Table of contents for July/August 2017 in Veranda

Summer is about enjoying the season’s beauty and bounty amid rich forests, windswept beaches, and wide-open fields. If Veranda must be known for just one thing, I hope it’s our commitment to timeless and enduring design. And if there’s something that never goes out of style, it’s gardening and pretty gardens, both of which have been a part of the magazine’s DNA since its inception 30 years ago. This issue takes that focus and passion for the great outdoors a step further with a special section devoted to all things related to land. It seems especially appropriate for this time of year, when we’re enjoying summer’s beauty and bounty amid rich forests, windswept beaches, and wide-open fields. Artists, of course, have always been inspired by natural landscapes, and today, all…

Watkins’s Signature Style CLASSIC FRENCH LINES Montgolfière chair, to the trade; cotefrance.com. QUIET PRINTS Plaisirs D Indochine cotton, to the trade; brunschwig.com. WROUGHT IRON Tournai table, $10,900; authentic provence.com. s he had a knack for calibrated rooms that split the difference between sumptuousness and simplicity to land on a gorgeous middle ground: sophisticated, romantic spaces trimmed in judicious frills that never wavered into the saccharine. In our 30thanniversary year, we’re celebrating the decorators who have made a lasting impression on Veranda, and the work of the late Houston designer Babs Watkins takes pride of place. Watkins was a nuanced practitioner with a keen sense for color. One influential project in Galveston was cloaked nearly entirely in shades of aqua. In another French-inflected Houston house, the walls ranged from subtle pewter shades…

a t the height of the sultry Georgia summer, the front hedge of Keith Robinson’s historic plantation explodes into a breathtaking wall composed of the verdant leaves and snowy blooms of Hydrangea paniculata, creating a bucolic backdrop for an intimate afternoon fete he hosts for friends in honor of the blackberry harvest. “In July and August, this area of the garden is truly spectacular,” says the event designer, describing his favorite grassy spot for savoring the splendor of the summer season. “Oftentimes, something a bit simple and quiet can actually speak volumes.” Careful not to outshine the brilliance of the flora, Robinson leans toward fresh but muted tones for the casually elegant table. Taking cues from the surrounding palette, he swathed the round table in a charming Provençal print and layered…

PEACOCK PAVERS Peacock Pavers brings the timeless look of natural stone to your new home, landscaping or remodeling project. Designed for both indoor and outdoor settings, these handcrafted pavers lend realistic old-world elegance to floors, terraces, decking, driveways and much more. PEACOCKPAVERS.COM / 800.264.2072 Stay connected with VERANDA | Visit VERANDA.COM and join the conversation on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, PINTEREST and INSTAGRAM.…

IT HAPPENS EVERY FRIDAY NIGHT. In frenetic Manhattan, after a wild week of running their respective design firms, two men pack a vehicle with bags of drawings, samples, notes, and necessities, plus cats and dogs (two of each), and begin the journey due east. Just one hour and 20 minutes later, as they pull into the village of Bellport, New York, where the streets are lined with picket fences and clapboard cottages, they haven’t just switched towns—they’ve changed their lives. Dan Fink calls it “moving day,” his weekly migration to the former seaport on Long Island’s south shore. Waiting for him there are two elegant structures: a shingled 1833 schoolhouse turned residence and, barely 40 feet away across a narrow lane, a shingle-and-brick building designed by his husband, Thomas O’Brien,…

THE UNLIKELY EVOLUTION of Katharine Rayner’s spectacular fiveacre garden in the Hamptons is a testament to what can be achieved through years of devotion and eternal optimism, giving credence to Russell Page’s famous sentiment: “Gardens are an expression of faith and the embodiment of hope.” Without a master plan or pesticides, and inspired by her visits to legendary estates in England, Italy, India, and Iran, the philanthropist has transformed a forest of black pines into an enchanting folly. Rayner rented Woody House, originally the guest quarters of a grand estate owned by Pan American World Airways founder Juan Trippe, for eight years before purchasing the cottage, along with 12 surrounding acres, in 1988. She and her husband, William, a former magazine executive and painter, were charmed by the house’s simplicity…

