Photo By Carmel Brantley
It’s said that when life hands you lemons, make lemonade. If you happen to be celebrated lifestyle entrepreneur Danielle Rollins, you would promptly ameliorate the traditional sip with ultra-premium alcohol and locally sourced citrus, serving it in a smartly garnished glass with a crisp monogrammed napkin.
You can expect nothing less than au currant cool from the Dallas-born interior designer who authored Soirée: Entertaining with Style, a colorful tome on the art of entertaining, a book her friend and fellow green thumb enthusiast Oscar de la Renta suggested she pen. The legendary fashion designer first floated the idea to her at a private charity dinner she hosted in 2009 for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. “He turned to me and said, ‘You entertain so beautifully and effortlessly. You should write a book for the younger generation that doesn’t know these things.’”
At the time, she was navigating a messy divorce, the final chapter of a relationship irreversibly marred by physical and emotional abuse. She was also caring for her then 8-year-old daughter who had been seriously injured in a go-kart accident the previous spring. The literary project turned out to be both therapeutic and beneficent. “I’m not one of those people who can take adversity and just say, ‘Well, that’s too bad.’ I have to do something good.” It explains why she contributes a portion of each book sale to domestic violence charities.
In 2012, the same year Soirée: Entertaining with Style was published, Rollins launched her eponymous lifestyle design firm, Danielle Rollins Interiors, which she helms from her home on Palm Beach Island. Her design aesthetic is elegantly uncomplicated: create beautiful spaces that allow her clients to enjoy doing the things that matter in life. Five years later, she introduced a line of curated apparel that culled inspiration from silhouettes she had previously fashioned and received raves, like the perfect white shirt, a cotton ball skirt, and a little wrap hostess dress. The sartorial line now boasts more than 42 pieces and is sold on her website.
Bon vivants will also be happy to know her latest literary work, A Home for All Seasons: Gracious Living and Stylish Entertaining, is scheduled to debut this fall. Today, when she’s not designing, she enjoys championing for women’s and children’s charities, supporting local arts institutions such as the Norton Museum of Art, and spending time with her children, Emerson, Carlyle, Preston and Carolina, and her dog, Maybelline.
CURRENT FAVORITE FASHION DESIGNERS Colombian designers Silvia Tcherassi and
Johanna Ortiz. Their designs are fun, flirty, and ruffly enough for Florida.
WORK DUDS Leggiadro Capri pants, a blouse, a Hermès scarf, and Gianvito Rossi sandals
GASTRO GO-TO CPB at The Colony Hotel
OUT-OF-TOWNER TREAT Buccan and The Breakers
DRINK DU JOUR I fly a lot and Delta serves Fresca, which I’ll mix with tequila. I call it “The Delta.”
SNACK ATTACK I eat whatever I can grab and go, but I really like Pirate’s Booty.
BINGE WATCHES The Deuce on HBO. I loved it.
WHAT’S PLAYING Pink Martini and Hôtel Costes radio on Sonos are favorites, and I never tire of classic jazz and blues.
ALWAYS CARRIES Lipstick. I’m southern after all and grew up with my mother and grandmother always telling me to put it on.
ACTIVE ENDEAVORS Taking boat rides down the Intracoastal, walking on the beach or Palm Beach bike trail, or antique shopping on South Dixie.
HIDDEN TALENT Making ugly things beautiful because I can see the potential in anything.
HAPPY PLACE My bed. My staff jokingly refers to it as my “bedquarters.”
GREATEST EXTRAVAGANCE My skincare routine. I’m obsessed with good lotions and spend a lot on sunscreen and hats.
WORTH TRYING ONCE Mastering how to make a signature cocktail and cooking breakfast in bed for your significant other.
WORTH REPEATING Elsie de Wolfe’s “Be pretty if you can, be witty if you must, but be gracious if it kills you.”
SOJOURN STAPLES A makeup bag, skincare items and an extra pair of shoes
BUCKET LIST Seeing the aurora borealis or sailing somewhere I can spend the night looking up at the stars.
SOMETHING SECRET I’m terribly shy, hate being alone, and spend more nights working than I care to admit.
CAN’T STOP SAYING Lovely
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