A Victorian Marble Topped Dresser

We’ve always had a thing for marble topped furniture.

So when an entire bed and breakfast full of antique furniture was closing a few blocks away we couldn’t resist bringing home a marble-topped dresser, as there were so many to choose from.

The heavy drawers with wonderful carved and inlayed wood detailing all stuck once filled with clothes, but after a little rubbing the bottom of the treads with a bar of soap they now open and close like new.

The entire mirror is easily removable if desired, but the molding around it has a bold almost baroque architectural influence that we played up by draping with antlers, one holding a charming vintage Bavarian boy’s hat.

On the smooth white marble top an unexpected pair of potted cactuses lend some texture and interest alongside a classical bust draped in beaded jewelry and a tiny antique child size shoe mold.

Photos and Styling by KS&D.

Shop New Spring Inventory Now!

With the spring antiquing season in full swing we are pleased to offer an amazing selection of eclectic antique and vintage finds while they last.

Shop HERE now for a carefully curated selection of unique and one-of-a-kind curiosities and works of art from industrial and religious artifacts to elegant salvaged architectural fragments and primitive folk art. Let us help you find the perfect accessories to add to your home décor be it traditional, rustic country, romantic Victorian, Mid-Century retro, or shabby Bohemian chic.

Photo and styling by KS&D

The Great Gatsby Movie

        “The windows were ajar and gleaming white against the fresh grass outside that seemed to grow a little way into the house.

A breeze blew through the room, blew curtains in at one end and out the other like pale flags, twisting them up toward the frosted wedding-cake of the ceiling, and then rippled over the wine-colored rug, making a shadow on it as wind does on the sea.”

- F. Scott Fitzgerald

An interior shot of Tom and Daisy Buchanan’s Long Island mansion from Baz Lurhmann’s much anticipated film version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 masterpiece, and our personal favorite book The Great Gatsby, finally set to open Friday May 10^th. 

Tuscan Villa Interiors

We’ve had Italian country house style on the brain since our recent post featuring a pair of local Jazz Age Mediterranean villas, for a look at the real thing here are some interiors from one of the loveliest Italian estates on the market today.


In the entrance vestibule an intricate ceiling of delicate neoclassical scrollwork presides over a space simply furnished with a spare mirror and matching coat rack. A console displaying a few well-chosen accessories and a marble topped center table holding a simple arrangement of hydrangea adorn the space.


In the next room a spectacular trellis motif entwined with climbing vines covers the walls while a charming pair of corner cabinets display colorful ceramic serving pieces. The geometric tiled floor is one design of many throughout the house.


This hall features a more ornate floor pattern and yet more climbing vines, here used to ornament rows of dramatic double columns that separate the space from the glassed solarium. Between the pairs of columns are placed trees in enormous tubs that also help define the space but keep it light and airy as the real leaves blend with the painted ones trailing the columns. Casual wicker chairs in the foreground are similar to those we noted in the 1920’s photo of the drawing room in the previous post.


A closer look into the solarium reveals the beautiful windows accented with blue stained glass that echoes the floor tile pattern. The comfortable looking upholstered furniture is slip covered in a cheerful blue and yellow chintz giving the space a homey lived-in feel.


An enchanting dining room is swathed in trompe l’oeil drapery swags similar to those we noted in the galleries of Albemarle House, and lined with upholstered banquets piled with cushions.


This grand salon is also awash in trompe l’oeil drapery that creates a rich backdrop for an eclectic mix of furnishings. An oversized check on the sofas and windows brings both a casual country air and a graphic contrast to the lavishly swaged walls and marbleized architecture, while four large Chinese figures and a pair of intricate stools add a hint of Chinoiserie to the mix. Finally a brilliant mass of sunflowers is perhaps the perfect finishing touch for any Tuscan country interior.

All photos via Sotheby’s Realty.

Architectural Americana Part II: Colonial Revival Interiors

As promised in our earlier post on Robert J. Collier’s country estate here are some interior views of the Colonial Revival mansion at Rest Hill originally published mere weeks after Mrs. Collier’s uncle John Jacob Astor perished the richest man aboard the RMS Titanic.


Architect John Russell Pope, better known for lavish Beaux-Arts projects like the Jefferson Memorial and the National Gallery of Art, maintained the simplistic theme of the façade in his interiors. The floor plan centers on a wide hall running the depth of the house and dominated by a dramatic double flight staircase that meets at a landing above the front door.


At the far end of the hall French doors flanked by built-in arched corner cabinets lead out to the Mount Vernon inspired porch with its commanding view of the countryside. Wide archways at the foot of each stairway open into the dining room on the left and the drawing room on the right.


