Sister Parish Rises Again, in a Pop-Up
The New York Times
No longer just for the Kennedys and Astors: The great-granddaughter of a legendary decorator wants to make interior design more accessible.
Sister Parish, the grande dame of American interior decorating, was a young Depression-era mother when she embarked on her career. She had no formal training in design, and yet she went on to reimagine the rooms of the White House with Jacqueline Kennedy after her husband became president.
Mrs. Parish exalted luxury, yet the interiors she and her business partner Albert Hadley created for the homes of Brooke Astor, Bunny Mellon and Oscar de la Renta had a comfortable, lived-in feel. Rooted in traditional American decorative arts, she was the first to mix and match furnishings from different eras, styles and price points.
A fan of chintz and ticking stripes, she treasured collections and used vibrant colors in her decorative schemes; she painted floors, layered textiles and put great emphasis in selecting furniture that would give a house a sense of permanence. She worked well into her 80s and died in 1994.
