An “Aha” moment

Joanne de Guardiola's Southampton home

Not my favorite catch phrase but it succinctly sums up my day today. I went to the International Fine Arts and Antique Dealers Show at the Park Avenue Armory on Madison Ave. Not because I’m in the market for a small Picasso or a $11,000 Fontana Arte glass mirror from the 60s. I went for ideas (and admittedly to gawk a little, especially at the jewelry.)

Axel Vervoordt, a Belgium antiques dealer/interior designer, is one of my favorites, and because he had a booth, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity (I have yet to make it to his office/stores/castle in Belgium). This is where I had my “aha” moment. And it had to do with a pair of bergere style chairs similar to a pair I bought at the Paris flea market which have yet to be reupholstered. Vervoordt’s chairs were not his usual tone-on-tone style, but were done up in a cacophonous crewel-work fabric of reds and oranges, similar to the fabric above. They were shout out pieces in a a quiet room. I loved them!

My living room is greige, and I was leaning towards an equally subdued fabric for the chairs. Now I’m on the search for something bright and opulent.  Why not?