Nestled in Paris’s 17th arrondissement – all broad tree-lined streets filled with elegant Haussmannian buildings – Tiphaine Verdier’s apartment is something of a surprise. Spread over two floors, it’s a jewel box of a home with a sense of whimsy more commonly associated, perhaps, with English interiors. Its eight rooms (including three bedrooms) are nest-like, painted floor to ceiling in enveloping pinks and greens with the odd splash of yellow. Botanical paintings and drawings accent the scheme, ensuring the overall feel is soft and welcoming.
When Tiphaine and her two teenage children, Albertine (19) and George (17), moved in three years ago, it was a minimalist’s dream: white-painted everything. But she loved how it was ‘like a small house, tucked under the roof’.
Tiphaine was keen to inject colour into the interior and immediately set to work – in four months she transformed the apartment top to toe with paint. As it’s a rental, she hasn’t been able to make any structural changes, but instead has created impact though her decor choices.
‘I wanted to break away from the overly traditional feel by painting
the ceilings too, which is quite an unusual thing to do in Paris’
‘I’m a big fan of colour and really wanted to make this apartment a vibrant, cheerful cocoon,’ she says. ‘Since the building dates from the 19th century and is quite classical with ornate mouldings, I wanted to break away from the overly traditional feel by painting the ceilings too, which is quite an unusual thing to do in Paris. I lived in London for eight years and have probably been influenced by the way the British use colour and dare to mix patterns. We tend to play it much safer here in France.’
Tiphaine’s furniture and accessories are equally playful, involving vintage (in particular mid-century) items, often in ice-cream hues. ‘There’s almost nothing new in the apartment, except perhaps my pink sofa – a reissue of the 1970s Sandra sofa by Cinna / Ligne Roset, and the pink onyx marble table in the dining room,’ she says. The latter is one of Tiphaine’s own designs for her interiors brand, Les Causeuses, which specialises in vintage-inspired pieces, from mid-century-style benches covered in vintage fabrics to quirky floral wall lights.
‘I love hunting for treasures at flea markets and at auctions,’ she says. ‘I’m always very drawn to objects that have lived a life, and I also like mixing different periods. Antique and vintage pieces bring charm to a room and are often one of a kind.’ Favourites include the yellow 1950s Stella sofa by Knoll and the 1970s Italian ginkgo leaf brass floor lamp, both in the pink-washed living room.
Despite the kaleidoscope of colours, the apartment feels calm and balanced – nothing jars. ‘I think what I like most about living here is the sense of coherence and harmony throughout,’ says Tiphaine. Indeed, pink, green and yellow tie the two floors like thread, bringing a fresh, joyful energy to what might once have been a quietly traditional 19th-century home.
To discover more about Tiphaine’s designs, visit lescauseuses.fr
