Designer Sherry Hayslip on Love, Life and Why This Year’s Kips Bay Show House is “Monumentally Different”

When the news broke that the Dallas Kips Bay Decorator Show House had found a new home at 2999 Turtle Creek Boulevard, the design community cheered. But for interior designer Sherry Hayslip, the announcement was especially profound. Her late husband, acclaimed architect Cole Smith, had designed the iconic, French Renaissance-style office building in 2004.

“It’s a brilliant choice — the perfect forum for designers who put their heart and soul into raising money for the children,” says Hayslip. Kips Bay beneficiaries include the Boys & Girls Club, Dwell with Dignity, and the Crystal Charity Ball.

What makes it different than previous venues: “It’s accessible, very versatile, and really, a magnificent structure.” Not to mention it has underground parking. “One very well-respected architect called it ‘an ornament to the city,’” she revealed.

So, it was only natural that Sherry Hayslip Interiors was among the group of mega-talented design firms charged with transforming the 25,000-square-foot structure. She was in her office working when the call came in from Kips Bay committee member Laura Lee Clark. “She said, ‘Sherry, we managed to secure this house, and I know Cole did it. Will you do a room?’”

She agreed immediately.

Still, Hayslip admits participating this year is “monumentally different” than her first experience back in 2020. “I think I was in shock when they asked me to do the inaugural Show House. Cole had passed away less than a year before. We’d been inseparable, at work and at home.”

She was assigned a small space in the attic. “I was late getting in; it was the last room available. There were no windows, the carpet was terrible, and the walls were painted brown. Still, I was grateful for the diversion.”

The saving grace: a rectangular skylight.

“My first thought was, ‘What on earth can I do with this?’ But then I looked up and saw a ruffle of leaves from a tree, a beautiful blue sky, and a few wispy clouds,” Hayslip recalled. “And just then — I’m not making this up — a white bird, maybe a dove, flew across.”

At that moment, she decided it would be a room of reflection – personally and literally. “It gave me an opportunity to reflect on what I’d shared with Cole and what I love about design.”

Hayslip named the room UTOPIA. The big idea: “paint” the walls with light. A longtime supporter of local artists, she tapped Carmen Menza to create a lens that would flood the room with different colors. A mirrored door added to the allure.

“I truly believe the decorating gods made that room available to me.”

Turns out, the gods are still at work. This time round, Hayslip is working her magic on the library. Its intriguing title — “Bibliothèque des Tournesols” or Room of the Sunflowers — pays tribute to the building’s original sunflower motif.

“With Cole’s original hand drawings still at my fingertips, I am relishing the opportunity to reimagine the interior of the library in ways that elevate modern, luxurious living while honoring the classic architecture that we all love,” she shared on her Instagram.

Expect a spectacular mix of prominent French antiques and unique contemporary pieces intermixed with standout art, mirrors, lighting, and textiles. The crowning touch: some strategically placed sunflowers plus a few very tasty surprises. (Writer’s note: We’ve seen the mood board, and it’s a showstopper!)

 “What matters most to me is expressing Cole’s spirit,” said Hayslip. “I’m looking forward to people enjoying the house and remembering who he was.”

Tickets are online now for Kips Bay Decorator Show House Dallas opening day VIP preview (Thursday, Oct. 24), and general admission (Oct. 25 through Nov. 13).