A view of the archway to the drawing room shows the acres of simple rag rugs that were spread across the floors of all the main rooms lending a homey country feel in keeping with the Colonial Revival theme. Further unifying the hall, dining, and drawing rooms was the lush foliage of hand-painted scenic wallpaper lit by cut glass light fixtures.


From the drawing room a passage connecting the vestibule with the west wing leads into an intimate library cum smoking room cluttered with antique prints and exotic hunting trophies. The door next to the fireplace leads to a hall with two guest rooms and a bath as well as a staircase to the family rooms above.


The dining room mantle features a simple marble surround flanked by narrow fluted pilasters supporting a high ledge. Another expansive rag rug provides an informal foil for the elegant Chippendale furnishings.


A view from the dining room into the hall shows more of the lovely scenic wallpaper that envelopes the spaces as well as the clean lined moldings that help define them. In 1927 Mrs. Collier donated Rest Hill to the Sisters of the Good Shepard to establish a home for troubled girls, the organization continues to maintain the estate now open to children of all ages as Collier Youth Services.

Photos from Architectural Record June 1912

Albemarle Revisited

Our piece last year on Sotheby’s auction at Albemarle House remains our most popular post to date. Now with the estate and Patricia Kluge once again making headlines lets revisit this infamous Virginia mansion that continues to fascinate.


Here in the entrance hall a massive piece of Greek art pottery displayed on a pedestal does double duty as a hat stand, the basket of firewood lends a rustic note to the classical formality.


The doorway to the left of the fireplace leads to the Gun Room with masculine wood trim and a view over the forecourt of the rolling Virginia countryside subsequently purchased by the Kluge’s friend Donald Trump.


The fireplace is flanked by custom Asprey gun cabinets and sports an elaborate gilt convex mirror that pops against the deep green walls. Not far from these finely housed firearms sits a Chippendale dresser set up as a chic little bar for serving after-hunt libations.


A marbleized Palladian window framing a distant piece of garden sculpture, dominates one end of the Drawing Room. The fluted Corinthian columns mirror those flanking the staircase on the opposite entry wall seen in our previous post. This scheme of a curved stair framed by columns and mirrored by a Palladian window is repeated again in the Dining Room to dramatic effect.


Yet more marbleized classical moldings are off set with trompe l’oeil swags of fringed fabric in the series of galleries linking the entrance hall with the main rooms and twin staircases. These faux-finishes that characterize the interiors typify the lavish style of the era.


The Library returns to a more masculine atmosphere with rich wood paneling and a billiard table filling one end. The view through the curtained doorway looks into the stately Roman Gallery furnished with a set of swaged neoclassic stools custom designed by the architect David Easton.


These lavish little jewels complete with architectural detailing, faux finishes, and elaborate trimmings seem to sum up the design philosophy of the whole estate, if not the opulent spirit of 80’s excess that created them. Now these furnishings like all the rest have long been auctioned off while the sprawling red brick manse that once showcased them sits emptily awaiting its fate.

All photos via Sotheby’s.

An Eclectic Country Bedroom

A bedroom vignette seemed long overdue, especially as we’ve yet to do one since moving to the country.


A private space like the bedroom is a wonderful opportunity to create a completely personal environment filled with ones favorite things. Here unique keepsakes and other pretty things, including an antique French candlestick, an inlayed wood cigarette box, and one of a pair of lions fill the side table.


Flowers are a welcomed addition to any bedroom. Just a few fresh hydrangea blooms tucked into porcelain bud vases lend a seasonal charm. Useful accessories such as the enameled brass bowl and art pottery trinket box are both handy and aesthetically pleasing.


The exposed hand hewn beams provide yet another display opportunity for favorite items, such as an antique silhouette, a small folk art print, and a carved gilt wood scroll molding propped against a butterfly display. Shimmering above the bed is an intricately hand embroidered Thai wall tapestry lavishly depicting the signs of the zodiac, while a sculptural pair of vintage moose antlers adds a dramatic crowning touch.

Photos and styling by KS&D.

The Other Newport Mansions

It’s been ages since we last posted a favorite book, and with summer now officially underway it seems the perfect time to steal away to one of the country’s most extravagant watering holes.


Blessed with a wealth of architecture, history, natural beauty, and well…wealth, Newport, Rhode Island has always fascinated. While there are countless books dedicated to the palatial summer “cottages” now preserved as historic house museums, “Private Newport at Home and in the Garden” by Bettie Bearden Pardee features many private estates never before seen by the public. The photography of Mick Hales beautifully captures the interiors, gardens, and stunning natural vistas of Newport, bringing to life a world of exquisitely appointed homes among expertly maintained gardens.


While less opulent than Vanderbilt showplaces like The Breakers and Marble House, the homes featured here even include some actual cottages, like this charming shingled cape overlooking the sea, where an elegant Wedgwood inset mantel is surrounded by framed family photos, fine antiques, and stacks of books and albums. With the fresh salty breeze blowing in off the ocean what better place to pass a summer afternoon?

