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Vaillant House featured in Rural Intelligence

A thoughtful and interesting article on Vaillant House is featured on the Rural Intelligence site. Offering his insights about the property is longtime Washington, CT builder/contractor Sean Woodward, "What's funny about the house is that you could drive down that road and not even know that it's there." The writer elaborates,"The house" he is referring to is the Vaillant house, after the family who owned it for more than a century and who are all descendants of decoration artist Louis David Vaillant. More than three years ago, the remaining Vaillants gathered their votes and decided that it was time to sell the 8-bedroom, three-season Italian villa, one of the first homes in the area designed by famed architect and almost-native son Ehrick Rossiter."

At the time, an article was written in the Wall Street Journal about the sale of the family home. Luckily, the home has been lovingly restored and designed to the highest standards.

The article highlights the renovation and interior decoration that has enhanced this historical house. Here are the two before and after images of the exquisite sunroom. To read the entire story, click here.

Home Exterior Dining and Seating Area Sunroom

 

Stacey Matthews featured in Happening in the Hills

Stacey Matthews A profile of Stacey Matthews is the lead story in the current issue of Happening in the Hills. Personal style, fashion, design, country life and entertaining are all featured in the article.

Here is an excerpt from the piece:

"As a former Wall Street trader, Stacey Matthews certainly saw the value in the unique beauty of Litchfield County when she first came here fourteen years ago. Originally just spending weekends in an antique farmhouse that she renovated with her husband Pels, the couple and their twin boys eventually moved to the area full time. Now, the owner of a successful real estate agency, Matthews has formed bonds with numerous artisans, designers, retailers, chefs and other local businesses.

Tall with striking auburn hair, Matthews has a strong sense of personal style both in the home and with her apparel and accessory choices. On this day, she wore a bold Madeline Weinrib brown and white striped caftan dress paired with a pendant from the Indian design collaborative Yatra. We asked her about some of her influences, inspirations and style must-haves."

Beautiful Plants in Bay Window

 

To read on the entire article, click on the link below:

Happening in the Hills: Style, Substance and Real Estate Savvy

In Our Neighborhood: Highlighting People and Places in the County

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Matt Wood, photo courtesy of Happening in the Hills

We are amazed at the breadth of talent and the robust Art community in our region. The walls of our offices are always showcasing individuals painters, sculpters and multi-media artists. We seek out for our own home works of art created by local artists who, though nationally known, are rooted in our towns.

We have a dramatic gold painting by Woodbury based artist Matt Wood in our dining area which is hung above a fireplace. It is one of our very favorite paintings. You can see in another work featured below how Matt does not shy away from a richly saturated the color palette. Here is a link to an article featuring the artist that appeared on the popular Happening in the Hills web site.

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An excerpt from the article, "Albert Einstein once wrote that "true art is characterized by an irresistible urge in the creative artist." On a recent summer afternoon, Matt Wood strode out of his studio in a paint-specked shirt, arms outstretched, with a welcoming, "Let me show you everything." That 'everything' is apparent on all the walls and in every corner of the artist's home. There is a mural on the bedroom wall depicting the time he spent in the 1980s living in his bronze 1979 Chevrolet Caprice and burying his art in New Mexico and Texas (more on that later). In the living room, a painting with a face sporting a Day-Glo afro created with his daughter's melted crayons lives alongside a dramatic drawing of a women covered by glass and black paint to reassemble a burka. As we ramble down to the downstairs studio, photographs spill over a large table and there is a rendering of Copernicus that encompasses the entire ceiling."

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Photograph by Matt Wood

Matt is also know for his original art murals and painted an exquisite pastoral scene that graces the wall of the pool area of the Mayflower Spa in Washington, CT. Below is a foyer on a local estate where he created a magical interior vista by replicating photos of trees on the property and using a technique with silver aluminum sheets and reverse imaging.

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Click here for more information about Matt Wood and his art.

 

Rossiter Revisited: Vaillant House, an Architectural Gem made Perfect with Elegant Renovation

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Exterior

Vaillant House was originally conceived by Washington's most famous architect Ehrick Rossiter as an artist's summer escape. Recently, the house was rebuilt and renovated by the area's top designer and reimagined by a preeminent NYC decorator. The interior rooms were 'taken down to the studs' and enriched with luxury finishes and textures. The original basic moldings were not representative of Rossiter's work at that time so they were redesigned in keeping with the colonial revival and Mediterranean direction.

