"If any one element within this year’s Kips Bay Decorator Show House was to be named as a standout, Sarah Bartholomew’s plaster-fluted walls would certainly be in the running." —ADPRO
We take you on a tour through one of the most eye-catching rooms of the 47th annual Kips Bay Decorator Show House, set in a historic Georgian mansion on New York's Upper East Side. Each designer was given a room to showcase their unique style, and Elle Decor A-Lister Sarah Bartholomew designed “A Room of Her Own” to be a woman’s study room that she describes as a “personal, sophisticated edit of treasures.” SuperStrata and our artisan partner Patrick Shoemaker collaborated with Sarah to architecturally transform the room into one that draws attention to all five walls and the floor.
Every surface was considered, from the hand-painted geometric patterned floor by Patrick to the plaster fluted wall panels and coves by SuperStrata that appear to give extra height and bring the eyes up to the fluted coves that arch over onto the Marmorino plaster ceiling that Patrick finished. The study room is full of other thoughtful details, such as the hand-painted single gray pinstripe that runs the perimeter of the ceiling next to the fluted plaster coves.
1. Fluted plaster wall panel for Sarah Bartholomew by SuperStrata. Lime paint finish for flutes and hand-painted floor by partner artisan Patrick Shoemaker. Photo by Patrick Cline.
2. Detail of fluted plaster walls and coves by SuperStrata and finished in lime paint by partner artisan Patrick Shoemaker. Hand-painted gray pinstripe ceiling detail by Patrick Shoemaker.
When designing this room, Sarah took an intentional detour from her signature style full of colors and patterned fabrics, opting instead to use primarily neutral tones that brought her highly curated artwork and decor pieces to the forefront. As she states, “The subtle hues of the plaster walls and patina floor create the canvas for a haven. Minimal, collected and quality pieces, it’s the perfect marriage of beauty and peace realized into an interior.”
Per her vision, we created fluted plaster elements to do just that—their lime paint finish bounces light around the room, and the ridges in the plaster flutes help to break up sound waves, reducing external noise to amplify the peaceful nature of the study room. They also give plenty of texture and dimension, making the space feel more open and airy.
These fluted plaster panels were bench-run and installed in the study by SuperStrata, as well as the fluted plaster coves that were hand cast and fitted above the panels. They were then adjusted to ensure the seams were flawless in a process called pointing, before our artisan partner Patrick Shoemaker applied a lime paint to the flutes for a subtle finish.
1. Detail of fluted plaster wall panel by SuperStrata and hand-painted floor pattern by Patrick Shoemaker for Sarah Bartholomew by SuperStrata. Photo by Patrick Cline.
2. Fluted plaster wall panels and coves for Sarah Bartholomew by SuperStrata. Lime paint finish for flutes and hand-painted floor by partner artisan Patrick Shoemaker. Photo by Patrick Cline.
For more inspiration in showcasing every wall of a room, see our other projects below and read more about the techniques we used in this study room for Sarah Bartholomew.