When it comes to American fashion royalty, the name Hilfiger has always been associated with style, substance and staying power. And today, in the exclusive enclave of Palm Beach, Florida, where pastel mansions line the seafront, Tommy and Dee Hilfiger open the doors to their exquisitely restored Coral House on Billionaires’ Row in this exclusive interview and photoshoot with HELLO! magazine.
The couple, who have been married since December 2008, share a passion for design. Tommy, 74, founded his eponymous global brand, while former model Dee, 58, has her own homeware line, Mrs H. She is also the creative director and co-owner of the designer bag brand Judith Leiber, which has released collaborations with Katy Perry and the Kardashian-Jenner family. Tommy and Dee met through a mutual friend at a beach club in St Tropez in 2005. Dee had been raising her two sons in Monte Carlo, while Tommy was on holiday in the South of France. Friendship blossomed, a long-distance courtship followed, and they married three years later.
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Blended family
© Nick MeleTogether, they have seven children: Tommy’s four from his previous marriage, including daughter Ally, who starred in the MTV reality series Rich Girls, Dee’s sons Julian and Alex from her first marriage to the Italian tennis pro Gianni Ocleppo, and Tommy and Dee’s son, Sebastian, now 16.
Their life has been lived out at homes that span Manhattan to Mustique, and Connecticut to Miami. Now, the Hilfigers are inviting people inside with their new book, Hilfiger Homes.
”Dee and I have imagined, built and lived in many homes over the years. Each one represents a meaningful chapter in our lives,” Tommy says. ”We decided to chronicle seven of these homes in a visual autobiography and share it with people.”
© Nick MeleThe couple started decorating before they even tied the knot, designing a spectacular duplex at The Plaza Hotel on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. ”We had so much fun with that project,” Dee says. It inspired them to take on more renovations.
After years of splitting their time between their various homes, the Hilfigers sold off a number of their properties and marked the move to Palm Beach as a new chapter in their lives, with a lengthy search leading to the purchase of Coral House in 2021.
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Subterranean tunnel
© Nick Meleof Palm Beach
The house was built in 1972 by the renowned architect John Volk, and it was once owned by the British-Canadian media magnate Conrad Black. Tommy describes it as a challenging project that was the most difficult of their many home renovations, and it took three years to complete.
Now featuring coral stone exteriors, arched windows and sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Intracoastal Waterway on the other, the house even comes with its own underground tunnel, providing direct access to the beach. Inside, Tommy’s all-American style remains a guiding thread, complemented by artworks by the likes of Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat.
”We wanted our home to feel calm, but still full of character,” Dee says. ”It’s a place where you can dress up or kick off your shoes and relax with family.”
Coral House is now their main residence and Dee hopes it will stay that way. ”I’m not ready to move again for a while!”
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You’ve lived in so many fabulous places. What drew you to Coral House?
© Nick MeleDee: ”Previously, we had a home in Golden Beach, Miami, but I always thought of Connecticut as my home; our son, Sebastian, was raised there. We sold our homes in Connecticut and Miami, and when (we were) searching for a home in Palm Beach, I wanted to combine my favourite elements of those two homes.
”Our home in Miami had this big, beautiful beach and it was hard to find a home on the ocean (in Palm Beach) with a swimming pool because they always put the pools at the rear of the property.”
Tommy: ”We quickly learnt that there were unique considerations, like the fact that you can’t light up the water at night because of the sea turtles, so it can be very dark out by the water.”
D: ”I had a whole list and chipped away at it. But we finally found Coral House, the space and the location that we wanted,and got to work on trying to make it feel like our home, which we’re still doing!”
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How would you describe your interior design process? Do you have a favourite room or piece in the house?
D: ”Our Coral Bar is one of our favourite and most-used rooms, with its coral-toned lacquered walls and bamboo trim, and Sebastian’s room turned out wonderfully.
”Whenever we buy a house, it represents a different moment in our lives, and that is represented in the look and feel of the house. Our design process really depends on the style of the house, the location, the period in our lives… We’ve worked with the interior designer Cindy Rinfret on 18 other projects, including our homes in Connecticut and Aspen, and we rely on her for custom designs and her expert advice.”
© Nick MeleT: ”There are so many unique touches, even down to the separate his-and-hers powder rooms for guests, which feature walls lined in crushed seashell mosaics.
”The shell panels were made by a local Palm Beach artist in her showroom and she installed them in the house.”
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Tell us more about your book, Hilfiger Homes…
© Nick MeleD: ”Hilfiger Homes invites readers into seven of our uniquely designed residences, from a compound on Mustique to our latest jewel, Coral House. I don’t know if people envision that we just live in red, white and blue houses everywhere, but it’s really not like that – except in Tommy’s office!
© Nick Mele”We felt like a lot of home coffee table decorating books showcase one style, whereas ours covers many different looks. We also show a lot of private family photos of how we’ve lived in each of the places, including our boat Flag, which was like our summer house. The book is very personal and a reflection of our journey together.”
‘Working on our book was a wonderful experience, a culmination of our 20 years together’
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Do you always agree on the designs of your home?
© Nick MeleT: ”We don’t clash. I don’t know if it’s just from living together for so many years that we’ve developed the same kind of taste, but it definitely makes the decorating process easier that we don’t have arguments. All of our homes are characterised by a bold design sense, blending existing architectural elements with objects we’ve collected, art and our personal style.”
D: ”I trust Tommy’s taste, whether it’s at home or in clothing. He’s always been at the forefront of popular culture and he is just as innovative with our home designs.”
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What’s the secret to a successful marriage?
© Nick MeleD: ”Respect is definitely one, and sense of humour is another. Love obviously comes first. There are very few things we disagree on. Of course, having similar tastes doesn’t hurt!”
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What’s a perfect day for you in Palm Beach?
© Nick MeleD: “We love to take advantage of the Florida sunshine. Tommy and I would either take a walk on the Lake Trail in Palm Beach, or along the beach, or maybe hit some tennis balls or go for a bike ride. That, in and of itself, is very relaxing and helps recharge the batteries. We also love to go and have lunch outside on Worth Avenue.”
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Dee, you come from a multicultural background. Does this influence your designs?
© Nick MeleD: ”I think any time you are fortunate enough to have exposure to different cultures and different places, it helps open your mind. My father is Turkish and my mother is from Birmingham, and I think that served me growing up. It always made me feel a little bit different when I grew up in America in a small town in Ohio, where maybe people weren’t as multicultural in the Sixties.
”When it comes to design, whenever you can be exposed to many different cultures, it only enriches you and it only adds to whateveris upstairs in that brain you’re creating.”
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Your home is filled with vibrant art. How do you curate your collection?
© Nick MeleD: ”We have collected a lot of different art over the years: we buy, we sell, then we buy again. The process is always different for us and we buy in many different ways: at auction, through private galleries, art fairs.”
T: ”We bought our Picasso painting Mousquetaire aux Oiseaux [1972], which hangs in our living room, a year before we moved in, thinking it would go exactly there. One of my favourite pieces of art is a gift from Dee: the neon icon portrait of me by the artist Shyglo, which hangs in my office.”
D: ”A set of Andy Warhol’s Flowers [1964] brightens the walls of our upper logia. It’s a fun passion and luckily we agree on the art…most of the time. The only piece where I wasn’t quite sure was when Tommy purchased a Warhol fright mask that now hangs in our entrance at Coral House.
”At first I found it quite scary and wasn’t sure if I wanted to be looking at it every day, but he insisted. I was a good sport and agreed to try it out, and it’s actually really grown on me. Now I love it! You build a connection to pieces and get attached.”
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How do you keep the family connected?
© Nick Meleart collection
T: ”What makes a house a home is family.”
D: ”For us, dinner time is really important. I am very fanatical about the phones being put away – although they do make their way to the tables sometimes – because that’s really the one time when we can really relax and talk and enjoy one another without distractions.”
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You host gatherings with neighbours such as Tom Ford. Do you have any hosting tips?
© Nick MeleT: ”Great energy, great music, fabulous people!”
D: ”The most important aspect is always the people that you bring together – making sure there’s a good mix. Being organised also helps – we dedicated an entire room in the new house to display all the dinnerware and dishes.
”I have my collection of precious china and silverware, including a must in Palm Beach, mother-of-pearl-handled cutlery, and of course, items from my Mrs H home line.
”I am a bit of a germaphobe so I don’t love to have shoes on in the house, especially because we have a lot of light carpets, but for parties we do allow the shoes to stay on!”
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You are both known for your philanthropy. Which causes are close to your heart?
© Nick MeleD: ”Between Tommy and I, we have three special needs children who are on the autism spectrum. That was one of the things that drew us together when we first met, and drives our advocacy.
”Tommy sits on the board of Next for Autism, which is a charity that deals with the next stage when children age out of programmes that they wouldn’t normally be covered by as they are entering adulthood. It helps families navigate the adult stage once they’ve grown up.”
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What are you most looking forward to and would you consider working together in the future?
© Nick MeleT: ”Absolutely! Working on our book was a wonderful experience. We’re really looking forward to that coming out and showing everyone something so personal – a culmination of our 20 years together.”
D: ”It’s very personal and it’s something that we’re both really excited to share with everybody. I have another exciting project coming up next year: a TV show on Amazon called Club CEO, about multi-hyphenate women entrepreneurs.
”It’s going to feature Serena Williams, Winnie Harlow and many other inspirational female figures, and show how they navigate the successes and challenges of their professional and personal lives. Stay tuned!”
