September/October 2022

FLOWER SEPT•OCT 2022

HOUSE l GARDEN l LIFESTYLE

NAPA VALLEY LIVING Tara Guérard’s

GARDEN PARTY PICKS FLORAL INSPIRATION FROM

Ariella Chezar

GLAMPING

Round Top Style

Atlanta, Georgia

Open for Tours September 16 — October 2 Coming in the January/February 2023 issue

HONORARY DESIGN CHAIR: Charlotte Moss

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DESIGN CHAIR: Suzanne Kasler

ARCHITECT: Peter Block & Associates I BUILDER: Young & Meathe LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT: Howard Design Studio

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f lowermag.com/showhouse

LEFT: PHOTO BY DON FREEMAN, RIGHT: PHOTO BY DAGNUSHKA

SEPTEMBER •OCTOBER 2022

Contents 76

FEATURES

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Camp Round Top

During the celebrated antiques fair, a coterie of design friends gather for the ultimate glamping experience deep in the heart of Texas.

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One of a Kind

LEFT: PHOTO BY DON FREEMAN, RIGHT: PHOTO BY DAGNUSHKA

With an array of inspiration ranging from the Victorian age to the Arts and Crafts movement, Thomas Jayne and William Cullum transform a guest home from mundane to magical.

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Motor City Retreats

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As Detroit’s automotive pioneers busied themselves with building cars, they also built grand estates with gardens to match.

“Just living isn’t enough,” said the butterfly. “One must also have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.”–HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN

ON THE COVER: Event designer Cassie LaMere collaborated with floral designer Antonio Bond to create tablescapes that perfectly fit with the theme of each meal during Camp Round Top. Photographed by Dagnushka

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Contents DEPARTMENTS SCENE

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We’ve got our eyes on...

The latest interiors and landscape design books, plus an earthenware collaboration with Aerin Lauder and Casa Lopez, the new Impressions fabric collection by Brook Perdigon Textiles, and Pamela Munson’s straw handbags embroidered with Schumacher patterns.

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IN BLOOM

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Flower Intensive

Renowned floral designers Ariella Chezar and Nicolette Owen lead flower enthusiasts in a three-day intensive full of inspiration and beauty.

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IN EVERY ISSUE Watering Can Sources At the Table

16 106 108

Decorate: Q&A

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Garden Artist

By looking at the garden through a different lens, artist Meg Black opened up a new world of endless creativity.

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Entertain: Q&A

Philanthropist, aesthete, and hostess Deeda Blair tells of her loves in a new book, Food, Flowers, and Fantasy.

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Decorating: Mood

Event designer Tara Guérard shares her tricks of the trade for creating an outdoor gathering full of blooms and beauty.

58 Decorating: Flowers

When autumn comes around, Maggie Bailey of Bramble & Bee thrives on creating her arrangements outdoors.

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Interiors

San Francisco interior designer Suzanne Tucker gives clients a fresh perspective in a grand Napa Valley estate where the views are the main attraction.

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PHOTOS CLOCKWISE ROM TOP RIGHT BY: ROGER DAVIES, CORBIN GURKIN, COURTESY OF FERRICK MASON, DAVID HILLEGAS

As the creative mind behind Ferrick Mason, painter and designer Alex Mason generates conversation between art, textiles, and wall coverings.

PHOTOS CLOCKWISE ROM TOP RIGHT BY: ROGER DAVIES, CORBIN GURKIN, COURTESY OF FERRICK MASON, DAVID HILLEGAS

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.”

—Albert Camus

ONE OF MY DAUGHTERS ASKED ME THE OTHER DAY

what my favorite season was. Without a moment’s hesitation I responded, “Fall.”

She agreed, which made my heart smile.

I like the reprieve of the season—or in the South, the promise of a reprieve—from the punishing summer heat. I like the fragrance of pumpkin spice and the taste of candy corn, and I like the return to routine. I also like the shift in nature’s palette. We move from blues and greens and pinks to rusts and umbers and bricks. These warmer colors begin to appear not only in my garden, but also in my Instagram feed. Fall feels like a gentler season, and it reflects my appreciation for new beginnings—a new school year for children and grandchildren and a renewed sense of anticipation leading into the holidays.

As I leafed back through this issue, I felt the “aahhh” of fall.

We feature a festive weeklong celebration at Round Top, the legendary antiques market extravaganza in Texas, filled with autumnal colors, food, and flowers. We also visit a gorgeous, warm-hued house in Napa, designed by Suzanne Tucker, that blurs the lines between inside and outside. And to get us all in

flowering and entertaining mode for seasonal gatherings, we take you behind the scenes of a “flower intensive” workshop with industry icons Ariella Chezar and Nicolette Owen. Corbin Gurkin’s dreamy photographs of the event will have you ready to sign up for the next round of classes.

On a sad note, our dear friend, Carleton Varney, America’s decorator, passed away recently.

As president and owner of Dorothy Draper & Co. Inc., he made life more vibrant and contributed a fanciful yet timeless sophistication to every project he conceived. I think especially of The Greenbrier, the Grand Hotel in Mackinac Island, and The Colony hotel in Palm Beach, where we can revel in Carleton’s exuberant interiors, at least for a few days.

No one was more loving, generous, or fun. He never took himself too seriously—I see him in a rolled bandana scarf or a tie fashioned from a sumptuous Hermès scarf, along with red socks, an homage to his late friend, actor Van Johnson. However, Carleton Varney WAS serious about his love for his country, his family, and his friends. And as he was a passionate advocate for the use of color, I imagine him arriving in Heaven and saying, “Thank God, NO BEIGE!” We miss you, Carleton.

Love and SDG,

Margot Shaw EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Please send your comments, triumphs, challenges & questions to: wateringcan@flowermag.com OR: Letters to the Editor Flower magazine I P.O. Box 530645 I Birmingham, AL 35253 Get the Flower email newsletter! Sign up at flowermag.com/news

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PORTRAIT BY BETH HONTZAS

Watering can

A Note from the Editor

PORTRAIT BY BETH HONTZAS

VOLUME 16, ISSUE 5

Margot Shaw FOUNDER/EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Julie Gillis MANAGING EDITOR Nicole Gerrity Haas ART DIRECTOR Mercy Lloyd CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER DIGITAL

Jason Burnett DIGITAL GENERAL MANAGER Maren Edwards SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR EDITOR-AT-LARGE

Karen Carroll CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

Missie Neville Crawford Alice Welsh Doyle James Farmer Kirk Reed Forrester Amanda Smith Fowler Marion Laffey Fox Elaine Griffin Tara Guérard Sallie Lewis Frances MacDougall

Robert Martin Tovah Martin Cathy Still McGowin Charlotte Moss Ellen S. Padgett Matthew Robbins Margaret Zainey Roux Frances Schultz Lydia Somerville Sybil Sylvester

For editorial inquiries: editorial@flowermag.com

Julie Durkee PUBLISHER Jennel O’Brien DIRECTOR OF MARKETING Marlee Ledbetter MARKETING COORDINATOR ADVERTISING SALES

Suzanne Cooper NATIONAL DIRECTOR, HOME FURNISHINGS Wendy Ellis REGIONAL ACCOUNT MANAGER Sara D. Taylor REGIONAL ACCOUNT DIRECTOR For sales inquiries: sales@flowermag.com BUSINESS OFFICE

Silvia Rider GENERAL MANAGER Patrick Toomey ACCOUNTANT Lisa Mitchell SENIOR MANAGER CUSTOMER SERVICE

For change of address and subscription inquiries: 877.400.3074 or CustomerService@FlowerMag.info ADVISORY BOARD

Paula Crockard Winn Crockard Gavin Duke Gay Estes Katie Baker Lasker Mary Evelyn McKee Michael Mundy Ben Page

Angèle Parlange Renny Reynolds Scott Shepherd Remco van Vliet Evie Vare Carleton Varney Louise Wrinkle

TOP, LEFT: BY MICHEL ARNAUD COURTESY OF DOROTHY DRAPER & COMPANY INC, TOP RIGHT: COURTESY OF SHANNONGROVE PRESS AND COURTESY OF DOROTHY DRAPER & COMPANY INC, RIGHT BY MICHEL ARNAUD COURTESY OF STEVE AND JULIE LAZARUS

What We’ve Got Our Eyes On

Scene The Draper Touch: The High Life and High Style of Dorothy Draper

by Carleton Varney (Shannongrove Press, June 2022), $100

READING LIST

What’s New FLOWERS, FASHION, TOP, LEFT: BY MICHEL ARNAUD COURTESY OF DOROTHY DRAPER & COMPANY INC, TOP RIGHT: COURTESY OF SHANNONGROVE PRESS AND COURTESY OF DOROTHY DRAPER & COMPANY INC, RIGHT BY MICHEL ARNAUD COURTESY OF STEVE AND JULIE LAZARUS

DECORATIVE HISTORY, HOME

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By Julie Gillis

n this fully revised edition of the 1988 Dorothy Draper biography, Carleton Varney delves even deeper into the life of the renowned designer and interior decorator.

Varney, who has owned and directed Dorothy Draper & Company, Inc., for almost 60 years, has added updated text in every chapter of his original book, as well as a new foreword. This deluxe edition includes significant historical documents and photographs recently discovered from a private collection. Text is also based on interviews with Draper’s family and former staff, as well as Varney’s personal memories of working with the “Duchess of Decorating,” as Draper was often called.

Credited as one of the early founders of the interior design industry, Draper is best known for her commercial projects, including The Greenbrier hotel in West Virginia, The Carlyle hotel in New York, and Arrowhead Springs in California. She also became a household name in the 1930s and 40s because of her articles filled with decorating wisdom in Good Housekeeping magazine. In addition, Draper’s three books— 365 Shortcuts to Home Decorating, Decorating Is Fun: How To Be Your Own Decorator, and Entertaining Is Fun: How To Be a Popular Hostess—are still in print today.

Editor’s Note: As this issue was being sent to press, we learned of Carleton Varney’s death. We will miss this icon of the design world.

TOP LEFT: Two Draper sofas feature prominently in the Upper Lobby of The Greenbrier hotel. ABOVE: A restored Draper chair from the

Fairmont hotel in San Francisco.

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Scene WHAT WE’VE GOT OUR EYES ON ...

READING LIST (CONTINUED)

Currently Classic

One of America’s top designers, Jonathan Rachman teams up with noted interiors and fashion writer Dean Rhys-Morgan in his first book.

The volume captures Rachman’s eclectic, bold, refined style through a variety of projects, four of which have never been published. Born on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia and based in San Francisco, Rachman is known for filling the homes of many prestigious clients with his signature lively color palettes and luxurious materials.