English Country Inspiration

Settling into our new old carriage house in the country seems a perfect excuse to revisit our favorite country interiors.


Nancy Lancaster, the American tastemaker who helped define what we think of today as the English Country aesthetic, created this room for herself in the 1970’s. After many years residing in some of the finest homes in England, this arbiter of style took for herself a cluster of outbuildings on her former estate at Haseley Court, and fashioned this summer sitting room cum library from an old orangery. The rich warm color scheme, the patterns and textures, the jumbled prints, masses of books, and bunches of wildflowers; all combine here to brilliant effect. Inspired by the components of this gracious interior we hope to achieve a similar atmosphere for our own library/sitting area. Be sure to check back soon to see just how this image influences our own decorating efforts.

Image from Nancy Lancaster: English Country House Style.

Russian Romantic

It’s been awhile since our last Interests post when our examples of Hollywood at Chatsworth reminded us of our love for period movies, particularly as sources of design inspiration. While the sets for Pride and Prejudice, especially the Bennett’s charmingly derelict Longbourn House, are certainly among the most beautiful, there is one lesser known film that has always captivated us.


In the 1999 film Onegin, based on Alexander Puskin’s mid-nineteenth century novel in verse, the title character trades the glittering palaces of St. Petersburg for the glistening snows of his Russian country estate. As the jaded Onegin (Ralph Fiennes) engages with the provincial nobility he is introduced to our heroine Tatiana (Liv Tyler), who resides in this rustic wooden manor house with dream-like interiors.


The main living space is a grand white neo-classical hall with banks of white gauze curtained windows, rows of double columns, and a gleaming parquet floor. Arranged around this airy interior are seating areas, a dining area, and even a grand piano.


Throughout the film we see the space transformed from an elegant living room to an intimate supper room from banquet hall to whirling ballroom. As lovely as this space is however it’s the next one you enter that really caught our imagination.


Through the elegant double doors we leave the Grecian temple behind and find ourselves in something like a giant humidor paneled entirely with raw wooden planks. Similar to a modern family room, such a space would have been known as a divan room for the long cushion backed sofas that dominate the walls.


The stark contrast between these two completely different environments is unexpected yet makes perfect sense considering in the long Russian winter it would be ideal to spend the few daylight hours in a bright airy space before retreating to a warm cozy den for the long dark evening.


According to Priscilla Roosevelt, author of the fascinating book Life on the Russian Country Estate, neo-classical architecture and rough plank walls contrasted with intricate parquet floors were common to manor houses of the period, most of which were lost to history following the Russian Revolution. Onegin recreates this lost world down to unique touches like the one-of-a-kind divans and these wonderful wooden floor-standing candelabra that represent the type of provincial furnishings that would have been produced on the estate by local serf craftsmen.


For a decidedly modern take on the divan room look no further than the April 2010 cover of House Beautiful touting "the new look of wood”. We’ve even seen a new lounge open in the neighborhood sporting an interior clad in planks of wood recycled from old shipping palates for a uniquely green twist on the trend.

Click HERE to view the Onegin movie trailer.

Images #1-6 from Onegin, #7 from April 2010 House Beautiful.

Library Nook

The recent addition of a book column to this blog shows how much our style is influenced and inspired by our collection of art, history, and design books. We hope you’ll enjoy hearing about some of our select favorites and maybe even find a new volume to add to your own library at home.


Not only are our books one of our favorite sources of design inspiration but one of our best-loved design elements as well. The rhythm of all those colorful spines filling the antique mahogany bookcase lends warmth and richness to this little library nook.


The green and burgundy hues of the fresh hydrangea echo the muted shades in the mid-century vintage print behind them. Looking down over the scene from a shabby antique palm frond corbel bracket is a charming Chinese porcelain figure of a child with a large gilded fish. Contributing to the gilded theme are an unusual gold gilt rococo scroll mirror and a carved wood corbel bracket.


The top of the bookcase provides a perch for a small famille rose porcelain table lamp a contrast in proportion to the pair of over-sized ox-blood red Chinese porcelain jars beside it. Finally it would seem every library no matter how small should have at least one classical bust, here ours is displayed with a tiny Victorian print overlapping a larger antique English print on the wall behind.

Photos and styling by KS&D.

Secret Garden

Tucked away on Long Island’s Gold Coast, the enclave immortalized by F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Great Gatsby, a most unusual garden lies forgotten in the woods of a large estate.