PERSONAL LUXURIES Page 27 Tata Harper, Tata Harper Skincare, tataharperskincare.com. ENTERTAINING Keith Robinson, Gloriosa Design, gloriosadesign.com. Page 49 Plates: Raynaud, raynaud.fr. Tumblers: Juliska, juliska.com. Flatware: Hermès, hermes.com. ALL IN THE FAMILY Interior design: Emily Summers, Emily Summers Design Associates, 214-871-9669, emilysummers.com. Architecture: Marc Appleton, Appleton Partners LLP-Architects, 310-828-0430, appletonarchitects.com. Page 74 Tile: Exquisite Surfaces, xsurfaces.com. Page 75 Chairs: Nancy Corzine, nancycorzine.com. Custom chandelier: Seguso, seguso.com. Wall paint: Benjamin Moore, benjaminmoore.com. Page 76 Sofa: Saladino Furniture, saladinostyle.com. Chairs: Roman Thomas, romanthomas.com. Cocktail table: Karl Springer, 1stdibs.com. Rug: Beauvais, beauvaiscarpets.com. Artwork: Nancy Lorenz, nancy-lorenz.com. Page 77 Bench cushion fabric: Perennials, perennialsfabrics.com. Chandelier: O’Hare & D’Jafer, ohare-djafer.com. Custom tiles: Mosaic House, mosaichse.com. Page 78 Sofa: Meridiani, meridiani.it. Sofa fabric: Rubelli, rubelli.com. Armchair: Dmitriy & Co., dmitriyco.com. Armchair fabric: Zimmer+Rohde, zimmer-rohde.com. Wall paint: Benjamin…

TATA HARPER’S FAVORITE THINGS 1. BURBERRY RIVETED LEATHER DOUBLE WRAP BELT “I’m loving belts worn on top of jackets.” burberry.com. 2. HERMÈS BRIDES FLEURIES SILK TWILL SCARF “A musthave accessory.” hermes.com. 3. LILACS “The lush bushes outside our house make the whole place smell amazing.” 4. NATHALIE LETE STONEWARE “Each hand-painted plate is so unique, beautiful, and colorful.” anthropologie.com. 5. GUCCI JORDAAN LEATHER LOAFERS “A travel essential— super-comfortable, but they still look smart.” gucci.com. 6. GIVENCHY ANTIGONA MINI-DUFFEL “It may look small, but it fits a million things.” barneys.com. 7. BULGARI B.ZERO1 RING “This simple piece works for everyday but is elegant enough for evening events.” bulgari.com. 8. TATA HARPER HYDRATING FLORAL ESSENCE “I use this toner every morning. I love how it slides onto the skin.” tataharperskincare.com. 9. ABCDNA…

at the height of summer, there’s no better way for a green thumb to revel in the weather than by pruning, cutting, watering, and weeding. For those devoted souls, we’ve gathered the most stylish goods for the task at hand. But if you’d rather decorate than dig in the dirt, our roundup for the great indoors is also anything but garden variety.…

EBANISTA Elegantly edited with a modern allure, the three-piece Yves I Cocktail Table is just one of many exquisite pieces found in Ebanista’s artisan-made collection, handcrafted in the USA. Offered in weathered brun finish with antiqued 12K white gold detailing and an antiqued mirror top. ebanista.com 800.570.1087 FERGUSON BATH, KITCHEN & LIGHTING GALLERY Allow Ferguson to be the solution for your plumbing, lighting and appliance needs. We offer the best selection of products, like the Kingston Manor collection by Park Harbor. Visit FergusonShowrooms.com to find the showroom nearest you. CAROLE FABRICS For the past 58 years, Carole Fabrics has been an industry leader in supplying decorative fabrics, handcrafted window treatments, elegant trimming and drapery hardware. To learn more, call us at 800.439.8260 or visit our website, carolefabrics.com. NEW MOON RUGS…

