HOUSE TOUR I Gorgeous Hamptons House With a Verdant Garden
Gizmo
7 months ago
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just_terrilynn
7 months agolast modified: 7 months agoSueb20
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Christmas house tours-2007?
Comments (18)Just a brief report on the Salem house tour. I have been on this one many times and it is always different because Salem is one of New England's greatest treasures in terms of old houses and history. This year's tour was low on Christmas decorations and ideas but high on architectural interest. Re Christmas, the best was the house decorated by a local florist called Fiddleheads--great use of flowers and other natural material. The emphasis this year was on Samuel McIntyre, late 18c architect and woodcarver, and true American genius. There's a wonderful exhibit of his career at the Peabody Essex Musem in Salem right now--ends sometime in Feb. So most of the open houses had some kind of McIntyre connection, including one with the only extant McIntyre fence left in Salem. For anyone interested in landscape, the fences and finials, gates and breathtaking front entrances, either done or inspired by McIntyre, are gorgeous to see. Even if you missed the tour, next summer, take a walk around the McIntyre Historic District and take a look at these. There's a lot to see from the sidewalk. Salem was also the birthplace of many important aspects of early American horticulture. You can see where the gardens used to be--sad. Some gardens exist but I don't know of any that once made Salem famous. I hope I'm wrong....See MoreHampton Court and Private English Garden Tour June/July '04
Comments (4)Oh my gosh! I've been back a week and the tour is still a pleasant green blur in my memory! Here's a list of the gardens we saw during the 8-day tour (all in the SW of England; National Trust properties marked by NT): West Green House, Hampshire (NT) Hinton Ampner, Hampshire (NT) The Manor House at Upton Grey, Hampshire Mottisfont Abbey Gardens, Hampshire (NT) Heale Garden, Wiltshire The Courts, Wiltshire (NT) Iford Manor, Wiltshire (!) Hadspen Garden, Somerset Lytes Cary, Somerset (NT) The Coach House (Penelope Hobhouse's house), Dorset Mapperton, Dorset Forde Abbey, Somerset Montacute House, Somerset (NT, !) Tintinhull, Somerset (NT; P. Hobhouse was once a tenant) Bury Court, Hampshire RHS Garden Wisley, Surrey It would simply take too long to describe each of these gardens, so if anyone wants more particulars, please write me and I'll be happy to share my impressions! You can read about the National Trust properties on the Nat'l Trust website: http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/default.asp After the tour, some friends and I drove to the Cotswolds to see Kiftsgate Court and Hidcote Manor (NT). Kiftsgate is probably my favorite garden of all (so far), and a must see detour for anyone venturing toward Oxford or Stratford-Upon-Avon. The Kiftsgate Rose (reported to be the largest rose in the UK and which appears poised to take over the country) was blooming like mad! Also highly recommended is dinner at Marshmallows in Moreton-on-Marsh. For the private gardens, Upton Grey was a treat as we were shown round by the owner, Ross Wallinger, who almost singlehandedly restored the original Gertrude Jekyll garden. We also had a personally guided tour by the young head gardener at Heale Garden, and the owner of Bury Court (designed by Piet Oudolf) happily gave us the history of his house and garden. Penelope Hobhouse was just returned from a few weeks in the US and kept apologizing for the state of her back garden (storms had swept through while she was gone). If only I had a garden that looked half as nice as hers, storm or no! She chatted with us then turned us loose to look around (we were the only ones there), while she continued to tidy up the garden in preparation for a village fete the next day. Her influence was obvious at Tintinhull, as well. Montacute is a must for any fan of the movie Sense and Sensibility, as it doubled as the Palmer's residence, where Marianne was taken ill. Several scenes were filmed in the house and on the grounds, which are absolutely delightful. Please write if you want more info! I'm already planning next year's adventure to Scotland!...See MoreThe Christmas Tour of Homes is OVER! Here are photos !
Comments (95)Good golly, I loved it...that green color is fab! I think I have about as much Christmas "stuff" as you do, but unfortunately this is the first year I've not gotten to decorate. We've had a family tragedy and have also been in remodel h%ll on a lake home we bought, so no go for me this year. I so enjoyed looking at your beautiful home. Thanks for sharing it with all of us. How MANY poinsettias, paper whites and wreaths??? Oh child, bless your heart. Christmas decorating really is so much darn work. It looks so great when it's done, but then, if you are like me, you're usually too pooped to enjoy it. HA! Now to a question that nooooooooooo one has asked you...and probably never would. What does the little sign say in regards to the "temperamental toilet?" That's what we are beginning to call ours. This lake place (built in 1952, hence the remodel) is not on a septic system, but it still has some flushing issues even with the new toilets we bought. We've been thinking of making up a little sign, too, for guests. Something like, "flush often and with gusto...flushing is free, plunging is not." Would also like to include something for the shower doors....."if you see a squeegee, USE IT!" Wow, I'm sounding like such a lovely hostess, huh? HA! Anyway, if you care to share the sign sentiment, that would be great. And once again, thank you so much for sharing your lovely home with us. I wish you a very blessed holiday! pup...See MoreAnnual House tour...kitchens.
Comments (22)Here in Brooklyn (one of the 5 boroughs/"towns" of New York City) there are close to a dozen house and garden tours per year. Similar to Pal's experience, the tours here are representative of various historic "brownstone neighborhoods", are organized by the respective neighborhood associations, and are annual fundraising/neighborhood promotion endeavors. (I also note that Brooklyn's sense of "neighborhood" may be the most fiercely competitive of all the boroughs. Which may account for why there are so many annual house tours in this one borough). The Brooklyn house tour scene developed in the 60's and 70's along with the rise of the "brownstone movement" (Today the latter would simply be termed a "gentrification movement"). It was comprised of those who were intent on purchasing grand old rowhouses on the cheap (usually because they were situated in rundown neighborhoods)and restoring them to their original glory. These brownstone house tours provided excellent opportunities for tour goers to see and learn about old house infrastructure upgrades and architectural salvage and restoration. Back then, much of the excitement of the tours was to see how the home owners had taught themselves how to strip countless layers of paint off their woodwork, restored stained glass, repaired detailed plaster mouldings, etc. IOW, the emphasis then tended to be much more on DIY achievements and showcasing homeowner creativity. Today, the various Brooklyn neighborhood house tours are still well-attended. However, since the new millennium, it appears as if most of the tours are now more heavily weighted towards showing off big money renovations and restorations. For one thing, the majority of the tour neighborhoods are no longer "rundown." If anything, years of gentrification has resulted in major demographic changes as well as mass upgrades of housing stock. As a result, the house tours now feature less of small budget/big DIY projects and much more of very grand homes that have been re-designed, further restored or outright gutted and renovated by high end architects, professional designers and contractors using high end products and materials. Still, given the current economic crisis, the pendulum on tour composition may be swinging back to a more balanced position. That is, while there will always be a tour demand for Architectural Digest type homes, the bubble bust has forced a renewed interest in the purchase of potentially grand but less expensive brownstones which are typically found in the not-yet-gentrified neighborhoods. Reminiscent of the earlier brownstone movement, tour emphasis in these areas tends to be more heavily weighted on "affordable" restoration and upgrade of the bones of the house rather than on the display of spectacular dressings and finishes. And, in most tour neighborhoods, we're once again seeing some remarkable restoration/renovation efforts which are heavier on DIY and homeowner creativity than on expense. As for how Brooklyn house tour kitchens compare with GW kitchens -- well, leaving the question of size out of the equation -- my guess is that a good deal of them are designed and/or owned by active members or lurkers of this forum! :-)...See Morededtired
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