Just Like A Dream

When it comes to home décor, those who favor a more romantic and classic approach must be no stranger to de Gournay. Founded nearly 40 years ago by Claud Cecil Gurney, the design house best known for its luxurious hand-crafted wallpapers is now an international company with showrooms from New York to Shanghai. Its latest addition is the newest de Gournay showroom in San Francisco, which was officially opened in March 1st.

Situated on Sacramento St, the go-to haven of architecture and interior design in the charming Pacific Heights neighborhood, de Gournay teamed up with renowned San Francisco designer, Jonathan Rachman, on the flower arrangement seen at the exterior of the showroom for the opening party as well as on a regular basis. Of the collaboration, Jonathan Rachman speaks fondly about the dear friends he’s come to refer to as the “de Gournay Trinity” (Claud, Hannah, and Rachel Cecil Gurney, the directors of de Gournay). He recalls: “We have collaborated on a few projects, but personally, I consider them family. Because of their generosity to myself and my firm, as well as my personal affection towards them, I offer my assistance in any way that I can. I was honored to design the floral arrangements for de Gournay showroom in San Francisco, which we’d talked about on one of our trips to London a while ago. I look forward to more professional collaborations with de Gournay, which are an amazing testament to our rapport and lifelong friendship.”

It was exactly through Jonathan’s suggestion that the newest showroom be located in “the perfect neighborhood of Sacramento St in Presidio Heights”. The showroom itself is basically a series of rooms, each covered in a different hand-painted wallpaper de Gournay is famous for, in vibrant patterns like chinoiserie and exotic designs inspired by foreign lands. For this newly exclusive boutique of de Gournay, Jonathan has the liberty to design the interiors and choose all the best wallpapers and fabrics from de Gournay.

“A decadent opulence, a sign that ‘more is more’ and old-world glamor is back”.

It’s safe to say that the moment you step inside, not only do you feel as if you are thrown into another world, but into another era altogether. The rich motifs, patterns, textures, and overall design of each area can easily remind you of an elegant lounge in 18th century Europe or the exotic realms of the Eastern part of the world. Indeed, the Japanese and Korean ‘Wisteria’ design, hand-embroidered on silver gilded silk covers the entrance walls alongside de Gournay’s new ‘Amazonia’ design, a verdant tropical scene inspired by the Amazon rainforest.

Filled with palms, monkeys, toucans and parrots, hand painted onto a distressed rice paper of bold turquoise, the vivid design elements complemented Jonathan’s beautiful arrangement of peonies, orchids, ranunculus and hydrangeas. This scene can only be defined as decadent opulence, a sign that “more is more” and old-world glamor is back–a very welcome development in the design world.