Galleries

Sloane Road, 48″H x 36″W, oil on panel, 2021

The Overripe Peach Looked Wistfully Toward the City and Beyond Knowing Its Best Days had Passed, 20″H x 22″W, oil on panel, 2020.

Upper Pasture, Clark, 13˙”H x 28″W, oil on panel, 2021

Committee, 44″H x 38″W, oil on panel, 2017

Two One, 48″H x 36″W, oil on panel, 2021

maine covid

Traditional columns define the back porch.

A cleverly designed nook sits in a corridor between two of the daughters’ bedrooms. The colors in the Cowtan & Tout wallpaper and Carolina Irving Textiles seat cushion reflect the landscape outside.

The modern—compared to the rest of the house—living room acts as the heart of the home for the family of five. A mix of materials and profiles kicks the style quotient up a notch, with a custom Bombay Sprout rug, rope chairs from Mecox Gardens, and floor lamps and a coffee table from RT Facts in Kent.

The inviting library features saturated colors, rich vintage leather, Schumacher wallpaper on the ceiling—and an enticing peek into the dining room. There’s artistry in the details, from the classically styled shelves to a vase that echoes the Greek-key pattern in the Jonathan Adler rug.

The bright blue hue of the Glac Seat bistro counter stools coordinates with the backsplash tiles from Country Floors.

Wallpaper from Schumacher dresses the foyer, while a star pendant from Vaughan provides illumination.

The lower-level guest suite boasts a private entrance—and all the charm of the home’s communal rooms. Serena & Lily bedding warms up the space, while Rejuvenation lighting brightens it, and wallpaper from Aimée Wilder brings the wow factor.

With its distinctive Greek Revival notes, the main part of the house strikes a classical pose on its pastoral homesite; the simpler, more straightforward structure on the right houses the living room.

The dining room is a study in traditional style—without being too cloying or stuffy. The designer sourced the vintage dining table and chairs, chest, and lantern from Montage Antiques in Millerton, New York. The whimsical hand-painted wall panels are from UK-based Fromental.

In the dining corridor that connects the main house to the living room wing, there’s a pleasing distinction between the playful Oly table and the classic Windsor chairs from Ballard Designs. A wood-grain wallpaper from Nobilis adds interest to the ceiling.

A high-gloss hallway serves as a moody, sophisticated bar with generous storage space. The pendants come from Millerton Antiques Center.

A steel staircase designed to accommodate the clients’ chandelier drops to the first floor from one end of the second-floor study area.

More beams, a fireplace built of ledge, and window benches remove any pretension from the primary bedroom suite.

At dusk, retractable screens offer insect protection on the poolside patio. The deck of the spa on the left is set about two feet higher than that of the pool, making entrances and exits easier.

A pizza oven and wood-fired barbecue grill, or parrilla, fulfill every dining request from the outdoor kitchen.

On the other side of the courtyard, a library ladder provides access to tall bookshelves in the owner’s home office.

A dining bar on the kitchen island, held in place with hand-cut dovetails and a single ebony pin, is made from the same tree used for the kitchen tables and bench.

The home’s front entry resides in a glass-walled connector topped with a light-filled study area for the clients’ children on the level above.

Dressed in stone chiseled from the ground, the garage serves as a gateway to the property and forms a courtyard with the house.

Inside the front door, walls are clad with raw steel, with a painted steel panel extending across the ceiling and outside to shelter the threshold.

In a sitting area off the kitchen, ceilings look as though they’ve been excavated to display hidden beams. Not so: too short to span the rooms, the salvaged beams are embedded in soffits that make them appear structural.

Native ledge resting just below the earth’s surface provided both inspiration and building material for this Fairfield County house. Viewed here from the rear, the home’s outdoor kitchen and seating area, saltwater pool, and spa double down on its connection to the outdoors.

Bookended tables and a bench off the kitchen were crafted from an oak tree that once stood in the client’s friend’s yard.

In the primary bathroom, a built-in bench separates the dual sinks

Landscape designer Verne Fisher’s masses of lavender, Snow Hill and May Night salvia, and Elf kalmia frame the view of the Merrimack River from the Gompers’s sloping Newburyport property.

On the porch, wicker rockers are clustered around a blue-and-white urn planted with an Endless Summer hydrangea

Stone steps nestled into plantings lead from the lower terrace to other seating areas

Landscape designer Verne Fisher’s masses of lavender, Snow Hill and May Night salvia, and Elf kalmia frame the view of the Merrimack River from the Gompers’s sloping Newburyport property.

Just footsteps from the house, a fire bowl surrounded by benches provides a warm place to snuggle on cool nights.

The guest bedroom has a custom house-shaped bed with sheer panels inspired by a bed that Gottlieb saw at a hotel in Costa Rica.

