Kips Bay Show House: Farm Rio dress | Celine bag | Hermes sandals, affordable version here
5 Takeaways From the Kips Bay Show House
Home design and gardening have always been favorite hobbies … besides fashion, of course! Before the days of So Susie, I’d spend hours re-merchandising my house and dreaming of new fabrics and plants. And before Pinterest existed, there were torn out pages all over the place from magazines that I used for inspo, depending on the project I was planning. I still have stacks of magazines that I’ve kept over the years. Two of my my favorites to this day are Veranda and Milieu — both top quality, beautiful publications. Every year, I would read about the Kips Bay Decorator Show House and carefully study all the details that went in to the beautiful designs. Visiting the Show House quickly made it onto my bucket list.
So, you can imagine my excitement when my Portland girlfriend, who now resides near Palm Beach, forwarded me the announcement of this year’s event which happened to open THE DAY I ARRIVED! We quickly purchased tickets, and it was the highlight of the trip. The Show House selects celebrated interior designers who transform homes in Dallas, Palm Beach and Manhattan into elegant and beautiful spaces. It definitely exceeded my expectations, and now I’m gathering all the photos I took. Can’t wait to share them with you!
Today’s post is about 5 takeaways from the Kips Bay Show House that we can all try in our own homes. There are ideas for everything from beautiful outdoor living spaces to the coolest books to the inexpensive design tip I noticed in almost every room. Enjoy! ⭐️
Kips Bay Show House, Palm Beach, Florida
The beautiful outdoor living space on the main floor, designed by Chloe Warner
This outdoor logia space was so amazing! I kept wondering how much fabric it took to drape the ceilings and line the walls. Although these might not be the colors I would choose, the faux trees are next level cool. What you can’t see is the sleek bar area with beautifully labeled liquor bottles that matched the décor perfectly. It was stunning!
Susie’s iPhone photos
Left: Phoebe Howard bedroom | Middle: Blackwell Botaniclas | Right: Serena & Lily white table
Outdoor living inspo
Left: Scalloped Coffee Table | Scalloped Side Table | Right: Umbrella | Candle | Ottoman | Place Mats | Bamboo Silverware | Pitcher | Glasses | Faux Boxwood | Outdoor Couch
#1 Outdoor living spaces
This is the time of year to start thinking of your outdoor living spaces. And I learned this the hard way: everything takes SO long to arrive! Last year, our backyard got a makeover (it was overdue after 20+ years in our house). I created two cozy sitting areas, and for the deck, I went with two loveseats from Pottery Barn. For the area right off the eating nook, I added two large sofas from Serena & Lily that are actually long enough for summer naps. I added Serena & Lily pillows — this one and this one — and I couldn’t be happier.
#2 Greenery … both real and faux
As you might imagine, the greenery was next level at the Kips Bay Show House, and I noticed a mix of both real and faux. The trees in the above photo were amazing, and I’m sure they cost a small fortune. I just added these trees in my new workspace and love them. Below are a few other ideas of beautiful greenery I’d love in any room of my house.
#3 LED lighting everywhere in every single room
These lights are life changing! Portable, cordless and rechargeable, and you can turn it on with a tap! These lights were in almost every room, and now I’m seeing them everywhere. They work inside or outside, and it’s the perfect lighting to enjoy your outside space. I love the wicker shade below, and I’m adding it to my bar area.
#4 Framed botanicals
Years ago, I purchased Elizabeth Blackwell botanicals that I found on Ebay, and then had them framed with hand painted French borders. I still love them to this day, and when I spotted the room above with their new botanicals, I got very inspired to re-create the look! Be sure and check out the Blackwell Botanicals Instagram, where you’ll see the exact prints used in the photo above!
#5 Books, books and more books
One can never have too many books, and when I visited the Bon Marché in Paris last summer, I could have spent the whole day in the Assouline book area! Find some you love (I like ones with wide spines) and stack them everywhere you have a spot. I noticed a beautiful antique chair with a stack of boots on the seat, and pretty fresh flowers sitting on top.
Bonus: Bars with beautiful bottles and decanters everywhere
This was maybe the biggest takeaway of all! Almost every single room had a bar setup, and it was perfectly curated to work with the interiors of that particular room. I took loads of photos, and now I’m inspired to set up just one bar with pretty bottles of alcohol, decanters, and all the accoutrements that make a bar so fun!
Beautiful labels everywhere!
Thank you for reading xx
