Innholdsfortegnelse for March/April 2020 i Flower

“Variety is the very spice of life, that gives it all its flavor.”—WILLIAM COWPER I VIVIDLY REMEMBER many of my mother’s aphorisms. Not only was she a wordsmith, but she was also really smart. Whenever we discussed differences of opinion, style, looks, likes, etc.—especially if I was having difficulty with these differences—she would calmly state, as if pronouncing some profound philosophical revelation from an oracle on high, “That’s why they make chocolate and vanilla.” But it was always assumed that one must pick one or the other. It never occurred to me then that you could have both, a fudge royal of sorts, but of course you can. Today, the fudge royal of style is eclecticism, or as we refer to it informally in the culture, “the mix.” Eclecticism, done…

SOME THINGS NEVER GO out of style. Champagne, caviar, martinis, smoked salmon—they’re simple and sophisticated and they always wow. For this winter time cocktail and dinner party at our New York City apartment on the Upper East Side—in a thirty-eight-story tower designed by Schultze & Weaver in 1927—that overlooks Central Park, I let classic New York serve as my inspiration. To forge a city-chic vibe, I chose a black and white palette. It’s a classic mix, yet it’s not traditional or tired. I used tall black taper candles and ebony-hued water glasses to coordinate with the black and white Greek key trim on the tablecloths. Continuing the only-in-New York aesthetic, silver trays reflected the light and shimmered like the skyline outside the windows. For my flowers, I selected seasonal blooms—white…

SHARON SANTONI TAKES NOTHING about her home in Normandy for granted. British born and raised, she has never become blasé about the 200-year-old rose-wrapped manor where she lives. Even after 23 years, the evocative morning mist still takes her breath away when she slips out of the rose-bowered doors at dawn to wade through gardens that are rarely nipped by frost or stifled by heat. She’s grateful for the blessed absence of biting insects, allowing dinner to be served alfresco. She also revels in the richness of a region where she can still find carloads of antiques with several centuries of patina and then swing by an incredible rose nursery on the way home. Sharon and her husband, Eric, plus two toddlers, were renting an early-19th-century orangerie when they decided…

IN BLOOM PAGES 13–14, SCENE: Interior design, Kendall Wilkinson, kendallwilkinson.com; fabric and trims, Fabricut, fabricut.com. Beauty products and tray, Chantecaille, chantecaille.com. The Breakers Palm Beach, thebreakers.com. Books, On Flowers: Lessons from an Accidental Florist by Amy Merrick (Artisan, 2019), $35, barnesandnoble.com; Floret Farm’s A Year in Flowers by Erin Benzakein (Chronicle Books, 2020), $30, amazon.com; The Art of Wearable Flowers by Susan McLeary (Chronicle Books, 2020), $25, barnesandnoble.com. FRESH STYLE PAGES 23–28, GARDEN: Hillwood Estate, Museum and Garden, hillwoodmuseum.org. Book, A Garden for All Seasons by Kate Markert, photography by Erik Kvaslvik (Rizzoli Electa, 2020), $50, amazon.com. PAGES 30–33, ENTERTAIN: Book, You’re Invited: Classic, Elegant Entertaining by Stephanie Booth Shafran (Rizzoli New York, 2020), $50, amazon.com. PAGES 34–39, ARRANGE: Art and floral design, Marcy Cook, marcycookart.com; representing galleries, Anne Irwin Fine Art, Atlanta,…

LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY The Bluegrass Trust Antiques & Garden Show March 6 LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY Waterfront Botanical Gardens March 7 DALLAS, TEXAS Peacock Alley Dallas Design District March 19 Coco & Dash March 21 HOUSTON, TEXAS Houston Design Center March 24 ORLANDO, FLORIDA Orlando Museum of Art March 27 CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA IDS Charlotte Designer Showhouses April 2 MONKTON, MARYLAND Ladew Topiary Gardens April 15 BURLINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA The Very Thing, Ltd. April 22 Order your book at flowermagshop.com 205.970.9775…

“I like to use an étagère for the visual weight it gives a room. It can help balance out a space and it’s a great place to display your personal style and preferences.”—designer Matthew Patrick Smyth “I love étagères in many, many forms and use them all the time to show off my clients’ beautiful possessions.”—DESIGNER LETA AUSTIN FOSTER A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING In the 1800s, ètagères served to display the many knickknacks typical of English middle-class decorating.…

