By M&M, on July 9th, 2013 
For this Washington D.C. home, designer Darryl Carter chose classic milky shades, as well as the palest robin’s egg blue (Albermarle Blue by Darryl Carter Colors by Benjamin Moore
In an interwiew by Veranda, designer Darryl Carter gives his top paint tips
1. Pick Your Paint First – Everything that Carter puts into a room stems in some way from the wall color. “It’s a way to harmonize a house in its entirety.” Once you’ve chosen your paint, select textiles next—preferably a hue that closely matches the walls. “Navigate the drapery into the wall color so that you are not so aware of the window treatment,” he suggests.
2.Let architecture shine in white. Paint bookshelves and cabinetry to blend into the walls, and the ceiling, also the same color. This technique adds a subtle architectural element to any space.
3. Cream Can Work Around Kids- Darryl suggests that you don’t have to sacrifice great style just because you have kids in the home. Instead of shying away from softer shades, he suggests changing the materials. Try enamel finishes and high-gloss paint in high-traffic areas, as well as durable faux leather and outdoor fabrics for upholstered pieces that withstand the wear and tear of young children.
4. Have a Flow Through the House. Carter encourages homeowners to to integrate their child’s room into the larger experience of the home. Created a space that matches the overall style of the family home—and create interesting elements within the room such as the furniture or accessories that boast unique style and color. A great flow plan will allow parents to adjust the space as the child matures.
5. White Rooms Allow Antiques To Feel Modern- A beautiful antique piece of furniture could very well be lost in a wallpapered room. Carter uses neutral paint not only to showcase antique elements, but to add an avant garde touch. “People often tell me that my rooms are very modern,” he says, “but generally they are populated with a lot of antiques.”
6.Use White Too Create Contrast – White walls can be the very best color to showcase primitive architectural elements. The truest white can give a room a modern touch allowing antique wood furniture to shine and shed light on it’s beautiful texture and patina.
7. Experiment with finishes- Consider unifying elements with the same color. For example, a cream on the walls can be complemented with cream linen accent pillows, and the color used to wash the wood floors, pulls together a number of elements in the room. In the Ritz Hotel in Washington, D.C., Carter used fabric in the same color to articulate the architecture of a space. Cabinets are lacquered, the walls were matte, and the floors are reclaimed barn flooring, all washed in the same shade.
8.Revamp Old Pieces With Paint- “I have redefined so many things in my house with a coat of paint,” says Carter.
9. Be Consistent, Inside and Out.- An exterior of the D.C. home was featured in Veranda’s May/June 2012 issue. Carter wanted the exterior to honor the spirit of its surroundings. The house was painted, then powerwashed until some of the original brick showed through to suggest age. “As you approach a house, you are getting a sense of what it is,” says Carter. “I think it’s important, when you open the door, that the interior is consistent with the exterior’s approach.
Darryl Carter Books
The Collected Home dazzles with gorgeous photographs of rooms and details, and enlightening text about what makes a space extraordinary. Additionally, Darryl provides–for the first time ever–hands-on advice for approaching home design, such as defining short- and long-term goals, from selecting an antique door knocker to planning the architectural elements of an addition.
Lavishly illustrated, this book is a must-have for anyone who desires a home that feels richly layered, full of character, and unquestionably calm.
Reviews:
As a designer, every time I see Darryl’s work, I marvel at his talent to “white out” what would otherwise be same old traditional or colonial spaces. In other words, he can take your typical (and sometimes cluttered) design and edit it, clarify it to such a poetic yet livable state, that you wonder how modern it is despite the very colonial roots. Not that anything is wrong with color or traditional design (I’m a fan of both), but his work feels like the antithesis to hundreds of well-designed but boring spaces that seem to have a complete lack of innovative design given the modern world we live in. His second book, The Collected Home, is a heart-felt rendition of some of his latest work, his aesthetics and guiding principles. I particularly enjoyed the photographs that beautifully illustrate his strong emphasis on architectural integrity and how little ornamentation you really need if the bones are exceptionally designed. A personal favorite quote from the book, as he describes his first show house experience “..young and intimidated by the veteran designers also presenting their work, I thought, “This is not at all the way a home should be experienced.”” Knowing the context, I can completely relate to that feeling – Raji Radhakrishnan / Murali Narasimhan
By NJLeoOH
This book inspired me. I sat through only about 10-15 pages before jumping up, moving furniture, shelves, display items, putting items away and taking others out for prominent positioning. I discovered my colors (which were there all along but I didn’t see them!). Highly recommend and have shared my copy with friends for their own inspiration.
Darryl Carter- Veranda Magazine
An unusually low ceiling prevented Carter from installing a chandelier in a client’s dining room, forcing him to be creative. By using a pair of tall, Baroque-style table lamps instead of a ceiling fixture, he created a different kind of focal point.
Darryl Carter- Rustic Farmhouse Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- Rustic Farmhouse Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- Rustic Farmhouse Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- His Shop– Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- Veranda Magazine
Carter gives a sparse attic room a styled look with an array of artworks hung, surprisingly, on the angled ceiling. The matching white frames, tonal prints, and casual arrangement don’t overwhelm the nook.
Darryl Carter- Veranda Magazine
Four pierced metal skids—surfaces used in the plaster-making process—went from serving as tools in the creation of art to being art in their own right when Carter hung them as a quadtych. “Look at things from all different angles, especially objects that are meaningful to you and things that you wouldn’t typically think of as art,” he writes. “Because they look intriguing, they often ignite conversation.”
Darryl Carter- June 2012 Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- June 2012 Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- June 2012 Elle Decor
Darryl Carter In Veranda
Darryl Carter In Veranda
Darryl Carter- June 2012 Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- June 2012 Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- June 2012 Elle Decor
Darryl Carter- His Collected Home- Elle Decor
Darryl Carter Architectural Digest
Washington, D.C., decorator Darryl Carter certainly makes success look easy. Fifteen years ago he had a busy career as a lawyer when he decided to change course and open his own interior-design firm. He has established himself with surprising speed, transforming rooms in project after project with an effortless style grounded in a neutral palette (white, in all its possible tones, is a favorite, especially Benjamin Moore’s Moonlight White) and an appreciation for sculptural silhouettes.
Darryl Carter- Architectural Digest
Cool neutrals and crisp furnishings lend a lovely, liberated air to a Tudor Revival house by architect Donald Lococo and designer Darryl Carter
Carter conceived the sofas, the cocktail table is attributed to Jansen, and a Renaissance Revival armchair stands alongside an antique French daybed; the paneling is painted in a white from Carter’s line for Benjamin Moore.
Darryl Carter In Veranda
Darryl Carter In Veranda
Darryl Carter- Architectural Digest
A circa-1830 Swedish pedestal table topped with a Ming-dynasty jar centers the entrance hall of a Washington, D.C.–area house by interior designer Darryl Carter and architect Donald Lococo.
One bedroom is anchored by a 19th-century four-poster; Highland Court fabrics were used for the custom-made curtains, duvet, and European shams, and the sisal rug is by Stark Carpet.
The library features a William IV–style sofa by Lee Stanton Antiques and a Gothic-style oak table grouped with an 18th-century English wing chair, from Golden & Assoc. Antiques, dressed in an Edelman leather and a Larsen fabric from Cowtan & Tout.
