The Decorator

NOTE: Since this post was written, Tom has a second book out Tom Scheerer More Decorating - and this time, he wrote it himself. Listen to this wonderful chat with Tom on the Ballard Design Podcast.

 I've been lucky to spend many happy days in several of Tom Scheerer's houses since his sister Jane is my best friend from art school days. Tom knows better than anyone how to create a house as Mimi Read so aptly describes in Tom's new book, Tom Scheerer Decorates ~ "He's the decorator for the long haul, the one who can compose a great-looking room that you never want to leave."

Tom learned a lot from forebears Billy Baldwin and David Hicks ~ "he's always maintained that their frank, generous books {including Billy Baldwin Decorates} taught him most of what he knows." Now it's our turn to learn from Tom in this gracious book from Vendome Press. In my opinion, Tom is the best. In fact, I'm sure that everyone who knows Tom well considers what Tom would think when buying fabric, wallpaper, or even napkins for a summer lunch. I know I do! It's the Tom Scheerer aesthetic—and this book beautifully envelopes it all—from the famous coral steps in the Scheerer family's East Hampton house to Tom's "splashiest" project at Lyford Cay Club {a Pinterest favorite}.

A surprise, textured pattern graces the hardcover of Tom Scheerer Decorates and his Lyford Trellis delights as well—with impeccable photography by Francesco Lagnese, generous resources, and pitch-perfect text from Mimi Read. The book consists of three sections: City | Country | Tropics.

You will stop and return to the images again and again to study the Scheerer sensibility—teaming with life—both refined and friendly, all with Tom's unique brand of chic to "underdecorate."

"It's my general philosophy to accept what's given and make it work without going to too much trouble," he says. "It's what makes one house different from the next. Why rip out a bathroom to spend $20,000 on designer tile just to have a bathroom that looks exactly like everyone else's? Why not bleach the sink, put a new scalloped shade on the sconce, and get on with life? That's what we did in our summer houses in the old days—it's why they had charm."

Tom Scheerer Decorates is a treat for all to learn about living well from one of the most gracious hosts of all. I do hope a cookbook is next. Tom is also the best cook. Ever. Do run to get a copy here.

See an earlier interview with Tom here.

Another post mentioning Tom's work here.

Thank you to Vendome Press for the early copy.

Aesthetics | From Blogger to Architect

Images from Little Augury blog

I was taking part in my first tweet-chat hosted by @DesignTVchat on Twitter the other day, and we were asked which design blogs inspire us. There are many good blogs that I read regularly [see blog-roll on the right], but the blog Little Augury instantly came to mind. It's author [and decorator] Patricia Gaye Tapp touches on subjects that truly inspire—art, fashion, literature, décor and a pantheon of cultural/style icons; I cannot be inspired by one without the other. And, this is why Little Augury hits the mark in interior design blogs. For me, design inspiration comes from all things that are rooted aesthetically and return to the basics—light, color, texture, shape and scale. And, this is what matters to me in interior design.

I was recently reminded of these basic elements of design while reading  Benjamin Baldwin: An Autobiography in Design. Benjamin Baldwin [who died in 1993] is the type of designer who inspires me. Louis Kahn called him the dean of "American interior designers." He studied architecture at Princeton then painting with Hans Hofmann—eventually returning to Princeton for a masters degree in Fine Arts—and then, on to the Cranbrook Academy of Art where he met and collaborated with Pei, Kahn and Saarinen. Brilliant!

Baldwin [at left] designed residential and office interiors, furniture and textiles, and beautiful gardens. He felt that gardens represented the ultimate form of creativity. In his concept-house of the future, Baldwin imagined... "floors would be friendly to bare-feet and sandals, furniture would be nondescript and inexpensive." As much as I love interiors that are full of lush, tactile beauty, the foundation of my design principles are aligned with Baldwin's philosophy.

Photographs [above] from Benjamin Baldwin: An Autobiography in Design, W.W. Norton

The spaces Baldwin created seem timeless because they are rooted in an architectural aesthetic of good taste and practical judgement. I find much the same sensibility in the work of my favorite American decorator, Tom Scheerer.

Scheerer [shown above in bare-feet with Saarinen table!] also has a degree in architecture. Tom carries on the tradition of a studied yet relaxed modernism by creating civilized and beautiful, yet unpretentious spaces. I am a huge fan. I can spend more time studying a Scheerer-designed room because of its foundation in design and abundance of aesthetics, and cozy common sense.

Tom Scheerer photos top: Paris Townhouse, Lyford Cay Club by Pieter Estersohn
photos bottom: by William Waldron

So, the circle of my wonderful tweet-chat brought me back to thinking about the fundamental elements and principles of good design and what inspires me—whether found in the architecture of an inspiring blog or a simple American interior.

Visit Little Augury here.
See my previous interview with Tom Scheerer here.
Learn about another student of Hans Hofmann here.Visit @DesignTVchat on twitter.Read about my grandfather, the architect here.

