Innholdsfortegnelse for November/December 2025 i Flower

“Home whispers to us in the spiritual way that music slips past our mind, speaking directly to our souls.”—JEFFREY DUNGAN, ARCHITECT HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS—it’s a wave of words that laps over my psyche every year about this time. You hear it in passing party patter and in culture in general as part of marketing ploys and friendly invitations. The phrase draws many moments to my mind. Right now, I’m taken back to my boarding school days in the dining hall where we would sing the countdown until vacation—the Christmas holidays, specifically. “Hark the herald angels shout, 12 more days ‘til we get out!” … and so on down the days. On the 12th day, we were flung like the diaspora to our respective homes all over the country and the…

While spending a leisurely afternoon exploring and enjoying the surprises of Villa Feltrinelli on Italy’s Lake Garda, I came upon a coffee table book on interior designers. As I leafed through it, I spotted Pamela Babey, the very designer responsible for the visual and visceral magic my husband and I were experiencing. But the real serendipity occurred upon our leaving for Venice. As we lingered in the lobby, gushing to the hotel team about our stay, who should appear in the lobby but the red-headed, chic, pixieish person I had just been reading about. Not being shy, I immediately introduced myself, continued gushing about our visit, and proceeded to request an interview. She graciously agreed. Margot Shaw: Pamela, what a treat for me and our readers to get to know…

Christmas Trees Laura Dowling returns for another elegant celebration at Cheekwood Estate & Gardens filled with her signature maximalist Christmas trees. We asked the designer to give us the lowdown on creating the perfect tree and finding your own holiday style, as well as favorites from her time at Cheekwood. Go to flowermag.com/christmas-trees to see more of Laura’s holiday décor plus two dozen of our readers’ favorite trees to inspire your own. AMARYLLIS After enjoying Tovah Martin’s guide to amaryllis on page 76, be inspired by a score of fantastic arrangements ranging from Jay Lugibihl’s adventurous chandelier composition to a simple topiary with step-by-step instructions. Find them at flowermag.com/holiday-mantels. EYE-CATCHING MANTELS A stylish holiday mantel needs more than stockings to look its best. Festooned with greenery, crowned with fruit and…

As we bundle up to face the cold days of winter, we often find ourselves longing for signs of spring— especially the first flowers to emerge. While it’s impossible to speed up Mother Nature’s course, there is one bloom you can enjoy indoors as you anticipate warmer weather. Quintessentially exotic yet within anyone’s reach, amaryllis start to blossom just when you crave flowers most. In a blink (okay, more like eight weeks), the plants will go from boring bulbs to big, beautiful blooms. What could be a better antidote to the winter blues? Technically known as hippeastrum, the amaryllis is native to South America. Its name (which means “to sparkle” in Greek) was derived from a similar plant from South Africa known as Amaryllis belladonna. By 1799, English watchmaker and…

1.Publication Title: FLOWER. 2. Publication Number: 658-690x. 3. Filing Date: 09/30/2025. 4. Issue Frequency: Bimonthly. 5. Number of Issues Published Annually: 6. Annual Subscription Price: U.S. - $19.99. 7. Complete Mailing Address of Known Office of Publication (Not Printer): Peony Publishing, LLC, 58 Vine St, Ste 100, Birmingham, AL 35213-3749. 8. Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Business Office of Publisher (Not Printer): Peony Publishing, LLC, 58 Vine St, Ste 100, Birmingham, AL 35213-3749. 9. Full Names and Complete Mailing Addresses of Publisher, Editor, and Managing Editor: Publisher: Jennel O’Brien, 58 Vine St, Ste 100, Birmingham, AL 35213-3749; Editor: Margot Shaw, 58 Vine St, Ste 100, Birmingham, AL 35213-3749; Managing Editor: Julie Gillis, 58 Vine St, Ste 100, Birmingham, AL 35213-3749. 10. Owner: Peony Publishing, LLC, 58 Vine St,…

GIFT GIVING: Unwrap the Joys of the Season Entertain with Spirit Set Rooms Aglow Dazzle in Jewels Flower with Style Savor Every Moment Tie It Up with a Bow Toast the New Year…

It took six years and a handful of heartfelt letters for interior designer Cece Bowman and husband Nick to finally convince their next-door neighbor to sell them his 1950s rancher on a coveted corner lot in the SoSo (South of Southern) neighborhood of West Palm Beach. “What we really loved was the backyard,” says Cece. “Nick and I both had childhood homes with big, beautiful lawns where we would play and watch our mothers meticulously tend to their gardens. Our own house didn’t offer that kind of outdoor space, so expanding to incorporate the next-door lot made sense. We have three young daughters who practically live outside with our terrier, Pickle.” Rather than tearing down the house that came with the property, the couple rehabbed the 1,700-square-foot structure to conveniently…

On this chilly November morning, Colleen Duffley bustles about her happy place—the kitchen at Andiamo Lodge in Mentone, Alabama. She moves like a force of nature, dashing from pantry to island to oven and freezer as she prepares an apple-and-pear crisp topped with cinnamon ice cream. “I’m obsessed with making ice cream and experimenting with flavors,” she says as she tastes her latest concoction and pronounces it “sinfully good.” Colleen’s husband, Steve Carpenter, works alongside with a steady calm indicative of his experience commanding the stove at restaurants on Florida’s Gulf Coast, including his current outpost known as Crabby Steve’s in Seacrest Beach. Today, guests will sit down to Thanksgiving supper with a bit of a twist—fresh seafood Steve has brought with him from the Gulf paired with some traditional…

