The Great Chatsworth House - an inside tour

While in England visiting 40 country houses, my penpal visited one of the most famous houses in the world (seen in my previous posting the Chairs of Chatsworth), Chatsworth House.

More of a palace really, Chatsworth House has been home to the Dukes of Devonshire since 1549. Over the years it has been rebuilt and grown numerous times, encompassing many architectural styles. The most commonly seen view, above, was possibly designed by the 1st Duke, William Cavendish, or by architect Thomas Archer.

The gatehouse was constructed by the 6th duke. The 3 gates serve different purposes. The lefthand gate serves the service areas, the central main gate leads one to the main north entrance of the house, and the gate to the far right is the gate still used by the family privately which leads one to the original west facade entrance.

The iron gates are lavishly gilded.

The large 2 story wing off the main house, seen above and below, was also constructed by the 6th Duke with architect Jeffry Wyatville, doubling the size of the house. It ends at the Belvedere Tower seen above.

As you can see, Neil visited on a typical cloudy day, but it doesn't dampen the beauty of Chatsworth.

One can see the original gilded windows in the original bulk of the house. The view above and below is of the courtyard.

One enters the house through the Painted Hall, seen below, which is accessed from the courtyard.

The stylish black and white marble floors were laid by the 5th duke in 1779. The 6th Duke added the ground floor windows. Every Duke added something!

The painted murals were designed by architect William Talman and depict scenes from the life of Julius Caesar.

 This metal stair dates from 1912 and was designed by W. H. Romaine-Walker.

The dining room is in the wing added by the 6th Duke and faces east. The current duke likes to add his mark to the house, as have his fore-bearers, and has artists work modern art exhibits throughout the house (one seen on the dining table above).

 The English certainly know how to do grand!

There are so many treasures that they are displayed on every surface throughout the 126 rooms (sometimes I feel this way about my own apartment!).  The  sunlit corridor leading to the chapel is lined with works of art.

The chapel is paneled in cedar with Ashford black marble columns which were mined from nearby quarries.

The ceiling of the chapel was painted at the time of its' construction (1688 till 1693) and depicts scenes from the life of Christ by John Laguerre.

The library was installed by the 6th Duke into a space built as the 'long gallery' by the 1st Duke. It still wasn't large enough for his always-expanding library and they overflow into adjoining rooms.

On the great stair even the metal railing is a work of art. It was made by Jean Tijou, a French ironworker, who worked for William III.

 The baroque ceiling above the great stair was painted by Antonio Verrio.

The upper stairhalls are as beautiful as any of the ground floor public spaces.

 Each guest room is more beautiful than the last. Many of the guest rooms feature the chinoiserie wallpaper installed by the 6th Duke. Chinoiserie was popular in the Regency period just as it is now proving what goes around comes around!

 No detail is overlooked, even in the bedcurtains.

 The tassels on the curtains are works of art in themselves.

 The guest rooms all start to look alike, but all beautiful.

While many of the furnishings date to the Regency period, notice the mix of items that have been added over time.

 This hand-painted wallpaper is really stunningly beautiful.

Which guest room would you want to stay in? I hope you like the color green!

The Oak Stair was added in the 19th century to help the flow through the house. It is topped with a glass dome for natural light and features portraits of the first 11 Dukes and their families.

 The sculpture gallery was also added in the 19th century and is the largest room in the house.

The south sketch gallery, in a very familiar green, is dedicated to the 5th Duke and his famous wife, Georgiana.

No doubt you saw the movie "The Duchess" (2008) and know the complicated story there; if not I highly recommend it!

 So much care was taken in the details added to the curtains that it seems a shame not to feature them.

The state apartments were lavishly decorated by the 1st Duke for the use of William III and his Queen Mary after they ascended the throne, but they never visited! Notice the contemporary Lockheed Lounge chair by Marc Newson at the end of the state bed!

 The collections of luxe housewares from the time period are astounding.

The Great Chamber, part of the suite of State Apartments, features a ceiling by the painter Antonio Verrio.

The displays in these rooms were recently changed to reflect the tastes of the time in which they were built.

The embossed leather wallpaper in the background is truly stunning and a rich backdrop to the tableau.

The delftware vases above would have been at the height of technology and fashion of the time.

The state music room above features more embossed leather wallpaper.

The private closet seen above, or boudoir, would have been the most private of state apartments -reserved for the King and Queen's personal use.

