Living with Lilly: Familiar prints now in home collection

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press• July 2, 2011

There is just something about Lilly.

Those Lilly Pulitzer print dresses that have been part of fashion history for 50 years have taken us to luxury resorts, on cruises, to garden parties. To Palm Beach and to summer wedding receptions. They’re a touch of the life of the affluent, if only in our imaginations.

Wall fabric: In a Twist in Seafoam; Deborah Sofa with Heritage Floral in Aqua/Orange and trim of Worth Avenue in Seafoam. Pillows from left to right: Shell We in Keen Peach with trim of Ruffle Me in Breakers; Rip Roaring in Lagoon Blue with welt of Rip Roaring in Lilly Pink; Wentworth chair featuring Rip Roaring in Seaweed with welt of Rip Roaring in Lagoon Blue. Lucille Shape Leg Table; Montefalco large lamp in Roman White and Ziggy in Kiwi carpet. Photos courtesy of Lee Jofa. And even if we did not own one, we still looked at them and thought about owning one. There is just something about those cheerful pink and green tropical, flowery, print dresses.

What other fabric/print has a cult following? Dressing from head to toe in Lilly has been a tradition for generations of Lilly lovers and now there is more — much more, as I discovered on my visit to the Kravet/Lee Jofa showroom in the Miromar Design Center in Estero.

Lilly is coming to your home!

Lilly Pulitzer for Lee Jofa has just launched a collection of home furnishings fabrics and trimmings. The collection features many of the familiar prints in signature pink and green, floral and beach motifs, embroideries and jacquards, stripes and bold solids for accents.

Redesigned for the home from the iconic prints, the fabrics are perfect for upholstery, curtains, bedding, accessories and more. For those who want a lesser infusion of Lilly, try cornices, pillows, a throw over a bed or simply taking a couple of these beautiful fabrics and framing them for a gorgeous pop of color.From top: Pillows in Rip Roaring in Orange with welt of Rip Roaring in Dandelion; Rip Roaring in Dandelion with welt of Rip Roaring in Orange; Rip Roaring in Lifeguard with welt of Rip Roaring in Hibiscus; Rip Roaring in Tide Blue with welt of Rip Roaring in Island Coral; Rip Roaring in Lilly Pink with welt of Rip Roaring in Lagoon Blue and Happy Plaid in Orange/Blue.

They’re perfect for a girl’s bedroom. A beach house. Pool house. These gorgeous designs are a nice balance between traditional and contemporary.

First of all, you cannot look at this collection without feeling happy. Think pink lemonade, orange sherbet, cupcakes with sprinkles. Watermelon. Lemon drops. They may be slightly over the top but I guarantee that you will smile. They evoke a lighthearted, sweet spirit. Who can’t use some of this?

And those names. Color Me Coral, an ode to the beach. Tail Lights, with dragons swinging Chinese lanterns from their tails ... fun! Shell We, a geometric shell print inspired by a “sailor’s Valentine” found in Palm Beach. I Dahlia, a soft floral. Racy Lacey, inspired by Queen Anne’s lace. Well Connected, a trellis design that first appeared on a chair in Lilly Pulitzer’s own home.

The collection includes some of the Lillyesque classic embroidery. In a Twist uses beautiful, rope-like tassels to create a geometric design. Sea Fan uses a coral motif embroidered on light-weight linen. There is the cheerful Happy Plaid. Stripe it Up, a complement to the prints and neutrals. Leaf Me Be and Hide and Seek.

They are just plain fun.

From left (clockwise): Tail Lights with True Navy with trim in Tickled in White; Well Connected in Tide Blue with Trim of Twisted in Tidal Blue; Stripe It Up in Tide Blue and Color Me Coral in Tide Blue with trim of Just a Peek in True Blue. And don’t forget the hunt for the word “Lilly.” The hallmark of an authentic Lilly Pulitzer fabric, it has been incorporated into the design of each pattern. This was a fun game to play when I spent some time previewing the collection with Amy Jimenez, manager of the Kravet/Lee Jofa showroom in Estero.

“There has been an incredible amount of excitement in the design community for months about this fun, new collection, which is exclusively distributed through Lee Jofa. We are thrilled to have it on display,” says Jimenez.

“The collection also features six white upholstery weight fabrics, a lightweight raw silk available in 15 colors and will soon have beautiful trimmings to accent with as well. Our designers and their clients will really enjoy decorating with this unique collection of patterns and palettes.”

Lilly Pulitzer for Lee Jofa is available to the trade through the Kravet/Lee Jofa showroom at the Miromar Design Center in Estero. The public is invited to preview the collection and may purchase through an interior designer or decorator.

More Lilly is coming this summer when HFI Brands unveils its Lilly Pulitzer Home collection to retailers. The line of 200 pieces of Lilly-inspired furnishings and accessories with Lee Jofa fabrics has been designed for the bedroom, dining and living room.

 

Want to try a spritz of Lilly in your home? Frame a few of these Lilly Lace squares and arrange them for a beautiful pop of color.

 

 

-Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator. Visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 949-1808 or email wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog.