Decorating & Design
March 4, 2021
Phoebe Howard Shares Her Style Secrets For Creating Pretty Rooms
Southern interior designer Phoebe Howard shares her method for creating truly pretty rooms in her latest book, The Principles of Pretty Rooms. Celebrating warm, welcoming style, each chapter explores the color palettes, fabrics and special little grace notes that make a room pretty. “I just think pretty is a crowd-pleaser and something that just basically anybody can accept and understand, and it brings happiness and joy,” says author and designer Phoebe Howard (who is known for her store, Mrs. Howard). Scroll down for a sneak peek inside this stylish tome!
“I wanted to divide the book into three sections: Beach, City and Country,” says Phoebe. “I realized that while I was traveling all over the U.S. and doing all kinds of projects in different regions and styles, I used the same principles to still make it pretty. Whether I was doing a modern apartment, really rustic country house or a casual beach house, I was employing all the same techniques and basically just tweaking it for each location. That’s what I break down in the the book, all the things that you can do regardless of your setting, budget or style to achieve a pretty environment.”
Phoebe’s favorite Cowtan & Tout chintz was used to upholster the sofas in this country home. “A space with symmetrical architecture usually cries out for symmetrical interior design,” she says. “Pairs bring a sense of calm and order and feel balanced.”
A custom stove hood is a dramatic focal point for a kitchen in Asheville, North Carolina. “This one completes the space laid out by talented Atlanta kitchen designer Matthew Quinn,” says Phoebe. “I collaborated with him by selecting finishes and fixtures.”
In this beachy loggia, Moroccan tile mixes with Delft pottery and Chinese porcelain. “This loggia proves that blue and white always feel right in a beach house,” she says. “Nothing matches, but it all mixes.”
“While I always look for other, more hidden options, sometimes the only place for a television is on the wall over the mantel,” says Phoebe. “Here, the black rectangle of the firebox echoes that of the screen, providing a bit of balance and lessening the TV’s visual impact.”
“You have my permission — actually, my unadulterated encouragement — to be bold on your walls,” says Phoebe. “It’s a great way to liven up a space and give it some place-defining personality. I like powerful patterns, whether in the form of ceramic tiles, wallpapers or hand-painted murals. And remember: Statement walls don’t mean you have to decorate the rest of a room quietly. Sometimes, they can turn the volume up for the entire space.”
A large lantern fixture (background) makes this Atlanta living room seem less cavernous. “I always like to vary the height of furnishings in a room, but never more so than in a space that’s big and tall,” she says. “It keeps the room from falling flat. Here, the étagères balance the scale of the doors, while the round mirrors above help draw the eye even further up.”
This Atlanta kitchen has a mix of metals with a pewter hood, brass fixtures and stainless strapped cabinets. “A pewter hood, brass light fixtures and brushed stainless strapped cabinets prove it’s more than just OK to combine metals in a kitchen — it’s recommended,” says Phoebe. “As the late, great decorator Charles Faudree used to say, ‘It’s all about the mix, not the match.’ The artworks above the banquette are by Raymond Debieve.”
In a Tennessee vacation home, “a pale wood table on a black metal base visually connects to the room’s washed-wood ceiling and walls and its black iron chandelier and curtain rods,” she says. “Between the floor-to-ceiling windows, I hung a painting by Clay Wagstaff.”
This bedroom embodies quintessential Palm Beach style with a coral palette, trellis print and palm tree enamel lamp. “Linen curtains in a chinoiserie pattern prove that even the most classic of motifs can be made current,” says Phoebe. “The secret here is the use of a cheerful coral color. I let this fabric take center stage, adding matelassé, ticking stripes, fun trims and a select few other patterns in supporting roles.”