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Designer Visit: Bibi Monnahan in Pennsylvania

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Designer Visit: Bibi Monnahan in Pennsylvania

October 10, 2011

Interior designer and creative consultant Bibi Monnahan lived the life of the design nomad—working and living between Paris and Manhattan, with stops in Australia and London in between—before settling in a 1760 stone house in Easton, Pennsylvania, a decade ago. Monnahan, who grew up in Seattle, honed her eye in the fashion world (she worked for luminaries like Romeo Gigli and Donna Karan) before moving into interior design.

Since buying her property, Monnahan has slowly transformed the interiors of the 1,500-square-foot house into a serene sanctuary featuring a moody palette—"I'm into a million shades of gray," she says. "My style is classic with a modern edge; I like to combine artisan-made, one-of-a-kind pieces with high-end modern furniture from Christian Liaigre, for instance, and mix in mid-twentieth century and flea market finds." To see more, go to Bibi Monnahan.

Designer Visit Bibi Monnahan in Pennsylvania portrait 3

Above: The stone farmhouse was built in 1760 and sits on a wooded seven-acre parcel overlooking the Delaware River.

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Above: Monnahan named her property Stonehare, a tribute the nocturnal rabbits who populate the property. A porcelain rabbit found at a flea market serves as a mascot ("He's very wabi sabi," she says, "he's been glued together a hundred times").

bibi monahan kitchen corner

Above: Monnahan recently finished a kitchen remodel, retaining the original millwork but installing new appliances and countertops. "I had always wanted a Viking range with a gray enamel finish and a matching hood," she says. "The countertops are honed Jet Mist granite, and the backsplash is Carrara marble (left over from the bathroom remodel). I painted the cabinets, including the wooden knobs, Benjamin Moore Gray 2121-10."

bibi kitchen full view

Above: On the kitchen counter (from L), a trio of the antique French apothecary jars from Bloom in Sag Harbor, a glazed porcelain Gucci pot from the 1970s, found on eBay; and a black Wedgwood piece share space.

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Above: Monnahan collects Chun blue pieces by Rupert Spira, a ceramicist from Shropshire, England.

bibi monnahan antler fireplace

Above: The crooked fieldstone fireplace is original, and the Vermont Castings wood-burning stove also came with the house. Monnahan bought the red stamp Stickley pieces in the early 1980s; the French industrial Jielde lamp is from a Paris flea market.

monnahan stair with keys

Above: A collection of framed keys adorns the stairwell walls.

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Above: A Madeline Weinrib quilt covers the bed, which features a Frette herringbone cashmere blanket with the suede trim. The American black walnut bed was made by David Schaefer.

bibi monahan light fixture

Above: Monnahan painted the wall behind her bed Benjamin Moore Noble Gray; she created the light fixture cover by mounting an antique music stand to the wall and draping it with Mokuba ribbons.

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Above: A vintage candelabra serves as a necklace stand.

bibi eileen gray chair

Above: "The secret language prayer over the fireplace was painted freehand by artist Virgil Ortiz, who is from Cochiti, Pueblo, near Sante Fe," according to Monnahan. The leather and metal chair is an Eileen Gray original, and the etched glass floor lamp is by LA-based artist Alison Berger.

bibi monnahan vanity table

Above: The small dressing table is by André Joyau, a French artisan living in Brooklyn.

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Above: Gray flagstones set in gravel create a walkway.

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