Product Description

For more than half a century, Parish-Hadley Associates has been synonymous with classic American elegance. Their distinctive blend of comfort and style has set the standard for interior design in a wide variety of settings, including the Kennedy White House. In this lavishly illustrated book, America's most celebrated interior decorators at last reveal the secrets of their timeless and unique style. 168 color photos.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #755352 in Books
• Published on: 1995-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 181 pages

From Library Journal
The unschooled, instinctive, and established interior designer Sister Parish was looking for assistance with her design firm when she hired Parsons School of Design-trained Albert Hadley. That began the Parish-Hadley style, combining Parish's "cabbage rose and Aubusson" with Hadley's "modern, pared-down approach." Comprised of personal reminiscences from the principals and a history of the firm, this well-illustrated work presents an overview of their work together as well as Parish's alone, most publicly her redecoration of the White House for the Kennedys, and shows the timelessness and continuity of their design style that is the trademark of their association. With so few books documenting individual interior designers and their work, interior design schools and large collections will find this a valuable work.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Unlike architecture, in which such practitioners as Frank Lloyd Wright and Mies van der Rohe are recognized by many people outside the field, the rarefied world of interior design has few popularly recognized icons. But the late Sister Parish and her partner Albert Hadley certainly fell into that category. Their impact both inside and outside the profession of decorating has been subtly powerful; their use of glazed chintzes, bright colors, handcrafts from patchwork quilts to rag rugs, comfortable upholstery, and other touches has influenced many of the country and casual trends today. Chronicled here are the lives and experiences of the two principals and their design philosophy. More important, though, are the approximately 150 color photographs, examples of their work and testimonials to their style. A special chapter documents Sister's 1961 work done on the Kennedy White House. Barbara Jacobs

Customer Reviews

Brilliant book for the serious student of interior design!
A beautiful book, certainly more valuable than a mere 'coffee table' book. If one is serious about interior design, seeing and understanding what these amazing people did to the art is imperative. The photographs show rooms that will stand the test of time and make you salivate over the treasures. What an incredible legacy they have, american design owes them beyond measure.

Too Important to Be Out of Print
I borrowed this remarkable book from the library, and it's a treasure. Many years ago Sister Parrish, the chintz-loving society decorator who helped Jackie redo the White House, teamed up with Albert Hadley, a polite genius of timeless, clean design and proportion.

The result of this union of opposites was a partnership made in decorating heaven. In fact, the "marriage" produced wonderful offspring: Marriette Himes Gomez and Mark Hampton both got their start here.

If you'd like to see how many of the top American names of the 20th century lived, Jackie, Nelson Rockefeller, Babe Paley, it's all here. And if you'd like in depth exposure to the design principles of two American masters, you couldn't ask for a better source.

What a shame this out of print book costs $250. If it were $50 I'd buy it in a one-click minute. Attention book publishers, you need to reissue this book for the design-starving masses.

Brilliant book for the serious student of interior design!
A beautiful book, certainly more valuable than a mere 'coffee table' book. If one is serious about interior design, seeing and understanding what these amazing people did to the art is imperative. The photographs show rooms that will stand the test of time and make you salivate over the treasures. What an incredible legacy they have, american design owes them beyond measure.