I have enjoyed creating collections for the Kindel Furniture Co. of Grand Rapids, Mich., which is operating under a new president, John Smith, and moving not to the center but to the left and the right. The company' pagoda etageres that were once stained mahogany or simply given a light-wood finish are today sprayed in white lacquer.
Why the light and white? Maybe it's because young America has had it with the mahogany dining room of yesteryear, that perfectly groomed room with the Queen Anne-style extension table and the richly stained matching chairs with seats covered in a traditional stripe of soft blue, cream, avocado and russet.
While the pieces may be of the Queen Anne design, the finishes are of today – white. We are returning to the era of the great decorators – Elsie de Wolfe and my mentor, Dorothy Draper. And speaking about the one and only Dorothy, be it known, right here on the pages of the Palm Beach Daily News, that after successful runs in New York City and Dallas, the exhibition "In the Pink – The High Style of Dorothy Draper" will officially open this season on the evening of Feb. 2 at the Museum of Art in Fort Lauderdale. And Irwin Lipman, director of the museum, is inviting all the Palm Beach group to attend.
Not only that, but Paige Rense, editor-in-chief of Architectural Digest, will conduct a seminar featuring five distinguished designers of today on the morning of Friday, Feb. 1, the day before the show's official opening. For more information about the Dorothy Draper exhibition in Fort Lauderdale, check out the museum's Web site at www.moafl.org. The show will run until June 23.
At the exhibition, you'll see many white pieces of furniture attributed to Dorothy Draper herself. I feel that today's white has come about primarily because today's homemakers live in smaller spaces than did our mothers, fathers and grandparents. Today, a room filled with white furnishings, snappily upholstered, will say "welcome" in every possible way.
Here is a white-and-light scheme for your bedroom that you might find interesting and very practical as well as easy to live with in the classic tradition. For the young married couple who requested this room scheme, begin by painting your ceiling a very pale, frosty green and the crown moldings a white semi-gloss enamel. Walls can be colored bright white.
For flooring, whitewash the wooden floors after they have been bleached and ready for the whitening. Naturally, polyurethane sealer must be added.
Choose a bed with a headboard and footboard in a contemporary style but lacquered white. Sheets, pillowcases and the duvet cover can have a contemporary pattern of light blue on white. For end tables, go for night tables with mirrored fronts. Place on top of each table a contemporary white plaster lamp – maybe one that looks very Dorothy Draper in style with a white silk shade.
A white vanity desk, perhaps one from a Kindel Collection, would fit right into the setting along with a white café-style chair, its seat upholstered in a fresh mint green. Also, a white linen-covered club chair would fit into the setting handsomely, especially if it's piped with pale blue cording. And for a rug on the bedroom floor, try a contemporary-style zebra-pattern rug in pale blue and white from Elson of Washington D.C. – you can see it on the Web site www.elsoncompany.com. And to take a look at all the white-and-bright pieces that Kindel has to offer, vist the Web site www.kindelfurniture.com.
Carleton's Decorating Tip Of the Week
Use a monochromatic color scheme to make a small room appear larger. Use the same color on carpet, furniture, walls, etc.
Interior designer, author and columnist Carleton Varney is the president and owner of Dorothy Draper & Co. in New York City, one of the oldest established interior design firms in the United States. Varney's worldwide roster of clients includes many in Palm Beach. He welcomes decorating questions from readers. E-mail him at cvarney@dorothydraper.com or write to him at Carleton Varney, c/o Darrell Hofheinz, Palm Beach Daily News, 265 Royal Poinciana Way, Palm Beach 33480.
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source: palmbeachdailynews.com
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