The Greenbrier with Carleton Varney

 

Varney and me in front of the Love Clock as featured on The Bachelorette.

A highlight from my trip to The Greenbrier was a chance to meet famous interior decorator, Carleton Varney. Varney first started coming to the Greenbrier with his mentor and former boss, Dorothy Draper, when she was decorating the hotel. Varney, now the owner of the Dorthy Draper Company, has been decorating and ‘curating’ the Greenbrier for half a century. He balances preserving the Draper vision in certain historic rooms, while decorating new spaces and properties for the ever expanding resort.

Dorothy Draper's Greenbrier

The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.  The main hotel, pictured above, dates back to 1913 .

The Greenbrier offers all the luxury amenities that one could hope for in a countryside resort, but its decorating and history set it apart from anywhere else.  Guests have been coming to The Greenbrier since the 1700's and the main hotel dates back to 1913.  The Greenbrier is known as one of America's great social resorts, and was in need of a dramatic makeover after it was used as an army hospital during World War II.  That is when The Dorothy Draper Company of New York was commissioned to completely redesign the hotel.  This original assignment took two years but The Dorothy Draper Company (now owned and run by Carelton Varney) has been The Greenbrier's decorator for the past sixty five years.

The main staircase in the lobby of The Greenbrier is an example of exuberant Draper decorating.  She unexpectedly paired the historical Zuber wall mural with bright, bold colored carpet, which is grounded by simple black and white tiles.

Bunny Williams: Past, Present and Future



House in Provence, decorated by Bunny Williams. Image: www.bunnywilliams.com  

Another interesting and informative lecture I attended at the Design Bloggers’ Conference was given by Bunny Williams. I’ve heard Bunny speak on several occasions when she was launching one of her books but this talk was about how to develop as a designer and how to practice as a good designer.