“I had actually been through a lot of loss,” states the seasoned tv reporter and producer. Blair’s other half of 23 years, the composer Marvin Hamlisch, had passed away in 2012, and her dog, Abbey, had actually gone to the excellent big dog park in the sky in 2014.
And so Blair, a long time trainee of Buddhism, did a rather Buddhist thing: she Let Go. She offered, completely provided, the rambling five-bedroom home on 5 acres in Bedford, N.Y., that she had shared with Hamlisch.” I was literally down to a wheelie,” she states.
” I desired to discover something small but informal, full of warmth and character– a ‘Terre home,'” she states.
Blair discovered specifically what she was dreaming of in Rowayton, Conn., a seaside village that advised her of delighted summer seasons she had spent in Sag Harbor. Blair’s two-bedroom structure was the last house the designer had actually built for herself. “It was her gem,” states Blair.
The house is centered on an open plan living-dining location that feels twice its size thanks to its extensive windows and skyrocketing 20-foot ceiling, framed by weathered posts and beams restored from a 19th-century New Hampshire barn. Her bed room is tucked away at one end, with its own access to the outdoors. A loft above the living area serves as Blair’s comfortable study..
” I didn’t need to do much to make myself feel at home,” states Blair. She shopped local antique stores for French and Swedish furnishings that felt in keeping with your house’s old European taste. (” My favorite is Le Barn Antiques in Stamford,” she says.) She carefully upgraded the kitchen– setting up Cristallo quartzite counters and a properly French Lacanche range– and transformed the wood burning fireplace to a gas-fired one, which is kinder to the environment. The greatest modifications she made were outside, where she set up a stone patio in place of the existing gravel one and planted a vegetable garden.
Getting and rebooting her life in Rowayton stimulated other modifications in Blair’s life, too. Not long after her move, she registered in graduate school at Columbia University; she got a Master’s degree in clinical psychology last spring. She likewise has a new four-legged love– her mini labradoodle, Emma– who’s taken to your home extremely happily. ” It’s the perfect size for the two of us,” she states.
Betting on the Farm: A Gut Renovation Transformed This Connecticut Relic Into a Retreat.
Dream a Little Dream.
Inspired by French barn design, Blair’s cottage in Rowayton, Conn., is a pointer that little can be beautiful. The 16-year-old structure is sheathed in wood salvaged from a 19th-century barn in New Hampshire and functions large windows with shutters restored from an old Paris home.
European Accents.
The sun-drenched dining area features an antique Swedish baker’s table paired with Swedish chairs and provides a peek of the primary bedroom beyond.
Fired Up.
Blair reupholstered the fauteuil next to the fireplace with an antique Belgian linen and converted the wood burning fireplace to more environmentally-friendly gas. The stag’s head on the wall was a gift from a pal, a hunter who donated the venison to a regional food kitchen.
Beam Me Up.
Plaster walls, 200-year-old recovered beams, and wide plank oak floors frame the rustic kitchen area, where Blair set up Cristallo quartzite counters. An antique German bread peel hangs over the stove in between niches displaying hand-hammered copperware. The shutters below the counter skillfully disguise a tv mounted on an extendable arm.
Onwards and Upwards.
The staircase to the loft is triggered by an antique Swedish chair and picture of the Dalai Lama by Nicholas Vreeland.
Let’s Grow.
Blair planted a veggie garden in her patio area on raised beds utilizing seeds from Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture.
Your Comprehensive Guide to Starting and Cultivating a Vegetable Garden.
Antique Treasures.
In the bedroom, the antique mirror and bench are both Swedish.
Set in Stone.
” When buddies come to visit, they say they feel like they’re in Provence!” says Blair, who often captivates al fresco on her patio. The teak outdoor dining set is from Bloom in Sag Harbor, N.Y.; the table at the rear is a vintage French flower market table from Le Barn Antiques in Stamford, Conn
.
