Photographs by Bob Rozycki.
Take a trip around the world by stepping into the 43rd annual Kips Bay Decorator Show House.
The prestigious Manhattan showcase, where more than 20 interior designers — quite a few with ties to WAG country — have created dazzling work, is filling the Arthur Sachs Mansion through June 11.
A walk through the five floors provides fodder for daydreams and plenty of memories created from the wealth of design sources and inspirations.
British-born Christopher Peacock, whose famed cabinetry and lifestyle company is headquartered in Norwalk, has designed the ground-floor kitchen, one even the most novice chef will desire. Luxury appointments — think Dacor appliances and a little gem of a table set with Lalique and Christofle — are complemented by Peacock’s own new “Lambourne” kitchen-furniture collection in his take on what he called “fresh traditional.”
Then, there’s the tour-de-force dining room from Mark D. Sikes of Los Angeles, where patterns, textures and show-stopping pieces ranging from a gilded mirror to an intricate chandelier combine for the loveliest sensory overload.
“I wanted to create a space that wasn’t ‘typical dining room,’” he said. Mission accomplished.
Some rooms have their world inspirations front and center. Savor the South American flair in the “Rio Room” — a touch of the exotic with an elegant ease — in the top-floor guest room by Brazilian-born Suzana Whyte Braga Monacella of McMillen Interior Design and Decoration of Manhattan.
Alan Tanksley, a participant in a recent Tarrytown show house, fills a space under the eaves with an homage to Greece in honor of a friend, “Pavlos’ Retreat,” while Clive Christian Interiors, known for its British luxury, offers an elegant “Metro Deco Dressing Room and Bath” fit for royalty.
Sometimes color makes the boldest statement, as in the unexpected purple accents dotted throughout Janice Parker Landscape Architects’ ground-floor terrace.
As the Greenwich-based landscape architect told us, “You’ve got to give purple its due.”
And Charles Pavarini III told us his lapis ring inspired his sleek “Midnight Manhattan” lounge.
Art installations curated by Paula + Martha, a stunning staircase gallery from Toronto’s Philip Mitchell Design and trademark work from (most stylish) household names ranging from Thom Felicia to Jamie Drake of Drake Design Associates keep excitement alive at every turn.
But it was Peter J. Sinnott IV of Home Works in Port Chester who created a charming en suite bathroom, “Tradition with a Twist,” that summed up the importance of the event.
Though vintage flair was evident in his space, from the unique window treatments to a portrait giving a timely nod to Gustav Klimt, we wondered if he was disappointed that his first show house assignment was a bathroom.
“I was just excited to do anything,” he said. “You know. It’s Kips Bay.”
We know.
As always, proceeds of the show house benefit the Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club, which is marking its centennial this year.
For more, visit kipsbaydecoratorshowhouse.org.
