A Connecticut Dining Room with Art in Its Bones

Photography: @readmckendree⁠ / Styling: @katjagreeff

A young, professional NYC-based family purchases a country home in Westport, CT as a second residence with a vision to create a special place where they could host friends and family, celebrate the holidays, and relax on the weekends. Built in 1914, the home was originally the studio of early 20th-century American sculptors James Earl and Laura Gardin Fraser. Historic and charming as it was, it needed work. The new homeowners called upon Innate Studios Lisa Schwert and her team for architectural and design services to preserve the history while updating the space for modern living. The project included the redesign and renovation of 12 rooms, including this spectacular dining room.

“Since the clients love to entertain,” explains Schwert, “we designed the flow of the space to be multi-functional and selected finishes and furnishing that would be beautiful and comfortable but also durable and forgiving.”

The uniqueness of the home, evident in it’s gorgeous bones, did not come without some design challenges. For example, the original timber structure is beautiful but created some unusual spaces on the main floor, including in the dining room, which is centrally located in the home, adjacent to the main gallery space. 

“Our client wanted to preserve the existing silk wall covering and had a beloved oil painting of exotic birds that fit beautifully between the original rough-hewn columns and beams, giving a nod to the incredible bird motifs in the home's stained-glass windows,” recounts Schwert. ⁠The room's design began with a perfectly scaled antique rug that beautifully married the colors of the interior architecture and the oil painting. They sourced an antique walnut table that had originally been in a Spanish Monastery and paired it with custom dining chairs upholstered in a performance velvet from Castel Maison in the client's favorite shade of blue. The finishing touch was a linear crystal chandelier in a brass finish that added the perfect amount of sparkle to the space.

Sources:

Architecture + Design: @innatestudious⁠

Chairs @bernhardtfurniture 

Chair Upholstery @castelmaison 

Chandelier @arhaus 

Rug @etsy

Table @1stDibs