FAUX BOIS WALLPAPERS AND TOM SCHEERER'S MASTERY OF THEM

 Photo courtesy of Tom Scheerer

I am mesmerized by the serene crisp nature of Tom Scheerer's exacting work.  If there was a Tom Scheerer  Design School, I would be a charter member.  He deftly employs pattern on the wall through boldly colored graphic  Quadrille papers, but also likes the quiet simplicity of a paler wall, often in the form of pecky cyprus (a favorite of mine in Palm Beach homes), and faux bois.
With this weeks launch of his highly anticipated new book, Tom Scheerer Decorates (a detailed look at it is coming soon), I got to thinking about what Scheerer excels at. As seen here, he employs the workhorse wallpaper Chene, by Nobilis. Because the wood grain is pale, it acts like a neutral and has a chameleon nature. Creating architecture with the way it has been hung, the eye is led around the space. Get creative with the walls in the interiors you are working on, it makes all the difference.  Here are some examples of how he uses the paper to transform spaces, with the addition of some other great faux papers out there.

Photo courtesy of Tom Scheerer
In a farmhouse setting, the look is rustic, light. More polished than rough.

Photo courtesy of Tom Scheerer

Another setting, this time a bedroom in the country.

Photo courtesy of Nobilis

French fabric house, Nobilis's Chene, the go-to wallpaper for the faux bois that is a good stand in for pecky cyprus and bleached wood. To give you an idea of its enormous popularity, try ordering it and see if it is in stock. You may have to backorder this, but its worth the wait.

 Photo courtesy of Anthropologie

Resembling wood panels, the work of Dutch Designer Piet Van Eek is recognizable in its use of reclaimed materials with heavy wood grain. You may know his furniture, made of refurbished planks. This version of roughed-up beadboard, Scrapwood, is available online at Anthropologie, by Netherlands-based wallpaper company  NLXL.

 Charlotte Moss understands the way this realistic faux bois can do wonders in a long, windowless hall. She used the Eek Scrapwood paper in her Kips Bay Showhouse garden escape she designed in 2012.

Photo courtesy of NLXL

Drawn to imperfect, honest materials and recycling, Eek started doing his designs in 1990. They are remarkable for their astonishing resemblance to the real thing. The NLXL collection of Eek papers is available at Sylvester and Co.

 Photo courtesy of West Elm

Stikwood, a new permanent adhesive wallpaper has just become available through West Elm. It provides a nice highly textured surface, and comes in 14 varieties of wood, from bleached to reclaimed.  It comes in stick-on planks, and works best over painted walls rather than on top of wallpaper.

Photo courtesy of West Elm

The Reclaimed, Weathered White is right up my alley for rough luxe Farm House chic.

ZEBRA'S ON YOU CHINA: SCALAMADRE BY LENOX TABLETOP DEBUTS AT BLOOMINGDALE'S

Last night Scalamandre debuted their new tabletop collaboration with Lenox at Bloomingdale's. Just up the street from the Scalamadre townhouse, they debuted Scalamandre's classic textile patterns interpreted on Lenox, American-made china. Adapting 5 iconic patterns, including the jumping zebra we all know and love, they created fanciful dinnerware and accessories for the collection. To launch with a creative bang, they asked celebrated interior designers Bunny Williams, Charlotte Moss, Richard Mishaan, Kathryn M. Ireland (who is in the midst of creating a fabric collection with Scalamandre now), and Jamie Drake to create festive windows around the patterns. And that they did. The windows were fantastic; sure to stop passersby in their tracks.

 Photos and descriptions courtesy of Scalamandre/Lenox/Bloomingdales

Renowned designer Bunny Williams created an exuberant, tour de force homage to Lenox's Toile Tale. Adapted from Scalamandré's Pillement Toile, the pattern features a fanciful Chinoiserie landscape of enchanting flowers, fretwork, figures, pagodas and parasols. Framed by antique gilded palm trees, a carved and painted curio pagoda cabinet showcases a selection of Toile Tale’s captivating dinner plates, bowls and accessories. Suspended above, a host of multi-colored silk lanterns herald the Chinese New Year. Scalamandré's warp silk Paradiso covers the upper walls and the striped silk Sunset adorns the lower third, each anchored with elegant fretwork molding. Turkish floor cushions covered in Scalamandré's luxe Tigre finish this exotic, enticing meal for two.