Beyond Bold: Inspiration/ Collaboration/ Evolution

by Sheila Brady, Lisa Delplace, and Eric Groft (Pointed Leaf Press, October 2022), $85

Principals Sheila Brady, Lisa Delplace, and Eric Groft offer a one-of-a-kind record of Oehme, van Sweden, a landscape architecture firm that has been creating extraordinary outdoor spaces for almost 50 years. Full of vibrant images and detailed project plans, the book features the firm’s work in private gardens and pools, as well as in public spaces such as the Tippet Rise Art Center in rural Montana, the Chicago Botanic Garden, and the New York Botanical Garden. Readers are treated to an interesting array of geographically and stylistically diverse landscape projects.

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TOP, LEFT AND RIGHT: DOUGLAF FRIEDMAN FROM CURRENTLY CLASSIC, BOTTOM, LEFT: DURSTON SAYLOR, AND RIGHT: CLAIRE TAKACS

by Jonathan Rachman with Dean Rhys-Morgan (Flammarion, October 2022), $65

TOP, LEFT AND RIGHT: DOUGLAF FRIEDMAN FROM CURRENTLY CLASSIC, BOTTOM, LEFT: DURSTON SAYLOR, AND RIGHT: CLAIRE TAKACS

Scene WHAT WE’VE GOT OUR EYES ON ...

CLOCKWISE FROM RIGHT: A series of

painted floral motifs was the starting point for the new Impressions fabric collection from Brook Perdigon Textiles. The pillow is in the “Bloom” print and the “Saffron” colorway • The “Hydrangea Drape” handbag from Schumacher x Pamela Munson. • The “Andreia Teapot” from AERIN x Casa Lopez.

Inspired by the natural world and guided by her passion for travel and other cultures, Aerin Lauder has collaborated with Casa Lopez to create an Iberian earthenware enhanced with bird and floral motifs. Handpainted in Spain, the AERIN x Casa Lopez collection adds an artisanal quality to both casual and elevated table settings. The neutral palette of the seven ceramic pieces easily fits into almost any design aesthetic. aerin.com

Making an Impression The past, present, and future all come together in the new Impressions fabric collection by Brook Perdigon Textiles.

The designs evolved from a series of Brook’s painted sketches and collaged floral motifs. She created more 20 pieces of artwork while exploring scale, concept, and color before transforming each pattern into an original fabric design.

The Impressions collection was then digitally printed on 100% Irish linen to maintain the look and feel of a work of art. brookperdigontextiles.com

IT’S ALL IN THE DETAILS Schumacher has joined forces with Pamela Munson, the New York-based straw handbag brand, to launch three styles of straw handbags full of intricate details and offered in six colorways. The collaboration celebrates the love that both companies share for bold florals and classic design. Each handwoven design interprets iconic Schumacher patterns through the lens of embroidery. pamelamunson.com

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PHOTO BY CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT: MARIANNA JAMADI, COURTESY OF BROOKE PERIGON TEXTILES, COURTESY OF SCHUMACHER, COURTESY OF AERIN

Tasteful and Timeless

PHOTO BY CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT: MARIANNA JAMADI, COURTESY OF BROOKE PERIGON TEXTILES, COURTESY OF SCHUMACHER, COURTESY OF AERIN

Flower Intensive • Decorate: Q&A • Garden Artist Entertain: Q&A • Mood • Decorate: Flowers • Interiors

in Bloom

Immersed in Flowers RENOWNED FLORAL DESIGNERS ARIELLA CHEZAR AND NICOLETTE OWEN LEAD FLOWER ENTHUSIASTS IN A THREE-DAY INTENSIVE FULL OF INSPIRATION AND BEAUTY.

By Christine Chitnis • Photography by Corbin Gurkin

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in Bloom FLOWER INTENSIVE

PREVIOUS PAGE:

Ariella Chezar says one of her greatest joys is sharing her passion for floral arranging with students. LEFT: A footed compote lifts the flowers so they can bend and drape along their natural lines. The pinks and peaches of the tulips and ranunculus are only made richer by the contrasting darkness of the hellebores.

BELOW: A student gives movement and height to an arrangement by adding dogwood branches.

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n a late April morning in upstate New York, the first delicate blooms are bursting through the soil. Overhead, cherry blossoms explode from the bud in clouds of cotton candy pink. Often this time of year feels like one step forward with a warm day, the return of the sun, and the first crocus to break the cold earth and then two steps back with a surprise spring snowstorm and the return of winter coats. But as I make my way to the cavernous Basilica Hudson, a restored 19th-century riverfront factory, it’s clear that spring is officially present thanks to a display of the season’s finest floral offerings, from blush anemones and coral peonies to towering bunches of sunny forsythia and dusky hellebores. The bloom’s varied colors, textures, and forms will guide those of us gathered here as we learn how to construct arrangements with grace, movement, and fluidity from two of the floral world’s beloved designers, Ariella Chezar and Nicolette Owen. Through demonstrations, discussions, hands-on guidance, and practice, we’ll soak up their wisdom and techniques for creating lavish, large-scale arrangements; floral installations; bouquets; and centerpieces.

As a writer, flower enthusiast, and novice arranger, I’m along for the ride, here to learn new skills while also observing the more seasoned attendees as they refine their practice. Participants have traveled from across the country and Canada, and even as far away as Lithuania, with a variety of floral backgrounds ranging from wedding professionals and

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in Bloom FLOWER INTENSIVE

“If you are using nature as a guide, then you want to picture how flowers bloom in the field.”

–ARIELLA CHEZAR

ABOVE: The first day focused on large-scale arrangements and showstopping centerpieces. TOP RIGHT: Day two was all about bridal bouquets. A voluminous, pastel-hued Oscar de la Renta dress, styled by Gabrielle Hurwitz, provided the perfect backdrop against which to photograph and style each bouquet.

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floral designers to flower farmers and garden hobbyists. We’ll spend the next three days surrounded by blooms from many of New England’s most prolific flower farms, including Cedar Farm in New York, Renaissance Farm in Vermont, Little State Flower Co. in Rhode Island, Maiden Flower Farm in Massachusetts, and Fivefork Farms in Massachusetts. The flowering branches, ranunculus, hellebores, specialty tulips, hyacinths, fritillaria, anemones, and sweet peas are all sourced locally, while roses from Rose Story Farm in California and ranunculus from 3 Porch Farm in Georgia round out the mix. “Spring tones are so connected, from dusty violet and mauve to warm golds, peachy apricots, and lime yellows,” Ariella tells our group. “There are so many directions to explore. And with no client dictating our design, we have the

in Bloom FLOWER INTENSIVE

ABOVE, LEFT AND RIGHT: The

freedom to design with no client in mind meant yellow—not always a popular color choice—was allowed to take center stage at the workshop’s closing dinner party. • Towering forsythia branches added drama to the high-ceilinged space. RIGHT: Nicolette attends to the tablescape’s details that include Bespoke’s paper goods and The Ark’s place settings.

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freedom to create and explore palettes that really push the usual boundaries.”

Ariella and Nicolette offer complementary skill sets, and throughout our time together, they take turns teaching. We begin with centerpieces, focusing on an organic style that embodies nature’s fluidity. “If you are using nature as a guide, then you want to picture how flowers bloom in the field,” instructs Ariella. “They never grow at the exact same height; they can be short, tall, curved, or straight. When you mimic that in an arrangement through layering, it looks more alive.”

While we put her teachings into practice, our conversations flow, covering everything from event design and color theory to trends and strategies of the floral business. After two years of pandemic-related isolation, it’s clear that everyone is eager for connection. “I’m here as a fan of Nicolette’s work, but I’m also here to meet other florists and hear about their challenges and successes.” says Dianne Black of A Wild Vine in Toronto. “As much as I love the creativity of floral design, I’m equally interested in the business side.”

Serbio Uzcategui of Piropo Flowers in New York City shares the sentiment. “I love the work I’m doing in my floral studio, but I’m open to learning from others,” he says.

Following the centerpiece exercise, we take For more information, see Sources, page 106

in Bloom FLOWER INTENSIVE

our newfound knowledge and move on to bouquets and other arrangements over the next two days. And it all culminates with the closing event on the last day—a farewell dinner complete with elaborate floral displays and table settings.

“Ariella has an incredible ability to envision an event in its entirety, from the linens and candles to the centerpieces and floral installations,” says Nicolette. The cavernous space fills with soaring forsythia branches complemented by touches of gold and robin’s-egg blue. Our own centerpiece creations fill the tables, paired with tiny bud vases of daffodils. Above, twinkling fairy lights illuminate the tall windows and soaring ceilings. The overall effect can only be described as pure magic.

And as the sun sets golden over the Hudson River just outside, we enjoy cocktails, dinner, and the deep connection that comes from a shared passion for the transformative power of flowers.

LEFT: Students bask in

the golden evening light and enjoy good food and conversation, surrounded by floral creations of their own making. ABOVE: The stunning cake by sugar flower designer Mamie Brougitte Cakes ensured the evening ended on a sweet note.

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To receive information on future workshops, visit ariellaflowers.com and nicolettecamille.com.

in Bloom DECORATE: Q&A

Ongoing Dialogue AS THE CREATIVE MIND BEHIND FERRICK MASON, PAINTER AND DESIGNER ALEX MASON GENERATES CONSTANT CONVERSATION BETWEEN ART, TEXTILES, AND WALL COVERINGS. Interview by Kirk Reed Forrester

weren’t many boutique textile lines, but I was inspired by Lulu de Kwiatkowski and what she was doing at her company Lulu DK. Around 2007, I was introduced to Brian Ferrick, who had helped start Kathryn Ireland’s line and also Michael Smith’s Jasper line. He had the experience and knowledge about the business that I was looking for, so we formed Ferrick Mason together in 2008, right before the market crashed.

How did you manage to keep a new business going during a financial crisis?

A big part of our success in the early days was that our hand silk screen printer would let us print

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: The artist at the printer that makes

her digital and silk screen prints. • Alex’s fine art evokes the same love of color and flora found in her textiles. • When refreshing the décor at Florida’s historic Gasparilla Inn, Kemble Interiors swathed a room in Ferrick Mason’s Lexington wallpaper in Pink Oyster.

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FAR LEFT: PHOTO BY CARMEL FASANO BRANTLEY

You formally trained as an artist at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and had a career as a painter before starting your textile company, Ferrick Mason, in 2008. How did you make the artistic leap from one medium to another?

After I graduated from Pratt, my husband and I moved to New Zealand, where I continued to paint. But people there kept telling me that my work would translate well to textiles. So when we moved to Los Angeles three years later, I decided to go to school to learn the craft. I attended Otis College of Art and Design and learned pattern design and the famous William Morris method. At the time, there

FAR LEFT: PHOTO BY CARMEL FASANO BRANTLEY

in Bloom DECORATE: Q&A

small print runs instead of carrying a large inventory. Later we expanded into digital printing, which allowed for a more painterly expression of our designs. I also moved with my family from Los Angeles to the small town of Versailles (pronounced “Ver-sales”), Kentucky, where I was able to buy an 1860s building on Main Street and renovate it into a studio/showroom space, which had been my dream.