A spa is tucked into a stone terrace beside the straight run of stairs on the back of the house. The curved stairs lead down from the deck that is shaped like the bow of a boat. “We take all our photos up there with the lake in the background,” Gottlieb says.

She used metallic paint on the cabinetry in the kitchen in the screened porch, along with a black granite countertop and backsplash.

Custom cerused-oak cabinets with a gray wire-brush finish add subtle drama to the kitchen, while rivet detailing on the hood lends an industrial vibe; the Grohe faucet heads have been known to double as microphones on ladies-only weekends.

Architectural designer Ritch Holben applied exterior boards made from recycled materials on the triangular area of the upper wall for texture.

The wet bar under the mezzanine in the great room has a backlit glass backsplash featuring lights that can change colors. “It looks low-key until you turn on the lights,” homeowner/designer Debra Gottlieb says. “My husband is generally understated, but he wanted a sexy bar.”

Oversized windows showcase the sculptural floating stair that is illuminated from within.

Porcelain tile that resembles wood offers a spa-like feel with zero maintenance in the primary bath, while the bamboo shade injects actual texture.

“If you’re going with a monochromatic palette, how do you make it interesting?” asks designer Jessica Rogers. “You do it with texture—materials that feel handcrafted.” In the formal living room, that’s evident in the leather-tabbed mirrors by Casamidy, the hair-on-hide Steven King carpet, and the laser-cut wood artwork by Nate Nettleton sourced from Boston Art.

On game days, homeowner Barry can be found in the molded-leather reclining chair in the family room.

In the dining space, a linear Lindsey Adelman for Roll & Hill light fixture complements the sculptural shape of the dining table.

The ground-floor courtyard, located off the family room, features one of the home’s only bursts of color in the form of citron-yellow pillows. The nesting tables by JANUS et Cie can easily be repositioned when the couple entertains.

In the primary suite, Rogers added interest with a dark green mohair pillow interspersed with channeled-velvet European shams and a Walter G accent pillow.

A playful mix of colors and patterns signal summer at Rusticator.

A perfect home base for their new shop, this iconic building, constructed in 1880, had seen better days when the Pierces purchased it. A thoughtful gut renovation—retaining as much of the original exterior as possible—has returned it to its former glory.

Everything at Rusticator, from the furnishings and art to the light fixtures, is for sale, says shop owner and designer Laura Keeler Pierce. Many pieces are also customizable—note the Dunes and Duchess side tables that can be made in any color, and the Jill Rosenwald ceramics available in a range of patterns and sizes.

Custom-designed pillows, timeless accessories, and games to while away a sultry summer

Set up to mimic a home, the store welcomes shoppers into the dining room and encourages them to continue into the living room, discovering treasures along the way; Hadley Powell of Powell Fine Art Advisory curates the rotating collection of art.

Keeler Pierce, her husband, Vassar Pierce, and their golden retriever, Henry, relax in the sweet apartment behind the shop. evening are all in stock.

Paisley pillows and framed maps honor the Provincetown location of the home. Textured blue grasscloth wallpaper by Thibaut provides a subtle wrap to a room where bold stripes and geometric patterns otherwise dominate.

Broad vertical stripes in the Kravet wallcovering give this upstairs bedroom a sense of height, while the grasscloth’s earth tones pleasantly contrast the room’s nautical shades of blue.

A turquoise Red Egg bedside table is an eye-catching offset to the twin white wicker beds, but closer examination reveals matching aqua tones mixing with light blue hues in the Mally Skok wallpaper.

Tasseled drawer pulls tease a color palette that—like the hydrangeas that served as inspiration—can thrive through many seasons, not just summer.

The design of the primary bedroom emphasizes serenity, but patterned wallpaper and a tufted storage ottoman and custom headboard, both covered in the same pale-gray fabric with blue contrast piping, add liveliness.

A tiger-maple bed from Leonards New England blends seamlessly with the bucolic landscape mural painted by renowned Maine artist Roger Deering; the theme carries through with a Stark Carpet tartan rug and rustic night tables. LEFT: The zebra-striped armchair adds a contemporary touch while remaining on theme with the decor.

The zebra-striped armchair adds a contemporary touch while remaining on theme with the decor.

A tiger-maple bed from Leonards New England blends seamlessly with the bucolic landscape mural painted by renowned Maine artist Roger Deering; the theme carries through with a Stark Carpet tartan rug and rustic night tables.

The southeastern-facing primary suite was painted Benjamin Moore Iced Cube Silver, a dusty blue that engages with the changing color of the sky and water in every season.

The design team added high wainscoting in the formal living room, playing to the proportions of the floor-to-ceiling windows and drawing the eye outside—with no window treatments to interrupt the view. Deep Kravet couches provide respite next to shagreen coffee tables from Creative Metal & Wood.

