Inside the Kips Bay Palm Beach Show House

The second annual Kips Bay Decorator Show House Palm Beach opened on Saturday.  I drove up from Miami for the day to take a look, and it is truly spectacular! The 2019 Show House is Fountain House, a 10,000 square foot Mediterranean-style home on the Intracoastal Waterway constructed in 2003. You can see the before pictures here and here.  The home was transformed by 21 participating designers including Meg Braff, Cindy Rinfret, Lee Ann Thornton, Danielle Rollins, Lee Robinson, and Louise Cronan.  Bunny Williams is honorary chair with design chairs Ellie Cullman, Pauline Pitt, and Steele Marcoux.

Below are highlights of some of my favorite rooms. Thank you to Carmel Brantley of Brantley Photography for providing photography. Additional photography was provided by participating designers and a few shots are included from my iPhone… Enjoy!

Design by The Lee W. Robison Company, Photography by Carmel Brantley

Lee Robinson and Kyle Johnson designed the grand staircase as an ode to a garden pavilion, culminated with various plants, fish, flowers, pagodas, insects and a twisting pathway.  A wall of moss and succulents was installed by Green Wallscapes up the winding staircase, and live birds chirp merrily in a custom pagoda birdcage. The birds are are named after great classic designers – Elsie (De Wolf), Albert (Hadley), Dorothy (Draper), Sister (Parish), and Mario (Buatta). The wallpaper is Schumacher’s “Garden Pavilion” and Mary McDonald’s “Don’t Fret.” If you love Lee’s work, you can tour his historic home here and here, and you can see more of his work here.

Design by The Lee W. Robison Company, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by The Lee W. Robison Company, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by The Lee W. Robison Company, Photography by Nickolas Sargent
Design by The Lee W. Robison Company, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by Cindy Rinfret, Photography by Nickolas Sargent

Cindy Rinfret transformed the soaring entry from dated early-2000s to classic Palm Beach, reminiscent of the great homes from the Mizner era. She brought in custom wallpaper and panels she designed with Nicolette Mayer Collection, and antique Moorish arches. Exquisite lighting, including a 1970s Jansen palm tree chandelier and sculptural chandeliers, perfectly illuminate and define the space. Click here to see another of my favorite Rinfret designs.  I am also a fan of Cindy’s books, Classic Greenwich Style and Greenwich Style: Inspired Family Homes.

Design by Cindy Rinfret, Photography from my iPhone
Design by Cindy Rinfret, Photography from my iPhone
Design by Cindy Rinfret, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by Lee Ann Thornton, Photography by Nickolas Sargent
Design by Lee Ann Thornton, Photography by Nickolas Sargent

I could have stayed in Lee Ann Thornton‘s charming and cozy sitting room all day! The star of the show is the Lisa Fine “Calico Stripe” fabric she used to upholster the furniture, walls, and positively entrancing ceiling… Lee Ann had each stripe mitered and painstakingly pieced together to perfectly fit the ceiling, creating a work of art. Single pattern application is always a resounding yes in my book, and pops of turquoise add a Palm Beach punch of color. Pictures do not do this room justice! To see one of my favorite homes designed by Lee Ann, please click here.

Design by Lee Ann Thornton, Photography by Nickolas Sargent
Design by Lee Ann Thornton, Photography courtesy of Lee Ann Thornton
Design by Lee Ann Thornton, Photography by my iPhone
Design by Lee Ann Thornton, Photography by my iPhone
Design by David Scott, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by Billy Ceglia, Photography by Nickolas Sargent
Design by Yarn Design Associates, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by Meg Braff, Photography by Nicholas Mele

Meg Braff‘s bedroom design is a Palm Beach Chic ray of sunshine! The room and bathroom are enveloped in Meg’s signature line of fabrics.  Lucite chairs from Highland House add a touch of old-school Florida, and the perfectly coordinated closet was styled by Cabana Vintage. I am a huge fan of Meg Braff, and I highly recommend her book The Decorated Home: Living with Style and Joy.  You can see more of her work here, here, here, and here. Her photographer, Nick Mele, is known as the new Slim Aarons, and you can read my Q&A with him here.

