that Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Oscar de la Renta, Reed Vreeland, and Emilio Pucci can all be spotted in this photo. (You might recall that de Cicco was the ex-husband of Gloria Vanderbilt.)

Chicago Botanic Garden Antiques & Garden Fair

Next week, I will be in Chicago to attend the Chicago Botanic Garden Antiques & Garden Fair. I am honored to be joining Marisa Marcantonio of Stylebeat and Emily Evans Eerdmans for a Style Blogger Panel Discussion, which will be moderated by Julia Reed.  (This is major for me because as you might remember, my neighbors and I hosted a party in Julia Reed's honor, although Julia was fêted in absentia.)

The event, which will be held at the Garden's Regenstein Center, will feature more than 100 exhibitors who will be selling both garden and home decorations, not to mention garden displays that have been crafted along the theme of "Color in the Garden: An Artist's View".  Event speakers will include designer Michael Smith (who will be speaking next Friday at 11 a.m.) and landscape designer Charles Stick (his lecture takes place on Saturday at 11 a.m.)  Our blogger panel discussion takes place next Saturday at 2pm, with a book signing event featuring Emily and Julia to follow.

If you live in the area, I do hope that you will attend. It is sure to be a wonderful event, and Marisa, Emily, and I would love to meet you.  For more information on the event, please visit the Chicago Botanic Garden website.

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries

Forget Mr. Selfridge. Have you seen Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries?

I recently discovered the Australian television show, which is based on Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher mystery novels, and now I'm absolutely hooked. Set in Melbourne, Australia in 1928, the series follows lady detective Phryne Fisher as she solves murders on what seems like a weekly basis. Phryne is a modern woman of independent means who drives a Hispano-Suiza, drinks dark liquor, flies airplanes, speaks Mandarin Chinese, and has affairs with some very good-looking men. And her clothes! Phryne is always decked out in the latest fashions (for 1928, of course) that make our twenty-first-century wardrobes look like a hodgepodge of casual separates.

If you live in the U.S., you can watch the first season on Acorn Online or purchase the DVD online. (If you like the first episode, beware of binging on the rest of them as I have.) The show is stylish, fun, a little lighthearted, and well-written. I have two remaining episodes to watch, and I'm not sure what I'm going to do once I finish them. The second season is currently being filmed in Australia as I write this, so I'm sure that means American viewers will have to wait until next Spring to catch new episodes. 

Considering that I'm on this big Phryne Fisher kick, I looked through my old magazines to see if I have any from 1928. I do, so I'm featuring a few photos below to give you a taste of what was going on when the fictional Phryne Fisher was sleuthing and having an all-around swell time.

A dressing room in a Greenwich, Connecticut home that was decorated by Elsie de Wolfe.

Actress Gloria Swanson's New York apartment

A bar designed for the Autumn Salon in Paris by Magazin du Printemps

Another bar at the Autumn Salon. Called "Bar sous le Toit", it was designed by Charlotte Perriand.

A foyer in Florence, Italy with a mural painted by Robert Carrere

The Staten Island dining room of designer Robert Locher

A vignette designed by Mary Coggeshall and Jeannette Jukes.

The Great Clarifier

I spent an hour or so the other night looking at Spanish designer Luis Bustamante's website, and I was treated to that photo above.  Is that a bar or what?! I thought that my bar was well-stocked, but it's nothing compared to this one.

Once my eyes adjusted to that gracious plenty of liquor bottles, I started to pay attention to the other details in the photo like those red ikat lampshades and the red and white striped wall to the left. A shot of crisp red certainly has a way of catching one's eye.  And while looking through the rest of Bustamante's portfolio, my eye kept getting caught again and again, thanks to the designer's emphatic use of this color in so many of his projects (see below).  It seems that red must be one of Bustamante's favorite colors, don't you think?

I suppose that I could say more, but after a thirteen-hour work day, I can barely string two sentences together.  Fortunately, I think the photos speak for themselves.

Nicky Haslam's Folly de Grandeur

I recently spent the most enjoyable evening reading Nicky Haslam's newly released (as in today!) book, Nicky Haslam's Folly De Grandeur: Romance and Revival in an English Country House. As most of you are probably aware, the book profiles the Hunting Lodge, Nicky's enchanting country house that once belonged to John Fowler.  Perhaps it was the allure of these two designers that had me eagerly anticipating the release of this book.  Whatever the reason, the book turned out to be exactly as I had hoped: interesting, inspirational, and hands down a fun read.

Nicky's book is charming and engaging for a number of reasons.  First, he is an excellent writer, one who throws out all kinds of interesting historical tidbits and practical decorating advice along with humorous, and at times naughty, quips thrown in for good measure.  For those of you who are eager to learn about Nicky's thoughts on fabrics, floors, and like, you won't be disappointed as he includes numerous chapters focused on such aspects of decorating.  And if you are a devotee of the country house style, then you'll enjoy reading about the evolution of the house as well as studying the luscious photos of forty years worth of decorative layers.