The transformation of the library included painting walls, trim, cabinetry, and even the ceiling Benjamin Moore Montpelier, a glossy blue

Because the kitchen looks out on the lawn and ocean, Lebeau kept the palette tight and bright. Visual Comfort cage pendants play up the concept of transparency.

On the rocky shores of Newport, Rhode Island, hydrangeas hug a vacation house that was renovated by Paul Weber Architecture. One of the homeowners grew up spending summers in the house next door.

In the entry, designer Natalie Lebeau creates a welcoming moment with a Keith Fritz Fine Furniture table.

The homeowners’ prized antique table has a starring role in the dining room, while Kravet chairs with legs stained to match the dark floors add a modern touch.

New cabinetry in the en suite bathroom includes a marble-topped vanity.

The FBN team.

Interior design by Vani Sayeed. Photography by Nat Rea.

Interior design by Twelve Chairs Boston. Photography by Joyelle West.

Architecture by Hacin & Associates. Photography by Trent Bell.

Architecture by Foley Fiore. Photography by Eric Roth.

Architecture by David Mullen. Photography by Michael J. Lee.

For the family room, Watson revved up the palette, incorporating hues suggestive of a summer sunset in toss pillows and the area rug that sits atop a woven rug. “In a large open space like this, layering rugs is a way to, literally, add a layer of interest,” the designer says.

The broad back porch holds often-used dining and sitting areas.

The swimming pool sits to the side of the house, rather than the back, says Muoio, because Kathy wanted to ensure nothing man-made would interrupt the sightline to the water.

Doug’s second-floor office makes working from home a pleasure.

The homeowners wake up to water views in their east-facing suite; the ceiling’s millwork hides the motors that open and close the drapes and blackout shades.

A window detail in the primary bathroom mimics the elliptical patterns found elsewhere in the home.

Furniture, like interior designer Patti Watson’s custom curved sofa, speaks to tradition without being fussy.

The home features numerous works by local artists, including the living room’s dreamy paintings by Rhode Islander Vanessa Piche.

Tesa played with woodwork details throughout, even on the ceilings; in the kitchen, that means a pretty elliptical detail that conjures gentle ocean waves.

Landscape designer Brian Muoio’s plan is a low-maintenance coastal classic where masses of hydrangeas are accented with easy-care choices such as catmint and daylilies.

Homeowners Kathy and Doug chose architect Alec Tesa because of his skill at the Shingle-style. “His designs are just so well proportioned,” says Doug.

The dining room glows, thanks to the wallpaper’s metallic hints.

Whether washed with sunlight or aglow by firelight, the sunroom is a favorite gathering spot where the focus is on togetherness. “My younger daughter designated it a no-technology room,” says Kathy.

Designer Kathleen Hay favors a “clean aesthetic and function meeting form.

During colder months, the porch’s screen panels can be changed out for glass. “The client didn’t want a television in the main living area, so we put one here instead,” explains Hay. “With the heaters on, it’s a great place for watching football games.”

A sitting room on the second floor serves as a media and game room; a Phillip Jeffries grasscloth covers the walls, and a pair of custom daybeds are upholstered in a Romo fabric.

The patio is sheathed in Caledonia granite and features an outdoor kitchen, chairs from Barlow Tyrie, and a JM Lifestyles table.

A Phillip Jeffries Japanese paper weave studded with rivets envelops the office, which opens onto the wraparound porch.

In lieu of a bench, Hay placed a Brunschwig & Fils daybed at the foot of a Bernhardt bed in the main bedroom; a statement-making light fixture from Ro Sham Beaux hangs above, and the artwork is by Nantucket photographer Daniel Sutherland.

The star of the living area is a new eighteen-foot glass-door system that transforms the space for indoor-outdoor use. A Kravet sofa, woven chairs by McGuire, and armchairs from Brunschwig & Fils upholstered in a Lee Jofa fabric surround a cocktail table from Lexington Home Brands.

Pendants from Circa Lighting hang above a Caesarstone-topped island in the kitchen; the barstools are from Kravet, and white oak flooring appears throughout.

Located on the first floor opposite the dining area, the office can be closed off for privacy.

Landscape designer David Troast planted white birch and fountain grasses around the firepit area. “The firepit lines up with the living area, and I wanted that view to feel pastoral,” says Troast.

Architect Chip Webster extended the porch, which now wraps around to the front facade, designed a new second-floor balcony off the primary bedroom, and added a three-season porch off the living area.

In the dining area, light fixtures from Palecek hang above a Parish Co table; the upholstered chair and rug are from Kravet.

Two built-in bunks share a dreamy view in one of three bedrooms designed with the clients’ sons in mind.