The richness of these rooms was of course meant to endear the Devonshires to their majestys and impress them with their wealth. They were to be contemporaries, not mere underlings.

The patronage of great artists continues to this day -above are the famous portraits by Lucian Freud.

These amazing wood carvings are often mistaken to be the work of  Grinling Gibbons but are actually the work of another artist, Samuel Watson.  The Devonshire patronage has kept artists employed for centuries and that continues to this day.

Did you know you could STAY at Chatsworth? Not in the house itself sadly but in one of many outbuildings, including the amazing Hunting Tower (future birthday trip for myself?)! Thanks to Neil as always for sharing his beautiful pictures with us all!
For more information be sure to check out the 2007 article on Chatsworth at Architectural Digest.

The chairs of Chatsworth

My penpal Neil just returned from a long tour throughout the British Isles where he toured over 40 country houses; just imagine!! He's been filling my inbox with some amazing photographs and I thought I would share with you some of the chairs from Chatsworth.

Arguably one of the most well known houses anywhere, the house is a treasure trove of historic artifacts, amazing significant art, and just plain pretty things. Pictured here is one of a pair of coronation chairs from the reign of George III.

Here is a painting I found online that sold at auction a number of years ago depicting George III in this very chair (I think).

Some other important artifacts are these chairs from Devonshire House made in 1740 by none other than William Kent. Devonshire House was sadly pulled down in 1924.

These are not exactly chairs to pull up to the table for a casual supper!  They are displayed in a room just off the great sculpture hall much like works of art; which they are.

 The grand upholstery on this Regency chair is very suited to the gilt wood.

 I prefer these beautiful needlepoint sidechairs myself.

 This leather armchair looks suited for a very grand library.

Not all of the chairs are so imposing.  This petite French  fruitwood armchair with what appears to be a Braquenie floral fabric would fit into the most modest house.  If you have time be sure to visit the excellent and interesting website of Chatsworth House!

Cool new product -Covered Components

I wanted to share with you a cool new product that  recently came onto the market. No, this is not an advertisement; don't close this screen!!! Rather it's a product I had a brief presentation of in my dayjob / real world and was so impressed I wanted to share.

The product was developed locally and just a month ago went into production (made in nearby Charlottesville, VA). The concept is HIDDEN OUTLETS people.  Don't we all hate staring at them? By code they're required in places you would never use them -well now you can have your cake and eat it too aka not see them.

These images are from their website showing 'before' and 'afters'.  Above you can see 2 typical outlets flanking a fireplace mantel. These would never be used, right?

Here is the 'after' - the outlets are hidden!  Basically the outlet sits in a little box with a paintable plastic cover that can even have your wallpaper applied to it.

Another spot outlets are required and rarely if ever used are in powder rooms. Above you can see the unsightly GFI outlet.

 And here it is with Covered Components - the cover is painted to blend in with the wall.

Here are some pictures I took of a sample board shown in the presentation -on the left is a typical outlet and on the right, the covered Component - practically invisible.  For $13 each this is a real find and I expect to be seeing a lot of these! Now in all fairness, I can't imagine using this in high-use spots.  The large transformers that are on many low-voltage lights and chargers for our laptops won't easily fit within these recessed boxes (although you could use an adapter). I also can't imagine them in a kitchen honestly because you would constantly be opening and closing the cover.   I think these are great for hallways, powder rooms, low-use spots, etc and you can't beat the price!

So what do you think of covered components? They are available for sale on their website HERE.
As stated, I received no compensation for this post, I just wanted to share a cool new product!

Delano & Aldrich George F Baker house, NYC

While cleaning through my over-flowing bookcases the other day I came across an old favorite, Adventures with Old Houses by Richard Hampton Jenrette.  The book is an account of the 14 historic houses he has bought, restored, and called home. One (or 2 rather) in particular have always been my favorites, the George F Baker house by Delano & Aldrich (more on them HERE and HERE).

Finished in 1914 for Francis F. Palmer by Delano and Aldrich, the house was later added onto to form a complex.  The house was bought in 1917 by George F Baker and Jenrette named the house after him. It still is Jenrette's home base in NYC with the carriage house (where he formerly lived) as offices for his historic foundation,  the Classical American Homes Preservation Trust.  

