Filed under: Color, Design, etc, House Tours
Designer Ruthie Sommers breaks all the rules in her bright and feminine California home.Get ready for some color therapy: Ruthie Sommers, the designer, watercolorist and former Domino magazine contributor, opened the doors of her playful colorful house for House Beautiful's March "Pink" issue and we've got a peek. Sommers declares that "matching is for amateurs" and shows how bold choices can really make a room pop. Take a look:
Ruthis Sommer's dining room and kitchen. Photos: Victoria Pearson for House Beautiful.
Sommers says the green carpet helped make her dining room's gold walls "less serious." She hired a decorative painter to create a canopy to match the "alien" chandelier by legendary designer Tony Duquette, making both decorative touches come together to look like a tree. Brilliant, right?
You can see that the art and accessories do the talking in her simple white kitchen. The vintage stools are covered in a practical laminated linen -- a decidedly dressed-down match for the formal marble island. And have you ever seen an unexpected color combo pack more punch that the Tiffany blue tray and bright yellow flowers?
Sommers' stunning bedroom. Photo: Victoria Pearson for House Beautiful
The entry hall and another peek in the bedroom. Photo: Victoria Pearson for House Beautiful
We're crazy about the mix in her entry hall: Girlie pink curtains and low-key, beachy grass cloth walls. She believes in breaking curtains ever-so-slightly on the floor, about a half-inch -- the way men's pants break over their shoes. What a perfect, easy way to think about it.
On the other side of the bedroom, a mid-century chest challenges the antique French headboard. And kelly-green and royal blue accents break the pastel calm.
Visit House Beautiful online to see more ideas from Sommers' home. And while you're there, don't miss their online scavenger hunt this week. In honor of pink, the color of the year, they're giving away lots of great prizes like a DucDuc vanity, a pink KitchenAid mixer, and even a pink fridge.