So who… is best friend with Min Hogg, legendary founder of WOI was getting down with Tallulah Bankhead age 15 (in between Eton College term times) was a stalwart companion of Diana Cooper née Manners had reclusive star Greta Garbo … Continue reading
To embark on this journey through uncharted territory I need a vision to inspire me. I always thought I would fall in love with an old house, instead I fell in love with a beech woood, a wild flower meadow … Continue reading
It’s a great title and it’s Jeffrey Bilhuber’s, the subtitle reads ‘Reflections on American beauty’. This side of the Atlantic Ben Pentreath’s offers up ‘English Decoration’, subtitle ‘Timeless Inspiration for the Contemporary Home’, which rather belies the personal tone of … Continue reading
How do you decorate for Christmas? I have decided it’s a version of: something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. yes – the wedding custom. Well Christmas is all about making your own customs and wrapped up in the … Continue reading
I am a land-lover, when the sea floor disappears from view I mildly panic… where has land gone? Mine was not a childhood messing around on boats. But for one Greek dynasty this has been the case for generations and … Continue reading
Decorators should never insist on throwing out everything the client has. Even when they are far from perfect, loved possessions add personality. In his final lecture Baldwin emphasises the importance of ‘the personal touch’: because it’s the personal that breathes … Continue reading
The Elements of Decoration – Baldwin takes us through each element of the decor itself from furniture, to colour and lighting. He starts out, as he always does by making the obvious necessary: you do need that room plan and … Continue reading
You dont keep a stellar client list happy without an ability to hold your ground (or in Baldwin’s case carpet) with great charm. He notes, The important thing was to keep our relationship a pleasure from beginning to end. Commercial work, … Continue reading
Billy Baldwin was THE decorator because his style forged a vision of crisp, uncontrived glamour which defined the modern American aesthetic, for this we all owe him a debt of design gratitude. He designed from the very humanist principle: “No … Continue reading