In another bedroom, a hanging chair provides a secluded space to contemplate the landscape, while a glass door to the right leads to a deck outside.

This Duxbury, Massachusetts, house designed by Hutker Architects balances traditional expectations and modern possibilities on a steeply sloped site. Its black-capped “Tory chimney” acknowledges local history while its cantilevered main level employs steel beams to create a sheltered pool deck on a limited footprint.

Alongside the garage, the first of three aediculae, or frames, greets visitors on a path that extends through the house to end at a window trained on a distant shore. The purpose is to emphasize each transition, says architect Thomas McNeill.

A steel cabinet above the fireplace masks the TV’s screen and finds common ground with dark accents on the reclaimed-teak coffee table, contemporary rope chairs, and petrified-wood side tables.

Behind the garage, a white garden blossoms between the path and linear concrete retaining walls that modulate the slope toward the pool. “The dramatic hillside setting, the woodland, and the marsh beyond all spoke to us as we designed the landscape,” says landscape architect Kris Horiuchi.

Copious storage in the kitchen’s island and base cabinets means less visual clutter to compete with breathtaking views. The architect’s choice of Neolith sintered stone veneer on the wall and countertops suggests a casual elegance that Stiving-Nichols embraced as a serene complement to the vivid scenery outside.

Hardware details on the trusses above cued the choice of the black Windsor chairs and dining table that share the main living space. “The details really had this incredible connection to the natural surroundings that made it easy to pull together our design concept,” says designer Liz Stiving-Nichols.

A pair of binoculars rests atop the railing on the porch, where bird-watching and napping compete with basking in the view and shoreline breezes; a bench serves as a narrow cocktail table between the comfy sofa and swivel chairs, both swathed in a linen-like outdoor fabric.

Dominico Outdoor Lounge Chair by Palacek

Yacht installation featuring Perennial outdoor fabric on cushions and pillows. Design by Living Swell Marblehead.

Nova Planters by Palacek

Spa Lounge Chair by Palacek

Tulipa | Flaming Parrot Tulip II, 2020, 22″W x 22″H framed, archival pigment print.

Cosmos I, August, 2020, 22″W x 22″H framed, archival pigment print.

Sunflower I, 2020, 22″W x 22″H framed, archival pigment print.

Daucus carota | Queen Anne’s Lace #4736, 2020, 22″W x 22″H framed, archival pigment print.

Cosmos VI, 2020, 22″W x 22″H framed, archival pigment print.

Cosmos #660, 2020, 22″W x 22″H framed, archival pigment print.

Homeowner Maggie White, informally known as “the mayor of Edgartown,” relaxes poolside.

A second garage at the entrance to the property doubles as a potting shed in front of the couple’s vegetable and herb garden.

The granite chimney on the harbor side of Maggie White and Jan Smith’s Martha’s Vineyard home graciously arranges itself out of the occupant’s line of sight while providing a structural focus to the back of the house.

An octagonal tower just beyond the informal seating area holds the breakfast nook and sunrise views.

White rebuilt her former Edgartown kitchen, changing the color palette and orientating it to the view: “We didn’t have to figure out where to put the silverware,” she says.

The front exterior plays off historic Shingle-style details of old Newport cottages.

Rift-oak floors and creamy upholstered pieces add to the lightness of the second floor’s open plan.

Smith, a former Disney executive and chief operating officer of the Hob Knob Companies, lounges on a large stone in the meditation area off the first-floor gym while Maggie and Harper the Labrador take a lap around the pool. A path beyond the pool leads to the beach.

The couple forewent any major reconstruction, instead sprucing up interiors with paint, furnishings, and art, while orienting the layout around the generous ocean views.

A cheerful guest room ensures the homeowners, who love to entertain, have ample space for friends and family to visit.

A commissioned painting of the living room by regional artist Adam O’Day helps drive the tone and hues for the interior styling.

For a casual summer home right on the beach, interior designer Alina Wolhardt took inspiration from the natural landscape. Inside and out, relaxed frills, like the ottoman’s pom-poms, elevate the sense of fun.

Wolhardt and the owners transformed a small loft with terrific views of the water into the primary bedroom with gauzy, sheer curtains that filter the bright light that floods in all morning. A desk and lounge chair add practical touches to the cozy space.

The design team left the bathroom’s existing pink tile and wall mirror in place; a modern round mirror, new lighting, and subtly humorous artwork (sketches of superheroes using the toilet) freshen up the area.

Wolhardt walks the beach with clients and close friends Ricardo Rodriguez (left) and Michael Kelley (right).

A path winds through oak and pine trees to a private beach.

The home’s patio is a favorite spot for entertaining; “A regular night in the summer has us with ten-plus around the dinner table,” says the wife.