At Home in Locust Valley with Jeffrey Bilhuber

Posted on April 7, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   10 Comments

At Home in Locust Valley with Jeffrey Bilhuber

Designer Jeffrey Bilhuber‘s greatest talent may be informing the past with a bold confidence that feels just right for today. And nowhere is this more palpably personal than in his own country house in Locust Valley, New York. Here in Hay Fever, his 17th century farmhouse, Jeffrey has melded the best of American design history with his own family furniture and heirlooms for his distinctive and informed take on decor. Tag along with Susanna Salk and me for a behind the scenes visit with Jeffrey at his historic welcoming home.



After a massive meticulous renovation of his 1668 home, Jeffrey took to the task of making it his own.…

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At Home in New York City with Timothy Whealon

Posted on March 17, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   13 Comments

At Home in New York City with Timothy Whealon

While designer Timothy Whealon may have begun his career on Wall Street, his love of the fine and decorative arts soon led him to a yearlong arts course at Sotheby’s in London. Following another training program at the auction house in New York, an art related conversation at a charity event dinner serendipitously led to his first design job. Another  soon followed and a new career path was born. Look at Timothy’s varied portfolio and you will instantly be struck by his ability to effortlessly meld art and interiors with a fresh and sophisticated eye. And nowhere is his chic and livable approach to design more apparent than in his own one bedroom apartment on Gramercy Park.…

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Adventures in Los Angeles

Posted on March 3, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   9 Comments

Adventures in Los Angeles

Thank you to those who checked in during my absence here. Delighted to be missed and you will (I hope) be happy to know that I have been busy working on new projects. This past week, Susanna and I were on a few adventures in Los Angeles and beyond. Our first shoot was in Santa Barbara so, on the recommendation of designer Madeline Stuart, who we were visiting there, we took the double-decker Amtrak Surfliner up the coast. Even leaving from LA was a treat, as we departed from the majestic Union Station.

Built in the 1939 for $11 million, the station is an architectural gem in what has been coined Mission Moderne style – a melding of Spanish Colonial, Mission Revival and Art Deco.…

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At Home in London with Lulu Lytle

Posted on February 17, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   12 Comments

At Home in London with Lulu Lytle

While Lulu Lytle originally dreamed of becoming an Egyptologist, her current role as cofounder and creative director of Soane Britain indulges her passions for travel, antiquities, textiles and the exotic, all brought to fruition through the best of handmade British craftsmanship. As a longtime admirer of Lulu’s elegant designs and worldly point of view, it was a thrill to finally see her brilliant aesthetic in both Soane‘s London showroom and Lulu’s Bayswater flat when Susanna Salk and I were there last fall shooting the British sequel to At Home with Dogs and Their Designers. So please tag along for a special behind the scenes visit with Lulu in her colorful, pattern-filled, inspiring home.…

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Posted in art, At Home with, furniture, interior design, Quintessence video series, travel, video | Tagged , , , , , , | 12 Comments  

NYBG 2019 Orchid Dinner

Posted on February 8, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   18 Comments

NYBG 2019 Orchid Dinner

It is always a pleasure, in the midst of winter, to visit a room abloom in a profusion of orchids. This week welcomed the annual New York Botanical Garden 2019 Orchid Dinner, transporting us to Singapore, one of the world’s greatest orchid cultures and the inspiration for the upcoming 17th annual Orchid Show. Sponsored by Hearst, Veranda and Louis XIII cognac, the dinner features designers who took their cue from this exotic locale to create dazzling tabletops with creativity and drama.

Inspired by Singapore’s black and white Edwardian houses, Brockschmidt & Coleman set a bamboo fantasy with a tablecloth in a graphic Quadrille pattern accented by an explosion of fuchsia orchids in a stunning centerpiece by Elizabeth Spencer Designs.…

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Rebecca Redux

Posted on February 1, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   22 Comments

Rebecca Redux

Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again… Many of you will recognize those evocative words from one of my favorite novels, Rebecca. Daphne du Maurier’s well loved gothic story was also brilliantly adapted to the big screen by Alfred Hitchcock in his first Hollywood venture and what would be his only Best Picture Oscar. And while the movie centers on the suspenseful love story and mystery involving its stars Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine, the house, Manderley, looms large in both book and movie.

When in England last fall shooting for Susanna Salk’s At Home with Dogs and Their Designers in the English Countryside (coming spring 2020 from Rizzoli), we photographed at Wardington Manor, the home of Bridget Ellsworthy, one half of The Land Gardeners.…

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Setting the Table with Cathy Graham

Posted on January 27, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   14 Comments

Setting the Table with Cathy Graham

Cathy Graham‘s party invites have always been some of the most coveted on the upper east side of New York City. With degrees in painting from RISD and fashion illustration from Parsons and years of working with renowned floral designer and event planner Robert Isabell, Cathy expressed her creativity through the art of entertaining. Tag along as Susanna Salk and I visit Cathy in both her studio and home to learn how she elevates the art of the table with beauty, whimsy and originality.

Starting with handmade and hand delivered embellished invitations, Cathy’s tables were, for decades, known not only for their beauty, with stunning floral arrangements but their creativity and originality.…

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2019 Young Collectors Night

Posted on January 25, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   5 Comments

2019 Young Collectors Night

This Thursday evening marked the 2019 Young Collectors Night at The Winter Show. Focusing on a new generation of art and design enthusiasts, the evening was a well attended social affair with music, hors d’oeuvres, festive cocktails and a fashionable crowd.

I had hoped to grab a few design friends who might select some favorites from the show, but I was there on the early side while many hadn’t yet perused all the booths. I did catch architect Peter Pennoyer and wife, designer Katie Ridder, who shared a special find.

Katie actually bought this unusual 19th c. Scottish glazed ceramic potato flask from Cove Landing for Peter’s birthday.…

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The Colorful Pattern Filled World of Henry Wilson

Posted on January 23, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   6 Comments

The Colorful Pattern Filled World of Henry Wilson

Yesterday, when single digits here in New England shocked us into acknowledging that winter was just getting started, a post by friend, designer Young Huh, reminded me of warmer destinations. I recognized it immediately as the late, photographer and designer Henry Wilson’s colorful pattern filled home in London.

And while London isn’t much of an improvement weather-wise, Wilson’s amazing flat is an eloquent evocation of someplace that is. I would imagine quite a few of you may be familiar with the talented Wilson, whose love for India was well documented in both magazines and seven books. In one of his later tomes, Floral Patterns of India, he expressed, through his sumptuous photography, how floral motifs are incorporated with both whimsy and extravagance in Indian architecture and design.…

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Nantucket Historical Association at the 2019 Winter Show

Posted on January 21, 2019 by Stacey Bewkes   •   2 Comments

Nantucket Historical Association at the 2019 Winter Show

While many visit Nantucket for its beautiful beaches, charming cobblestone streets and rose covered cottages, those of us who annually frequent the Grey Lady’s shores know she also holds a special place of significance in our country’s cultural history. It is therefore fitting, that at the start of its 125th anniversary, the Nantucket Historical Association, is proud to be the loan exhibit at the 2019 Winter Show.

As NHA Board President Kelly Williams writes in the publication for the exhibit, “From entrepreneurs forging the Colonies’ first global industry to abolitionists and civil rights leaders forcing societal change in the 18th and 19th centuries, through to its art colony and popular destination as a resort town in the 20th century, Nantucket’s small landmass belies its strategic, economic, political, artistic and cultural significance.”…

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Posted in art, art history, history, interior design, Nantucket | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments