I love a lil' bit of Preppy for Summer - a new Lilly Pulitzer showroom in NYC's D&D building brings preppy to home design




I could not resist and bought this dress

 

Let's Get Preppy This Summer

When I think of Summer I immediately think of straw bags, madras shorts, pretty pink dresses and lots of seersucker fabric.  I can't help it because when I was a  little girl my stylish great aunt would bring out her high waisted poplin dresses that smelled like mothballs just in time for our Memorial Day barbecue.  She wore her hair in a little straight bob with a flip at the ends, and oh the chunky bangs.  She carried a small straw bag with a chain link handle and wore kitten heels.  I remember she always had bright pink lipstick too.  These images remind me of summer and conjure up memories of festive times, and oh so positively optimistically American...croquet on the lawn (yes folks my grandparents actually played under the weeping willow tree overlooking the rolling green lawn), tennis whites, horses and tack, and of course sipping a Pimm's Cup (or in my case the grown ups drank the Pimm's and I sipped the sweet tea) under a bougainvillea covered patio.  Preppy summer is stuck in my mind, but judging from all the fashion designers that have made a pretty penny on this notion, I am not alone in holding on tightly to these images, squiring them away during the cold winter months until the first pink blossoms appear on the trees.  It's summer and preppy madness has begun.

Every fashion design house has their own take on the Old World chic

but Lilly Pulitzer captures the quintessential preppy look exquisitely:




Lilly Pulitzer grew an empire based upon these concepts and brings both casual and dressy collections together -- Preppy Madness!

 How happy was I to learn that one of my favorite preppy dress companies is embarking upon a home line. Don't get me wrong, a little Lilly goes a long way but a few select pink and green dresses in my closet round out my sea of little black dresses nicely, and ready for the pickin' when I get that special invitation to a club luncheon or tea party.

 Out here in the Hamptons, anything rules when it comes to style, and just like in New York City there is something for everyone (this is what I love about the Hamptons).  
I do appreciate that a little preppy still lingers.

Amongst the windmills and pink peonies you will find good old fashion floral patterns over on Newtown Lane at the Lilly Pulitzer store in East Hampton

 It was very exciting for me to participate in a 3-day event in New York City called Blogfest, and sponsored by fabric company Kravet.  Hearst Corporation brought us into their publishing lair for a day long session with the editors and publishers, we shared a conversation with style maven Barbara Barry, and topped off the experience in the new Lilly Pulitzer designer showroom at the D&D Building (979 Third Avenue).  The Kravet folks hosted us a delicious picnic luncheon in their brand spanking new showroom which offers decorative fabrics and furniture for the home.  This new showroom shines with bright hues and promises of swathing preppy fabric patterns onto our sofas and beds with the same splash of color that brings seasonal ambiance to our wardrobe - hooray! Kravet is the fabric powerhouse of this era and they own many of my favorite fabric companies -- including Lee Jofa, Brunschwig & Fils and now Lilly Pulitzer.

When I think of a preppy look for the home, it's one part mad men, other part David Hicks meets Laura Ashley -- a home like this one below with rattan and punches of graphics and color,
taken from POOLSIDE PREPPY edition
of Coastal Living Magazine

a view of Lilly Pulitzer's home line

taken in Kravet's design studio

The Kravet ladies hosted us a delicious lunch while adorned in Lilly

photographs courtesy of Blogfest Facebook page --

check it out here

to see all the fun stuff we took part in

 a little bit of this goes a long way, but wouldn't I love to nab a monogrammed chair with gingham on one side like the one pictured above or that sleek Kelly Green slipper chair!

so clink clink as we toast our delicious Pimm's Cup

(photograph from Style notebook and read here for this preppy summer cocktail recipe 

on the Style notebook site.) I'll be wearing my yellow Lilly dress playing croquet on the lawn this summer and sipping my PIMM's CUP while perched upon a newly upholstered Lilly chair....

now that's a preppy summer!