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Interiors

This Dreamy Pied-à-Terre Brings Together Parisian Panache and Classic American Decorating

Designers Gary McBournie and Bill Richards mix centuries and styles in their Left Bank home

By Gay Gassmann Photography by Annie Schlechter Styled by Ian Phillips
Elegant living room with chandelier, large mirror, red curtains, vintage furniture, and large windows.
In the living room of their late 18th-century Left Bank residence in Paris, Gary McBournie and Bill Richards of the firm McBournie Richards mounted Roger Capron ceramics on either side of the original mirror.

Designers Gary McBournie and Bill Richards, the duo behind the firm McBournie Richards, are known for classic interiors enlivened with pops of color and rich textures, always executed with a keen eye for detail. With over 15 years as collaborators on residences from coastal retreats to city dwellings, the partners in life and work have a flair for the chic, livable, and undeniably pretty.

Based in Boston and New York, McBournie and Richards travel constantly, and their schedule has long included regular visits to Paris, a city they love for the food, collecting, and unending inspiration. A few years ago, they completed renovations on a pied-à-terre in the heart of the Left Bank to serve as their home away from home.

Eclectic living room with patterned curtains, colorful furniture, mirrored wall, and a distant view into a vivid purple room.
Next to the library’s window, which is curtained in a Jim Thompson fabric, a Louis XVI bureau plat topped with a vintage bronze lamp is joined by an antique gilt-wood stool and a circa-1810 Empire side chair upholstered in stripes created from Kravet silk fabrics; the rug is by Stark.
Marble bust of a man on a pedestal between striped curtains, with a candelabra on a purple wall in the background.
Curtains in a striped Scalamandré fabric surround an antique bust and a vintage wall light in a hallway.

“When we first started coming to Paris, we stayed in a friend’s apartment nearby, so we had an affinity for the area,” recounts Richards. “Being right next to the Boulevard Saint-Germain and all the shops, this place was perfect for us.” Not to mention the fact that their favorite bakery, Maison Mulot, was just a short walk away, promising fresh croissants every morning. Deal sealed.

We love the juxtaposition of contemporary pieces with older works”

Bill Richards

Located on the third floor of a building completed circa 1790, the apartment encompasses 2,000 square feet, with gracious enfilades and 14- to 15-foot ceilings. “Amazing scale,” notes McBournie. But significant work was required.

Elegant living room with a large mirror, colorful art, and two armchairs in front of a fireplace adorned with decorative items.
Custom lounge chairs covered in fabrics by Brunschwig & Fils and Claremont are positioned next to the living room’s original fireplace, with a pair of tassel sconces—sourced from a Paris flea market— above.

The designers decided to reconfigure the floor plan a bit and make a few other changes. The old kitchen became a guest bath, while the new kitchen occupies what had been a child’s bedroom. A corner fireplace that had been sealed up in the dining room was restored with an antique mantelpiece.

The renovations were not without their downside. Carried out during the COVID pandemic, the updates were orchestrated remotely, with the designers relying on video calls. The whole project took about a year and a half, and when the couple was finally able to visit in person, McBournie says that “while there were a few things we didn’t see over Zoom, it all worked out surprisingly well.”

Elegant dining room with a crystal chandelier, vintage decor, green curtains, and ornate wallpaper featuring nature scenes.
A de Gournay hand-painted wallpaper lines the dining room, where a 19th-century chandelier glitters above a vintage Jansen table from Neo Studio, surrounded with custom-designed chairs.

The finished apartment is an illustration of their commitment to color, art, and all things French. Each room has its own distinctive palette—not least a hallway finished in punchy purple plaster stenciled with subtle patterns. Walls are arrayed with an idiosyncratic assortment of paintings and works on paper, while the furnishings favor antique and vintage French pieces primarily sourced in Paris.

Just off the entry, an eye-catching custom de Gournay hand-painted wallpaper wraps around the dining room, which McBournie and Richards anchored with a Jansen table that is the same model as one owned by the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. They added a graceful antique crystal chandelier above and rounded out the space with an Art Deco sideboard, a neoclassical tiered console, and a pair of wingback-style lounge chairs in creamy upholstery. Moldings are painted in pale French green, the curtains are in a complementary hue, and the vintage Danish dining chairs feature backs upholstered in a striking Jim Thompson red silk.

Cozy kitchen with a circular dining table, colorful wall art, floral curtains, and vintage style chandelier.
The kitchen features a group of colored-glass plates atop a Farrow & Ball wallpaper, and an Eero Saarinen Tulip table is paired with 1950s Dutch iron-and-rattan chairs in the breakfast area.
Eclectic living room with bold artwork, decorative mirrors, elegant lighting, patterned rug, and colorful accents.
In the library, a multipart mirror designed by Gary McBournie overlooks a sofa custom made by Ridge Interiors and a vintage resin cocktail table; the painting of a dancer is by Madeleine Massonneau.

One of the designers’ hallmarks is a collected look where nothing feels too matchy-matchy. “We love the juxtaposition of contemporary pieces with older works,” Richards explains. “And we don’t go ultramasculine nor ultrafeminine.” Case in point, the decision to hang contemporary abstract artworks by Michael Rich and Hans Hartung in the classically paneled living room alongside traditional paintings and antique furnishings. In the kitchen, a salon-style arrangement of artworks mixes Sol LeWitt and Pablo Picasso with an Impressionist street scene.

I don’t like anything instant, I like things to grow over time”

Gary McBournie

The duo sourced furniture and objects during their regular excursions to Paris flea markets as well as from Left Bank dealers such as Teo Leo, Laurent Moreux, and Marie-Pierre Jaudel, who provided numerous pieces, including the elegant six-light crystal chandelier that complements the guest room’s canopy bed, swathed in sumptuous Pierre Frey fabrics. Since moving in, they’ve continued to acquire objets d’art, such as the ceramics by Roger Capron displayed on brackets in the living room. They also added the vintage Paris subway map that hangs in the kitchen’s breakfast area, where they enjoy their morning coffee around an Eero Saarinen Tulip table paired with 1950s Dutch iron-and-rattan chairs.

Elegant bedroom with teal walls, ornate chandelier, canopy bed, artwork, and a fireplace. Classic and luxurious design.
An abstract painting by Christine Sanford hangs above the fireplace next to smaller landscapes in the guest bedroom, where a canopy made with Pierre Frey and Claremont fabrics surmounts the bespoke bed upholstered in a Pierre Frey floral and dressed in bedding by Leontine Linens.

McBournie emphasizes that they prefer spaces that look layered and assembled gradually. “I don’t like anything instant,” he says. “I like things to grow over time.” Spoken like a true collector.

Elegant living room with teal drapes, a chandelier, framed artwork, a white armchair, and a bouquet of flowers.
: A circa-1960 drinks table by Maison Baguès joins a Studio DL floor lamp next to a custom armchair in the guest room.
In the guest bath, a Cole & Son wallpaper serves as a backdrop for a Léo Caillard photograph above the Waterworks tub

A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2025 Late Fall Issue under the headline “Something Old Something New.” Subscribe to the magazine.