How lucky I've been to live in such beautiful places and able to make them as I dreamed. I've been lucky. I've adored my houses more than my friends (or husbands).

I've always liked a formal layout and informal planting," she explained. "First get the structure right, like the bones in a face, then plant it like a crowded shoe. If you have a strong layout, you can let the plants seed themselves all over the place. Haphazard, unexpected... I like to be surprised by a garden.

I've lived too long and I've lived too well.

Even if it's not a style of architecture or period you like, a decorator has to have a feel for a house's personality and try not to fight against it. I like to get the juice out of a house and not spoil it.

I like to preserve simplicity rahter than over-polishing. Fashions are changeable. Taste is in realizing the essence of a place.

It is usually a mistake to impose an individual's taste on a room that has its own....style. Conversely, to put very fine pieces of furniture in a room that is without architectural distinction is as absurd as wearing a tiara with a bathing suit.

A gentle mixture of furniture expresses life and continuity but it must be a judicious mixture that flows and mixes well. It is a bit like mixing a salade. (I am better at room than salads).