Lee Bouvier Radziwill - The original Pippa

Vale Lee.

This was a post published in 2013 but am reposting now.
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The New York Times is running a fantastic  piece on Lee Radziwill.

There are several notable contributors to this article: 

Nicky Haslam, Sofia Coppola, Peter Beard, etc. 

It reads more like a proper in depth Vanity Fair article.

It's meaty and will go great with your Saturday brunch.

It also features a video interview with Sofia Coppola speaking to her about topics as diverse as her relationship with Peter Beard to her childhood - Onassis was off limits though.

You can click here for the link.

Fabulous cover of the T Magazine.

I didn't know I was such a fan until this picture.

Cute as a button - both of them.

Cecil Beaton anything is ok with me.

 A modern Matisse-y / Cecil Beaton / Vogue composition.

As you do.

Chairs and their Anthropomorphic Personas Part 3

Your social media lurker who doesn't officially follow you but accidentally hits like on a post from 2013.

The one who isn't a "loser" but finds life a little harder.

Not IQ issues but EQ matters.

The person who is always improving themselves 

by way of most common postmodern means 

of physical or spiritual honing and other self help methods. 

They function but 

you wouldn't depend on them for any real support.

Your friend in law.

 You have had better conversations with strangers 

at an airport lounge than the awkward pleasantry exchanged 

when your mutual friend goes to the loo during lunch.

The person who just leaves the party without saying goodbye, disappears from most modes of communication for a certain time period, and is bipolar in the most affable of ways.

Just be warned.

They are either a spy, 

a recovering addict, 

or simply an extroverted introvert.

The person who repeats their anecdotes the amount of times 

toddlers ask you to reread their favourite book.

Yes Linda, you have told me about the time when...

Yes Linda, you did tell me about your...

Images from Pinterest

The Delicate Balance of Clashing in Home Decor

I have had various drafts on this subject for years now, 

especially with the revived and reinterpreted trend 

of having various styles of textiles 
in the form of scatter cushions, 

bed spreads, upholstery in the home.

The clashing also applies to disparate art and furniture of course.

This "trend" always existed of course, 
but in the form of haphazard placement with no intent of clashing. 

This was out of either economic duress where one couldn't afford new textiles so one made do with existing items.

Think World of Interiors

These two pictures I took from 

the May 2017 issue of World of Interiors. 

The one above is a Moroccan farmhouse and below is an Edwardian home.

Or it was the other end of the financial scale and 

it might have been in a home where 

one doesn't necessarily inherit but 
where one is a custodian so nothing really belongs to you. 

One had to accept your great grandmother's cushions that were made out of her bridesmaids dresses 
or the velvet curtains were from your grandfathers home in India 
so nothing could be removed as everything had literally monumental value.

Think Chatsworth

Via

But like a stew,

 be it of vegetable scraps or of the finest cuts of meat, 

time tends to mellow out the differences and they tend to fuse. 

But then I do believe in the power of fermentation and maturation of things over time.

This is a picture from Pinterest from a Swedish blogger from
the earlier days of blogging from 2009 ( thereabouts) but she has since quit blogging to go professional.
I can't find the name of the blogger as this picture was stored in my iCloud.
This picture spawned many a copy cat - at the time - this picture was a hit and I still like it.

I find many intent clashes of material fail, 
partly for the same reasons 
why shabby chic tends to fail. 
Because it is forced.

It is like abstract art, 
I can not articulate 
what the formula to a successful arrangement is. 
If I could,
 decor would be maths and not a creative domain.

This is the bedroom of Ben Pentreath via
This is a modern and fresh interpretation of mixing prints a l'anglais.

And before you go, here she goes again.

I think like most things, 
there is a balance.

Or it is very personal.

If you like how it is in your home then there is no reason to change it but these things tend to filter down from pros to civilians.

But it seems like no one is stating what is evident publicly.
A bit like the decor version of the emperor's new clothes.

Via Nick Olsen instagram

When I saw Nick Olsen's room in the annual design event the is the Kips Bay shophouse, 
I thought it was time to post.