And unlike when we lived in LA, we can own a house here!

It feels completely different to me. I get so much joy in making a pattern, seeing it translated onto fabric, and seeing the fabric upholstered on a piece of furniture. But I am more emotionally invested in my paintings, so there is this pull and tug. Luckily, I get to do both types of work, and they are in constant conversation with one another.

For example, I often put a repetitive iconography in my art, and then I’ll create a fabric design from that.

Is there a difference between seeing your work on a canvas and seeing its application on textiles, pillows, and wallcoverings?

How would you describe the Ferrick Mason aesthetic?

I’m very inspired by color and organic forms in nature. In my designs, you’ll see dogwoods, fiddle-leaf fig trees, and lots of

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PHOTO BY LAUREY GLENN

In a Nashville home, decorator Kevin Walsh of Little Rock’s Bear Hill Interiors chose Ferrick Mason’s Woodford pattern in Canton Blue.

“Blue and greens are my natural, go-to palette,” says Alex.

PHOTO BY LAUREY GLENN

in Bloom DECORATE: Q&A

RIGHT: Curtains in

Victorian Mod punch up the drama in a feminine bedroom designed by the LA firm Lucas Studio.

BOTTOM, LEFT TO RIGHT: A bathroom

TOP AND FAR LEFT: PHOTOS BY CARYN MILLET, WALLPAPERS COURTESY OF FERRICK MASON

wrapped in the pattern Good Fortune feels both elegant and playful.

• Swatches of the company’s most recent collection include (from top) Zimmer (in Orange), Emily (in Green Grass grass cloth), and Alex’s personal favorite McCall (in Pink Green).

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TOP AND FAR LEFT: PHOTOS BY CARYN MILLET, WALLPAPERS COURTESY OF FERRICK MASON

in Bloom

flowers, but I also like to make up forms of nature that are more abstract. I’m not reined in by what someone would actually see in the garden. It’s more whimsical, but it’s always referencing nature.

Tell us about your latest collection.

This year we were excited to launch printed grass cloth for the first time. It was kind of an experiment for me because it required a different width and repeat, so I couldn’t do the same designs that I do for fabric and wallpaper.

For this year’s textiles and wallpapers, I was especially inspired by these magical florals I created that we named McCall. Another new design I love is Zimmer, which is made

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up of different symbols of iconography. Some people have said the design looks like coral while others have said it looks like Chinese calligraphy. Finally, I love a new print called Emily—a pretty, leafy plant I created that looks great in lots of colors.

What can we look forward to in future Ferrick Mason designs?

I want to be more conscious of broadening the warmer colors I use. I’m instinctively drawn to blues and greens, but I think I can push other colors in textiles in a unique way to give more variety and more depth. It feels a little risky, but it’s also how I think I can be distinctive.

A dining room by MKM Interiors puts Alex’s talent on full display with Ferrick Mason’s Alex wallpaper, drapes in the company’s Fiddle Leaf Fig, and one of Alex’s prints, Abundant Life, at the center of the room.

For more information, see Sources, page 106

PHOTO COURTESY OF ALEX MASON

DECORATE: Q&A

PHOTO COURTESY OF ALEX MASON

in Bloom GARDEN ARTIST

Fresh Perspective

BY LOOKING AT THE GARDEN THROUGH A DIFFERENT LENS, ARTIST MEG BLACK OPENED UP A NEW WORLD OF ENDLESS CREATIVITY.

By Tovah Martin • Photography by Kindra Clineff

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ittle did Meg Black know that a simple cluster of coneflowers performing in a roadside pocket garden would change everything when it came to her paintings. Gardens were an early inspiration for her canvases. While studying art in her native Syracuse, New York, Meg became fascinated by the interplay of colors in flower gardens, and she expressed that intrigue in her initial watercolors. However, when she moved from landlocked Syracuse to harborside Boston, she developed a love of the ocean and spent years capturing the mesmerizing hues of seafoam, waves, and tidal pools. But artists go through life with eyes wide open, and one day while on her daily bike ride around her own North Shore neighborhood in Massachusetts, Meg rediscovered gardens. But this time around, she approached flowers from what she refers to as a “snail’s perspective.”

Meg had just finished reading Virginia Woolf’s short

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story “Kew Gardens,” narrated by a snail who spends his days eavesdropping on passersby while also observing the intricacy of forms and colors playing off the petals and leaves in his domain. It was this story that prompted Meg to bring her bike to an abrupt halt beside a thicket of coneflowers by the road. Like the snail, she got down on her knees and crawled into the flowers where she discovered a world much deeper than the usual observations of a detached onlooker. She gained a whole new perspective and forged an intimacy with nature beyond anything she experienced in her previous artistic encounters. That’s when she returned to her roots and began painting gardens again—but this time ABOVE, LEFT TO RIGHT: Artist Meg Black immerses herself in her larger-

than-life canvases. • Abaca is the strongest of fibers and must be beat for 20 hours before the cell walls will mix with pigment to be applied with Meg’s artistic tools. “It’s a combination of art and science,” says Meg.

in Bloom GARDEN ARTIST

around, she was completely immersed.

Meg also brought another new element to her work as she had recently developed a unique method of creating art with some out-of-the-box tools such as spoons, scoops, and basters. She uses these utensils to mix her colors with abaca, a member of the banana family. To give her creations realism and dimension, she massages the abaca into a pulp and then applies it to a canvas, building up surface consistency and giving depth to her work. She then fills the spoons, scoops, and basters with paint and pours more color into the scene, guiding it through the pulp to steer its path and capture precise hues that reflect both light and shade as seen in nature. Like gardening, it’s a very tactile and hands-on process, and the result is uniquely visceral.

“You can almost feel the plants,” she says of the “you are there” sensation.

When working on any composition, Meg often returns to the scene of her inspiration. In this case, she revisited the coneflowers with a camera in hand to remember the forms she was striving to capture. For the colors, she came with a sketchbook, scribbling notes to bring back to her home studio. And as she studied that tiny patch of blossoms, she

LEFT: Unlike most artists, Meg does not use brushes. Instead, she mixes

pigments in cups, blends them in her hands, and then applies mixed colors with spoons. ABOVE: To create detail, depth, and the sensation of being in a garden, Meg paints with squeeze bottles.

discovered that the “view-on-all-fours” solved many of the issues presented by the plein air viewpoint. “The problem you often face is too much infinity,” she says. “But painting should be about isolating a snapshot in time. I want to tell the story of that moment by capturing the nuances, the light, and the life.” And of course, she is constantly translating and balancing what she sees, pulling elements in and out of focus and tweaking colors to work as a composition. “Artists are problem solvers,” she says.

It was a turning point for Meg. After a couple of canvases capturing those coneflowers, she found further inspiration in poppy fields, peony rows, and other gardens spilling with color.

Any place where she sees profusion and magical light serves as a point of departure for a composition to sprout. And it’s all thanks to a snail that opened her eyes and began an epic journey.

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For more information, see Sources, page 106

AD PAGE

in Bloom ENTERTAIN Q&A

Flights of Fancy PASSIONATE PHILANTHROPIST, TRAVELER, AESTHETE, AND HOSTESS, DEEDA BLAIR TELLS OF HER LOVES IN A NEW BOOK, FOOD, FLOWERS, AND FANTASY. HERE, SHE DISCUSSES THE RELEASE AND OTHER APSECTS OF HER COLORFUL LIFE. Interview by Margot Shaw

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In this introduction to Deeda Blair’s justreleased book, Food, Flowers, & Fantasy (Rizzoli 2022), author Andrew Solomon’s description of his dear friend portends a fabulous armchair adventure for readers.

ABOVE: An 18th-century Chinese screen in Deeda’s Manhattan apartment provides an exotic backdrop for a fantastical picnic prepared for a trip to visit Egyptian treasures in St. Louis. TOP RIGHT: Deeda and husband William, who was ambassador to Denmark, share a light moment in the embassy residence in Copenhagen.

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Deeda, what prompted you to write this book? During COVID quarantine, I needed a project that would keep me busy since I had a lot of alone time. I also had a collection of beautiful, interesting, and surprising photographs of things I love—houses,

LEFT: PHOTO BY NGOC MINH NGO

he word “elegant” is in regular use in both fashion and science; it can describe a certain understated self-assurance manifest in a choice of clothing, an arrangement of furniture, or the setting of a table—and, equally, the underlying structures of the universe or the routine transcription of RNA. It perfectly describes Deeda Blair. Most style mavens are surprised by her scientific expertise, and scientists are astonished by her style. If one penetrates those disparate worlds, however, one soon finds that neurobiologists credit her deep interest in helping them think through difficult questions, and that fashionistas must employ metaphors from 18th-century France to describe the impeccable way she dresses and entertains.”

LEFT: PHOTO BY NGOC MINH NGO

in Bloom

gardens, architecture, paintings, sculpture, ruins, and travels.

Deborah Needleman came over for lunch one day and suggested we put the different kinds of images together in an interesting way, and I ended up being quite happy with the way it looked. This book is also intended to raise money for the Deeda Blair Research Initiative for Disorders of the Brain. This rigorously reviewed program has a goal of identifying and supporting the next generation of scientists with seed funds to pursue novel and innovative research in the neurosciences.

Was there someone in your life who encouraged you in your pursuit of beauty? I had a close friend who encouraged my interest in 18th-century France, history, furniture, works of art, and architecture. Also, my grandmother often took me to museums and the opera.

What is your favorite flower to arrange? I love peonies with vines of sweet peas, as well as ranunculus and garden roses.

TOP TO BOTTOM: Deeda on the terrace of her house

in Washington wearing the Rothko-inspired dress designed by friend and designer Hubert de Givenchy. • The Rothko painting that provided the inspiration for the dress was on display in the salon of Hubert de Givenchy’s Rue Fabert house in Paris.

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What is your tried-and-true vessel, arrangement style, and garden style? I love baskets, both ceramic and wicker, and I have several Sèvres cachepots. I like arrangements consisting of one type of flower mixed in with different leaves. Regarding garden style, I adore boxwoods used as hedges or parterres.

You mention in your book that you didn’t like the shapeless navy Catholic school uniforms you wore growing up. How did

LEFT: PHOTO BY PASCAL HINOU/ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST, ABOVE: PHOTO BY HORST P. HORST

ENTERTAIN Q&A

LEFT: PHOTO BY PASCAL HINOU/ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST, ABOVE: PHOTO BY HORST P. HORST

in Bloom ENTERTAIN Q&A

your limited wardrobe in school affect your approach to fashion?

