Jennifer Garrigues’s history is inextricably linked to the world of haute couture. Moving to the U.S. in the 1960s as “Miss Yardley” to promote British fashion, she spent 15 years as a model, traveling the world and observing the creative processes of designers like Christian Dior, John Galanos and Jean Muir. This immersion in textiles, color, and glamour provided a foundational sensibility that would later define her interiors. After leaving fashion, she attended the New York School of Interior Design, grounding her artistic instincts with a solid business education. Her move to Palm Beach came after her husband was transferred, leading to the establishment of her highly successful interior design firm.
Garrigues has lived in her current Palm Beach house for 30 years, having purchased the 3,000-square-foot house from Lady Middleton. The home was originally a 1930s guest house designed by famed architect John Volk. At the time of purchase, Garrigues described the house as a “wreck” and set about renovating it to suit her eclectic style. One of her early changes was replacing a living room fireplace with a door that opens to a series of outdoor rooms.
A Balinese umbrella and Moroccan tin lanterns surround the pool along with terra-cotta planters with orange, lemon and Key lime trees.
Mid-century wrought iron chairs surround a table covered with layered zebra and fern-patterned fabrics. Dressed with mismatched Balinese printed napkins, vintage glasses, and bamboo flatware with a coconut centerpiece from Garrigues’s garden.
A carved Balinese daybed in teak, and a pair of wrought iron painted chairs from a junk shop, join planters from a local ceramic store containing irises.
Indian printed pillows surround a majoilica teapot with afternoon biscuits.
A verdant tropical path leads to the house’s entrance, with coral steps encrusted with an underlying shell mosaic.
A covered outdoor entertaining area, complete with a smiling Buddha sits on an antique table from India, in front of the banquette adorned with an array of pillows made from women’s dress fabrics from Zanzibar and textiles from Morocco. Garrigues’s orange and pink flowers are her “always happy” additions, placed in a flower wholesaler’s simple tin vase. The shells are often used as place cards for dinners on the table’s layered tablecloth.
While Garrigues’s portfolio includes many high-profile projects, it is her own Palm Beach home that provides the most intimate insight into her design ethos. Her fashion background is evident in her bold and confident use of materials, juxtaposing textures like rough, natural fibers with luxurious, sumptuous fabrics in unexpected pairings. It is a masterful mosaic of her global finds, where ancient artifacts can be found alongside contemporary paintings from her extensive travels to Morocco, India, and the Far East. Her eponymous Palm Beach retail shop also reflects this and is filled with a diverse inventory of furniture, art, and antiques.
Her gardens are full of natural and lush plantings where the designs incorporate natural vegetation that thrives in the tropical climate of Florida. Swaying palm trees and rustling bamboo stalks are often used to frame views and create a lush, secluded atmosphere.
For Garrigues, old and new pieces coexist harmoniously, creating an atmosphere that is at once intimate, sophisticated, and deeply personal. Her guiding principle is that a home filled with beloved objects and personal history is one that simply “works.”
The home is the ultimate expression of her “romance with design.” It is where she has fully realized her vision, unbound by client preferences, and is a powerful statement about both her life’s journey and her innate talent. It is a sanctuary that exhibits her global treasures, ensuring that her rooms are not just decorated, but full of soul.