Meg Braff's New Book

Gracious Interiors by Meg Braff

 

I just learned that not only will Charlotte Moss' new book be released on September 8, but another of my favorite designers Meg Braff has her second book due out on the same day. The book cover is a room I love - her living room in her home in Locust Valley, New York. 

Meg Braff X Weezie

Meg Braff Collaboration with Weezie

 

Meg Braff has just launched a fabulous collaboration with Weezie — a dream collaboration celebrating days poised poolside in Palm Beach. Drawing inspiration from Meg's Kips Bay Palm Beach bathroom drenched in her Madame Butterfly print, this is a punched - up, pattern - forward collection.

The Chinoiserie Living Room

Meg Braff

This remains one of my favorite living rooms of all time - Meg Braff's living room in her home in Locust Valley on Long Island in New York. It reminds me of the grand living rooms of Mario Buatta, and indeed the gorgeous Coromandel screen shown below she found at a local estate once designed by Mario Buatta.

Styling The Rattan Bar Cart

Meg Braff Designs - Coastal Living

 The rattan bar cart is one of my favorite items for the home and it is one of the most versatile pieces you can own. Use it as a bar for liquor of course, or as a water bar, a coffee bar, for towels and toiletries in the bathroom, as a console in an entryway, or as a bedside table; the list is endless. 

A Unique Color Palette

Meg Braff - Hamptons Cottages & Gardens

 A colorful chinoiserie dining room in a Southampton getaway by Meg Braff. The wallpaper is Quadrille's Lyford Trellis. The coral Indochine dining chairs are from Red Egg. The iron chandelier is from Ironware International, but I can't say I like it. It looks like it has been run over.

This is certainly a unique color palette - she calls it coral, ochre, and chocolate. Meg says this dining room is used more in the winter when one can't eat outside, so she chose a cozy color palette.

Blue & White

Meg Braff

 Blue and white with a real island, tropical, beach vibe in this pretty aqua blue featuring palm wallpaper, a faux bamboo lamp, bamboo pens and photo frame, and the iconic Elkins loop chair. Although the loop chair is not a chinoiserie design, I have posted myriad times chinoiserie rooms with a loop chair(s). This design plays so well with chinoiserie. The wallpaper in Meg Braff's Sporting D"Ete in Aqua.

Here is another view of this bedroom with Greek key bedding and a chinoiserie monogram.

Meg Braff

Styling the Bar Cart

Meg Braff

 I love a rattan bar cart and this is a great idea for poolside, the lanai, or a beach house styled with towels and a water bar. The wallpaper is Meg Braff's Beverly Hills. Amanda Lindroth is a great source for wicker glassware.

Chinoiserie Gone Wrong

Tory Burch - Vogue

These dining spaces are both stunning, BUT......... I have such a thing about tablecloths that do not reach to the floor. Please use either floor length or use beautiful placemats - I have a collection of really lovely placemats because of this tablecloth issue. I have everything from hand painted mirrored Chinoiserie, to leather hand painted with Greek key, to beaded crabs.

And it is even more egregious here because these are staged for photo shoots which by definition are styled for perfection and not always completely reality based. Let's face it, we don't all have floral arrangements all over the house and perfect bowls of fruit in the kitchen every day. Unless you are John Heilemann who has perfect bowls of fruit in his kitchen along with his gorgeous dogs for his pandemic from home interviews every day. Now that is staging. I am envious.

These tablecloths look wrinkled, don't hang well, and ruin the sartorial splendor of these rooms for me. Use what you like for every day - but give me a floor length tablecloth or a nice placemat every time. I know shorter tablecloths are more functional, but they are unattractive.

Meg Braff - Portfolio

In both these pictures, IMHO the tablecloths bring down the aesthetics of beautiful rooms. The Meg Braff photo is her own dining room BTW. Your thoughts? Do these look good to you? And please don't tell me about long tablecloths in people's laps - use elegant placemats if that is an issue for you.

Caftans and Chinoiserie

WSJ

Caftans, also spelled kaftans, were originally worn by men. Cut from airy material to sit off the body, it is one of the most comfortable things you can don in tropical climates. Long associated with Palm Beach and Florida, the caftan is as comfortable as sweat pants, but with elegance and sophistication.

Caftans are thought to have originated in ancient Mesopotamia and were worn in India, Africa, and Iran by sultans and high ranking officials (men) from the 14th to 18th century. Caftans became the rage in the sixties worn by women like Jackie Kennedy, Elizabeth Taylor, Grace Kelly, and Vogue editor Diana Vreeland.

Jackie Kennedy

Elizabeth Taylor

Grace Kelly

Since moving to Florida and especially now with quarantining, I have embraced this style full throttle. I have always worn dresses - I don't own a pair of jeans. You can get out of the pool and throw on a caftan, thrown on some statement jewelry and a pair of Jack Rogers, and go to the most stylish dinner party or restaurant - someday again.