Above is the entry to the carriage house from the street. I love this combination of deep forest green with granite detailing and red brick.  Mr Jenrette originally bought the house located at 67 East 93rd Street in NYC, restored and sold it, moved into the carriage house behind at 69 East 93rd Street, and later bought BACK the townhouse for less than he had sold it, and moved back in! Get all that?  He has retained the carriage house for the offices of his foundation.

The Ionic columns front a terrace on the main level of the townhouse in the courtyard created by the compound of buildings.

Floorplans show the very organized layout to the townhouse.

Sunny yellow and a roaring fire greet guests in the entry hall.  Mr. Jenrette has always bought period furnishings for his many homes.

The yellow continues down the central corridor. Notice how Delano and Aldrich broke up the long hallway by creating different spaces with archways -a great architectural trick.

At the end of this long hall is the oval dining room with original marble flooring. Jenrette choose the chocolate brown walls to match the floor and they help bring out the decorative trimwork to best advantage.

Looking back towards the hall, through tall polished mahogany doors,  one catches a glimpse of the beautiful curved stair.

Stairs such as these are always the focal point of such elegant houses. Notice the greek key trim bordering the stair runner.

The library uses the rounded bay but is rather larger than the dining room below as it is a rectangular and not an oval room.

The carriage house behind, which was converted into a residence years ago, features this beautiful Adam-style fireplace from 1800 by master woodworker Robert Wellford.

A small sitting room, which was combined with a small bedroom to create a beautiful guest room, features lovely neoclassical painted paneling. I love the marble surround and quiet wood mantel which integrates into the paneling.  Classical houses such as this always make my heart sing, how about yours?
Read more about the house and the full compound of buildings at Daytonian in Manhattan.
All images from the book Adventures with Old Houses by Richard  Hampton Jenrette featuring photographs by John M Hall and not my own. 

Charlotte Moss with the ICAA

Earlier this week I had the pleasure of hearing Charlotte Moss speak for the Mid-Atlantic ICAA in Georgetown at the historic Dumbarton House. The Federal styled house, built in 1800, has been a museum since 1928 when it was bought the the Colonial Dames of America.

The house is kept accurate to the time of its building and is a hidden gem here in Georgetown. Not to be missed are the beautiful gardens which are somewhat eclipsed by their famous neighbor up the street, Dumbarton Oaks.

Moss spoke about her latest book, her 9th, Garden Inspirations. Her lecture was so witty, inspiring, and surprisingly down-to-earth that everyone left if not ready to garden, ready to travel and see some of the sights she shared with us! She said time and again that the book isn't a gardening how-to; you won't find planting lists or how deep to plant seeds. Rather you will find inspirational photographs of beautiful gardens and how to use their blooms both inside and outside of your own home.  She believes that everyone may not have a garden, but they can still be influenced by them.

 Moss's appreciation of gardens has changed over the years. She started loving the classic English Garden, which is so influential here in the USA because of our climate. She loves their beautiful flowers but found the style to be high maintenance; difficult for a city dweller who only visits her garden on the weekends. Even with help in the garden she prefers to be very hands on.

After giving up on her dreams of a English styled garden, she moved onto the more formal French gardens, famous for their symmetry. She was also drawn to the style for their love of the sculptural tree, 'No one can shape a tree like a Frenchman' - except perhaps Bunny Mellon whom Moss spoke about at length.  The third favorite garden type she spoke about was the Italian, rare in the USA where our climate is not hospitable to the plants, but if one learns abundance from the French, one can learn ease from an Italian garden.

Collaboration in her gardens in East Hampton are important and Charlotte designed hers with professionals -namely Lisa Stamm and her architect husband Dale Booher. Garden festivals are one of Moss's passions and she travels the world exploring these functions. She may not be able to bring the plants home but she can talk to the gardeners and pick up tips and ideas. They're also generally hosted in some of the most beautiful gardens in the world.

Charlotte spoke personally about her love of Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's home, which she visited first as a 4th grader in Richmond, Virginia, and fell in love with the house and gardens. That love continues to this day as she is on their board of directors and helps in the care of this important site. She believes in historic preservation as one of the most important cultural institutions we have, as do I, because it preserves how people have lived through different times. We can always learn from the past, and as it turns out, from gardens. One can also learn from Charlotte, who encourages us all to ' Do something mad... you can do anything you like with your own house, who cares what anyone else thinks'!

I highly encourage you to grow your collection of Charlotte's inspirational tomes, with the addition of Garden Inspirations and go out there and do something MAD!
Images from Garden Inspirations by Charlotte Moss.