My school uniforms ended up having a positive effect on my approach to fashion in that I learned to not mind wearing things over and over later in life, particularly if it’s a Chanel suit or a Balenciaga coat.

In his 70s hit, “Wild Night,” Van Morrison wrote that “All the girls walk by, dressed up for each other.” I think that’s mostly true.

Who do YOU dress for? I dressed very much for my late husband, who was quite interested in clothes. But I also dress for myself.

Nancy Lancaster once said that every successful room must have a woodfire, candlelight, and cut flowers. What are your essentials for a successful room? And for a successful party? For a successful dining room, I like to use a smaller, round table that holds four to six people and pair it with pieces such as a sofa and a bookcase. And when entertaining, I have found that

ABOVE: A soft, garden-style arrangement for dinner à deux references Marie Antoinette’s Petit Trianon, where the gardens were more informal than those of nearby Versailles. LEFT: Deeda set a table for a fantasy meal with pastel flowers and linens reflecting her memories of Sweden and its dreamy, light-filled Haga Pavillon.

Poring over your Fantasy Menus felt like a whirlwind trip full of international delicacies. Can you choose one and describe the locale and your vision for that menu? These Fantasy Menus just kind of fell together based on places I love. One of my favorites was inspired by a trip that wasn’t so far away—to St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum was hosting an extraordinary exhibition on “Sunken Cities: Egypt’s Lost Worlds.” It featured temple ruins and monumental statuary from two islands just off Alexandria over 1,200 years ago. I had seen half of it before at a beautiful installation in the Grand Palais in Paris and was longing to see it again. Some wonderful friends knew I had not gone anywhere in ages after I had an accident. They owned a plane and asked where I wanted to go. I think they were somewhat surprised when I said St. Louis. For the flight, I planned a picnic consisting of things that travel well—the Moroccan chicken couscous was a Middle Eastern thought, and I paired it with cold beet soup. I completed the meal with a blueberry tart.

Tell us about your husband, William, and what sort of man he was. The best way to describe him comes straight from my book: “I had the world’s most heavenly husband.

He just got me; he just got it. And he always gave me tremendous independence to pursue my interests. Independence with applause.”

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PHOTOS BY NGOC MINH NGO

beautiful tablecloths and flowers make a huge difference. I enjoy making up tablecloths of Bennison linen prints with pleated edges, and they always completely cover the table.

PHOTOS BY NGOC MINH NGO

in Bloom DECORATING: MOOD

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Garden Party EVENT DESIGNER TARA GUÉRARD SHARES HER TOOLS AND TRICKS OF THE TRADE FOR CREATING AN OUTDOOR GATHERING

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FULL OF BLOOMS AND BEAUTY. Produced and styled by Missie Neville Crawford Photography by David Hillegas

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vent designer Tara Guérard founded Charlestonbased Tara Guérard Soirée in 1997. She later launched The Lettered Olive, a letterpress invitation company.

Through this venture, Tara works with leading designers across the South to create beautiful invitation suites for brides. Most recently, she started May Cabas, a bicycle basket company. No matter which business she is focusing on, Tara always includes a bit of nature. “I love to clip whatever I can find—flowers, leaves, branches—for my arrangements,” she says.

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PORTRAIT BY GAYLE BROOKER

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1 Grand Bicycle Basket ($175) from May Cabas, maycabas.com 2 Matisse platter ($250) by Malaika from Hammett, shophammett.com 3 Hand-printed tablecloth ($85) from J. Catma, jcatma.com 4 Glass watering can ($55) from San Francisco Museum of Modern Art,

museumstore.sfmoma.org 5 Bocce ball set ($125) from Thompson Hanson, thompsonhanson.com 6 Letter-pressed menu cards (12 for $30) from The Lettered Olive, letteredolive.com 7 Mark and Graham linen napkins ($69/set of 4), markandgraham.com 8 Katherine Plaid Sienna apron ($98) from Heather Taylor Home, heathertaylorhome.com 9 Japanese garden pruners ($99) from Heather Taylor Home, heathertaylorhome.com 10 Adhesion handcrafted ceramic vase ($64) from FELT + FAT, feltandfat.com 11 Barebones Living Classic leather work gloves ($22) from Food52, food52.com 12 Daisy dessert plate ($45) by Malaika from Hammett, shophammett.com For more information, see Sources, page 106

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in Bloom DECORATE: FLOWERS

Maggie Bailey of Bramble & Bee Floral WHEN AUTUMN COMES AROUND, THE TEXAS-BASED FLORAL DESIGNER THRIVES ON CREATING HER ARRANGEMENTS OUTDOORS. Produced by Margaret Zainey Roux • Photography by Fernanda Varela

Inspiration

“This natural setting offered a wealth of inspiration,” says Maggie Bailey of Bramble & Bee. Sustainable Harvesters in Hockley, Texas, is located on more than 167 acres of farmland dotted with gardens, greenhouses, and groves. “I used freshly plucked lettuces and vegetables with all of their wild, gnarly foliage to give the arrangement a hardy base and an element of the unexpected. The leafy greens also deflected from the formality of the lush garden roses and helped mound the blooms to create a smooth but striking contrast.”

Behind the Scenes

Part Texas wildflower, part English garden, and a little California cool thrown in for good measure—that’s Maggie Bailey’s style. Her flower designs capture the simplicity and innocence of her childhood in rural California, her free-spirited college years in Texas, and precious time spent across the pond with her British-born husband. When asked about her background, the 30-something is quick to credit these rich life experiences rather than any formal training. “I studied science, so I never dreamed I’d become a floral designer,” says the once-aspiring physical therapist. “But I did always have an artistic inkling. I’m not good with a paint brush or pastels, but I have a keen eye for color theory. I really don’t recall how or why, but flowers became my medium and flower arranging my art and my passion.”

Friends and family took notice, and soon Maggie began tackling church flowers and weddings. In 2013, she took her talents one step further by opening the doors to Bramble & Bee, a quaint floral studio and gift shop just off of Main Street in historic downtown Tomball.

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in Bloom DECORATE: FLOWERS

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS STEP 1 To prepare your container, create a loose ball of chicken wire that fits snuggly inside, and secure it with waterproof tape.

MATERIALS Coated chicken wire Green, waterproof floral tape

Garden roses (Toffee, Secret Garden, Golden Mustard, Quicksand)

Delphinium

STEP 2 Establish the shape of the arrangement with a base of greenery: mixed lettuce leaves, celery, and tomato vines. For a more organic, oblongshaped arrangement, take the greens farther out to the sides and shorter in the front and back.

Campanula

STEP 3

Assorted lettuces Celery

Spray roses

Tomato vines

Butterfly ranunculus

Amaranth

Queen Anne’s lace

Once the outer boundaries of the arrangement are in place, use more foliage to fill in the center, covering the chicken wire mechanics.

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STEP 4 Insert the linear flowers: amaranth, delphinium, and campanula.

Use them to establish the highest and widest points of the arrangement.

STEP 5 Distribute the garden and spray roses evenly throughout the arrangement.

To create depth, make sure some blooms are low and tight and others are longer and more forward-facing.

STEP 6 Lastly, layer butterfly ranunculus and Queen Anne’s lace over the top of the roses for interest and texture.

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“You can’t force a flower to be something that it’s not, so I try not to be too staunch when it comes to what I want from the design.” —MAGGIE BAILEY

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in Bloom INTERIORS

California Dream

SAN FRANCISCO INTERIOR DESIGNER SUZANNE TUCKER GIVES CLIENTS A FRESH PERSPECTIVE IN A GRAND NAPA VALLEY ESTATE WHERE THE VIEWS ARE THE MAIN ATTRACTION.

By Lydia Somerville • Photography by Roger Davies

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ABOVE: In the family

hen Suzanne Tucker’s clients lost their beloved Napa Valley house in a wildfire, they were devastated and unsure of their next steps. The years-long process of rebuilding, along with the many decisions involved, held little appeal for the veterans of multiple changes of abode. Serendipitously, some friends in the area were looking to downsize from a house that seemed perfect for Suzanne’s clients. “It was a win-win for all of them,” says the designer.

Raised in Santa Barbara, Suzanne honed her design aesthetic through years of work for California design legend Michael Taylor. When he died in 1986, she and colleague Tim Marks bought the business, named it Tucker & Marks, and continued their pursuit of the refined, luxurious style her mentor made famous. A passionate student of architecture, Suzanne takes an

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room, pocket doors open to link the indoors to the terrace outside.

Suzanne used a variety of fabrics, from textured velvet to classic florals, to create a singularly inviting space. The coffee table is upholstered in leather to withstand foot propping. LEFT: Pretty wrought iron gates and French doors open onto a courtyard centered on a splashing fountain.

in Bloom INTERIORS

inclusive approach to each project, designing spaces that reflect the way her clients will live in the house. She is renowned in her own right for the homes she imbues with her California style, whether in San Francisco or New York.

For her client’s second-chance Napa Valley house, Suzanne knew the setting would drive the design. “The house sits nestled in vineyards with long views of the valley,” she says. “The entry establishes the home’s main theme of blurring the boundaries between indoors and outdoors. From the French doors, you look straight through a courtyard to the gardens and then beyond to the vineyard.”

Designed by architect Howard Backen, the house is a classic example of California vernacular with its red tile roof and sandstone terraces.

“The wonderful thing about northern California is that it has seasons,”

“In this house, the rooms all open to the outdoors. And we aren’t plagued by bugs, so you don’t need screens.”

—SUZANNE TUCKER

ABOVE: Suzanne uphol-

stered the living room’s club chairs in a Brunschwig & Fils floral print and echoed its rosy tones in the sofa fabric by Guy Goodfellow.

LEFT: In the dining room, a floral block print drapery fabric by California designer Rose Tarlow frames the breathtaking views.

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in Bloom INTERIORS

CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE: In the primary bedroom, Suzanne layered textures for a cozy effect, from the wool rug and the matelassé bedding to the linen bed hangings. • An 18th-century Danish Rococo secretary graces the bedroom’s entrance. • Outside the bedroom, an 18th-century Louis XV-style parquetry commode sits beneath a Venetian glass mirror.

Suzanne says. “It gets cool, so you need fireplaces and comfy furnishings, but it also gets warm enough to enjoy outdoor spaces. In this house, the rooms all open to the outdoors. And we aren’t plagued by bugs, so you don’t need screens.” She adds that with scenic views from every window, the outdoors impact the interiors as much as the furniture does. “The green vineyards are part of the house.”

When it comes to entertaining, the home offers plenty of options both indoors and out. Every room opens onto a seating or dining spot, some offering shade while others bask in the sunshine. Outside the family room, a dining table with views of the vineyard catches breezes for a delightful luncheon spot. By the pool, a parterre garden with flowering crabapple trees frames a cafe table, perfect for evening cocktails. Depending on the weather, guests can enjoy the pool and lounge area beside it, or they can snuggle under warm throws around the outdoor fireplace.