MATERIALS ▪ Foraged ivy and wisteria▪ English garden roses▪ Pink ranunculus▪ Sweet peas▪ Irises▪ Tuberose▪ Feather tulips MATERIALS ▪ Persimmons▪ Lemons▪ Foraged ivy and wisteria▪ English garden roses▪ Yellow ranunculus▪ Sweet peas▪ Irises▪ Tuberose▪ Feather tulips▪ Oakleaf hydrangeas▪ Pansies▪ Violets Marcy’s inspiration I based the how-to arrangement on my abstract floral piece titled Settle My Heavy Hands (left). Much of my inspiration comes from music and poets, like Mary Oliver, and irises are some of my favorite flowers. The blue-and-white container is incorporated throughout my collage work and was originally inspired by the old Dutch Master still life painting genre. STEPS 1 | Create a grid over the container using floral tape, then add water. 2 | Fill the base of the bowl with a layer of foraged ivy and…

Miranda globe vases ($295/6-inch, $395/9-inch) by William Yeoward Crystal, williamyeowardcrystal.com • Gorham sterling silver goblet ($269) and Kirk-Stieff Stieff Rose sterling flatware ($189/4-piece place setting) through Beverly Bremer Silver Shop, beverlybremer.com • Mozart double old fashioned in Rosalin ($165) by Moser, moserusa.com • Savannah Gardens tablecloth (from $149) by Matouk, matouk.com • Festival dinner napkins in Cotton Candy ($52/set of 4) by Sferra through Fine Linens, finelinens.com • Haviland Floralies dessert plate ($91) and bread-and-butter plate ($51) through Scully & Scully, scullyandscully.com • Gold and pearl napkin ring ($25), Uppercut grass cloth place mat ($55), and Anna Weatherley Simply Anna dinner plate in Polka Gold ($78), all through Table Matters, table-matters.com • Baroque glass charger ($37) by Vietri, vietri.com • Herend bunnies ($250–$425) through Martin’s Herend Imports, herendusa.com…

SAVANNAH, GEORGIA Savannah Antiques & Architecture Weekend March 5–7 savantiquesweekend.com HOUSTON, TEXAS Azalea Trail March 6–8 riveroaksgc.org An Evening with Ray Booth New Hickory Chair Houston Showroom March 24 texasdesignweek.com Design in Bloom The Houston Design Center/The Houston Design District March 24 designinbloomhouston.com ORLANDO, FLORIDA Art in Bloom Orlando Museum of Art March 26–29 orlandoartinbloom.com SUMMERVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA Flowertown Festival April 3–5 visitsummerville.com HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA Voices of Our Times with P. Allen Smith Huntsville Museum of Art April 16 hsvmuseum.org VIRGINIA (STATEWIDE) Historic Garden Week April 18–25 vagardenweek.org WINSTON-SALEM, NORTH CAROLINA Winston-Salem Tour of Secret Gardens April 25 gardenclubcouncil.com PASADENA, CALIFORNIA Pasadena Showcase House of Design April 26–May 17 pasadenashowcase.org Indicates Flower is attending or sponsoring the event. For more events, visit flowermag.com.…

BORN IN 1887, the only child of C. W. Post, the creator of Post cereals and the company that would become General Foods, Marjorie Merriweather Post lived a life of American royalty. Heiress, businesswoman, philanthropist, and hostess, Post owned many homes over the course of her life, including Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, as well as places in Long Island and the Adirondacks. In 1955, at the conclusion of her third marriage, Post—famously independent—left the Washington, D.C., home she had shared with her husband, and purchased Hillwood, a 25-acre estate nestled against Rock Creek Park a few miles north of the National Mall. She was 68 years old. “Marjorie Post had a strong sense of history and her place in history.”—KATE MARKERT, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF HILLWOOD According to Kate Markert,…

“WE LOVE HAVING OUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN HERE AT THE SAME TIME, AND THE HOUSE WORKS PERFECTLY FOR EVERYBODY.”—Meg O’Callaghan THE TWO-STORY WHITE STUCCO HOUSE, with periwinkle shutters and limestone columns behind a scrim of lush greenery offers a special welcome. Built in 1985, the traditional Floridian home, located on an ocean-connecting street in the north end of Palm Beach, appears along a curving pale-brick driveway embraced by palm and guava trees that feel like nature’s hug. Inside, it presents a cheerful personality, which is evident after a single step across the threshold. Cherished by New York–area owners Meg and Kevin O’Callaghan, the house was decorated by Ellen Kavanaugh of Ellen Kavanaugh Interiors with Madison Way of her Palm Beach design team. “This is a family house, pure and simple,”…