ROOMS I LOVE

Carole Weisweiller dining room with reed walls and Jean Cocteau drawing, NYT


Lord Rothschild, Jr., living room, Town & Country


Tom Scheerer, Hobe Sound living room, Tom Scheerer Inc.


Kelly Wearstler, Doheny Estate, KWID


Lee Radziwill's library, New York apartment

When I happen upon a space that I love, it's immediate. Throughout the years, I recognized a recurring theme in the rooms that I love—a cozy place to sit {that's not too stuffy}, a room with books and nooks and groupings of art on the walls, bold patterns, and textiles. Plenty of sunshine, too.

Happy Friday, everyone! ox

LATTICE | TREILLAGE | CHINOISERIE

Late 19th century garden room with treillage effects [The French Archive of Design and Decoration by Stafford Cliff]

Whether it's to bring the garden indoors or to create walls of airy chic, I love the lattice pattern in design and interiors. Ancient lattice looked like fisherman's net and was used in warm Middle Eastern countries to keep the sun out and allow the air to flow freely—much like the modern day screen block, that was used in Palm Springs in the 1950s and 60s. Treillage can be traced back to the 12th century when used to support the vines growing on simple French farms, and on to the 17th century where it appeared in the formal gardens of Versailles. From the royal palaces of Europe, treillage made its way to cities where architects and designers embraced its use from building facades to elegant interiors. At the turn of the century, it was first introduced to America by decorator Elsie de Wolfe in her Trellis Room at the Colony Club. In the 1930s, the use of chinoiserie bamboo and lattice found a glamorous spot in the houses of the Hollywood Regency Style. And, today the trellis motif is still a favorite of the country's best decorators. To follow are some of my dog-eared pages of trellis/lattice inspiration.

Elsie de Wolfe's Trellis Room at the Colony Club
[original 120 Madison Avenue location]
photo courtesy of gutenberg


Trellis Room photo from British House and Garden magazine


Also from The French Archive of Design and Decoration, David Herbert's Tangier veranda with trompe l'oeil lattice painted by Lawrence Mynott

Sculptor, Daniel Chester French [1850-19310] house Chesterwood in Stockbridge, Masschusetts
photo, my dog-eared pages


Trellis on my grandfather's house [architect Alfred A. Scheffer] Amagansett, Long Island house
photo courtesy of Newsday, Ike Eichorn


Trellis panels on Dominick and Lenny Dunne's Walden Drive house in Beverly Hills, 1960
photo from The Way We Lived Then


Sarah Jessica Parker in a chic pale blue trellised room, Vogue

Anne Harwell's [annechovie] Chinoiserie and Orange It's Complicated chair silhouettes


Meg Braff Interiors, yellow Chinese Lattice fabric headboards and bedskirts


Meg Braff Interiors, Bob Collins Chinese Lattice wallpaper from Todd Romano


Tom Scheerer's Lyford Trellis wallpaper for Quadrille at Lyford Cay Club


Yellow Lattice Lamps from Pieces


Dek Tillett Lattice in Rosemary from Todd Romano, House of KWID's Imperial Trellis from F. Schumacher

THE TOM SCHEERER AESTHETIC

 

The Tom Scheerer aesthetic is a lesson in artistic perfection—a visual territory with a disciplined approach to composition. Tom's interiors are succinct and cozy, complex yet subtle, textural but not ornate, and highly sophisticated without pretense. My Dog-Eared Pages is delighted to talk with Tom and ask him some fun questions:

• Current obsession: asparagus and rhubarb, it's Spring.

• Last thing you bought: Two pair of imitation "Belgian Shoes" made by Testoni exclusively for Maus and Hoffman in Palm Beach. They are superior in every way to the real thing... construction and comfort wise and only twice as expensive!!

• Favorite vacation spot: One of my houses in Paris, Harbour Island, Maine, or East Hampton! Or Capri in June.

• Listening to: Camille (Dalmais)

• Inspiring artist: Anish Kapoor...... Purity, technicianship and accessibility

• Can't live without: Food and water, that's it.

• Most precious belonging: My passport

• Favorite shape: Circle...... see Carl Jung

• Color of the moment: Purple, again

• Cocktail of the moment: Negroni, its purple

• Museum pick: Musée de la chasse et de la Nature around the corner from my house in Paris

• Most comfortable shoes: See above (Maus and Hoffman) or my brown suede slip-on Merrells for city and country walking.

• Favorite time of day: dawn

• Thing about interior design you already knew at age 18: Brown wool velvet 20" Wilton carpeting everywhere possible.

• Best design advice for readers: Hire a professional, if you can afford it, then don't interfere.

 

NOTE: One of Tom's latest projects is Maison 1400, his 15th-century house in Paris. It's available to rent as a full townhouse that sleeps up to TEN; or as four private apartments. Maison 1400 reflects Tom's signature high-style, understated luxury and sense of comfort. To find out more, visit: Maison1400