After All.
De Wolfe, Elsie (Lady Mendl). After All. London…:William Heinemann Ltd., (1935).
8vo.; upper hinge cracked; inscription faintly offset through to half-title; red cloth; spine stamped in gilt. In a specially made cloth slipcase.
First edition of this autobiography of the legendary interior designer and hostess, with fourteen black and white photographic illustrations. This is de Wolfe’s third book, preceded by A House in Good Taste (1913), and Recipes for Successful Dining (1934). While this was first published in 1935, someone has written a “2” over the “3” in ink on the copyright year; possibly this was done as a joke by de Wolfe herself, as she mentions three different years to a friend in her inscription. Also included in this book is a humorous seven page reprint of an invitation for a party thrown at the St. Regis Hotel in New York City, from 1911.
A presentation copy, inscribed: To Vera / a Lovely!! With my love / Elsie Mendl / 1926. Who was Elsie de Wolfe long ago / 1925 / Versailles / Dec 10th, 1939.
De Wolfe is celebrated as the first woman interior designer in America, as well as an internationally acclaimed hostess – she threw parties at her residences in New York City, Paris, Versailles and Hollywood – and style maven; it is not too much of a stretch to say she is also the first designer to market a lifestyle that was copied by her friends and the public. At the end of her memoir, she reveals her secrets to living the “fabulous life”:
But all of these things, pastiche, good clothes, vitality, love of adventure, lively interests,
must fail unless one waves over them the magic wand of self-control and a cheerful
attitude towards life. Nothing ages a woman like worry or a bad temper. I try always to be an optimist. I refrain from discussing my troubles. A cushion which accompanies me everywhere on my travels expresses my philosophy. On it is embroidered, “Never complain. Never explain.” Complaints create discontent and they are ruinous to the equanimity which makes the wheels of life run smoothly. As for explanations, they require too much energy and they are often futile.
In the next paragraph, she continues:
Looking at my life as I have lived it I have no illusions that I have achieved greatness or
even approached it. But I do feel that my first timid plunge into the field of Interior
Decoration opened up a new and satisfying career for women, and that carrying on in it, I
have done my part in awakening my countrywomen as a whole to the necessity and the
possibility of beauty in their lives and their surroundings…. I rejoice that I was born with
the courage to live. Only those are unwise who have never dared to be fools.
De Wolfe (1865-1950) was born at the mid-point of the Victorian era in New York City, the second of five children. She grew up with the conviction that she was ugly; both of her parents told her this repeatedly throughout her childhood. When she was 14, she visited her father’s ancestral home in Wolfsville, Nova Scotia (where the name “De Wolfe” originated), and she was struck by the estate’s French country architecture and interior decoration. This was a turning point in de Wolfe’s life; she would seek out, thenceforward, and note the characteristics of beautiful interiors, later replicating what she liked in her own homes. She also learned the importance of fine clothes and make-up; a concept that was especially life-changing for an adolescent who was regularly reminded of her plainness.
After her visit to Wolfsville, de Wolfe was sent to Edinburgh to complete her education; she lived with her mother’s cousin, Dr. Archibald Charteris – who acted as Queen Victoria’s chaplain at Balmoral – and because of this royal association she was presented at the Queen’s court in London when she was seventeen. Suddenly, this “ugly child” was transformed into the belle of the ball; she was frequently invited to London society parties, and, once de Wol
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