Done/Undone with Clarisse Demory in Paris - Remodelista
Photography by Natalie Weiss for Remodelista (except where noted). “I think it’s because I’m from the north of France that I find colors very romantic, but in the real sense of romantic,” designer Clarisse Demory tells me as we sit in her Paris kitchen talking about pastels and her use of color. Two bouquets of dried gypsophila, eucalyptus, and limonium greet guests at the door. The living room contains an old mantel (good for still life sculptures), two marble tables at slightly different heights, two small couches, and a paper wall decoration from Confetti System. Lucile and Clarisse Demory sit together by the living room window. Clarisse has been collecting vases (here with an paper object from Confetti System) for years. An antique lamp, painting, and furniture from Emmaüs, France’s chain of charity shops. A DIY desk made from white metal frames and rectangular cuts of glass. French doors just off the living room open into Lucile’s bedroom, where a sparse fiddle leaf fig tree matches the green tiled fireplace. Above L: A round vintage lamp sits on a stool, both found in a nearby charity shop. Ugly-beautiful marble mixed together. A print by Paris-based artist Olivier Sévére, a friend of the Demory sisters, hangs in Lucile’s bedroom. Lucile makes vases of her own (she works with ceramicist Cécile Daladier) while she prepares her studio, kiln and all, at her family’s place in Lille. Above L: The small kitchen has a traditional Parisian tiled floor made from broken tiles and cement. Above R: Clarisse removed the doors from an Ikea cupboard and replaced them with tea towels. “There used to be many small, traditional Parisian hotels in this part of Paris but they’re all in very bad condition now so you find a lot of the furniture on the street,” says Clarisse, describing the origin of the antique luggage bench, along with three others, she acquired by luck. Photograph by Alexa Hotz for Remodelista. A green Staub La Cocotte and Folding Wooden Dish Rack. Photograph by Alexa Hotz for Remodelista. “I like mixing a typical 1990s Memphis design with very ancient florals. I always keep a few plates out, just for the pleasure of it.” A Baroque still life on the kitchen table. Green bottles contain olive oil or function as vases in the kitchen. With black plastic paint buckets from the nearest hardware store, Clarisse creates miniature gardens (she likes their square shape for fitting starter plants into their corners). A small pine tree and pale pink astilbe in the windowsill. Photograph by Alexa Hotz for Remodelista. When Clarisse first moved into the apartment, she pulled up the carpet in her bedroom and little by little stripped it down to build it out in the way she preferred. While she usually leans toward mixing her own inexpensive paint, Clarisse admires the subtle black tones available through Farrow & Ball. “But I don’t like varnishes so I mixed oil with natural turpentine into a wax and let the paint absorb it.” Books in a color palette to match the room, Byredo boxes designed by Acne, and vases. A grouping of three shell necklaces: “They’re not really fashionable, but I find them so interesting. When I was very young, it was quite trendy, and we forgot about them. I think we should look at them again,” she says. A view of the Demory flat from their stairwell.