Brittany Bromley: Elegance at ease is decorator’s hallmark

Brittany Bromley inside her  shop on Village Green, CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

By JOYCE CORRIGAN

If Brittany Bromley has ever flashed a smile at you, you know how disarming it can be. You start questioning your hair, your clothes, and then your house and garden. 

Emerging from her car at the curb of her Brittany Bromley Interiors shop on Village Green, the celebrated Bedford and Palm Beach-based decorator, all blond hair and bronzed with aqua blue eyes, is a vision in pink and gold. 

Ms. Bromley will appear in an upcoming issue of Palm Beach Cottages and Gardens Magazine in a story about creatives and their canines. “Brittany looked so glam sitting sideways on a chair along with her pooch, Banksy, against de Gournay wallpaper!” enthused PBC&G Editor-in-Chief Harriet Mays Powell. 

“Banksy is actually a terrier rescue” clarified Ms. Bromley with a chuckle. “A miniature dachshund and Yorkshire terrier mix, and a spoonful of Chihuahua.” 

The dining room of Brittany Bromley’s 290-year-old Bedford house provides the setting for  the cover photo of her new book, “Relaxed Elegance: Rooms for Living Well.” 

The BBI Shop, which welcomed event planners La Maison Fete to share the space, recently hosted a book signing to celebrate the launch of Ms. Bromley’s new book, “Relaxed Elegance: Rooms for Living Well,” published by Rizzoli. The dynamic duo co-occupy the 1857 Jackson House, located at 617 Old Post Rd., which Bromley has leased from the Bedford Historical Society since 2016. Never one to miss a chance to embellish, the author-of-honor contributed a dreamy Easter tablescape in her signature pastel palette. “I’m thrilled to be sharing our space with Maison Fete’s Brett and Deanna,” she commented. “Now whenever I’m in the shop, it’s a struggle not to purchase everything they stock — an occupational hazard!”

Bromley’s design aesthetic can be summed up as a fresh, color-saturated, pattern-filled take on classic decor. Her embrace of a whimsical and refined, yet family-friendly style is a welcome departure from the austerity of the beige-on-beige of the recently dominant quiet-luxury look. 

The beautiful, illustrated 25-page tome — which she refers to as “a labor of love, an enormous undertaking and her third child” — entailed revisiting and photographing  design concepts and spaces she has created through the years, and writing essays in each section sharing tips and advice about recreating the look. 

For the all-important cover image of “Relaxed Elegance,” Ms. Bromley chose the dining room of her own 290-year-old Bedford house. “When pouring over the options, the editorial team kept returning to this room as it really captures my design ethos,” she said. “The papier-mache wall coverings lend a Narnia-like enchantment. In another setting, this wall treatment could feel extremely formal, but paired with loose, relaxed ticking, striped taffeta and a jute rug, it embodies relaxed elegance.”

As fate would have it, Bedford and Bromley’s new home in Palm Beach both epitomize relaxed elegance, too.

“In Bedford there’s the understanding of the relationship between architecture and surrounding landscape and the fact that no one ever worries about muddy feet, paws or riding boots,” explained Ms. Bromley. “Palm Beach may be more formal, but at any given time, a child, fresh from the beach or pool, will wander into a room and sit on a sofa in a wet bathing suit.” Ms. Bromley makes a point of seeking luxury performance fabrics and coverings that a family never has to fret about. 

She and her two daughters — Charlotte, 12 and Gigi, 9 — now divide their time between the two towns.  “Having grown up in Chicago and worked in New York City, I knew when we moved out of the city I didn’t want ‘suburban,’” recalled Ms. Bromley. “I’m a huge history buff and the sheer quantity of exquisite historic homes in Bedford is simply unmatched. This town has my heart.” 

Regular commissions from Westchester clients keep her coming back, too. “Brittany has such a rare creative intuition,” said long-term Bedford client, Whitney Schwartz. “She brings vision, heart and humor to everything she touches.” 

In 2018, in partnership with NYC & G Magazine, Ms. Bromley helped create the Bedford Playhouse’s VIP Tasting and Green Room. (And, yes, the room is a most sophisticated shade of green.) Martha Stewart christened it with an intimate wine tasting for her closest friends.

“What I’ve always loved doing is converting spaces to meet people’s needs and desires,” mused Ms. Bromley. And what everyone desires, she knows — even in the most elegant home — is a place where they can actually chill.

“Whenever a room feels too traditional to me,” explained Ms. Bromley,” I get an urge to add an antique Moroccan Beni Ourain rug or a striped cotton dhurrie just to mix it up. It’s like pairing a Chanel jacket with faded jeans or a tuxedo with rolled up pant legs and bare feet on the beach. It looks so much better that way.”