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| (c) Dean Farris Interior Design 2018 |
Sometimes, we become obsessed with a color, or the idea of a color...and for the last few years I've been thinking about lilac, and the beauty of it as a color for decoration, and to be used in a "neutral" way. After all, it was none other than the late Albert Livingston Hadley, who was quoted as saying that "lavender was the beige of the nineties" - (see my 2016 post on this topic here ) - something that's stuck in my brain and I can't stop thinking about- perhaps as it is so similar to what Diana Vreeland had famously said about "pink being the navy blue of India". The Salonniere also posted about this lavender-lilac topic! And, check out what Alex Papachristidis has to say on this topic (video) here !
Very suitably - this small parsons table had belonged to Albert- and he gave it to me before he almost threw it in the trash-! When I got it, it was in a gold lacquer- and I could see that underneath it had once been a deep rich Parish-Hadley shade of peacock blue. I had left it in my garage for awhile, thinking nothing of it- and then one day I slapped some black paint on it with a brush- very brushy- and lived with that for a number of years. Below, you can see where I had piled it up with books and magazines- since I had grown tired of the bad job I had done of painting it myself- and it was very functional for drinks and even a "tv" dinner! If you've been following me on this blog, you know by now that I am constantly rearranging my furniture and objects. It never ends!
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| Albert Hadley via Judith Gura (my table shown) |
I sometimes think of this room as the transformation of a small, dark, box, into a fin de siècle salon of Proustian memories and nostalgia...or perhaps just a modern "man cave" !
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| (c) Dean Farris Interior Design 2018 |
Once I achieved the color selection, which took less than two minutes, (Benjamin Moore) since I already knew what I wanted- I got the bright idea to use the lilac color for a sort of improvised table, where I topped a baroque style table with an unfinished plywood door- so that I'd have a long dreamt of display area for my collection of mostly "junque" porcelains- with a few antique pieces mixed in- which was very exciting and fun to do on a rainy day here in Naples. But, before I even bought the paint, Billy and I had gone into a place called Z Galerie and found these fun ikat pillows- on sale! So, as you can see, one thing led to another- the pillows are fabulous, but take up too much room on my small scale chesterfield, so I moved them into my bedroom, which led to totally re-arranging that space! The small inlaid screen panels were a gift from old friends, Bing and Martin.
I also made a designer sketch of how I was envisioning the table with the porcelains...
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| (c) Dean Farris Interior Design 2018 |
( Concurrently, I was always planning to use this fabulous, classic, "bali hai" printed linen and cotton, what Isaac Mizrahi calls a "Watteau"print - from China Seas on a pair of Louis XV style open armchairs- the color and pattern of which I was mad for- and so is Danielle Rollins! -the blue colorway)
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| China Seas Bali Hai fabric |
Here's a shot of the table set up with the porcelain on top- as you can see from this image, the two chairs are screaming for the new fabric- which could be done as slip covers- since I still like the suede as a reminder of Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel and her Rue Cambon suite above the shop- I also want to add some fuchsia and green orchids to the table-
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| (c) Dean Farris Interior Design 2018 |
Another option would be to make two toss pillows out of the China Seas fabric- which could then be also used on the leather chesterfield- which still needs a pair of classic swing arm lamps- flanking- also, since I took this shot, I've added some very decorative shells to the mix- (thank you Judith) which add some nice Floribbean flair- much needed as there is a white ceiling fan hanging just above this arrangement!
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| (c) Dean Farris Interior Design 2018 |
Thanks again to dear Linda of "Calling It Home" for the gift of the vintage lamps- very Dixie Highway-! Here, (below image) I experimented with a Mongiardino-John Fowler inspired idea of "slipcovering" the lamp shades- not sure I love it or not- but a very charming and cozy effect!
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| (c) Dean Farris Interior Design 2018 |
This whole post is all done in the spirit of good, old fashioned, all American decorating- a byline from the old days of House and Garden, my favorite childhood magazine- but, seriously, I could have had the whole room re-painted in a deep aubergine gloss, or the deep chocolate brown I had in my New York flat- so this was a way to spruce up for late Spring and early Summer without too much fuss and the expense- always a good thing. Sister Parish would agree, I'm sure, with this very New England approach…
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| via Colefax and Fowler, London |
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| Michael Whaley |
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| Quadrille, Isfahan wallpaper |
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| via Christopher Spitzmiller |
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| Susan Zises Green, Inc. |
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| via Traditional Home on The Glam Pad |
(I was also thinking of old houses in Southampton I had seen, with unusual color schemes- and the very beautiful, recently married Countess Tessa Grafin von Walderdorff, a source of endless inspiration and ethereal, youthful beauty.) DF
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