Daniel House Book Club

The House in Good Taste: America's First Decorator

November 08, 2021 Peter Spalding Season 1 Episode 7
Daniel House Book Club
The House in Good Taste: America's First Decorator
Show Notes

In the last episode, I said Elsie de Wolfe was the Joanna Gaines of her day, except way chicer, but that may have minimized her gigantic shoes – it might be better to call her the Kim Kardashian of her day. In de Wolfe, we see our modern concept of celebrity. She is often called America’s first decorator, but she was so much more. She was a stage actress, a social connector, a publicity genius (I think), and a not-too closeted lesbian, which didn’t seem to bother many. In 1935, Paris critics named de Wolfe “the best dressed woman in the world,” as she did not cater to trends but wore what suited her best.