the PDF - Sheridan Interiors

connecticut cottages & gardens October 2015
COTTAGESGARDENS.COM | OCTOBER 2015
cottagesgardens.com
THE
DESIGN ISSUE
FEATURING THE DESIGNER SHOWHOUSE ON THE GREEN
WEEKEND UPDATE
Sheridan
Interiors
gives a
shingle-style
second home
a fresh
new look
BY JAMIE MARSHALL
PHOTOGRAPHY BY
JANE BEILES
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ctc&g cottagesgardens.com october 2015
Classic Combo
In the living room,
a linen-covered
Hickory Chair sofa
is graced with throw
pillows in a Quadrille
China Seas fabric.
Navy Phillip Jeffries
grasscloth walls pop
against the highgloss white paint.
Silk damask drapes
by Highland Court
through Duralee
sport a Lee Jofa trim.
A graphic blue-andwhite area rug from
Palace Orientals
tops the white
Rosecore carpet.
See Resources. Sitting Pretty
A pair of midcentury chairs and
a custom settee
covered in an
Osborne & Little
velvet from Tudor
House create a
seating area in the
living room. The
table lamp is from
Tracy Glover.
See Resources. W
HEN DESIGNER BETH SCHOENHERR
first met the owners of this New Canaan shinglestyle residence built by Country Club Homes, the
mandate was clear: “They bought the house in the
spring, and they wanted to be in by summer,” she
recalls. With just a few clues to work with—some
pages from a magazine, for instance—Schoenherr viewed the directive as a challenge and an opportunity. “I took the bull by the horns,” she says. “As a designer,
one of my greatest joys is to figure out what a client wants to live in.”
Set in the Oenoke section of town, the home was originally built in 2008.
When the Manhattan-based couple bought it in 2012 as a weekend house,
it was still in good shape. “It just needed a makeover,” says Schoenherr. “We
painted everything, cleaned up the trim and changed out all the hardware.”
The goal was to integrate the wife’s love of French antiques and more
modern pieces into a cohesive whole. “That type of design usually evolves
over time,” Schoenherr explains. Working on such a tight schedule meant
there was little room for missteps. “At one point, I had all three of my rug
guys working at the same time,” she recalls with a laugh.
For their next meeting, the designer had developed a floor plan for the
entire house, including selections for fabrics, furnishings and lighting. “When
we did a walk-through with my storyboards, she kept saying, yes, yes, yes,”
Schoenherr recalls.
Then, about six weeks into the project, the couple went to Paris to shop for
antiques. The next thing Schoenherr knew, a semi container filled with lighting fixtures, paintings, statues, mirrors, benches, armoires and more was sitting in the driveway. “It was like Christmas,” she says. The designer managed
to find a home for everything, including two heavy marble Greek statues
that sit on the lawn just outside the family room. All of the lighting fixtures
were rewired, and the antique upholstered pieces were updated with more
contemporary fabrics and trim.
Picture Of Perfection In the family room (above), the Jerry Pair–upholstered sofa and chairs are by Hickory Chair. Kravet window treatments feature an embroidered
trellis motif and a Stout trim. The Habersham Plantation cocktail table is through Sheridan Interiors; the table lamps are Visual Comfort. The square stools and round end table
are from the owner’s private collection. The Natasha Law portrait above the mantel was commissioned in Paris. See Resources. october 2015 cottagesgardens.com ctc&g
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Morning Glory (above left) In the breakfast room, Jessica Charles orange and navy Maxine chairs surround the Century table, which is centered under a Ralph Lauren
chandelier. The designer painted the ceiling and window mullions high-gloss jet-black paint; the cornice’s Robert Allen fabric adds visual punch. Stylish Start (above middle)
The home’s makeover started in the foyer, which the designer painted a crisp, high-gloss white, then added high-gloss jet-black paint to the mullions. The custom stair
runner is from Saxony; the oil landscape painting is a Parisian find. Fine Repast (above right) Hand-screened wallpaper from Arena plays off the coffee-colored trim in the
dining room; a Palace Oriental rug sits beneath the couple’s own dining table. The Baker chairs sport Osborne & Little’s Kilmory in ivory chenille. The antique Murano glass
chandelier and lily sconces add French flair. See Resources.
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october 2015 cottagesgardens.com ctc&g
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The end result
is exactly what the
homeowners
envisioned: an inviting
weekend retreat,
formal but not stuffy,
with a crisp,
sophisticated feel
Quiet Room (left) The library is a tranquil retreat just off the living room. The antique
game table and lighting fixture are from the owners’ private collection. Suite Notes
(opposite page, clockwise from top) Antique and modern pieces mix it up in the master
bedroom, where bedside tables by Century hold antique wheat lamps. The Hickory
Chair sofa is upholstered in a Baker fabric; the throw pillows are Zimmer + Rohde.
Walls sport a sumptuous Lee Jofa print; the custom cabinet between the bed and the
sofa hides a pop-up TV. The octagonal sitting room features a high-gloss blue ceiling
and window mullions. The chairs and sofa are from Caracole’s Fine Line collection.
A pair of Baker slipper chairs is covered in a Colefax and Fowler print; the antique
secretary is from the owner’s collection. See Resources.
The jumping-off spot for the interiors was a spectacular hand-screened
orange and brown Arena wallpaper that the homeowner wanted in the
dining room. “It’s the one traditionally formal room in the house,” says
Schoenherr. The brown (more coffee with cream) lacquered trim adds to the
overall richness, as does the handmade gold leaf ceiling and antique Murano
glass chandelier—one of the Paris finds.
Playing off the wallpaper, the dining room rug weaves in a palette of blues,
taupes and gray, which runs through to the family room, as well as orange
and brown, which appear again in the breakfast room. “We didn’t want
orange in every room,” says Schoenherr. “But we did want splashes of it as an
accent color.” Here, an orange, navy and cream fabric cornice adds a whimsical note, as does the orange and navy Jessica Charles chairs. The designer
introduced a touch of drama by painting the octagonal ceiling a high-gloss
jet black. “It’s like glass,” says Schoenherr, “so shiny and clean looking.”
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The spacious living room is large enough for two separate sitting areas,
pulled together with a sumptuous navy Phillip Jeffries grasscloth wall covering. A custom curved settee covered in an Osborne & Little fabric and a pair
of 1920s chairs anchor one end of the room; a linen sofa and matching club
chairs anchor the other. The room’s classic color scheme carries over into the
library, with its high-gloss navy ceiling and cream lacquered built-ins.
By contrast, the family room, done in pale blues and grays, strikes a more
relaxed pose. A Natasha Law portrait of the couple’s children holds center
stage above the hearth. Overall, the end result is exactly what the homeowners envisioned: an inviting weekend retreat, formal but not stuffy, with a
crisp, sophisticated feel.
“With a three-month time frame, it was a jump-off-and-trust-each-other
situation,” Schoenherr recalls. “Now, when I look at the house, I know: This
is absolutely her.” ✹