Betty Lou Phillips – författare

Unmistakably French, the fifth book in Betty Lou Phillips'' best-selling series on interpreting French décor for American homes, broadens yet again the limits of what French style can do for a home. No matter the location or size of the room to be decorated, the French rarely stray from favored and well-known characteristics of design-eighteenth-century furniture, sumptuous textiles, distinctive porcelains, and oil paintings in original carved-wood frames. In Phillips'' newest book, she defines some of these specific secrets that French designers use to create an authentic French look-these certain basic decorating values they hold dear, seducing us with their self-assured approach to glamour, culture, and enduring respect for history. The book includes four sections: Passion for French, Art of Living, Savoir-Faire, and Fluent French. The style and settings seen in these contemporary homes, while American, are Unmistakably French.

In her book, Villa Décor, Betty Lou Phillips discusses how to mix styles, furnishings, inspirations, and colors from different eras and locations to create the looks for which the French and Italian people are known-wisps of elegance, hints of regal color, textures that delight and inspire. Villa Décor illustrates the mastery of the fabled French way of melding the past with the present so each is seen in the best possible light, as well as the uncanny Italian knack of linking rooms effortlessly with patterns and palettes without detracting from the furnishings or objets d''art, capturing a trend in American decorating. Betty Lou Phillips demonstrates how to virtuously juxtapose various periods and styles in widely diverse, satisfying rooms that are never dull or predictable. Quiet French elegance, Italian romance, and the simplicity of sweet life-la dolce vita.

France and Italy have long been the go-to spots for fashionistas, serious foodies and design mavens. Rich patinas, satisfying earthen hues and myriad natural materials—translate into timeless, unabashedly elegant yet livable rooms appropriate for our times. Award-winning designer Betty Lou Phillips shows how the best from two European countries combine to create la dolce vita—the good life.

A new look is emerging in France’s apartments as well as its imposing chateaux and country manors. Along with signature pieces of national identity—such as finely crafted wood pieces, splendid mirrors, and grandmère’s well cared for linens—European mid-century modern furnishings also adorn settings in this age of merging sensibilities.

Homes photographed in France and the U.S. show abstract works of art mingling easily with painted furniture, budget-friendly finds from assorted cultures—such as wool rugs and handembroidered linens from India—and pottery, artisan-made pillows, throws and vintage textiles from remote markets in Morocco.

Despite the grandeur in which Louis XIV and his descendants Louis XV and Louis XVI lived in the magnificent Château de Versailles, extravagance rarely suggests elegance these days.  Befitting spaces less assumedly scaled than the vast palace, alluring, of-the-moment interiors exude a more discreet cachet.  Clean, not stuffy, reflects our culture and the times.