The Bunny Williams Collection

If you read last week’s post on the 2023 Kips Bay Decorator Show House Palm Beach, the entrance to which is in the image above, you’ll likely remember that interior designer Bunny Williams is an esteemed honorary chair of the event. Williams, who has designed one of our most enduring collections, has been designing spaces for the Kips Bay events for decades, her first room in the New York Show House dating back to the 1970s. She shared a lively anecdote about the experience with Designers Today magazine that we thought we’d share as we highlight the products in her collection.

The Undauntable Bunny Williams

A portrait of Bunny Williams © Sari Goodfriend.

Williams had a sitting room on the third floor with walls covered in a lively Liberty of London chintz awash in carnations on which she hung portraits. “I was standing there and two ladies came to the door—one head to toe in fuchsia and the other all in shocking pink,” she remembers. “One looked at the room and said, ‘Oh, this must be the before.’ To which I replied, ‘You know, you are absolutely right. The after is above me’—there was a room upstairs that someone had done with Lucite and chrome—very Mod Squad. And I thought these women would like that room better. Not everybody likes every room…that’s what makes it fun.” As you can see from the products below, her talent for classicism makes her designs timeless—valid for ages to come, unlike Lucite and chrome!

In the video above, she shares with viewers her inspirations for the flower room and back porch she designed for the Flower Atlanta Showhouse, illustrating how the timeless beauty she creates is innate. Illuminating the space is our Belle Chandelier, which is in our Bunny Williams Collection. If you enjoyed her presentation, you can see all of the room tours of the showhouse on the Flower YouTube channel.

The Bunny Williams Collection

The Belle Chandelier in Bunny William’s space in the Atlanta Flower Showhouse. Image © Emily Followill.

The Belle Chandelier is fashioned from concentric circles that decrease in size as they move toward the bottom. This brings the time-honored shape of the gold chandelier, in our Bunny Williams Collection, a contemporary feel. This is heightened by the gold leaf finish that brings patina to the wrought-iron frame.

Our newest fixture in the Bunny Williams Collection, which was among the debuts this past winter, is the Augustus Small Chandelier. Recycled glass discs are encased in wrought iron in a satin black finish to bring the chandelier great aesthetic strength. Design details of note are how unobtrusively the discs are fastened to the frame and the fact that the discs grow smaller as they descend to the bottom of the shade. We also offer the Augustus in a larger size.

The Lola Pendant is a masterful classic design conceived by Bunny Williams for her lighting collection. The demi-dome has a frame made of square tubing to give the piece a sophisticated cleanness. The smoothness of the milk glass diffuser is equally clean. The aircraft cable is adjustable to easily transition this gold pendant to a semi-flush. We also offer the Lola as a flush mount.

The acanthus leaves rising up from the rope-ringed band of the Biddulph Semi-Flush are made of wrought iron in a gold leaf finish. These match the mount securing this gold ceiling light to the white acrylic shade. This light is one of our introductions in the Bunny Williams Collection, and it shines in our Bestsellers category. We also offer the Biddulph in a silvery champagne finish.

In the Bunny Williams collection, the Bailey Chandelier is a large chandelier with a two-tone finish: contemporary gold leaf on the interior and French black on the exterior. Ambient light radiates between the ribbons of wrought iron in a warm glow due to the gold interior. The black chandelier has nine lights so that glow is abundant.

A throw-back to a time when formal salons were the most popular gathering spots for the elite, the Bebe Chandelier designed by Bunny Williams has a wrought iron tulip-shaped frame in a contemporary gold leaf finish strung with clear glass beads. The light effervesces when it passes through the small glass globes to soften the illumination that flows from this gold chandelier.

The sheaf of feathers ornamenting the classic shape of the Bette Gold Chandelier is a special design note, as is the brilliance of the Grecian gold leaf finish on the wrought iron frame. This beautiful gold chandelier that is cinched in the middle to make it a classic form is in our Bunny Williams Collection, as is the matching Bette Wall Sconce.

The number of traditional design elements that Bunny Williams employed to create the Byron Pendant abound, from the fluted flourishes at the top and bottom of the black pendant, which are tied with circlets of wire, to the leaf motifs that flow along its frame. But the pendant, made of wrought iron in a French black finish, has a modern feel because the ornamentation is pared-down and pretty. The frosted glass suspended from a thin stem furthers the fixture’s contemporary subtleties.

The Belinda Chandelier with its dome shape completely covered in hundreds of gleaming glass flowers is a large-scale piece in our Bunny Williams Collection. The wrought iron framework of the glass chandelier, in a painted silver finish, is a final flourish of luster.

When she designed the Berkeley Chandelier, Bunny Williams was inspired by a Swedish bed corona that hangs in her home. In a dexterous mix of antique gold and moss gray finishes, the gray and gold chandelier has classical details accentuated by the contrast in hues.

You’ll need to look closely at the Malvasia Brass Desk Lamp to appreciate its unexpected details that include a classic fluted shade with knob-like fittings, dentil work and a playful hand clasping the tube that affixes the shade to the stem-like body. Included in our Bunny Williams Collection, this gold lamp exudes warmth thanks to the vintage brass finish. We also offer this design as a wall sconce.

Bunny Williams has achieved a timeless profile with the Warwick Wall Sconce that diffuses light through high-grade optic crystal tubes. Ribbons of wrought iron in a contemporary silver leaf finish hold the canisters of illumination in place so that the curved form is barely discernable from the front. This silver wall sconce is certified for damp locations. We also offer the Warwick in a tall version.

The Westley Wall Sconce has a mix of verdigris and antique gold leaf finishes on its surfaces. The intermingling of tones highlight flourishes, leaves, and flowers that bloom from the wall plate. The gray sconce with its whimsical design is included in our Bunny Williams Collection.

The Wallis Wall Sconce is wrapped in rope in a variety of thicknesses to make the natural material covering the fixture feel elegantly sophisticated. The rope sconce is in our Bunny Williams Collection proving how masterful the designer is at using elemental materials in surprising ways.

Only a Few More Days to Visit

There are only five days remaining if you want to take in the 2023 Palm Beach showhouse. You can purchase tickets here. Showhouse hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day through this coming Sunday, March 19th, and tickets start at $40. In addition to celebrating top design talent, the event also benefits the Kips Bay Boys & Girls Clubs and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County. The address of the home is 3240 North Flagler Drive in West Palm Beach.