Family room

Ehrick Rossiter had a fascinating history; born in Paris, France to American Parents, he returned to the United States to attend Frederick Gunn's school 'The Gunnery' in Washington, CT. He designed many important town buildings such as the Memorial Gunn Library, St. John's Episcopal Church and the clubhouse of the Washington Club. He is best known for his architectural designs of 25 estate homes, often called "summer cottages," in the Queen Anne shingle and colonial revival styles.

Vaillant House was also originally a 'summer cottage', in the Italianate style, but is now completely refurbished and renovated to make it a four season estate. Some of the interior design details include a gourmet kitchen with 2 inch concrete countertops with custom cerused white oak cabinetry. An uber chic living room features a massive fireplace with original mantle and reconditioned moldings. This area opens to a stunning expansive sunroom which incorporates the original floor to ceiling French doors.

Sun room

An exceptional example of the renovation is the basement which was dug out to create a remarkable wine cellar. This space is a wine connoisseur's dream, featuring rough-grouted brick walls, a unique waxed oak raised panel ceiling treatment, and full temperature and humidity control for 1500+ bottles. Wide board chestnut planks found in the attic were repurposed to create the shelving. Along with a bar, 1/2 bath and media center, it is the quintessential "man cave".

Wine cellar

Private vistas from the house are wide-reaching and very unique for a property so close to town. The original Rossiter Carriage and Groomsman's quarters complete a backdrop that is like a rich Litchfield County version of 'Brideshead Revisited' and is its own, 'Rossiter Revisited'.

Cottage

 

 

Comments

  1. Justo Vaillant on

    You guys have Beautiful houses great living and successful and I Justo Vaillant the left behind ones to all the Vaillant around the world and going to keep my comment.

    Day of Design at the Mayflower Grace

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    Mayflower poolWe thoroughly enjoyed our participation in a 'Day of Design' at the Mayflower Grace. The event took place onSaturday, June 14thwhen an engaging group of panelists and moderatorsgathered at the 5 Star Relais & Chateaux property.The day included morning and afternoon panels, lunch and a VIP 'Meet the Designer' Cocktail Party.

    Cj, harold, sue and glennPictured her is top designer blogger CJ Dellatore,Architect Harold Tittmannwith interior designers Susan Bednar Long and Glenn Gissler.

    The first morning panel, Global Finds: Searching the World for the Unique and the Unusual. brought together Richard Lambertson and Suzanne Cassano of Privet House with David Whitman and Peter Stiglin of Pergola to discuss shopping excursions to Morocco, France, India and Japan. The second morning talk covered Tabletop: Inspirations for Summer, a subject that melds aspects of design with the art of entertaining. The three panelists had rich backgrounds. Stacy Kunstel is a designer, stylist and a writer for national magazines. She also founded the design company Dunes and Duchess with her husband, photographer Michael Partenio. Amy Beth CuppDragooof ABCD Design is an artist, designer and stylist who splits her time between New York and Litchfield County. These two ladies were joined byinterior designer Ron Norsworthy who has worked with many cultural icons and celebrities including Tyra Banks, Mariah Carey and Madonna.

    Lunch Scene at the MayflowerThere was a spectacular lunch on the patio with all the designers, moderators and participants. The afternoon panels were again fascinating with top design professionals in the area. First up was Art, Fine Art Photography and Wall Decoration in Interior Design. Dynamic interior designers Philip Gorrivan and Florence de Dampierre were joined by KMR Arts gallery owner Kathryn McCarver Root. KMR Arts has become quite a cultural force in the county especially after a groundbreaking exhibition of Diane Arbus photographs just last year. Following this panel was a discussion of Architectures Influence on Interior Design with internationally renowned Robert Couturier who is included in Architectural Digests prestigious annual list of the best decorators and architects in the world. Joining him on the panel were Robert Passal, a NY and Miami based architect and designer and Brussels born architect Harold Tittmann, who has designed some exquisite residences in the county.

    Pels and AnnieHere I am with the author Annie Kelly in between panels. Themoderators for the panels were two of the most preeminent style setters and design mavens in the industry. Our friend, Susanna Salk, a Litchfield County resident is a prolific author of highly regarded design books including Room for Children, Weekend Retreats, C.Z. Guest: American Style Icon, Be Your Own Decorator (all Rizzoli) and A Privileged Life: Celebrating Wasp Style (Assouline).Stacey Bewkes, founder and writer of Quintessence, has a mantra to Experience, inspire, inform its all about living well with style and substance.

    A great day with great designers!

    Pels

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