Kips Bay Decorator Show House 2024
It was pure luck that our planned trip to New York coincided with Kips Bay Decorator Show House 2024 - I snapped up tickets for opening day and was the first one in the door. Here’s what caught my eye, some conversations I had with designers and what I took home.
In its 49th year, the Kips Bay Decorator Show House is considered a harbinger of spring in the city and on the day I visited the flowering trees and freshness in the air seemed fitting to what I was met with indoors. The mission of The Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club is to ‘enrich and enhance the quality of life for young people’, nurturing kids aged 6-18 in the Bronx to reach their full potential through arts, education, sports and life skill programs. With 24 designers, countless vendors, trades and sponsors, the 5-floor Lenox Hill (Upper East Side) neo-Georgian townhouse was bedecked with beautiful expressions of enrichment.
As is our custom, my husband and I ascended to the top floor to experience the event from the top down (we do the same in museums). I was immediately enchanted with Swati Goorha Designs “Metamorphosis: A Journey of Transformation” in the stairwell. A harmony of luscious colours, lighting and the architecture of the staircase itself - I felt as if I was in a plush cocoon - a beautiful experience.
At the top I was met with “The Andes Club” by designer Phillip Thomas Inc. and Phillip and I struck up a conversation right away about what inspired the room: growing up between the USA and Chile, Phillip was drawn to the wall covering for years as it depicts the Andes Mountains. Drawing on his cultural roots, I was smitten by Phillip’s welcoming, layered and personal space. I was also very impressed by his customization of the wall covering in the hallway: gold bands spliced into a field of metallic blue-grey. Very lux, very smart, very well done.
I flowed through Mikel Welch’s room “A Night in the Cotswold” with an ease of walking into one’s own home… Hardly in need of a title, Mikel’s space felt immediately English in that well-appointed, ‘much-in-little’ kind of approach that the English do so well. Beautifully curated space, I spotted House of Hackney’s ‘Plantasia’ on the wall right away and that tile… how I have searched for tile like this!
Rounding up the 4th floor, Benjamin Vandiver’s sumptuous french-inspired “Chez Benjamin” was just gorgeous. A design assistant perched on the plush burn-grapefruit coloured velvet sofa said that ‘90% of the room’s decor was from Benjamin’s personal collection’. Richly pouffed roman shades by The Shade Store - both on windows and on walls (simply for the for the sake of luxury…) were outstanding (too much to see to take a photo of them but see the designer’s page for photos) and I could have stayed, I’m sure someone would have offered me a cocktail, and chatted about the provenance of all the pieces in the room - a well travelled collection makes for an interesting one.
On the 3rd floor, the bedroom titled “On a Clear Day” by Patrick Mele was fantastic - a carpet of flowers on a field of midnight blue ushered me in and I had to stifle a desire to leap into the canopied bed which was internally draped in a fabric matching the carpet.. to be surrounded by flowers: a dream come true! Looking at his portfolio it seems Patrick is adept to working in a state of exuberance, I’ll remember this one for a long time. Also, it’s nice to see a hand drawn sketch for a project, a lovely freshness to his proposal.
Jeremiah Brent’s “Study of Art and Beauty” was immediately satisfying. Perhaps it was the suede walls, imperceptibly soft, the black ceiling, use of stone and genuine elements or a combination of all the parts, whatever it was, the alchemy was just right. A contemporary space drawing on the ancient muse Hathor, Egyptian goddess of beauty, the room could make anyone feel like a goddess. Communicating a feeling in a space is an art, something I endeavour to do in my own work.
Kit Kemp’s “A Dining Room of One’s Own” on the 2nd floor was an explosion of ideas. It was very ‘Kit Kemp’, (perhaps too much… I dare say) and though I stopped to appreciate the parts, as a whole it didn’t make me want to sit and enjoy a meal. The mural around the fireplace was inspired by the Bloomsbury group and Charleston, created by Tess Newall, an incredible decorative artist who’s work I have followed for years, and I appreciated this recognizable import.
I adored everything in M.NAEVE’s spaces on 1st floor. Margaret, company founder, was lovely to speak to, her enthusiasm beaming as she spoke about the project. Her assistant Tyler told me all about the gorgeous wall treatment in the bathroom and I wish I had asked more questions about the mural in the hallway. Earthiness. That is the one word that comes to mind with her work. Authenticity and depth expressed with such sophistication. My photos don’t do her work justice, visit her page (linked) to see what the spaces really looked like.
“The Club Room'“ by Alan Tanksley felt like I needed a special handshake to gain access, in the best way. Such a layered space with gorgeous furniture by big names in design (it was in fact a name-dropping kind of space), but I don’t terribly care for all that, I just took it for what it was: a golden, enchanting and soothing space.
Time for some air: outside, in the private courtyard garden off the ground level, Hollander Design created an oasis of green. It was a treat to see this space, always curious about what’s within these private walls, I was particularly taken with Hollander’s introduction of a slight level change, all of 24”, to create a new perspective and area for rest in the garden.
and finally… a brief mention about these bags by Susan Angert - I was so tempted but I (regretably) resisted. They are art, they’re stunning and they’d make me go out at night (maybe).
What I gleaned from the designers at Kips Bay Decorator Show House:
personal expression is paramount to making a space interesting (paraphrasing a great designer: ‘if it’s not personal, it’s not interesting’)
rich, earthy colours are most definitely at the forefront: russets, burnt orange, rich chocolates and jewel tones with a hint of earth
eclecticism reigns supreme - pulling from all parts of the world and all eras to create timeless design
Looking forward to next year’s Kips Bay Show House and to participating in Vancouver’s very own version with this year’s Homes for the Holidays at Cecil Green Park House in support of Take A Hike Foundation - it’s going to be fantastic!
All photos are my own and property of Studio Albertazzi.
Studio Albertazzi has no affiliation with any products or vendors noted here, they are mentioned because they are stellar.