The World According to Ralph
by habituallychic
04 . 21 . 08
If anyone embodies the notion that anything is possible in America, it is the story of how Bronx born Ralph Lifshitz who started out selling ties became Ralph Lauren, a man, a brand, and a lifestyle. I recently ran across photos from his Bedford, New York home that epitomize the Ralph Lauren style with a level of perfection that is probably unattainable to the rest of us mere mortals but it sure is fun to look. Enjoy!
30 Comments
Completely beautiful,completely unrealistic. Probably one of the most beautiful houses in Bedford, and there are many great homes. But, I don’t want to live in a store 😉
Loved your post on Ralph! I posted a link on ABT to it today!
XX
Anna
Gorgeous! It’s really a stunning house..even only for that pool 😛
Ralph is always Ralph!
thanks for the photo!
Silvia
Love it!
wow… this is so ‘ralph’ and so good… what a wonderful sneak peek into his home!!
A brass chandelier? Really? With lamp shades. I don’t know. The rest is nice though.
Amazing house. LOVE what we can see of that bathroom (second to last pic). Overall it’s almost too perfect. Are these from a magazine article or a book?
In Architectural Design, Nov. 07 I believe, they showcase Ralph’s home in Jamaica or the Bahamas. It’s crazy to see how different the two homes are.
Homer’s Odd, I thought it looked a little like a store too but it might be the monogramed pillows. Even if something is completely perfect and overdone I always think you can take away some ideas from the design.
Silvia, I would die for a pool like that! I’m so jealous!
Thanks Anna! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Erika, I love the Englishness of this home like the antlers and tweeds. So definitely Ralph!
Andre, thanks for stopping by. Glad you enjoyed it too!
Anonymous, I don’t mind the brass. It suits the style but to each his own.
Sacheverelle, I love the bathroom too! I wish I knew exactly where these photos were from. My new firm has a lot of digital images in a database for inspiration and reference and I found these while I was looking for images for a client meeting. They were entitled Triumphantly Ralph and when I googled the title, it seems like there might have been a spread in British House & Garden but I’m not positive. I haven’t seen the big Ralph Lauren book but I’m wondering if they might be in there as well.
Stacy, I’m sure the different home styles reflect their location. Bedford is very traditional since that is the style of the house and area while I’m sure the Jamaica house was light and airy. It also seems to reflect the different home lines of RL.
I love the touches of blue and white, especially the Foo Dog lamps that I have been coveting but can’t afford.
RJH dl H
Maybe RL will have us all over for a dip in the pool and give us a tour of the casa!
Nice post HC!
These are great images. I had hoped for it to be a little more filled with personal items and/or a little more shabby. I wonder if it looks a little more casual when the family is living there and the stylists are back at the store? His house in the Bahamas was owned by the William Paleys…does it get any better?
Seems like the scale of everything is on the exaggerated side here.
The paintings, the light fixtures, the hurricanes… and especially the umbrella stand. He’s definitely created his own big american style.
Well it is incredible what a boy from the Bronx can achieve in your country, I was reading about Calvin klein the other day and hi is from the Bronx too, and has,too, magnificent houses,in another style.
yeah…
Full disclosure: I frequently check in to RL Home on the web so I can watch the mini-movies of the different collections.
Nice work, if you can get it.
n2design, I bought my foo dogs at Pearl River Mart for $20 each. Could you buy them and then make a lamp out of them?
RJH dl H, I wonder how one goes about making nice with Mr. Lauren for a tour of any of his fabulous homes!
MorrisMore, It is a bit overstyled but I always blame that on the fact that anyone who was having their home photographed would fluff it up and hide any personal clutter.
The Jamaica house that the Paley’s owned was featured in Arch Digest.
Jonathan, even if you didn’t know it was RL’s house, I bet you could guess, even if every pillow wasn’t monogramed. He definitely has his own recognizable style.
Karina, I read too that Calvin and Ralph grew up in the Bronx but they said they didn’t think they knew each other then. I think it’s funny that Ralph’s style is accessorized and full of details while Calvin’s is spare and minimalist.
Easy and Elegant Life, One benefit of working in a design office is that I can check out RL videos at work and not get in trouble. It’s research!
Ohhh Thank you for making my day by showing Ralph’s house! 🙂