And, how does this relate to Chinoiserie? Many of our favorite interior designers have espoused this attire in their tropical abodes.

Meg Braff - matching her Kips Bay room

Meg Braff

Amanda Lindroth

Amanda Lindroth

Tory Burch - a fashion designer, but she uses Chinoiserie throughout her gorgeous homes

Alessandra Branca

Alessandra Branca

Such a great look - comfortable, effortless, sophisticated, timeless, and looks great in the Chinoiserie home.

Chinoiserie Gone Wrong

Alessandra Branca - Architectural Digest

I guess they are supposed to be whimsical and retro, but I am not into the mounted fish in these Chinoiserie rooms. These are two of my favorite designers, but I think they were trying too hard to be fun or kitschy, and IMHO, the fish just look stupid. I am guessing the ones above are faux, and the one below is a real fish, I am not an expert, but make them go away and I will like both rooms. It said in the description of the room below that the fish mount is a throwback to 70s beach decor, but some past trends should stay buried. In the Meg Braff rooms below, I feel that the fish take over the rooms visually, and I find something very unappealing about dining or sleeping with a massive dead fish above me.

Love the fish, hate them? Your thoughts?

Meg Braff - Coastal Living

And it is clearly not just a one-off with Meg, because here is a fish mount in her sons' bedroom.

Meg Braff - House Beautiful

Green & Blue

Meg Braff

I love this chic combination - Meg Braff's Nanking wallpaper, a Sheraton bench upholstered in Brunschwig & Fils Les Touches, and a turquoise blue trim on the baseboards and woodwork.

Blue and White

Meg Braff - Hamptons Cottages & Gardens

Clarence House - The Vase

Meg Braff

Saturday Inspiration

Meg Braff - House Beautiful

A lovely bedroom by Meg Braff with Chinoiserie wallpaper by Brunschwig & Fils and fretwork bedding and bedside table.

Meg Braff Showhouse

I received an email from Meg Braff yesterday with a reminder about the apartment she did for the Lenox Hill Hospital Showhouse at the W Residences. Her inspiration was the Hollywood mid century modern style of James Mont where lucite, lacquer, brass, animal prints, and Chinoiserie abounds. Here is a little tour - I hope some of you have been or will be in New York to see it in person. Two weeks are left.

Horchow has extended its One Day Sale - click here if you missed my post yesterday with my fabulous finds from the sale. I took advantage of the amazing deal on monogrammed bath towels at under $10 and ordered all new towels for my linen closet - reorganizing it is next up on my to do list. I'm thinking about buying this 16 piece set of dinnerware by Lynn Chase called Jungle Jubille - it's half price at $165.13 and ships free!

Lynn Chase Jungle Jubilee

Lynn Chase Jungle Jubilee

Holiday Decorating at Chinoiserie Chic

Every year the shelter magazines have less and less in the way of Christmas/holiday decorating. Another example of political correctness, I assume. I'm glad I kept so many old December issues of House & Garden, House Beautiful, and Southern Accents for inspiration. Not all magazines today fall in this category - magazines like Traditional Home, Southern Living, and Veranda still do a great job of showing homes all decked out for the holidays.

The photo above is Meg Braff, of course, in the December issue of Southern Living in her wonderful Chinoiserie dining room. Some great ideas to copy - red glassware, red chandelier shades, red hurricanes on the mantel, and red roses. I love the magnolia garland on the fireplace and the yellow tulipieres with red roses. And let's bring back the hostess gown! My mother and I always wore matching hostess gowns for the holidays when I was growing up. Society Social has them in red and green here.

Since Thanksgiving falls so late this year, we are starting today on Chinoiserie Chic with a whole month of decorating your home for the holidays. I hope this will be your go to source for decorating your home this holiday season with Chinoiserie Chic, Palm Beach Chic, and Hollywood Regency style.

I have booked the same photographer who did the wonderful photos of my One Room Challenge laundry room to come over in a couple of weeks to do a photo shoot of my own decorations to share with all of you. I will also be sharing my Chinoiserie decorating tips on my Chinoiserie Christmas Pinterest board, my December Houzz Ideabook, and over at The Pink Pagoda's Blue and White Bash on December 2ND.

A Chinoiserie Christmas - Meg Braff

Buffalo Checks and Chinoiserie

Manuel Canovas

 I have always loved combining stripes and Chinoiserie, but lately the notion of buffalo checks and Chinoiserie has been on my mind. It is fresh, graphic, modern, yet traditional. Interior designers love it too, as you can see.

I've even created a Buffalo Checks and Chinoiserie board on Pinterest you can follow.

Blue and white buffalo checks and Chinoiserie

Southern Living

Michael Smith

Bunny Williams

Gideon Mendelson

Gideon Mendelson

Meg Braff

Mark Sikes

CurtainsMade4U has a great selection of buffalo check fabrics - design your curtains online in 3 easy steps and they will be shipped to your door in 3 - 4 weeks.