When Dallas-based clients of Jan Showers & Associates moved to Palm Beach, they immediately called upon the team for a glamorous renovation of their new townhouse. It needed to be completely redecorated with no small amount of construction. “Like many townhouses, this one needed a lot of character and layering. We knew we would have to do everything we could to make it feel complex and interesting,” said Alex Near Halbrooks who worked with Zara Taitt on the project.
The clients were fans of the classic Palm Beach look. The entry was, as always, an important place to make a statement, and they loved the look of scenic wall coverings. Alex and Zara discovered an incredible tropical scene by Iksel, playfully lush and the perfect embodiment of Palm Beach whimsy. It draws you into the space as if you’re entering an entirely new scene.
Photography by Stephen Karlisch.
“The client was insistent that we make sure the image of the monkey climbing the palm tree remained unobstructed by furniture or the mirror. That’s when we knew we’d found the perfect fit,” said Alex and Zara.
The vintage chandelier is so lovely and eye catching in that rare green that evokes the color of beach glass. And despite missing one piece, it proves there can be perfection in imperfection.
Adorned with trellised walls, a sparkling Venetian mirror and leaf sconces, the pink powder room off the entrance, evokes 1960s style at the height of Palm Beach Chic.
In the sitting room, the team added the bamboo applique appliqué and painted the walls in a very high gloss green, which turned the room from a simple box into a space that is quite rich and inviting. As in every room, the focus was on layering and creating an impression of a world of items that had been collected over a lifetime.
“The clients have a strong preference for light colors, so the chocolate chandelier was a bit outside their comfort zone, but when they saw it in the space, they fell in love with it. The siting room is also noteworthy for one very special find from a buying trip: the bar cabinet. It’s so rare and unusual. Made of coral mirror, a style particular to French 1940s furniture, I’ve never seen another like it.”
For the sitting room, Alex masterfully selected the fabrics using complementary patterns and colors on the sofa, the chairs, the bench, and the drapery, that are each different but all combine seamlessly.
“It doesn’t merely ‘match.’ It all feels organic and exactly right,” said Alex. “Those are the kinds of decorative instincts I sometimes doubt can be taught at all.”
Bold choices are what steal the show in this townhouse, like the bar that was added in the dining room by removing a closet. Furthermore, the ceiling was arched to give it softness and creating a special hard-to-define visual that entices the eye. “The effect is so powerful,” she said. “The audaciousness of that curve and the high gloss blue sets it apart as something quite glamorous and attractive in a house with such a soft palette.”
But our favorite room in the home may be the beautiful and serene primary bedroom, complete with His and Hers closets. The suite is ensconced in exquisite shades and textures of blush pink, resembling the inside of a conch shell, and perfectly suited for Palm Beach.
This project proves that even a generic white box of a home can be turned into a jewel box with the right team in place.
“In retrospect, that’s what this whole project felt like: always seeking and finding ways to create—in what might have been a rather conventional setting—touches of the unexpected that give the eye a place to travel and then travel again,” said Alex and Zara.
To learn more, please visit Jan Showers and follow @janshowers on Instagram. You can also see this home, and many more, featured in Jan’s latest book, The Glamorous House.
For additional articles on Jan Showers by The Glam Pad, you may enjoy the links below…
- A HOME FIT FOR A PRINCESS BY JAN SHOWERS
- GLAMOROUS LIVING WITH JAN SHOWERS
- JAN SHOWERS TRANSFORMS A DATED BACHELOR PAD
- AT HOME IN THE COUNTRY WITH JAN SHOWERS
- AT HOME WITH KIMBERLY SCHLEGEL WHITMAN
- A HOLLYWOOD GLAM APARTMENT, BY JAN SHOWERS
- ANOTHER JAN SHOWERS HOME, FEATURED IN TRADITIONAL HOME, HITS THE MLS!
- A GLAMOROUS BACHELORETTE PAD, BY JAN SHOWERS
- GLAMOROUS RETREATS, BY JAN SHOWERS
- I HEART JAN SHOWERS
- A JAN SHOWERS HOME HITS THE MLS!
- ANOTHER JAN SHOWERS HOME, FEATURED IN TRADITIONAL HOME, HITS THE MLS!