Saving Grace Leading textile houses are creating goods with rich backstories, working to save wildlife and indigenous ways of life. In Peru, where rare Prima Alpaca fabrics come from a baby alpaca’s first shearing, Sandra Jordan supports education and sustainable housing for herders in remote Andean villages. sandrajordan.com. The vicuña, whose luxe fleece was once reserved for Incan emperors, now thrives on Loro Piana’s nature reserve, also in Peru, after the company saved the species from near extinction. loropiana.com. And in the Mexican highlands, Maddalena Forcella works with artisans in Oaxaca and Chiapas, who raise “cotton deer” like family pets and turn their wool into custom handwoven rugs. maddaforcella.com. ONE MAN’S TREASURE New York’s latest street artist is floral designer Lewis Miller, who employs city trash cans (and iconic landmarks)…

FLOWERS DON’T HOLD BACK—bursting forth from the bud each spring, even in the most daunting of circumstances—and neither does illustrator and floral maestro Cathy Graham, especially when entertaining. In any season, her tablescapes are as lush as blowsy peonies, dotted with anything from foxgloves and clematis to miniature dollhouse furniture, in equal abundance. “If I have an elegant flower arrangement, I can get away with adding something completely ridiculous,” says Graham, who hosts frequent parties at her Manhattan townhouse and her Nantucket retreat. Her new book, Second Bloom: Cathy Graham’s Art of the Table (Vendome Press), pairs her entertaining and floral wisdom with her charming watercolors. Graham, who studied floral arranging in London with Jane Packer and worked with the late event planner Robert Isabell, has returned to illustrating after…

i ts heyday may have been the ballgown- and-big-hair 1980s, when designers like Mario Buatta lined rooms entirely in plump cabbage roses. But floral chintz’s roots trace to colonial India, and its appeal has spanned centuries, making it a perennial choice for cultivated, genteel rooms that will look as good 30 years from now as they do today. (Some of those Buatta rooms have passed the test of time with flying colors.) Despite its use in formal spaces, floral chintzes have a charm that leavens acres of gilt. And designers from Sister Parish to Mark Hampton knew that the pattern turns walls and curtains into hanging gardens that bloom all year long, and sofas and armchairs into tufted beds of roses. Lean in and take a deep breath: Blossoms are back…

GARDEN PARTY Designer Thomas O’Brien looked to his own backyard for his first outdoor collection for Century Furniture. Inspired by a favorite midcentury iron garden bench, he has updated classic metal and wicker chairs and tables with soft curves and seductive swirls: inside style turned out. MESSAGE IN A BOUQUET Everyone knows that sending red roses means “I love you.” Discovering the Meaning of Flowers ($30, Clearview), by London florist Shane Connolly, reveals far more. For example, a single rose petal? “There’s hope.” shaneconnolly.co.uk. JUST IN TIME Patek Philippe is the last of the venerable familyowned watchmakers of Geneva, but it has long had a tight bond with the United States, where it began marketing its creations in the 1850s. This summer, the firm presents the exhibition “The Art of…

WHEN IT COMES TO MOTHERS-IN-LAW, there are pop songs, T-shirts, and endless jokes attesting to the pitfalls of one of life’s most precarious relationships. But Elisa Summers would beg to differ. At the time she married her husband, Stephen, 17 years ago, she acquired not only a genial spouse but also a charming mother-in-law, Emily Summers, who happens to be a world-class interior designer with a blue-chip clientele and offices in Dallas and Manhattan. “She’s just so talented, and she has incredible vision for her projects,” Elisa says. “Plus, if his mom says it’s good, my husband knows it really is!” Elisa and Stephen are style arbiters in their own right. They are co-owners of Highland Park Village, the 1930s Mediterranean-style shopping center (said to be the nation’s oldest) that…