In fact, even without Nicky's well-written narrative, the book would still be a success, I think, because of Simon Upton's photos.  There are large room shots as well as many detail photos that capture all of Nicky's amusing and entertaining mementos.  There is just so much to look at in this house- and this book- that one could spend hours studying these pictures.  Wait, I did spend hours studying the book's pictures!

I'm not sure what Nicky's follow-up book is going to be, but whatever it is, I am eagerly awaiting that one too.

© Nicky Haslam's Folly De Grandeur: Romance and Revival in an English Country House by Nicholas Haslam, Rizzoli New York, 2013. Images © Simon Upton may not be reproduced in any way, published, or transmitted digitally without written permission from the publisher.

A New Take on Mountain Living

For many Southerners, heading to the mountains means venturing to western North Carolina.  But amongst these same people, mountain style means many different things.  While traditional mountain decor is still alive and well in this area, there are some homeowners, architects, and designers who are taking a different approach to mountain living.  Rather than color schemes of browns, creams, and dark greens, steely grays and cool blues are often their colors of choice.  Furniture is sleek and spare, and contemporary art has replaced antique oil paintings. 

One North Carolina mountain home that reflects this new spirit appears in the April issue of House Beautiful.  Owned by a Charlotte, North Carolina based couple, the home was designed by talented architect Ruard Veltman in tandem with the wife, who is a designer.  Respecting the home's location in a 1920s-era community, the exterior architecture is deliberately traditional.  And yet, the interior is a departure from its surroundings, a blend of luxurious materials and urbane furnishings.  But despite the home's gussied up interiors, there is a sense of comfort that permeates the house, one that invites relaxation.  It's really a most striking mountain house.

Here are a few images for your perusal, but you can read the entire article in the April issue, which hits the newsstands tomorrow.

All photos from the April 2013 issue of House Beautiful, Eric Piasecki photographer.  Images used with express permission from the publisher.

The Frenchwoman's Bedroom

Appearances can be deceiving.  I was reminded of that the other day while reading a friend's copy of The Frenchwoman's Bedroom by Mary-Sargent Ladd. During my initial flipping through, I saw a photo of Jacqueline de Ribes, a woman whose style I greatly admire.  Just look at her, above, wearing that fabulous silk caftan not to mention her perfectly made-up face and coiffed hair.  And yet, when I turned the page to see photos of her bedroom, I was a little surprised.  Not that there is anything wrong with her bedroom (see above), but it just wasn't what I was expecting.  I suppose that I assumed her bedroom would be brighter and layered with matching fabrics.  But it wasn't.  Well, as they say, you should never assume anything.

The entire book is really a gem with loads of photos showing chic French women in their homes.  (How refreshing that many of these women actually had wrinkles on their faces!  That's reassuring, don't you think?)  Their bedrooms are equally as chic and are filled with Porthault linen, Braquenié fabric, and all kinds of pretty things.  And while some bedrooms come as no surprise- the late Andrée Putman's bedroom was contemporary looking, as would be expected- there are still some like de Ribes' room that were unexpected.  Who would have guessed that the Marquise de Ravenel, photographed in her floral housecoat while holding her wire-haired dachshund, would have decorated her bedroom in such a crisp, orderly, and surprisingly modern-looking way!

Madame Sylvie Boutet de Monvel, daughter of famous aesthete Bernard Boutet de Monvel, lived in her father's home for her entire life. She maintained some of her father's decor, including the painted cupboards in her dressing room. Each cabinet was painted with women's clothing, including shoes, hats, and fans.

The bedroom of La Princesse Jeanne Marie de Broglie boasts sofa and curtain fabric from Geoffrey Bennison.

The elegant Mademoiselle Jacqueline Delubac had an equally elegant bedroom with furniture by Jansen. Paintings by Vuillard and Picasso stood alongside Porthault sheets.

You know that La Baronne Antoinette de Gunzbourg's bedroom would be cozy considering that she, like a few other women in the book, was photographed with her dog. Much of the bedroom was covered in a Chinoiserie print fabric from Lauer.

Madame Irith Landeau's bedroom is tranquil and warm.

The late Andrée Putman's bed was screened behind gray mosquito netting.

I adore La Marquise de Ravenel's bedroom which boasts a mixture of graphic prints. The Marquise needlepointed her bed, rug, and bed throw pillows.

La Baronne Edmond de Rothschild chose the famous Verrieres fabric for her bedroom.

La Baronne Gérard de Waldner hired her friend, designer François Catroux, to decorate her bedroom. Designer and client chose two floral prints from both Braquenié and Le Menach to create a flowery, feminine room.



All photos from The Frenchwoman's Bedroom by Mary-Sargent Ladd.