Bouvier, based on a superb 18th century French design from Scalamandré and known as Jardin de Tuileries, has graced the homes of some of America’s great style doyennes, among them Jacqueline Onassis, Bunny Mellon and Marie Harriman. Designer Charlotte Moss took her cue from Jacqueline Kennedy's childhood in East Hampton and created an equestrian scene with boxwood hedges, pole jumps and an impromptu luncheon. Bales of hay serve as seating and are covered with tufted cushions of Scalamandré’s smart outdoor Boxwood Stripe. Miss Bouvier’s monogrammed quilted horse blanket is made of navy Guadeloupe with brown detailing and a monogram. An awning, also fabricated in the navy Guadeloupe appears above this sophisticated, sunlit setting. Placesettings of Bouvier and a complement of serving pieces, flatware and silver are displayed on a folding table.

 Bouvier

Richard Mishaan created a chic, urban dining aerie to showcase those iconic Zebras that once graced the walls of the late, lamented Gino's Restaurant in New York City. Lithely eluding arrows with grace, speed and endless charm, Scalamandré’s irrepressible Zebra wallpaper in the signature Masai red serves as dramatic backdrop for an intimate dinner. A complement of Zebra china, accessories and giftware is set on table with a red silk tablecloth of Scalamandré’s Shangri-la overlaid with the finely woven Herringbone di Lusso. Two cubes upholstered in the graphic Zebra linen emerge from under a console and a three-paneled screen featuring a dozen Zebra Accent plates finishes this dramatic and swank vignette. 

 Zebras

A painted English stately home with a requisite fountain and lake is the charming backdrop for Kathryn Ireland’s picnic vignette. Appointed with the enchanting Love Birds china pattern, this perennially fresh design is from one of Scalamandré's earliest and most cherished reproduction fabrics. Her inviting plein-air tablescape features pillows covered in Scalamandre's Love Birds, Bizarre, Sami Ikat and Lillian. A tablecloth in blue Serendipity is layered with a coral strié lampas, Uppsala and at the cloth’s edge, is a fetching parasol covered in Sami, in blue. A one-hundred-percent beautifully drawn linen, Baroque Floral is draped over the picnic basket. 

Love Birds

Jamie Drake selected Lenox’s striking Stravagante pattern, a hyper lush, ravishingly drawn Italian Baroque still life based on a document from Scalamandré's Medici Archives. In a distilled, graphic and dreamlike tableau, Stravagante imaginatively comes to life with five winding, serpentine stems, tendrils and leaves covered in Scalamandré’s Citrine Upcountry cotton velvet and Rasone, a solid cotton sateen. Five electric blue Morning Glory blossoms in the blue cotton Cento are adorned with butterflies and bear Stravagante plates. 

 Stravagante

IN FLORIDA? JOIN ME AT DCOTA THIS THURSDAY FOR A SCHUMACHER PANEL WITH CELERIE KEMBLE

Photo courtesy of DCOTA

Being on panels, moderating panels, and listening to panels always leave me inspired.  The questions they answer, dialogue they spark and the camaraderie they engender are just fascinating. If you are in Florida this coming Thursday, November 15th, I hope you will come out to DCOTA in Dania, to hear a  panel I am moderating with PB/NYC designer Celerie Kemble and Schumacher's creative director, Susan North. We will be discussing The Influence of Fashion on Wallcovering Design and the recently-launched innovative wallcovering collection Kemble has created for the brand. The event, in Atrium C, begins at 10:45am and goes till 12pm, followed by a reception in the Schumacher Showroom. Then at 2pm, I am looking forward to introducing Charlotte Moss, whose newest book, her eighth title,  A Visual Life: Scrapbooking, Collages and Inspirations, reveals her extensive collages she has assembled over the years on inspired travel, fashion, color and more, which she has incorporated with the historical entertaining documents of stylish, inspiring women through time. After Moss shares her visual inspiration, join us at The Century Furniture Showroom where her Icons Collection is on view. Excited to see you there!