I am not picking on him perse
 but using his room to illustrate what 
I feel very deflated about decor done for PR 
that gets infiltrated into the suburbs.

He is not a civilian but a person of note in his field 
so I think even if he were to read this, 
he really wouldn't be bothered.

He has influence and I do like his portfolio 
and his success is much deserved.

He has worked under some design heavy hitters such as Miles Redd and one can see that influence.

Via

Some of the people who go see his room 
and get inspired by it will have the means to get a designer to recreate the mood of the room in their own home. 

But many will attempt this on their own. 

In what appears to be a clash, 
there is a thread that is actually from the matchy matchy school.

Via

It is easy to say - 
I like it, hate it, don't mind it - 
but I wanted to articulate in concrete terms 
why I feel the way I do.

The best I can come up with is this.

There is a terracotta/ochre color in the folding screen in the left 
that ties into the colorblocking in the large painting in the centre that matches the paint details in the curtain pelmet on the right.
The accent color is also in the sofa and the accent in the rug.

In fact, I think the pelmet ruins the room as a whole.

But that is another talk show.

I have tried putting my finger over the pelmet to block it from view
and the rest of the room is rather nice albeit cramped.

Via

Usually there is no proper tie, 
the cohesive thread is not as obvious as this. 

A successful outcome is rather like a built up gallery wall of art by one owner. 
It may seem disparate but there is a fundamental core base on which the person bought each artwork even if one is a watercolour or an oil with different subject matters.

For me, this room looked forced and 
I think that is why it doesn't resonate with me.

Via

I think this room is a great space minus 20%.

This study section of the room is one I would be more than happy with.

The walls are fabulous and the furniture placement is one of a professional touch.

In the article in the Washington Post, 

it says that he was going for 1930's American expat in Paris.
I suppose it does evoke something of that era.

Via

But then I must remember decorators like most professions nowadays must scream for attention and grab headlines. 

This seems like the design soundbite equivalent of a politician who is up for election.

So I need to remind myself 
to see these spaces with that in mind 
and try to distill the essence of the room rather 
than taking things so literally.

But as always, the main rule of thumb is do what you like!

Nancy Lancaster's Yellow Room and Bowie at Sotheby's

I heard that the Colefax and Fowler Mayfair office which was the home to Nancy Lancaster was going to shut down during summer so I made a point of going to see it before I went away on holiday.
These are the pics I took in June.

This two pics are the room just before you enter the famous yellow room on the 1st floor.

As this is an actual showroom for the antique division of the design firm, this famous Yellow Room tends to always look so different.  ( Please click on link for other pictures by another visitor.)

This corner is on the ground floor and what doesn't come across very well is the trim and the execution of the fabric covered walls.

This is the latest window by Charlotte Olympia.

So I thought today I had to go to see the famous yellow room one more time.

They had this sign out and the lady inside says that it will close around October so if you are in London please do go and have a look around as one isn't sure what it will become after the showroom closes.

I took some more random photos for your viewing.

This room is on the ground floor and I am not sure what its original purpose used to be.

My friend and I got to go into the garden which is usually closed off but as it has been so hot the last few days they had opened the doors.

This space is not special on its own merit but more wondrous when taking into account the location.

Some lovely garden furniture and accessories also available for sale.

This staircase is the rear entrance from the garden to the famous yellow room.

Once again the yellow room looking different but yet always the same.
There is a sale being held in the showroom so it is holding a lot of product.

But still beautiful.

I took a friend for a tour after lunch with me and as expected she loved it.

We also went to have a look at the David Bowie pieces at Sotheby's.

His pictures on the wall were beautiful and I now forget who they were taken by.

His art was surprisingly bourgeois and wouldn't have looked out of place at a wealthy white collar worker's home.

Sorry for the slack editing but if I try and make it look professional which this blog isn't then I wouldn't publish it and there are times when I just want to share some posts I think some of you may like without me yapping as I have nothing to add except for - ain't it lovely!

Have a lovely weekend x