French Chic: A must read.

Among many amazing and super generous gifts I received for Christmas, I was given French Chic by Florence de Dampierre a talented designer who hales from Paris France but now lives in Litchfield, CT. This book reminds me why I love traditional design so much. In the book she talks about different ways to make your home warm and inviting. One thing that stuck out for me was when she said, "Good design is about individuality, comfort and whimsy." I can definitely get on board with that when comfort and whimsy involve beautiful antiques and cheetah print carpets in the front hall! Take a look at some of her home.

This is her home in Litchfield. Not only is it stunning architecturally but, to point out the obvious, she has a light lime green door! I love it!

In this restored home, there is not one amazing thing to each room but everything is beautiful to look at. The floor for one is absolutely stunning and you can see a zebra rug poking into view in the foreground. I love the carving in the coffee table and the fact that the two side tables do not match.


Here is a little bit of the famed cheetah rug (which is real!?) with a cute dog on it! How could you not feel welcomed here?

I have always loved toile and I even have a pink toile duvet in CT, so it's quite obvious that I love this. The grey/brown toile is so calming though in this light bedroom.

All the images are from 1st Dibs and Amazon, btw. Florence lives in this home with her husband and three children so she can't be designing homes that don't really get lived in. It is formal and traditional, sure, but she still maintains the element of the country, too. It's a nice balance and you can certainly see her "whimsy" in the design too. I SUPER recommend this book as a must have. Florence also has a blog! Who doesn't?! It's HERE--hasn't been updated since September but I'll still subscribe because she posts about her book signings which I'd of course love to attend.

Alicia B.

I met Barry Dixon...I KNOW

Last night I went to a book signing at Rizzoli Bookstore for Barry Dixon's new book. Barry Dixon is a southern interior designer (and sweetheart). He told me about the importance of good traditional design. Traditional design lasts through decades, trends etc. He said when he went back to clients' homes to photograph his new book, Barry Dixon Interiors, he found that virtually nothing in the homes had changed! This just goes to show that traditional is timeless.

The main thing that struck me about Barry was how genuine he was. He seemed like he just wants to share his ideas and thoughts about design and life! At the book signing I also met the photographer, Edward Addeo, and the author of the book, Brian Coleman. Take a look below at some pics from his website.

I love architectural detailing like this in bathrooms.

This is one of the most gorgeous libraries I've seen in a while. Amazing color scheme.

I love this little "tablescape" of interesting perfume bottles on top of the chest.

Long hallways like this one are accentuated by the repeating lanterns.

The brown shade of this wall is super successful. Also check out the nailhead detailing on the baseboard molding!

Even with a bright color like orange, this room appears soft.

Dramatic.

Beautiful scene.

The wallpaper in this small room is so unique. Love it.

In his book, Barry Dixon says to put a round carpet in a room to make it look larger.

The traditional look can often come across as too formal, but I've found that Dixon's interiors are comfortable and elegant at the same time. He also has his own furniture line which is available to the trade only, here. Thanks DJ!


Alicia B.