The Napa Valley estate makes entertaining on any scale a breeze. Cutting gardens provide roses, dahlias, and sunflowers for table arrangements.

Wine from the vineyards supplies the ultimate farm-to-table libation. Fruit trees offer delectable produce for the kitchen, as well as materials for

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in Bloom INTERIORS

Landscape designer Claudia Schmidt designed the elegant layers of hedges and greenery that draw the eye from the house over the lawn to meticulously trimmed boxwoods bordering the vineyards.

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in Bloom INTERIORS

CLOCKWISE FROM RIGHT: A dining table

off the family room offers majestic vistas for entertaining. • The table’s mosaic limestone top sets the palette of green and apricot for a pretty display of dinnerware from William Laman. • Near the pool, a shady parterre provides the perfect spot for serving wine from the vineyard.

IN HER OWN WORDS With two previous books to her name, Rooms to Remember and The Romance of Design, Suzanne Tucker has achieved a trifecta with her new book out this fall, Extraordinary Interiors. While this Napa Valley house is not in the book, there are many other stunning projects included that Suzanne has designed. Here, she shares her journey as an author.

“This third book has been both a joy and a lot of hard work as I plumbed the depths of how I do what I do. Delving into my personal design process, which I consider part anthropology, part archaeology, and part psychology, I have written about how I listen and observe, how I uncover my clients’ dreams and desires, and how I interpret the nuances of their lifestyles.

Whether the house is casual or formal, in the city or in the country, it’s all about the personal approach. Consequently, I’m able to show a wide variety of extraordinary projects that my team and I have created, from a magnificent San Francisco townhouse to a contemporary Los Angeles residence to a chic New York penthouse and even a California “surf shack!” I consider myself lucky to be able to explore the way design and decoration can beautifully reflect different phases of life, as well as to have clients who are as passionate about their residences as I am.”

–Suzanne Tucker

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in Bloom INTERIORS

Off the living room, a seating area with outdoor sofas by Formations and fabric by Timothy Corrigan carries through the interior room’s sunny palette. Drum tables offer a convenient spot to place a drink while withstanding any sort of weather.

decoration. And pocket doors throughout the house allow exterior walls to practically disappear, removing barriers between indoors and out.

Having worked with these clients on several previous houses, Suzanne had helped them score many treasures over the years. In this home, she was able to revisit these pieces and give them new life in this fresh setting, from the 18th-century Venetian mirror hanging over a French commode to the regal Danish secretary tucked into a niche.

Furniture choices include classic silhouettes covered in rich prints and woven fabrics, all designed with comfort top of mind.

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In the family room, cozy upholstered pieces invite relaxation and conversation. Floral motifs layered with soft geometrics and rich embroidery feature prominently in Suzanne’s fabric selections. A leather-covered coffee table encourages foot propping and adds texture to the mix of rich fabrics. The morning room with windows on three sides captures early light for a perfect start to the day. And in the primary bedroom, warm honey tones cast a soothing spell. During the day, the walls open to a broad terrace dappled with sunlight, while at night, the room offers a warm embrace with a fire glowing, curtains drawn, and lamps lit. California dreaming, indeed.

For more information, see Sources, page 106

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CAMP ROUND TOP During the celebrated antiques fair, a coterie of design friends gather for the ultimate glamping experience deep in the heart of Texas.

By KAREN CARROLL Photography by DAGNUSHKA

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Every year during its renowned antiques fair, the town of Round Top (population 90) swells by tens of thousands as collectors and design enthusiasts descend upon this Texas hamlet, searching the furnishings, ephemera, and collectibles found at every turn in tented fields, weathered barns, and roadside stands. What started in the late 1960s as a “country show” with a handful of dealers and primarily local, in-the-know shoppers has evolved into a veritable cabinet of curiosities that extends over 20 miles and attracts exhibitors and attendees from around the globe.

Last fall, well off the beaten path on Bader Ranch, a small cluster of tents tucked deep within a field harbored its own eye-catching collection of art and antiques. Here there was no madding crowd competing to buy the many one-of-a-kind pieces, and indeed, nary a price tag in sight.

Had you happened by chance upon the setting, you’d be forgiven for wondering if you’d stumbled upon a movie in the making—perhaps an adaptation of Out of Africa, albeit one with a distinct Texas accent. To set the scene: In the central tent, patterned poufs encircle a low-slung table laden with vibrant flowers, exotic fruits, and flickering lanterns with kilim rugs underfoot and a fluttering installation of ombréd fabric panels overhead.

Around the perimeter, the characters lounge in an outdoor living room vignette, sipping libations from fine crystal and engaging in animated dialogue before a costume change into caftans for dinner. Soon they’ll gather at the table for a Moroccan feast prepared by a celebrated chef. And after lingering well into the evening

PREVIOUS PAGES: In the main tent at Camp Round Top,

Articulture Designs created a ceiling installation of hand-dyed fabric panels in ombréd neutrals. Each day, the scene beneath changed according to the theme that event designer Cassie LaMere established. THESE PAGES: For the Villa Oasis dinner, a nod to Yves Saint Laurent’s home in Marrakesh, LaMere and her team of creative collaborators threaded Moroccan-inspired details throughout, including an exotic feast prepared by chef Yann Nury, menu and place cards with a tile motif by TPD Design House, and floral designer Antonio Bond’s tablescape of peonies, ranunculus, and citrus fruits.

Campers came dressed for the occasion in caftans.

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“Cassie LaMere is the kind of event designer who starts out with the seed of an idea and then makes an entire garden bloom like magic.”

—THE CAMP ROUND TOP HOSTESS

“I knew camping was something that would take my guests a bit outside of their comfort zones.

This experience needed to be truly luxurious and ‘wow’ them at every turn.” —THE CAMP ROUND TOP HOSTESS

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THESE PAGES: LaMere and Camp Round Top’s hostess took the concept of camping to its most luxurious level, with every detail custom and any need or want anticipated. Meals were Michelin-star worthy, prepared from Yury’s mobile kitchen in his vintage Airstream trailer that he drove from New York. Guests found thoughtful touches at each turn, from “Happy Camper Kits” filled with amenities for their stay to oversized scarves from Garza Marfa on the backs of chairs at the welcome dinner.

In the evening, guests retired to bedroom tents with king-size beds and Frette linens (bottom right), each decorated individually with accessories selected by LaMere, who meticulously researched the campers’ personal interests.

around a campfire under the stars, they’ll slip into individually decorated bedroom tents to rest and dream of tomorrow, knowing when they arise it will be to an entirely new production.

“We really felt like we were living in stills from a film reel,” says Barry Dixon, a Virginia-based interior designer who was among those that called this chic compound—christened Camp Round Top—home during the fair. “Everywhere we looked there was a visual surprise or another magical experience, from the time we woke up to the moment we dropped into king-size beds in our tents.”

The idea for Camp Round Top initially sprouted when a woman with deep roots in the area was nearing the completion of a mountain house located several states away. Throughout the lengthy design and building process, she and Dixon, along with Atlanta architect Keith Summerour, had not only collaborated on her dream house but also had become dear friends. “As we were reaching the final stages, I almost didn’t want it to end,” she says. On one of the many monthly site visits, the group casually tossed around the possibility of convening in Round Top for the fair. “Ultimately, I decided the trip would become a thank you to Barry and Keith, senior members of their staffs, and their spouses and partners,” says the client. “They’d given me a wonderful gift by designing an incredible home.”

She turned to Austin-based event designer Cassie LaMere to produce a luxurious glamping experience, one worthy of worldly guests who live, breathe, and create design at the highest level—and for whom the traditional concept of camping might be well beyond their usual comfort zone. “I needed to ‘wow’ them,” says the hostess. “Cassie is the kind of event designer who starts out with the seed of an idea and then makes the entire garden bloom like magic.”

The logistical challenges were daunting enough—procuring the infrastructure and overseeing the installation of a tented village equivalent of a five-star resort in a bucolic, but empty, field—all of which LaMere planned in a matter of f l o w e r m a g .c o m

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THE NIGHTS OF CAMP ROUND TOP TAPAS AND TACOS WELCOME

ATTIRE Come as you are (cowboy boots optional) • DÉCOR a rustic blend of Texan and

Mexican elements capped off by Antonio Bond’s botanical tablescape that included antique trinkets and talismans to evoke treasures that might be found during the show • MENU homemade chips and caviar; wild trout salad; duck à l’orange haute dogs; lobster, wagyu steak, and sunchoke tacos; churros with hot chocolate • MEMORABLE MOMENT Chef Yann Nury’s tortillas ceremoniales, branded with the Camp Round Top monogram

months. But it was in her development of the camp’s décor and daily itinerary of custom experiences where the concept truly flourished. “I’m an antiques collector myself, so this event spoke to a lot of my personal interests,” LaMere says. “I felt like I had been preparing for this my whole life and could draw upon sources of inspiration, design references, and collaborators I’d been saving for the right moment.”

The event designer established the aesthetic of the camp through art installations, curated furnishings, and thoughtful details that showcased local makers, as well as captured the overall spirit of both the antiques fair and Camp Round Top—the thrill of the hunt and a sense of discovery. Each day had a signature theme, played out in everything from customized gifts and table settings to the evening’s dress code and menu (see sidebar, below left). In addition, after spending hours ducking in and out of the hot Texas sun to shop, guests would return to the oasis never quite knowing what creature comfort or surprise might await next, whether a private musical performance by an up-and-coming singer/songwriter, a golden-hour cocktail class, or a session with an aura photography artist.

LaMere carefully cast the camp’s roster of talent with those who could achieve the sophisticated layers of detail and hospitable ambience she envisioned and also execute it all under the rather remote conditions. “For instance, our chef, Yann Nury, orchestrates pop-up dinners all over the world, and he’s well-versed in creating amazing culinary

VILLA OASIS

ATTIRE Kasbah caftans • DÉCOR inspired

by Yves Saint Laurent’s legendary villa in Marrakesh, with kilim rugs, patterned poufs, vibrant flowers, and fruits • MENU baba ganoush; kefta meatballs; lamb shoulder with harissa vegetables served in handforged copper tagines; baklava; and mint tea • MEMORABLE MOMENT anticipating each course by fanning a tasseled place card and menu deck with Moroccan-tile motifs and Majorelle blue FIELD DINNER

ATTIRE linen • DÉCOR organic, as if the

table and everything on it had sprung from the earth, including Bond’s wispy floral arrangements that looked foraged from the meadow beyond • MENU carpaccio of grouper; guinea fowl; white peaches and cream • MEMORABLE MOMENTS sharing photographs at the table of individual aura readings taken earlier in the day; after dinner, a private performance by singer Lavelle White, a 90-something Texas blues legend

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THESE PAGES: “At the Field Dinner, we summoned a sense of origin and provenance for a celebration of the land,” says LaMere. “I wanted the menu to honor ingredients without a lot of manipulation, and I wanted the table to appear as if it had sprouted from the earth.” Bond arranged a tablescape of feathery bronze-painted plumosa, white nigella, and nigella pods.

