Imagine Cher dressing the part as she belts out “Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves.” Or think Stevie Nicks with dangling earrings, velvet, beads and fringe.
Translate these stars’ love of beads, bangles and baubles into home decor and you’ve got “Gypsy Chic.”
Be prepared to lay your money down–the gypsy invasion has only just begun.
This sizzling look, which works for all ages and all incomes, has been sneaking quietly into the sidelines of interior design the past two years.
“In October, we will be even more into that genre at the International Home Furnishings Market,” said Mark Hearne, vice president of the Lam Lee Group, which introduced Gypsy/Bohemian in textiles and accessories at the market in April. “We see the wave definitely going toward Gypsy Chic for the next couple of markets.”
The signs may be subtle to the uninitiated, but they’re obvious to the cognoscenti. A fusion of Haute Hippie with well-traveled bohemian, this world bazaar look is showing up in accessories everywhere from the Design Center of the Americas in Dania Beach, Fla., to Anthropologie and Pottery Barn. The Asian-oriented Gump’s by Mail catalog also is featuring tassel lamps and paisley throws that fit the theme. And last April, Vanguard Furniture introduced a Gypsy Chic collection at the April market.
Like many other home design trends, this one is ripped right from the pages of Women’s Wear Daily. Fashion designers, from Tom Ford to Emanuel Ungaro, have gone gaga over gypsy-inspired crinkle and silk fabrics, peasant skirts, fringe, patchwork, beads, exotic prints and embroidery.
Elle Decor, the upscale shelter magazine known for focusing its lens on the link between fashion and home design, is targeting the emerging trend in the August/September issue, which features a story on the Tribeca loft of singer/songwriter Julie Daniels and former rocker-turned-literary agent Luke Janklow. Their interpretation is a combination of rugs, antiques and cobalt blue tiles from Morocco with flea-market finds and vintage wallpaper.
“You can really see the interplay of home design with the hippie deluxe, bohemian look,” Margaret Russell, editor in chief of Elle Decor, said in a telephone interview from her New York office.
Russell, while admitting Gypsy Chic is not for everyone, said it can be a creative way to express yourself.
“When it comes to the home, it is really an easy thing,” she said. “There are no rules. You can stretch it to include whatever you want, whether it’s a flea-market find or something from the High Point market. You can make it your own. It’s foolproof. It needn’t be gloomy. It can be happy and fun and more carefree instead of Gothic.”
Buzzwords
Everyone, it seems, does have a different interpretation of what the look should be. But many of the buzzwords remain the same. Embroidery. Fringe. Glass beads. Rich colors. Velvet. Paisleys. Tassels. Layering. Exotic. Multi-source. Multiethnic. Handcrafted. Flea-market finds.
This trend is another version of the “Global Fusion” that we have been seeing the past few years, but this time it’s injected with more eastern European influences.
“Some global trends [that remind us of terrorism] are not very comfortable for people right now,” according to trend guru Michelle Lamb, publisher of The Trend Curve newsletter. “We have a void. Nature hates a void and something has to come in to replace it.”
Color gurus, such as Mark Woodman of Duron Paints & Wallcoverings, are including the gypsy colors in their palettes. Woodman is dubbing the look “Rich Hippie” and includes it as a part of his International Marketplace palette for 2003.
“We are seeing things from Morocco mixed with Spanish and Eastern European,” he said. “It’s like a Bavarian run amok in a Moroccan bazaar. Gypsy Chic came from fashion and the idea of wanting to have some fun. It’s a bit of a throwback to the ’60s hippie look without being miniskirts and Vidal Sassoon. After Sept. 11, people wanted to be more free-spirited. It’s foreign, sultry and kind of sexy.”
And so are his colors–Rustica (orange), Sweet Earth (deep brown), Enchilado (taco color), Indian Painting (light brown), Rose Bouquet (rich purple), Tomatillo (dark red), Turquoise Mosaic (blue green) and Cactus Pete (olive green).
Although the literal interpretation relies on deep rich colors, the palette can be lightened.
“If you don’t like red or other strong colors, it doesn’t have to knock you down,” said Ft. Lauderdale designer Barbara Van Voast, known for her exotic, eclectic interiors and use of feng shui. “You can work in softer colors [yellow, blue and green] as well. It can be more subtle with touches of gypsy.”
Van Voast said Gypsy Chic works well with almost any style except minimalistic modern.
“It’s the accessories that set the mood,” she said. “Most things are going to look very unusual, foreign, handcrafted, native, extremely artistic and, at its most, exuberant. You can go over the top and be tongue-in-cheek. The more sophisticated interpretations are probably still a bit lighthearted. It could be very sensuous and more enduring.”
Accessories from The Lam Lee Group, for example, include vases, bowls and candleholders that look like they were plucked from a foreign bazaar. The textures are nubby and the colors are deep or vivid. Textiles include a combination of fabrics and tassels with peacock feathers and strands of beads.
“We see Gypsy/Bohemian as a kind of eclectic gathering of things that don’t necessarily match,” Hearne said. “They have almost a flea-markety feel–very exotic, lots of rich color and interesting textures. They are definitely not matched groupings. It’s a gathered, collected look. There is more of an exotic Casbah feel to it. It’s almost fortunetellerish.”
Vanguard’s Gypsy Chic furniture collection features what the manufacturer calls the “fluid fabrics and jewelry accents of a well-traveled life.” The upholstery ranges from a flared-arm camelback sofa with down feather blend cushions to an updated winged back chair with carved legs and a Turkish-inspired three-cushion pouf. Hand-painted accent pieces feature designs inspired by paisleys and damasks. There are Asian and Florentine motifs and woven tapestries. Colors tend toward glimmering reds, rich garnets and jeweled turquoise. Glass bead trim is used on upholstery as well as pillows.
Dixon Mitchell, Vanguard’s vice president of merchandising, said the collection has a European attitude with a sprinkle of Asia and old Persian (rather than Middle East) influences.
“We called it `Gypsy Chic’ because obviously it was a look of someone who was well-traveled and nomadic,” he said. “We saw bohemian-type fabrics with paisleys and stripes, delicate damasks, compounded with beads and trim.”
Although the team who worked on the collection was Generation X, Mitchell sees its appeal spanning the generations. So how do you put the look together? Start with a neutral palette (such as creamy chenille) and layer bolder patterns of damasks and paisley on it.
“Don’t be afraid to go over the top,” he said. “We were bold and I think it came off in a very eclectic manner. Each of the patterns played off one another.”
For accessories, he suggested using lots of glass, crystals, even Lucite (which he says gives more shimmer). Add moss or feather-covered balls. Drape a silk or wool throw over a wing chair or a sofa. Use lighting with Moroccan influences and shades with glass-beaded trim.
Gypsy Chic is an equal opportunity trend. It can be done in all price ranges. You can start by looking in your closet. How about using that Russian peasant shawl you bought on vacation as a table topper?
“I think it’s a lot more fun when it’s affordable,” Elle Decor’s Russell said. “It doesn’t need to be precious. You can do a fabulous table setting or lay a wonderful throw on your bed. You can just add a bit of it and get the gypsy feeling. I think it’s a very appealing look. You can make it personal, and that’s what it’s all about.”
