Walking into the entry foyer created by Sees Design at the 2025 Kips Bay Decorator Show House, I was struck by a sense of harmony.
The space, inspired by Bill Blass’ iconic 1970s Sutton Place penthouse, echoed the designer’s blend of tailored elegance and restrained glamour. The space was polished yet approachable, refined without rigidity. It felt like an intentional threshold, setting the tone for what unfolded beyond.
The neutral color palette flowed effortlessly into a masculine kitchen where fur-upholstered stools echoed the tactile richness of a massive marble island. It was confident, grounded, and inviting.
James Druckman, president of the board of the Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club, called the 2999 Turtle Creek Boulevard address “the perfect stage to highlight incredible design, and more importantly, to support the kids and community that need us most.”
As someone whose professional and creative background includes a career in interior design, I’ve always admired Kips Bay for its ambition. Historically, the show’s rooms were undeniably beautiful, each space standing on its own as a design tour de force, yet visitors often felt they were moving through a home that couldn’t truly be lived in — the way runway designs don’t always translate to real life fashion applications.
Despite the venue remaining the same as last year, this season the experience felt immersive and cohesive and the designs flowed seamlessly from room to room without sacrificing individuality.
La Cuisine Divine by Christopher Architecture offered one of the show’s most clever moments. Fanciful displays included faux cigarettes placed with irreverent precision against midcentury pillows adorned with matching imagery. The vignette felt witty and layered, nodding to the past while remaining rooted in modern sensibility.
A personal highlight was the space by Studio EckstrÖm, the luxury interior design firm led by Mark and Mikal EckstrÖm, known for creating personal interiors that blend elegance with livability. Mark is a former New York publishing executive with a lifelong passion for design who brings a signature mastery of color, pattern, and scale shaped by his deep knowledge of the decorative arts. Mikal is a Ph.D. historian and award-winning scholar who orchestrates the studio’s operations and global sourcing with the precision of a storyteller, crafting spaces that feel both timeless and narratively rich. Together, they design homes rooted in history yet driven by beauty. True to form, their Kips Bay rooms brought the fun, welcoming guests with champagne and swag bags while pairing a 1970s record player with a hand-painted antique stove so seamlessly it felt as though the two had always belonged together.
Outdoors, double-facing fringed sofas anchored the limestone terrace of the elegant Turtle Creek address. Private cabanas, softened with flowing curtains, created moments of intimacy while preserving a sense of glamour.
Stepping back indoors, I couldn’t get enough of the natural light-filled, ultra-feminine rooms layered with hand-painted wallpaper, imaginative florals, and hand-stitched tablecloths that celebrated craftsmanship and romance.
Still, it was the risk-taking that captivated me most. A green and fuchsia hallway, complete with a serpent slithering across the ceiling, led to a bathroom wrapped in Gucci fabric. A toiletteur stood ready with perfume, mints, and hand napkins — an indulgent, old-world gesture that felt both theatrical and charming. Oversized glass orbs floated overhead in a playful balloon-like whimsy. Against a deep wine-colored backdrop, white swans embedded in the wallpaper appeared to either crane their necks to snoop on bathroom gossip or politely turn away from the risqué art lining the walls.
I admired the sense of daring that felt deliberate, but not gratuitous. I was never shy about pushing the envelope in my own design work, and seeing designers take thoughtful risks within a cohesive whole was refreshing.
Much like the timeless Bill Blass-inspired foyer that opened the home, Kips Bay Dallas 2025 revealed designers’ alter egos in alignment, delivering a show house with flow, personality, and soul.
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