Hi!
Interior Design enthusiasts rejoiced last evening as the
2009 Hampton Designer Showhouse Gala Party Preview got underway. Presented by
Traditional Home,*** to benefit the
Southampton Hospital, the gala party kicked off a
6 week run which ends on September 6, 2009.On a stunning Watermill estate (see photo below) stood a showhouse where approximately 25 interior designers and decorative artists turned a lavish shingle style home, built by Farrell Building Co., into a decorating masterpiece. The range of contemporary to classic bedrooms, day rooms, and living rooms was nothing short of spectacular. Standouts included: Marshall Watson, Brad Ford, Ellen Hamilton, LLE-Dom Contemporary Art Glass, and Janna Bullock for Art, Architecture and Design. We spoke with two interior designers who brilliantly described their rooms and the inspirations behind their design choices.
Hamilton Design Associates' brightly colored day room was the most ornate visual trea
t -- completed in greens and pinks with a fabulous day bed that was a magnificent centerpiece for the room.
Ellen Hamilton shared, "this room is sort of a tribute to an English woman -- it's filled with flowers, children, dogs, and old furniture. The idea was maybe you inherited it all.
Ebony from Salon, the table these two pieces are from the South of India (hand painted) -- teak and jackwood." A beautiuful brightly colored pink chair was an excellent reproduction of an Edwardian style lounge chair.
Most impressive were the delicate and wildly feminine fine fabric choices on the furniture, as well as the unique wallpaper by Osborne and Little designer Suzy Hoodless. Ms. Hoodless' wallpaper offers beautiful lily of the valleys (via a handpainted feel) inspired by an enormous field of Foxgloves she'd viewed first hand in Scottland. Marshall Watson of Marshall Watson Interiors, a firm known for its architecture and the emphasis of architecture, showed a outstanding dining room display. Mr. Watson spoke of the richness of his design choices from the texure of his glassware to the process of the room's delicately designed ceiling. "The concept here is that it is a mixture of contemporary and very traditional, but a lot of mascularity in the room, a big mascular slab dining table made out of one piece of a tree trunk, a living edge table...the walls are English oil glazed walls made with organic shellac, stencil (glazed three times) stenciled ceilings, and interesting lighting fixture which is made of bee skeps, etc." We were most impressed by the continuation of his dining room to an intimate wine cellar done by Mr. Watson's bother (Joullian Vineyards Ltd.) and featuring wines selected by East Hampton wine and Spirits supplier Domaine Franey.
On the sprawling back lawn, well over a hundred guests enjoyed cocktails and hors douerves, and the opportunity to show off their finest summer attire. A picturesque golden hues field, grecian style swimming pool, and nearby pool house were all part of the landscape. A fitting offshoot of the main showhouse was the lush interior of the pool house done completely by
Lillian August. Noteworthy attendees included the likes of
Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour, B. Smith,
R. Couri Hay, and many others. For more information on
The Hamptons Designer Showhouse please visit
www.hamptons designershowhouse.com
***-Traditional Home is the single magazine that celebrates the pleasures of modern life through the prism of classic taste.
*photos by The Quest for "it"
Are you planning a summer vacation? Enter for a chance to win $5,000 in Amazon.com Gift Cards for all of your packing essentials. a winner is selected July 15th!
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Sweepstakes ends 7/3/13
