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51 ART + DECORATION Remembering Betsie Weatherford … A THOUGHTFUL, GENEROUS FORCE WHO HELPED SHAPE THE TEXAS DESIGN WORLD B etsie Weatherford owned Ellouise Abbott showroom for 22 years and stood out as a gentle, generous soul in an often cutthroat design- showroom industry dominated by men. Weatherford, 61, died in Dallas on March 28 after a brief illness. Armed with an interior design degree and a head for business, Weatherford ran the EC Dicken and McGuire showrooms in Dallas and Houston in the '70s and '80s, then worked at Ellouise Abbott in Houston before purchasing it in 1994. As Texas' and the nation's oldest continuously operating decorative showroom, founded in 1951, Ellouise Abbott carried venerable lines such as Fortuny fabric and lighting, a relationship that Weatherford continued to nurture. Weatherford opened Ellouise Abbott in Dallas in 2005 and brought in coveted new lines to both cities, including Robert Kuo, Conrad Shades, Minton- Spidell, Randolph & Hein, Fermoie, and McGuire. In an industry where lines jump from showroom to showroom with frequency, Weatherford made enduring connections. In mid-April, over a hundred interior designers and textile and furniture manufacturers filled the Ellouise Abbott showroom in Houston to honor her, including Robert Kuo's daughter, Karen Kuo, who flew in from L.A. Buck Irwin, president of Conrad Imports, arrived from San Diego. In a heartfelt tribute, he recounted how Weatherford was instrumental in helping him land a national sales position at Conrad when he was out of work. "Fast forward 13 years, and now I'm president of the company," he says. "Betsie was an unexpected angel." Rebecca Sherman D allas-born interior designer Jay Jeffers may live in San Francisco, where he operates his firm, The Studio, and retail establishment, The Store, but his elegant style is celebrated across the country. The Elle Decor A-Lister has debuted furniture, accessories, and lighting for Arteriors — masculine, sophisticated, and seductive in gray ceruse SEDUCED by a Sofa Karen Kuo, Betsie Weatherford, Robert Kuo Betsie Weatherford, 1990s Jay Jeffers Jay Jeffers for Arteriors, here and right. or ebonized oak, polished nickel, blackened steel, hand-etched brass, and concrete. The geometric drinks tables, consoles, cabinets, benches, sofas, and wingback chairs join the lighting and accessories that Jeffers designed for Arteriors in 2015. $240 to $10,200, at Arteriors, Dallas Design District, 1413 Dragon St., 214.760.1741, arteriorshome.com. Rebecca Sherman