Design by Meg Braff, Photography by Nicholas Mele
Design by Meg Braff, Photography by Nicholas Mele
Design by Meg Braff, Photography by Nicholas Mele
Design by Meg Braff, Photography by Nicholas Mele
Design by Meg Braff, Photography by Nicholas Mele
Design by Meg Braff, Photography by Nicholas Mele
Design by Louise Cronan, Photography by Carmel Brantley

Louise Cronan designed the perfect Palm Beach loggia. She upholstered the furniture in Tillet Textiles’ iconic Chrysanthemum fabric, which she had made to be indoor/outdoor safe. Tillet Textiles were a favorite of First Lady Jackie Kennedy, and she used lovely Daisy print in her White House bedroom.  Also included in the loggia is a darling pillow needlepointed by Louise using a canvas from Lycette of Palm Beach.

Design by Louise Cronan, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by Louise Cronan, Photography by my iPhone 
Design by Louise Cronan, Photography by my iPhone 
Design by Louise Cronan, Photography by Nickolas Sargent
Design by Danielle Rollins, Photography by Carmel Brantley

Danielle Rollins created a romantic pink room perfect for Palm Beach. She incorporated her own china for a leisurely breakfast in bed, and artwork she created for Wendover Art. The closet features pieces from her own clothing line.  I adore Danielle’s style and her book Soiree: Entertaining with Style… Rizzoli will be releasing her second book next year.  You can tour her beautiful Atlanta home here.

Design by Danielle Rollins, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by Danielle Rollins, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by Danielle Rollins, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Design by Danielle Rollins, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Master Bedroom Design by David Mitchell Brown, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Cabana Design by Tina Anastasia, Photography via @kbshowhouse
Cabana Design by Tina Anastasia, Photography by Carmel Brantley
Fountain House

The Palm Beach Show House benefits the Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County and the Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club in Bronx, New York.  Please click here for additional information. On Instagram, you can follow @kbshowhouse and hashtag  #kipsbaypalmbeach for updates. And Architectural Digest has an excellent overview of each room from the Show House including a summary of the designer’s inspiration.  The Palm Beach Show House is open through February 20.

Sponsors of the Kips Bay Decorator Show House Palm Beach:

Benjamin Moore; Kohler Co.; The Rug Company; Cambria; VERANDA; The Shade Store; Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa; Aston Martin Palm Beach; David Sutherland, Inc.; Ceramic Matrix; Dacor; New York Design Center; Morgan Stanley Wealth Management; Currey and Company; The Grand Tour; Chesneys Fireside; Fabricut; Sean Rush Atelier; The Royal Poinciana Plaza and Susan’s Jewelry.

11 COMMENTS

  1. Thank you so much Andrea, for these pics! I’ve been aching to see more pics and my friend flew in for it on Saturday and I was hoping she’d send some but yours are truly, truly, breathtaking! This is the show to end all shows! That stairwell – I’m loosing it!!! The colors, the beauty, the fun! Meg Braffs room, the closets, even the Lycette cushion I love it all! Thank you for this post Andrea! ? Elizabeth

    • Hi Elizabeth,

      The birds are provided food and water every day, and their cage is cleaned each morning. They also have toys. 🙂

      Xx,
      Andrea
      The Glam pad

      • Oh I’m sure they are! Just can’t imagine how difficult that would be! ❤️

        Love this post and your supplementary pictures! Kips bay is always great but this house… this is my all time favorite!!

    • Hi Nancy,

      Show Houses certainly can be a bit outrageous. I love this quote from Mark Cutler via Huffington Post… “I think a show house should be a sort of design laboratory where designers can try out new ideas and combinations. So people viewing should look at it that way, and be looking for creative approaches to problems…not view it like you would a home done by a single designer.” These are temporary installations, so designers can push boundaries to build buzz instead of creating something entirely practical or livable.

      Xx,
      Andrea
      The Glam Pad

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