Tuesday, September 4, 2012


Four Designers in Nantucket, then Adieu

Summer insists on leaving us too soon, but I insist on lingering longer in Nantucket.  Even though leaves are dropping and schools are opening, perhaps we can keep summer in our hearts a bit longer by viewing the style, the food, the landscapes of Nantucket.  Come with me as we visit Eugenie Voorhees/Hugh Newell Jacobsen (I know, I know.  I've visited their design already, but I happened upon another magazine with more views, and I love this house), Vicente Wolf, Charles Spada,  and Matthew Sapera.  Here we go.

Getting in the breezy, nautical-summery mood yet?

Don't let the fact that this is a December issue of Cote Ouest lead you astray.  Inside were summer photos of Nantucket.

See, summer in Nantucket, not December in France.

Close-up of Voorhees's antique French park chairs.  So cool.  Even better than Tolix.

Here the chairs are surrounding the dining room table in this wonderful white room.  Note the shutters on the window at the right.  If you've ever seen my pinterest boards, you know I love interior window shutters.

Close-up of the table with shutters in background.  Love the very clean table setting.  Nothing extraneous.

You've seen this view of living room in an earlier post, but you should see it again - it's such a serene room.

Remember Jacobsen's signature egg crate bookcases.   A different perspective here.  Love the refinished old pine floors contrasting the new white walls.

Close up of coffee table bottles.  Very pure.

Master bedroom.  I really like the old paneling with the new paneling on the left and contemporary furnishings.  Not everyone agrees with me, notably my son.  (As I've mentioned to him, he can get his own blog.)

View from guest room into master bedroom.  Great view of contrast between new paneling and restored pine flooring.

Guest room.  Love the shutters, the fan and even the flip-flops.  Feeling summery yet?

Closets with windows are such a good idea.  You can really find what you are seeking.

Bath with claw-foot tub which you could swim in, and just a touch of blue in the towels, and mason jar.  Views of this room in earlier posts were all white.

Twig rocker is home for the towels.  More shutters.
OK, I think I can promise you I will not revisit this home a third time, but when something is good, it can be so very, very good.

Onward, to Vicente Wolf's design on Nantucket which appeared in this year's August Veranda.  Many of you may have seen this article.  If you didn't see it, you should have - Veranda, in my humble opinion, is the best American design publication.  If you did see it, well look again - it deserves another look.

Exterior reminds me a bit of Diane Keaton's Hampton house in Something's Gotta Give.


But inside, it's all Vicente Wolf.  No cutesy beach-iness, just tastefulness,

pale blues,

peacefulness,

and serenity.


Paneling in the dining room seems so fitting.

Kitchen, breakfast area and family room are divided, so the large room "becomes more intimate."

Caption on photo says it all.

Writing desk in master bedroom.
Wolf's decor always seems so calm and serene especially here on Nantucket.


Onto Boston-based Charles Spada.  Let's take a look at his design on Nantucket as seen in Elle Decor and charlesspada.com.

Not as spare as Voorhees, not as soft blue as Wolf, but  very welcoming rooms warmed with antiques...

and fabrics...

and paintings in gold frames.

Now onto a Nantucket home built by Matthew Sapera whose Toronto firm built his house in Shawkemo.  (All images from matthewsapea.com or Interiors magazine.)  In order to capture the best views, the living spaces are on the second floor, and the bedrooms on the first floor as can be seen from this view of the rear of the house.


The "upside-down" floor arrangements are not noticeable from the home's front view.

Image of the property, guest cottages, and the coveted ocean view.












First floor bedroom.

And bath.


Rear view of house, pool and guest house.

Beautiful image of the Sapera house at night.


And the last house-image today comes from a 2003 issue of Cape Cod and Islands Home.  It is a kitchen, very different from those seen above, but one I have always admired.  It is not white, as many of the Nantucket kitchens we have seen were, but is still very beautiful.
I very much like the dark woods with the white walls and counter tops.  All the stainless appliances seem to cool the warmth of the wood.  The plate rack is from Karin Blake (a designer to be discussed much later).  From this Nantucket kitchen, the seafoods below might have flowed as they did from my kitchen last week when entertaining family.



Hope you have felt summer lingering a bit longer after viewing today's blog.  I also hope you have enjoyed these Nantucket posts.  I did linger here longer than I thought I would, but that seems to be typical of my blog.  So adieu to Nantucket because next post, it's  onto Martha's Vineyard.  I promise the visit there will be short because we still have all of Long Island to do before the snow flies.  
Till next time,
b

4 comments:

  1. Hi, Billie - Sorry I'm late to the party....was away in Maine :) Do you subscribe to Cote Ouest? I love that magazine in addition to Cote Sud, etc. Ok, so glad you posted on the Voorhees home again. I thought these photographs are gorgeous and sublime. The photographer for the Cote Ouest spread really captured the essence of this home.
    Hope you are well, and enjoying the cooler weather.
    xo,
    Loi

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  2. Howdy, Billie? I definitely love Sapera’s Nantucket house. The front view is so mesmerizing! Having a house like that is really captivating! Plus, the windows can be a really good attraction and also provide good ventilation.
    - Julio Wells

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  3. Excellent photoset! I really do appreciate all of your work, and to tell you honestly, I learned a lot from your blog post. A home is a place of harmony, and having the windows in the right places is just the thing to do it. Well placed windows promote better ventilation and more natural light.
    - Leif Clancy

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  4. The designs are lovely, Billie! Very summery and vintage, especially the bright and charming designs from Nantucket. The window shutters did it, right? The shutters in the guest room look like they're taken from a fairy tale book. And the white color makes brings spacious look to the living room. You have fine taste in interiors!
    John @ Nehemiah.com

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