The gardens most unique feature is a tiny Tudor house situated at its heart behind which hides a walled garden designed especially for the enjoyment of birds. Built to resemble a fairytale witches cottage, this romantic folly was built in 1917 by Mrs. Payne Whitney at Greentree the family’s country estate to serve as a private place for reading and quiet contemplation. To give a sense of age the masonry exterior incorporates beams from old Long Island barns and a deliberately sagging roof of multicolored slate specially laid to encourage the growth of moss. A candle fixture framed in the tiny window above the Tudor door romantically illuminates the entryway.


The cottage was named Cromwell House for it contains an actual Tudor room imported from a house in Gloucestershire, England believed to have once been the bedchamber of Oliver Cromwell. Upon entering the visitor is greeted by a large multi-paned window looking into the walled bird garden, the only entrance to which lies through an antique iron door tucked away on the side of the house. Looking out from this cozy paneled room the Whitney's and their guests could view the wild birds without disturbing them.


The bird garden is surrounded by nine-foot high walls crawling with wild grapevine and features a raised stage-like area at the far end. The garden is centered on a birdbath surrounded by formal paths and planted with shrubs specially selected to attract birds. Today the estate is preserved by the Greentree Foundation which has hosted high level UN-led meetings on the property as Cromwell House and its bird garden sit nearly forgotten in a copse of trees just beyond the tennis court.

Photos from House and Gardens Book of Houses.

Chic Eclectic

While somewhat less grand than the Sagredo room featured in a previous post this cozy bedroom corner exudes charm with just a touch of glamour.


There’s nothing homier than a quilt on the bed and this beautiful example in shades of cream and white was hand crafted by an Amish quilter in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The oversized preppy plaid pillows bring visual interest especially when placed beneath the abstract painting in corresponding hues. A pair of Italian crystal and gilt metal sconces and miniature still life paintings flank the main painting like elegant punctuation marks.


Next to the bed sits a green streaked 1940’s vintage desk paired with an antique caned bottom Baltimore chair, although the pieces are more than 100 years apart in age the painted finishes give a unity that works nicely. Painted furniture works especially well in bedrooms where formal stained wood can come off as too dark and heavy. The soft colors of the framed vintage print compliment the green nicely while the carved wood bracket holding an antique folk art elephant adds some ethnic texture to the mix.


The antique Italian lamp illuminating the vignette incorporates cut lead crystal, marble, and art glass elements as it casts a warm soft glow over the daisy filled Limoges jar, a gilt wood bracket turned upside down, and hand carved wood inlay trinket box. Our favorite nautical motifs are represented with a pair of ship models and a branch of artificial white coral, while Grandmother’s old leather bound copy of Gone With The Wind sits just awaiting the reader.

Photos and staging by KS&D.

Venetian Splendor in New York

Venice with the sparkle of sun-dappled waters reflecting across her awe-inspiring architecture has always been one of our favorite destinations. Behind the lacey gothic windows of the Grand Canal lay many of the world’s most incredible interiors. However when a trip to Italy isn’t on the schedule a heavy dose of Venetian splendor can be had right in the heart of New York City.


Down a quiet hall of the Metropolitan Museum of Art lies a lavish bedroom removed in its entirety from the Sagredo Palace in Venice. This dramatic interior dating from 1718 is among the finest of its kind and instantly immerses you in the opulence of eighteenth century Venice. The elaborate stuccowork of the ceiling is awash with life-like winged figures soaring around the mural and down the cornice. The bed itself sits like a throne in a raised alcove crowned by an oval gilded dome. With soft light seeping through the frosted glass windows you could just imagine yourself waking as dawn breaks over the Venetian lagoon. If you decide you’d like to make that particular fantasy a reality it just so happens that back in Venice the Sagredo Palace, sans said bedroom of course, is now a luxury hotel.

Blue & White at Balderbrae

Our recent posts on the blue and white color scheme and the sale at Albemarle House reminded us our favorite use of blue and white was that used by David Easton at Balderbrae, his Hudson River Valley country house.


This image of the lofty main room shows an envelope of warm honeyed hues punctuated by a symmetrically hung display of blue and white porcelain along the walls. Another favorite decorative device of ours are the corbels used here to display a number of jars and vases. To be honest we love just about everything about this space especially that great round table piled high with books, yet another one of our favorite things!

Beauport Glass Display

Our recent art glass storage project reminded me of the ingenious glass displays created by interior designer Henry Davis Sleeper at Beauport, his fascinating home in Gloucester, Massachusetts.


The house itself is an architectural wonder filled with curiosities and incorporating salvaged historical architectural elements. Here in the Central Hall is a breathtaking collection of amber glass viewed through a graceful arched window. The window, which actually looks into the pantry, has been backed with frosted glass to allow light from the pantry skylight to naturally illuminate the honey-hued glass items. Just below the pantry skylight are two brilliantly designed mirrors on cranks allowing for the maximum amount of natural light to be focused directly into the display case.

Photo via Beauport website.