Kips Bay Palm Beach

Phoebe Howard - Kips Bay Palm Beach 2024

Kips Bay Palm Beach opens this week. When I lived in D.C., I loved going to the showhouses in D.C., Baltimore, and Alexandria. Unfortunately, most are shuttered and a thing of the past.

The Blue and White Dining Room

Phoebe Howard

 

This blue and white dining room is so pretty and so achievable. I love the striped rug - I would use a polypropylene indoor/outdoor rug so there is no worry about spills. I have two Annie Selke Dash & Albert ones and love that they can be hosed down outside to clean. They are indestructible.

Timeless Blue and White

Coastal Blues - Phoebe Howard

This room by Phoebe Howard remains a favorite of mine, but this is a view of it I had not seen before. It makes a few points beautifully for me. First, that all blues go together well. The robin's egg blue walls are lovely with the blue and white panels and porcelain. Second, how lovely using a collection of blue and white porcelain can be. For those of you who comment that using a grouping of blue and white porcelain like this is trendy, in what universe is Phoebe Howard trendy?

Blue and White

Phoebe Howard - Veranda

A stunning blue and white Chinoiserie staircase in a Palm Beach home.

Blue and White

Phoebe Howard

A blue and white room in a Palm Beach home with blue and white Chinese porcelain.

Blue and White

Coastal Blues - Phoebe Howard

A stunning mix of framed Chinoiserie panels, faux bamboo stools, blue and white Chinese porcelain and ikat in this blue and white living room.

Robin's Egg Blue

Phoebe Howard - Southern Accents

Robin's egg blue is a favorite color of mine and it combines so beautifully with Chinoiserie. Here Phoebe Howard uses it masterfully with blue and white Chinoiserie panels, chairs, and rug, but in deeper blues to really pop. Note too how she picked mirrored sconces to reflect the Chinoiserie panels and how she carried the robin's egg blue onto the moldings at the ceiling.

Here is another example of robin's egg blue I adore - Miles Redd's iconic NYC front door - I wish this were a paint color one could buy but he hand mixed it. This would be a great choice for so many houses.

Miles Redd

The Chinoiserie Bedroom

Phoebe Howard - Gracie Wallcovering

More Understated Chinoiserie

Phoebe Howard

Yesterday I posted on a lovely foyer from New England Home with a subtle and understated approach to the use of Chinoiserie. The room above by Phoebe Howard is in the same mode, with lots of neutrals and brown woods accented by soft blues. The Chinoiserie gives this room flair, with lots of blue and white Chinese porcelain and a bamboo altar table. Note the abstract art above the mantel. Here are ideas on creating this look yourself.

Style Canoeing by Kerry Steele

Pair of Custom Finished Linen and Down Spool Chairs from Charlotte & Ivy

Columbus Round Tufted Cocktail Ottoman form Charlotte & Ivy

Sedona Luxury Down Sofa from Charlotte & Ivy in Brussels Linen

Pair of Greek Key Etched Tall Glass Candle Holders from Charlotte & Ivy

Farmington Custom Cocktail Table from Charlotte & Ivy

Blue and White Dragon Ginger Jar from The Pink Pagoda

Ginger Jar from The Pink Pagoda

Blue and White Octagonal Planter from The Pink Pagoda

Blue and White Beaker Vase from The Pink Pagoda

Midnight Blue Double Gourd Lamp from Furbish

Amanda Serving Table is a great deal at $349 at Ballard Designs

Blue and White Linen Chinoiserie Pillows on sale at Gumps

Phoebe Howard - Green

Phoebe Howard

Phoebe Howard Dining Room - Two Ways

I know lots of people love this Phoebe Howard dining room above, but it has always struck me as somewhat cold. I much prefer the way it has been styled below for her book, not to mention the better lighting, all of which has warmed it up for me.

More The Chinoiserie Christmas Table

House Beautiful shows us how 15 designers set a holiday table. My favorites have Chinoiserie touches, of course! Above, Phoebe Howard uses Blanc de Chine mandarin figures. Below, Eric Kohler sets a bamboo breakfast tray with Greek key napkins.

Turquoise blue foo dogs enhance this table by Miles Redd.

Martha Angus has taken scraps of de Gournay covered with Plexiglas for a gorgeous table.

Displaying Collections

Brackets are an incredibly effective way of displaying a collection of Chinoiserie porcelain. In the bedroom above, Mary Watkins Wood used brackets to bring order to a large collection of blue and white ginger jars. The three key points are that the collection needs to go together-all blanc de Chine, all celadon, or all blue and white, for example. Second, the brackets need to be all the same color-say all white or all gold if not all the same style. Third, play around with a pleasing layout-symmetrical seems to work best.

Jonathan Berger

Kevin Sharkey

Robert Goodwin

Phoebe Howard

The Top Chinoiserie Fabrics #3

Although this fabric is new to the scene, I am convinced that Schumacher's Shantung Silhouette is destined to become a favorite of interior designers. I love Chinoiserie in silhouette-it has such an elegance and simplicity. This fabric reminds me of Quadrille's Paradise Background and Lyford, but its more muted colorways are better suited to homes with softer palettes like my own. Based on Schumacher's classic Chinoiserie pattern "The Jugglers," Schumacher has used a solid background on a lighter weight 100% linen ground and eliminated the pattern detail to create a modern silhouette. I think it is perfection. I predict we will start seeing Southern interior designers who favor softer colors like Phoebe Howard and Suzanne Kasler who have not traditionally used many Chinoiserie patterned fabrics start using this gorgeous fabric. Above is the colorway Wisteria.

Mineral

Smoke

Blue Chinoiserie Rooms-My Picks

The March issue of House Beautiful All About Blue, while well done enough, lacked rooms that knocked my socks off. Blue rooms and Chinoiserie are such a natural. Here are some of my favorites. Above, a room that has stood the test of time, the Chinese Room at Claydon House by John Fowler.

Aerin Lauder-Elle Decor

Phoebe Howard

Annie Selke

Carolyne Roehm

Mary McDonald

Ann Getty

Kendall Wilkinson

Luke and Julie Janklow-Vogue

Thomas Britt