He then tucked dried insects amid the flowers.

For more on the Round Top glamping experience, visit flowermag.com/roundtop

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THESE PAGES: Bond created a statement centerpiece for the Tapas and Tacos

Dinner, pulling from his collection of driftwood and building arrangements of succulents, air plants, scabiosa pods, eucalyptus, and moss. He nestled in small statues, bones, and glass orbs “to give guests little curiosities and special moments,” he says. “I love seeing a Greek statue with a broken nose or missing arm in a museum because it tells a story. I wanted to evoke that kind of feeling in the field.” Other elements from the evening: leather-covered menu cards, tortillas branded with the Camp Round Top logo, homemade chips, and caviar.

experiences in a roving concept,” says the event designer. “Typically for an event, we do all the work behind closed doors. But at Camp Round Top, everything was out in the open, with guests coming and going throughout the process.” And while LaMere usually prefers a big “ta-da” reveal, here each set change unexpectedly became a much-anticipated part of the show, with guests peering over the shoulders of both LaMere and floral artist Antonio Bond to ask questions and get impromptu flower-arranging lessons as each tableau evolved.

“We always made sure to return from shopping in time to catch what was happening,” says Dixon. Adds Bond, “It felt a little like theater in the round but became such fun to share the philosophy behind my style with a group who has such a keen eye for design. I wanted each tablescape to become a conversation starter and play a part in the overall story.”

In LaMere’s script for Camp Round Top, she imagined the hostess and her friends sitting around the table each evening, sharing tales from the field and the treasures they had unearthed in a beautiful environment that would encourage those conversations. The reality more than matched the narrative. “One of the things I love most about events is that they are ephemeral in nature and encapsulate a special moment in time that can never be repeated exactly the same way,” she says. However, as guests departed for their respective homes at the end of the week with suitcases bursting with purchases, relationships strengthened, and lasting memories made, they no doubt eagerly longed for a sequel.

For more information, see Sources, page 106

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One of a Kind

With an array of inspirations ranging from the Victorian Age to the Arts and Crafts movement, Thomas Jayne and William Cullum transform a guest home from mundane to magical with a dose of ingenuity and plenty of colorful joy.

By ALICE WELSH DOYLE Photography by DON FREEMAN

If mythology is an allegorical narrative, then

Thomas Jayne and William Cullum of Jayne Design Studio certainly know how to tell a story filled with plenty of compelling highlights and dreamlike embellishments. The tale begins with a quirky guest home and its eclectic architecture in a storied community on Long Island’s North Shore.

The designers’ longtime artist-client bought the property primarily for the landscape and then turned to the design duo to right the wrongs and imbue the home with décor that reflects her passion for art, mythology, and fairy tales.

Drawing on a host of inspirations including Arts and Crafts, Victoriana, Classicism, British follies, and a smattering of nautical notes, the designers employed some clever renovations to make the best of the existing architecture.

“While the house is not very old, we viewed it with a sense of antiquity because it had so many references to historic architecture,” says William.

The structure reads Victorian in places, with its turret and an octagonal-windowed breakfast room, but it also nods to Classicism with pediments on the façade. And then there are

ABOVE: The quirky architecture inspired the designers to stretch their creativity and celebrate the water view with a clever new porch featuring decorative paint techniques. OPPOSITE: The owners are avid sailors so nautical references pop up here and there such as

this collection of old boats hung as art in the foyer.

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ABOVE: A newly designed stairway created a beautiful focal point, softened with a stippling paint technique for an aged look. OPPOSITE: The living room combines

a variety of styles with an antique chest, more contemporary chairs, and a custom curved sofa with a generous scale, all highlighted by a large-scale fantasy painting by the artist/owner.

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Colonial references in the interior’s floor plan and in various details. “We wanted the décor to serve as a foil to our client’s own art and to her collection,” says William. “And the two front-facing parlors needed to be conducive to showing art and hosting events.” In that regard, the designers decorated these rooms for ease of movement with a purposeful absence of carpets. In addition, some of the furniture sits on wheels, allowing it to be removed when the space is used as a gallery.

While the home’s footprint remained intact, the designers

did make substantial uplifts, including the relocation of the powder room that was originally at the entry. “When you walked in, you literally saw a toilet,” laughs Thomas. The entry stairwell also needed replacing for better functionality and safety. Not wanting it to read as new, the duo employed decorative painter Chuck Hettinger to stipple the banisters with a warming bronze.

The original, lifeless porch was also sent packing, and a sensorial space came to take its place. Columns of faux bamboo with a painted, flame-like design on the bases join with the

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ABOVE: An outstanding

patinaed Italian bench sings under a collection of the homeowner’s artwork featuring her inventive alphabet characters in a gallery space where events are hosted. RIGHT: In the other gallery drawing room, the designers went bold with a blue painted floor, while custom fabric throws provide pretty pet protection on the sofas. The space also features more of the owner’s paintings.

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The idiosyncratic light fixture, purple linoleum floor covering, and blue ceiling join together for a flair-filled breakfast room.

painted trim above in a swirling pattern, instantly making the space a true destination. “We weren’t sure the client would go for it, but she did,” says William. “Now it’s a favorite spot.”

Over a three-year period, the house evolved with kitchen and bathroom renovations while an unfinished attic space over the garage transformed into a self-contained bedroom suite with its

own exterior entrance. To connect the new room to the existing bedrooms on the second floor of the main house, the designers had a brilliant aha moment right up their client’s alley. They replaced an opening in one bedroom with an antique wardrobe straight out of the Kingdom of Narnia, only opened when the connecting passageway to the newly created bedroom is f l o w e r m a g .c o m

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needed. “It really captures people’s imagination,” says Thomas.

“Never has a piece of our decoration brought such a welcome surprise. Everyone who visits becomes a part of the secret, so to speak.” The door’s detailing also relays the client’s love language with a relief of the Roman goddess Diana on the outside and a fabric panel printed with constellations on the inside.

Other alterations involved subtle additions and tweaks.

William introduced an Arts and Crafts-style marble fireplace surround in the living room, based on a Sir Edwin Lutyens design. “It may be a bit unexpected, but it elevates the room instantly and gives it gravitas,” he says. Other hallowed talents “spoke” to the designers as well. The kitchen replicates

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the style of Charles Rennie McIntosh, a Scottish architect instrumental in the Art Nouveau movement. Other style clues were borrowed from iconic late 19th- and early 20th-century New York architecture firm McKim, Mead & White, based on their designs in Newport, Rhode Island. And legendary designer the late Albert Hadley whispered in their ear when they chose to paint the door surrounds red, softened with a decorative stippling application.

The homeowner perfectly sums up the atmosphere: “The house has so much energy and personality inside and out—it invites you in and enchants you.” Just as a compelling and eternal myth should.

“The antique wardrobe leading to a secret passageway really captures people’s imaginations. Never has a piece of our decoration brought such a welcome surprise.”

—DESIGNER THOMAS JAYNE

OPPOSITE: The designers wanted each guest room to have its own identity but not feel like a bed and breakfast. In this suite, the joyful palette and custom bed bring a fresh upbeat attitude. THIS PAGE, TOP: The delightful secret wardrobe serves a practical purpose as an inventive connecting passage. ABOVE: “This guest suite feels like you are in the hull of a ship and is the most nautical in the mix,” says William Cullum of Jayne Design Studio.

For more information, see Sources, page 106

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In 1926, Edsel and Eleanor Ford hired architect Albert Kahn to construct their Cotswold-influenced home in Grosse Pointe Shores. They tasked landscape architect Jens Jensen with creating a naturalistic, park-like setting for their estate. RIGHT: Hundreds of pink and red blossoms beckon from the Jensendesigned Rose Garden, where Eleanor Ford entertained guests.

By AMY S. ECKERT

As Detroit’s automotive pioneers busied themselves with building cars, they also built grand estates, with gardens to match.

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A METICULOUS LAWN SURROUNDS FAIR LANE, once the

home of Clara and Henry Ford. Mature maples and cottonwoods provide shade, creating park-like appeal.

Footpaths wind through the trees toward a spring-fed pond and what remains of Clara’s rose garden. This estate feels worlds away from the busyness of Detroit, and that was precisely what drew the couple. But Henry Ford was not the only auto magnate to create a lush suburban retreat. While Ford and many other 20th-century industrialists immersed themselves in the cacophony of the burgeoning automobile industry by day, they then settled into their grand estates and magnificent gardens in the evenings.

TOP: Edsel and Eleanor Ford’s Gate Lodge offers a peek at Jens Jensen’s carefully designed "Meadow." ABOVE: A stone terrace overlooks Lake St. Clair at the Edsel and Eleanor Ford House.

BELOW: Bronze likenesses of Edsel and Eleanor Ford survey the estate’s manicured grounds. OPPOSITE, TOP TO BOTTOM: Clara and Henry Ford celebrated the sale of the millionth Model T with a move into Fair Lane, a Scottish-inspired estate. Jens Jensen created the appearance of an untouched landscape at Fair Lane.

Henry Ford sold his millionth Model T in 1915, the same year that he, Clara, and only son Edsel moved into Fair Lane. Set among woodlands and farmland in the city of Dearborn, just outside of Detroit, the Fords’ 31,000-square-foot, 56-room mansion resembled a Scottish castle. Inside, the home was customized with hand-carved woodwork, an indoor pool, and an organ with 31 sets of pipes. A private powerhouse designed by Thomas Edison provided electricity to the property.

Landscape architect Jens Jensen was tasked with creating grounds fit for Fair Lane that would also allow Henry to indulge in his favorite pastime—bird-watching.

A strong advocate of natural-looking green spaces and native plants, Jensen sculpted grassy knolls and planted groves of American plums, dogwoods, and elms. He added Hawthorns to the meandering Trail Garden and purple irises to the Rouge Riverbanks and the lily pond.

“The landscape plans at Fair Lane were essentially complete in 1921,” says Karen Marzonie, director of gardens and grounds at Fair Lane. “The only thing left to plant was Clara’s 2 ½-acre rose garden, which would include 10,000 roses.” Clara wanted the gardens located near the house to be enjoyed while entertaining. Jensen opposed the plan, fearing it would interfere with the estate’s naturalistic ambiance. The rift would cause Jensen and Clara to part ways.