COLOR KICKS THIS YEAR'S KIPS BAY SHOWHOUSE UP A NOTCH

So how do you make a modern glass box livable? That was the question many designers asked themselves as they prepared their rooms for this year's Kips Bay Showhouse. Situated in a tower in the sky with river views, two duplex apartments received the designer treatment.  With nary a piece of molding in sight, the design challenge began. The chosen participants spun their web of transformation  in a jiffy. Since these are professionals, they rose to the occasion with brilliance, creating unique spaces with something for everyone. I will delve into the design standouts over the next week, so visit the far Westside and take a look. If traveling cross town is too much to process, Kips Bay has organized a shuttle bus that leaves from the Park Avenue Armory at 66th Street. 

 Speaking of brilliance, the brilliant color green was big this year. It was present in  every hue, from jade to grass, the verdant color vied for attention. From Charlotte Moss covering an entire room in floor to ceiling pea green velvet (masking the soffit overhang like the lining of a jewelry box)  to Jamie Drake painting his walls a matte teal finish, the veteran designers used the color to great dramatic effect.

Todd Romano's dining room with double height ceilings and soaring windows. French Directiore chairs upholstered in Brunschwig and Fils grass green silk matched the Dodie Thayer pottery he set on the table.

A massive pineapple welcomed us. Designed by Horacio Madrigal Terra Cotta, it is from Claremont,  in case you were wondering. The color matched the aubergine walls.

To say I have a fondness for Thayer Lettuceware is an understatement. I adore it. You can always count on Romano for Porthault linens and gorgeous china.

Charmer alert! A miniature vase of carnations at every place setting provided a warm gesture of hospitality.

What Kips Bay room would be complete without a handmade lamp by Christopher Spitzmiller?

Bringing the natural world inside, Charlotte Moss's room appealed to all the senses. She covered a wall in boxwood, the facing wall had blown up images of manicured French gardens, and swathed everything in varying shades of green.   The darling round-backed Charleston Slipper Chair and white cut corner table are two pieces from her new Century Icon's Furniture collection. The scale and amount of detail on them are just perfect, and I think my apartment would agree.  The Natchez Camel Back Sofa has Fortuny Pillows from David Duncan on it to add a little shimmer.  To further enhance the greenery all around, the sounds of chirping birds created a transporting experience.

Photos by Eric Striffler

Working with her new Fabricut collection, she covered the room in velvet and upholstered pieces in her green florals and prints. Getting creative with the wall space, she hung antique engravings at eye level and placed a Vladimir Kanevsky Porcelain Hollyhock on a gilded decorative bracket.

Catching everything in its reflective glow, the walls of Thom Filicia's lacquer box.

His Vanguard Copake Eagle Console held sway on one wall.

On another wall, his cool modern Abstract Lines artwork from Soicher Marin were hung above a bench he designed for Vanguard.

Brian del Toro is a name you may not know but you should. He is enormously talented, having worked for some of the best in the business.  He was a senior designer when I was at David Kleinberg's office. His has impeccable taste. Spring green cushions in F. Schumacher's Prestwick wool sateen in shamrock on parchment club chairs from the 1960's mirror the clean lines in the wall treatment.

To counter the pop of green, French blue walls were treated with linear paneling. There were many great takes on how to treat walls this showhouse.

A rarified old world vintage Longchamp desk set and lamp tied the shades of green together. How civilized. Desk sets are making a comeback. I think the luddite in everyone is emerging to counter our obsessive ipad use.

What can I say? Jamie Drake just knows how to style a bookcase. He too used interesting horizontal panel detailing in more of a forest green/teal combination.

Beautiful porcelain flowers nestled amongst the books.

Scott Sanders created The Cabana, a room  that is ready for summer. Incorporating a classic Scalamandre  resist print recolored in a green, blue and yellow floral pattern. 

