This countryside escape is a haven of family time and quiet relaxation for the Manhattanites who inhabit it. With a nearly impossible turnaround of only three months, JFD Creative brought warmth, comfort, and a place to showcase a budding art collection to this Connecticut home. Mike Van Tassel captured the serene images below.
From the designer… The way people’s lives web together in Manhattan is unlike any other place in the world. As luck would have it (funny how the harder I work, the luckier I get) my clients and I lived together with our families in the same residential building downtown in Battery Park City. Although we never met in the elevator like in the movies, I was referred through a friend and we hit it off straight away. As I began working on their city apartment in 2020, the pandemic hit and the clients purchased a house in Connecticut to get out of the city. The objective was to fully furnish the house in roughly three months so they could enjoy Memorial Day and the summer months to follow. The clients trusted me 100%.
As passionate art lovers, the couple wanted to create the perfect space for their budding collection. A George Washington acrylic + foil on canvas by artist, Houben, R.T. they found at a DTR Modern’s gallery in Nantucket hangs in the kitchen. The dining room features artist, Donald Sultan. A color silkscreen with enamel inks from his Poppies Collection seamlessly ties in to the palette of the home. Additionally, the clients sourced an original oil on canvas for the library that really steals the show.
I knew the aesthetic needed to be reminiscent of a modern, country house for a family that simply enjoys being together. As you first enter the home, there is a magic moment where guests are greeted by a stunning antique marble tabletop entry table with a scrolling ironwork base that has developed a striking patina that perfectly juxtaposes the white shiplap walls and the custom modern chandelier handmade by O’lampia in New York City.
Rather than over-complicate things, I kept it simple by using mainstream home furnishing retailers and elevated the design with designer lighting from Urban Electric and a range of antique finds and vintage sourced from places like Highpoint Market, First Dibs as well as shops in Connecticut and North Carolina. Modern furniture with clean lines married with playful fabrics and print gave the home the country house feel that felt appropriate for the stunning backdrop of Washington.
The house is used throughout the year in all seasons, so durable performance fabrics for the young family was important. They love to ski during the winter and in the warmer weather months, the pool situated off of the living room needed to be accessible with open doors for indoor-outdoor living. I met the challenge and got the majority of everything completed within the allotted three month time frame. There is nothing like a time crunch to put design skills to the test and it was a welcome challenge. It was a lot of work, and it wasn’t easy, but I delivered.
Like what you see? Take a peek at the talent behind the story… Interior Design: JFD Creative · Photography: Mike Van Tassel · Builder: Shaun Nettleton