Decades of modernization and hard use took their toll on Fair Lane when the estate served as part of the University of Michigan campus from 1957 to 2010. A flood then collapsed Jensen’s riverside landscaping in 2011, causing many of its gardens to fall into neglect. But the framework of the Fords’ vision—including the wildflowers bordering the Trail Garden, the grape hyacinths and harebells in Clara’s Blue Garden, and acres of shade trees—remains today while an ongoing restoration project aims to further restore the landscapes.

Edsel and Eleanor Ford House

Like his father, Edsel Ford sought an idyllic retreat for relaxation when he and wife Eleanor broke ground in the town of Grosse Pointe Shores in 1926. The Fords’ 30,000-square-foot Tudor Revival residence on Lake St. Clair was designed by Albert Kahn. Its 60 rooms were paneled with 16th-century wood and fitted with stone fireplaces salvaged from a post-World War I Europe. On

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PHOTOS OF MEADOW BROOK HALL COURTESY OF MEADOW BROOK HALL, PHOTOS OF FORD ESTATE COURTESY OF FORD HOUSE, PHOTOS OF FAIR LANE BY BILL BOWEN

Fair Lane

PHOTOS OF MEADOW BROOK HALL COURTESY OF MEADOW BROOK HALL, PHOTOS OF FORD ESTATE COURTESY OF FORD HOUSE, PHOTOS OF FAIR LANE BY BILL BOWEN

“The wealthy built grand rural estates, and then they built gardens. And those gardens often equaled the cost of the house itself.”

—KIM ZELINSKI, SENIOR DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS AND ESTATE DEVELOPMENT AT MEADOW BROOK HALL

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English landscape architect Arthur Davidson fashioned Meadow Brook Hall’s garden master plan in 1928. The blueprint called for at least three dozen distinct gardens, including this rock garden.

the walls hung paintings by Fra Angelico, Renoir, and van Gogh.

While the interiors of the Edsel and Eleanor Ford House were lavish, its gardens, also designed by Jens Jensen, were rather understated. “Jensen’s landscapes were big and grand, but they were not ostentatious,” says Karl Koto, director of landscapes at the estate. Just as he had at Fair Lane, Jensen relied on natural plantings.

White trilliums, buttery coreopsis, dogwoods, redbuds, and coneflowers were interspersed with pockets of maidenhair and ostrich ferns. A bird sanctuary was planted along the shores of Lake St. Clair. And the wide, sweeping lawn received towering silver maples and cottonwoods.

“Everything appears natural here with an abundance of wildflowers and trees,” says Koto. “But when the Fords bought this property, it was a cornfield.” Every plant was chosen with deliberateness and made to appear as if the landscape had looked this way forever.

The notable exception to Jensen’s plan was Eleanor’s Rose Garden, designed at her request as a formal, tidy plot. Perhaps Jensen agreed to include this contrasting element in his plan so as to avoid a repeat rift, this time with Eleanor.

Meadow Brook Hall

The very year that Edsel and Eleanor broke ground, Matilda Dodge Wilson began her own Tudor Revival estate, Meadow Brook Hall in suburban Detroit’s Rochester. The widow of automotive giant John Dodge, Matilda and second husband Alfred Wilson outfitted their home with Tiffany glass windows, gold-plated fixtures, hand-carved stonework, and a full-size home theater. At 88,000 square feet, Meadow Brook was more than twice the size of either Ford estate. “This was the ‘Country Place Era,’ ” says Kim Zelinski, senior director of operations and estate development at Meadow Brook. “The wealthy built grand rural estates, and f l o w e r m a g .c o m

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then they built gardens surrounding them. And those gardens often equaled the cost of the house itself.”

English landscape architect Arthur Davidson fashioned Meadow Brook’s master plan in 1928, drawing up a blueprint that included a rock garden, children’s garden, and specialized spaces focused on wildflowers, aquatic plants, roses, peonies, magnolias, and herbs. There also were drawings for a breakfast garden, a maid’s garden, a dancing garden, and a plant hospital, all of which would complement Matilda’s formal parterre and landscaped lawns. “Meadow Brook was designed to include a lot of gardens,” says Zelinski.

“Unfortunately, the Great Depression curtailed Matilda’s plans.”

Only half of the planned gardens materialized, 16 of which remain. But it’s hard to imagine Matilda dissatisfied with the results. Multicolored sedum and sweet alyssum spill over rock walls. A dozen rose varieties, segregated by carefully trimmed boxwoods, fill the Rose Garden. Walkways burst with the colors of cherry-red begonias, blue Veronica, and ivory hydrangeas.

“Matilda used her gardens for entertaining, for outdoor teas and, after she founded Oakland University, for school functions,” says Zelinski. “And she was very hands-on in the care and maintenance of the plantings.”

While the automotive boom may have been good for Matilda’s bank account, it was among her flowers that she found the most joy.

TOP: An armillary provides an architectural exclamation point in the center of a colonnade at Meadow Brook Hall. RIGHT AND OPPOSITE TOP: Many of Meadow Brook Hall’s gardens are maintained by the Meadow Brook Garden Club. OPPOSITE BOTTOM: Wisteria provides graceful window décor at Meadow Brook Hall.

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Don’t miss Skylands, Edsel Ford’s estate in Maine, now Martha Stewart’s summer escape, at flowermag.com/skylands

For more information, see Sources, page 106

Sources

Who Did It & Where To Get It

Any items not listed are unknown.

hudsongracesf.com. POOL AREA: Furniture: Formations with Jasper fabric; Chairs at table: Brown Jordan, brownjordan.com.

IN BLOOM Garden • Decorate: Q&A, Flowers & Mood

PAGES 29–36: FLOWER INTENSIVE: Floral designers: Ariella Chezar Design, ariellaflowers.com; Nicolette Owen, nicolettecamille. com

in Bloom

Immersed in Flowers RENOWNED FLORAL DESIGNERS ARIELLA CHEZAR AND NICOLETTE CAMILLE LEAD FLOWER ENTHUSIASTS IN A THREE-DAY INTENSIVE FULL OF INSPIRATION AND BEAUTY. PHOTO BY

By Christine Chitnis • Photography by Corbin Gurkin

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PAGES 38–44: DECORATE: Q&A: Designer: Alex Mason, Ferrick Mason, ferrickmason.com

in Bloom

Finding Balance AS THE CREATIVE MIND BEHIND FERRICK MASON, PAINTER AND DESIGNER ALEX MASON CREATES CONSTANT CONVERSATION BETWEEN ART AND TEXTILES. Interview by Kirk Reed Forrester

time, there weren’t many boutique textile lines, but I was inspired by Lulu de Kwiatkowski and what she was doing at her company Lulu DK. Around 2007, I was introduced to Brian Ferrick, who had helped start Katherine Ireland’s line and also Michael Smith’s Jasper line. He had the experience and knowledge about the business that I was looking for, so we formed Ferrick Mason together in 2008, right before the market crashed.

How did you manage to keep a new business going during a financial crisis?

A big part of the success of our company in those early day was the ability to do so much digi-

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PAGES 46-48: GARDEN ARTIST: Artist: Meg Black, megblack.com

in Bloom GARDEN ARTIST

Fresh Perspective

BY LOOKING AT THE GARDEN THROUGH A DIFFERENT LENS, ARTIST MEG BLACK OPENED UP A NEW WORLD OF ENDLESS CREATIVITY.

By Tovah Martin • Photography by Kindra Clineff

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ittle did Meg Black know that a simple cluster of coneflowers performing in a roadside pocket garden would change everything when it came to her paintings. Gardens were an early inspiration for her canvases. While studying art in her native Syracuse, New York, Meg became fascinated by the interplay of colors in flower gardens, and she expressed that intrigue in her initial watercolors.

However, when she moved from landlocked Syracuse to harborside Boston, she developed a love of the ocean and spent years capturing the mesmerizing hues of seafoam, waves, and tidal pools. But artists go through life with eyes wide open, and one day while on her daily bike ride around her own Northshore Massachusetts neighborhood, Meg rediscovered gardens. But this time around, she approached flowers from what she refers to as a “snail’s perspective.”

Meg had just finished reading Virginia Woolf’s short story Kew Gardens, narrated by a snail who spends his

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days eavesdropping on passersby while also observing the intricacy of forms and colors playing off the petals and leaves in his domain. It was this story that prompted Meg to bring her bike to an abrupt halt beside a thicket of coneflowers by the road. Like the snail, she got down on her knees and crawled into the flowers where she discovered a world much deeper than the usual observations of a detached onlooker. She gained a whole new perspective and forged an intimacy with nature beyond anything she experienced in her previous artistic encounters. That’s when she returned to her roots and began painting gardens again—but this time around, she was completely immersed.

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in Bloom DECORATING: MOOD

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EVENT DESIGNER TARA GUERARD SHARES HER TOOLS AND TRICKS OF THE TRADE FOR CREATING AN OUTDOOR GATHERING

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FULL OF BLOOMS AND BEAUTY.

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Produced and styled by Missie Neville Crawford Photography by David Hillegas

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1 Grand Bicycle Basket ($175) from May Cabas, maycabas.com 2 Matisse platter ($250) by Malaika from Hammett, shophammett.com PORTRAIT BY GAYLE BROOKER

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vent designer Tara Guérard founded Charlestonbased Tara Guérard Soirée in 1997. She later launched The Lettered Olive, a letterpress invitation company.

Through this venture, Tara works with leading designers across the South to create beautiful invitation suites for brides. Most recently, she started May Cabas, a bicycle basket company. No matter which business she is focusing on, Tara always includes a bit of nature. “I love to clip whatever I can find—flowers, leaves, branches—for my arrangements,” she says.

3 Hand-printed tablecloth ($85) from J. Catma, jcatma.com 4 Glass watering can ($55) from San Francisco Museum of Modern Art,

museumstore.sfmoma.org 5 Bocce ball set ($125) from Thompson Hanson, thompsonhanson.com 6 Letter-pressed menu cards (12 for $30) from The Lettered Olive, letteredolive.com 7 Mark and Graham linen napkins ($69/set of 4), markandgraham.com 8 Katherine Plaid Sienna apron ($98) from Heather Taylor Home, heathertaylorhome.com 9 Japanese garden pruners ($99) from from Heather Taylor Home, heathertaylorhome.com 10 Adhesion handcrafted ceramic vase ($64) from FELT + FAT, feltandfat.com 11 Barebones Living Classic leather work gloves ($22) from Food52, food52.com 12 Daisy dessert plate ($45) by Malaika from Hammett, shophammett.com For more information, see Sources, page 106

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PAGES 56-57: DECORATE: MOOD: Event designer: Tara Guérard, taraguerardsoiree.com in Bloom DECORATE: FLOWERS

Maggie Bailey of Bramble & Bee Floral WHEN AUTUMN COMES AROUND, THE TEXAS-BASED FLORAL DESIGNER THRIVES ON CREATING HER ARRANGEMENTS OUTDOORS. Produced by Margaret Zainey Roux • Photography by Fernanda Varela

Inspiration

“This natural setting offered a wealth of inspiration,” says Maggie Bailey of Bramble & Bee. Sustainable Harvesters in Hockley, Texas, is located on more than 167 acres of farmland dotted with gardens, greenhouses, and groves. “I used freshly plucked lettuces and vegetables with all of their wild, gnarly foliage to give the arrangement a hardy base and an element of the unexpected. The leafy greens also deflected from the formality of the lush garden roses and helped mound the blooms to create a smooth but striking contrast.”