“IT’S REALLY NOT A FORMULA. I don’t know how to put it in words exactly,” says Birmingham, Alabama, interior designer Mark Kennamer when describing his own home. “It’s a collection of pieces that speak to me—ones that I simply love—and it just seems to all come together.” The interiors, however, are not some outpouring from a fever dream; there are design principles in play that make the rooms successful. From the moment you step inside, there’s a sense of curation—from proportion to palette to visual pull. When it comes to the provenance of his furniture and décor choices, the designer has a benevolent disregard. His house includes English, Swedish, Italian, French, Scottish, and chinoiserie pieces, both antiques and reproductions. “I’m international,” he quips in his charming Southern cadence. He’s also…

Any items not listed are unknown. JOHN’S ALMANAC PAGES 30-32: Blackberry Farm, blackberryfarm.com TRAVEL PAGES 34-40: Designer: Pamela Babey, BAMO, bamo.com; Hotel: Villa Feltrinelli, villafeltrinelli.com DECORATING PAGES 42-50: Designer: Cece Bowman, Cece Bowman Interiors, cecebowmaninteriors.com; Exterior: Door color: Benjamin Moore ‘Vivid Peach,’ benjaminmoore.com; Living Room: Rug: Dash & Albert, annieselke.com; Dining room: Coco mirror, Fleur Home, fleurhome.com; Palm sconces with rattan shades: The Kemble Shop, thekembleshop.com; Bamboo-rim chargers: Juliska, juliska.com; Monogrammed linens: Well Made Home, wellmadehome.com; Coral branch chandelier: Arteriors, arteriorshome.com; Champagne coupes: Anthropologie, anthropologie.com; Wine-glasses: Mary Mahoney Store Palm Beach, marymahoney.com; Sunroom: Woven fiber paddle fan: Fanimation Lighting, fanimationlighting.com ENTERTAINING PAGES 52-58: The Punctilious Mr. P’s Place Card Company, mrpsplacecards.com THANKSGIVING AT ANDIAMO PAGES 62-67: Andiamo Lodge, andiamolodge.com THE MORE THE MERRIER PAGES 68-75: Interior designer: Aldous Bertram, Aldous…

As winter draws near, the gardening season slows down but is far from over. Beautiful, varying shades of greens are scattered throughout the garden. Damp soil, cooler days, and cold nights are the perfect conditions for lettuce, radishes of all types, turnips, collards, kale, mustard greens, cabbage, and other varieties to flourish. As a reminder of the produce from the summer months, canned goods line the shelves—jars of tomatoes, beans, peas, peaches, pears, and apples, just to name a few. Kentucky field pumpkins, along with cushaw, butternut, and blue Hubbard squash, are piled about the cellar floor. When Thanksgiving Day arrives, our family will enjoy the extended harvest of summer’s bounty. Among my favorite seeds in my vast seed-saving collection is a bean which was said to have been included…

FLOWER: What was your first entrée into entertaining and gracious living? Martin Cooper: Entertaining and gracious living isn’t just something you do—it’s who you are. For me, it was passed down through generations, from grandmothers to mother to son. Karen describes it as a baton of graciousness. Southerners consider hospitality a contact sport. Karen Suen-Cooper: In the Chinese culture, graciousness is always surrounded by food, and how you care for your guests is ingrained in you. But I love how Martin’s Southernness has really codified all this for me. What path led to establishing Punctilious Mr. P’s Place Card Co.? Did it truly originate with the singular idea of reviving and elevating the place card? Karen: Our house in Old Chatham, New York, is happiest when people enjoy themselves within its…

IT ALL STARTED WHEN ALDOUS Bertram camped out on the front stoop of an old Charleston house for six hours, hoping the owner might show up. The affable, British-born designer and artist was living in Palm Beach at the time but scheming a move to Charleston, where he says the “walkability, British influence, and classical motifs” seemed better suited to his old-world affinities. “A friend sent me a Craigslist listing for a one-room apartment inside the house,” says Aldous. “I barely knew what Craigslist was!” But he did know he wanted to see the apartment. With no replies from his repeated inquiries about the space, Aldous went old school DIY—in the same way he often does with his decorating—to meet the landlord in person. He waited on the front doorstep…

Let the House Set the Tone Our Colonial-style architecture and my classic interior leanings influence our Christmas decorating. The exterior calls out for a symmetrical array of greenery, while a magnolia-based garland is ideal for the traditional front stairway. Hunt, Gather, and Arrange the Greens All the Jackson vine, boxwood, and jasmine woven into garlands and wreaths is from the backyard, while the magnolia was donated by a next-door neighbor. People are generally delighted to share, but showing up with a platter of Christmas cookies in return never hurts! When we’re arranging, we think about contrasts in texture—shiny, structured magnolia leaves look great with looser materials like sprigs of cedar. We also nestle ilex and gold pinecones into the mix. Add Some Zest We love the vivid colors and scents…

“My large-scale flower sculptures are a tribute to the flora and fauna of my childhood in the countryside of Northern Denmark. Inspired by the Danish folk art tradition of paper cutting called gækkebrev, I’ve developed my own technique where I fold shapes and create three-dimensional forms by twisting, twining, squeezing, crumpling, and cutting through 50 layers of paper at a time with only my hands and a pair of scissors. My fantastical flowers have a secret life of their own. They self-pollinate, grow elements like insect antennae, and make you feel as small as Thumbelina from the fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen—a fellow Dane who was also a keen paper cutter. Visitors to my atelier are spellbound by the huge blooms, and even bees are drawn into the flowers…