Meshing mid century modern and the way we live today, Sanders artfully crafted a fun hang out space. 

Phillip Jeffries Juicy Jute grasscloth in split pea added requisite zing on the walls teeing up the pair of fluoro Warhol pop art cows.

IN FULL BLOOM: CHARLOTTE MOSS FABRICS

Photos courtesy of Fabricut and Charlotte Moss

Finding endless inspiration in her Long Island garden, Charlotte Moss' new fabric collection with Fabricut has blooms aplenty. Ever busy, with her latest book including her fabulous collage style inspirations and showhouse rooms, she has recently created wonderful ikat rugs with Stark, sweet accessories with Halcyon Days and is due to launch Century furniture in the spring. How does she do it all?
The fabric collection, influenced by Moss' vast archival collection and decorative accessories collected over a lifetime of travels, includes wovens, prints and patterns that all coordinate, with palettes ranging from the palest icy blue to the brightest spring green. An approachable price point makes it possible to surround yourself with a bit of Charlotte's classic blooms and elegant prints. The Charlotte-styled chicly done brochure provides a peek into how she would use the refined fabrics, and provides inspiration to create feminine, warm and timeless interiors, all in an easy, breezy summery lifestyle. Charlotte is currently working on her eighth book, and I cannot wait to see what she has in store!

Going green, a graphic woven geometric Charlotte hangs in the window panels and is paired with Caroline, a novelty vase print in Grass on the sofa and paisley on an armchair.

A winding vine fabric, Violet in Ivy at the window and Claire printed floral in Red Eden on the seat cushion at a desk vignette.

Setting the table in tons of blue and white, a Moss signature, she combines her favorite china patterns to work with the floraly tablecloth.

Thalien, a periwinkle blue and rich purple paisley in an alternating stripe is such a great color pairing.

A cozy dining room with upholstered walls in rich reds show Thalien paisley in Melon and an upholstered chair in Violet, Watermelon. The leading edge of the paisley print makes a nice border at the top below the trim.

Strewn bright pink and green carnations, Lucia reminds me of one of my favorite Porthault prints, and I like that these carnations are priced to move.

Violet, an all over floral upholstery fabric with gradient shades of Watermelon has a nice aged look to it, like an Italian Renaissance fabric.

Taking faux bois to a new place, Fanny, this abstracted print can look animal, bois or like a sketchy linear pattern.

Looking fresh as a table skirt, the softly undulating pattern of this print gives it a versatility for a variety of applications. It is one of my favorites.

A blue and white chenille woven Harriet in Mist looks almost sponge printed.That mini cane chair is beyond!

THE HALCYON DAYS ARE BACK

Halcyon Days, the British home - accessories - in - enamel company received a much needed design boost when they collaborated with Charlotte Moss on a new enamel collection. Long known for their tiny gold hinged boxes with sayings and flowers that graced coffee tables, vanity surfaces, and end tables from the Upper East Side to Grosse Pointe, their designs have gotten a shot in the arm with this stylish partnership. Two collections dubbed Muse and Wanderlust, take destinations and design themes as the impetus and inspiration. The New York pattern ties in with Moss' green and white Pickard China pattern, and the other designs are classic motifs that the New York- based designer loves, like brightly colored ikat, caning detail, fretwork and decorative flourishes. In addition to the bangle bracelets, the collection includes a travel alarm clock, vase, dish and ring box.
The 'Istanbul' Bangle from the Wanderlust Collection is a top pick for its rich colors and elaborate pattern.

The 'Nantucket' Basketweave Bangle from the Muse Collection with caning detail reminds me of the island I grew up going to and love so much.
The 'Palm Beach' Bangle from the Muse Collection captures the pastel uniform and manicured gardens that the getaway evokes.

'Tangiers' Bangle from the Wanderlust Collection is femme and full of flourishes.
The 'Ankara' Bangle from the Wanderlust Collection is a thin option for the ikat crowd.


The 'New York' Roundel Bangle from the Muse Collection is reminiscent of the tended gardens of New York parks.