Behind the Scenes

Part Texas wildflower, part English garden, and a little California cool thrown in for good measure—that’s Maggie Bailey’s style. Her flower designs capture the simplicity and innocence of her childhood in rural California, her free-spirited college years in Texas, and precious time spent across the pond with her British-born husband. When asked about her background, the 30-something is quick to credit these rich life experiences rather than any formal training. “I studied science, so I never dreamed I’d become a floral designer,” says the once-aspiring physical therapist. “But I did always have an artistic inkling. I’m not good with a paint brush or pastels, but I have a keen eye for color theory. I really don’t recall how or why, but flowers became my medium and flower arranging my art and my passion.”

Friends and family took notice, and soon Maggie began tackling church flowers and weddings. In 2013, she took her talents one step further by opening the doors to Bramble & Bee, a quaint floral studio and gift shop just off of Main Street in historic downtown Tomball.

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California Dream

SAN FRANCISCO INTERIOR DESIGNER SUZANNE TUCKER GIVES CLIENTS A FRESH

PERSPECTIVE IN A GRAND NAPA VALLEY ESTATE WHERE THE VIEWS ARE THE MAIN ATTRACTION.

By Lydia Somerville • Photography by Roger Davies

ABOVE: In the family

hen Suzanne Tucker’s clients lost their beloved Napa Valley house in a wildfire, they were devastated and unsure of their next steps. The years-long process of rebuilding, along with the many decisions involved, held little appeal for the veterans of multiple changes of abode. Serendipitously, some friends in the area were looking to downsize from a house that seemed perfect for Suzanne’s clients. “It was a win-win for all of them,” says the designer.

Raised in Santa Barbara, Suzanne honed her design aesthetic through years of work for California design legend Michael Taylor. When he died in 1986, she and colleague Tim Marks bought the business, named it Tucker & Marks, and continued their pursuit of the refined, luxurious style her mentor made famous. A passionate student of architecture, Suzanne takes an

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DECORATE: Q&A

You formally trained as an artist at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and had a career as a painter before starting your textile company, Ferrick Mason, in 2008. How did you make the artistic leap from one medium to another?

After I graduated from Pratt, my husband and I moved to New Zealand, where I continued to paint. But people there kept telling me that my work would translate well to textiles. So when we moved to Los Angeles three years later, I decided to go to school to learn the craft. I attended the Otis College of Art and Design and learned printmaking and the famous William Morris method. At the

PAGES 62-72: Interiors: Interior designer: Suzanne Tucker, Tucker & Marks, tuckerand marks.com Architect: Howard W Backen; Backen, Gillam & Kroeger Architects; backenarch.com Landscape architect: Claudia Schmidt, claudiaschmidtlandscape.com.

FAMILY ROOM: Sofa: Dennis & Leen, dennisandleen.com, with velvet fabric

by Stark, starkcarpet.com; Side tables: Paul Ferrante, paulferrante.com; Lamps: Vaughan Designs, vaughandesigns.com; Chairs: custom with fabric by Le Gracieux, legracieux.com; Love seat: Gregorious Pineo, gregoriuspineo.com with fabric by Guy Goodfellow, guygoodfellow.com; Coffee table: custom, upholstered in leather by Moore & Giles, mooreandgiles. com. MORNING ROOM: Tufted sofa, custom with Scalamandré fabric, scalamandre.com; swivel chairs, custom with Fortuny fabric, fortuny.com; draperies, fabric by Clarence House, clarencehouse.com; coffee table, C. Mariani Antiques, cmarianiantiques.com; Zebra rug, Galart International Trade, galartinternational.com. DINING ROOM: Dining table: Rossi Antiques, rossiantiques.com; Chairs: Michael Taylor Designs, michaeltaylordesigns.com, with boar skin upholstery from S. H. Frank & Co., shfrankleather.com; Rug: early 20th century Indian from Doris Leslie Blau, dorisleslieblau.com; Drapery fabric: Rose Tarlow, rosetarlow.com. BEDROOM: Bed: Dessin Fournir, dessinfournir.com; Bench: Formations, formations.com, with Fortuny fabric; Drapery fabric: Suzanne Tucker Home, suzannetuckerhome.com; Chandelier: Fortuny; Rug: Stark.

TERRACE WITH MARBLE TABLE: Love seat: Formations with fabric by Timothy Corrigan, timothy-corrigan.com; Coffee table: Paul Ferrante; Drum side table: Eastern Serenity, easternserenity.com.

FIREPIT AREA: Furniture: Formations with Jasper fabric, michaelsmithinc.com; Pillow fabric: Perennials, perennials.com.

GALLERY TABLE: Limestone table and chairs: Formations; Dinnerware: William Laman, williamlaman.com; Bamboo cutlery: Hudson Grace, in Bloom INTERIORS

September•October 2022

PAGES 58-60: DECORATE: FLOWERS: Floral designer: Maggie Bailey, Bramble & Bee, brambleandbee. com

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room, pocket doors open to link the indoors to the terrace outside.

Suzanne used a variety of fabrics, from textured velvet to classic florals, to create a singularly inviting space. The coffee table is upholstered in leather to withstand foot propping. LEFT: Pretty wrought iron gates and French doors open onto a courtyard centered on a splashing fountain.

September•October 2022

VOLUME 16, ISSUE 5. Flower magazine, ISSN 1941-4714, is a bimonthly publication of Peony Publishing, LLC, located at 3020 Pump House Road, Birmingham, AL 35243. Periodicals postage is paid at Birmingham, AL, and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Flower magazine, P.O. Box 8538, Big Sandy, TX 75755. For subscription inquiries and customer service, please call 877.400.3074. All unsolicited materials will not be returned. Printed in the U.S.A.

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CAMP ROUND TOP Standard dek for features pellabore, atomni ae sit magnate eiciis velestibus, veliquis etinci nulle cusant fugia dolupta tionseq uatur

By KAREN CARROLL Photography by PHOTOGRAPHER TKAY f l o w e r m a g .c o m

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PAGES 74-83: Event designer: Cassie LaMere, cassielamereevents.com; Floral designer: Antonio Bond, transplantsdesign. com; Culinary camp: Yann Nury, yann-nury. com; Ceiling fabric installation: Articulture, articulturedesigns.com; Invitations, menus, invitations, place cards, logo design: TPD Design House, tpddesignhouse.com; Camp site: Bader Ranch, shoproundtop.com; Guest accommodations, campfire site, and logistics support: The Campfire Experience, the campfireexperience.com; Dining tent: Sperry Tents, sperrytentscolorado.com; Custom mural: Josef Kristofoletti, kristofoletti.com; Rentals: Loot Rentals, lootrentals.com and Moon Tower Rentals, moontowerrentals.com One of a Kind

With an array of inspirations ranging from the Victorian Age to the Arts and Crafts movement, Thomas Jayne and William Cullum transform a guest home from mundane to magical with a dose of ingenuity and plenty of colorful joy.

By ALICE WELSH DOYLE Photography by PHOTOGRAPHER TKAY

If mythology

is an allegorical narrative, then Thomas Jayne and William Cullum of Jayne Design Studio certainly know how to tell a story filled with plenty of compelling highlights and dreamlike embellishments. The tale begins with a quirky guest home and its questionable architecture in a storied community on Long Island’s North Shore. The designers’ longtime artist-client bought the property primarily for the landscape and then turned to the designers to right the wrongs and imbue the home with décor that reflects her passion for art, mythology, and fairy tales.

Drawing on a host of inspirations including Arts and Crafts, Victoriana, Classicism, British follies, and a smattering of nautical notes, the design duo employed some clever renovations to make the best of the existing architecture. “While the house is not very old, we viewed it with a sense of antiquity because it had so many references to historic architecture,” says William.

While the structure reads Victorian in places with its turret and an octagonal-windowed breakfast room, it also nods to Classicism with pediments on the façade. And then there are

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ONE OF A KIND

PAGES 84-91: Interior designer: Thomas Jayne & William Cullum, Jayne Design Studio, jaynedesignstudio.com; Decorative painting: Chuck Hettinger, chuckhettinger.com CIliatur as vero ommodi tes et ma sit aliciundebit quatur atquati umquaesequas ditiur sitiur mod ut pedisit inciis OPPO-

By AMY S. ECKERT

SITE, LEFT TO RIGHT:

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As Detroit’s automotive pioneers busied themselves with building cars, they also built grand estates, with gardens to match.

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MOTOR CITY RETREATS

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PAGES 92-99: Fair Lane; henryfordfairlane. org; Edsel and Eleanor Ford House, fordhouse.org; Meadow Brook Hall, meadowbrookhall.org

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A Bit of Bling WELCOME CRISP AUTUMN DAYS WITH METALLIC ACCENTS AND BOLD GREENS. Produced and styled by Amanda Smith Fowler • Photography by David Hillegas

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FLOWER

September•October 2022

1 343310 gravy boat with attached underplate ($500) by Meissen 2 Bonneval oval platter ($150) by Haviland 3 Crystal Gevaert champagne coupe ($70) by Val St Lambert 4 Riquewihr wine hock ($300) by Val St Lambert 5 Splendid service plate ($1,500) by Bernardaud 6 Derby Panel dinner plate ($400 for 5pps) by Royal Crown Derby 7 Florentine salad plate in green ($180 for 5pps) by Wedgwood China 8 Crystal Traub wine hock ($160) by Nachtmann 9 Sterling Golden Winslow place setting (inquire for pricing) by Kirk Stieff Silver 10 Dinner napkin in white ($60 for set of four) by Sferra 11 Sterling Louis XIV goblet (inquire for pricing) by Towle Silver 12 Derby Panel soup bowl in green ($400 for 5pps) by Royal Crown Derby 13 Florentine dinner plate in green ($180 for 5pps) by Wedgwood China 14 Feuille d’Or service plate ($250) by Jaune de Chrome 15 Lady Anne cream soup bowl & saucer in green ($260)

by Coalport China 16 Derby Panel salad plate in green ($400 for 5pps)

by Royal Crown Derby

All of the above provided through partnership with Replacements, Ltd., 800.737.5223, replacements.com 17 Palmetto Stripe fabric in color

Audubon (to the trade) by Palm Orleans