Tory Burch may have made a name for herself as a fashion designer, but one of her lesser known passions has helped turn her Gatsby-era Southampton manor into an inviting family home.
As a young adult, Tory studied art history at Penn University, which included a 'Semester at Sea' program, where she travelled the world for five months from Spain to Japan, collecting locally produced art, textiles and decor. It was this introduction to different cultures and ethnic craftsmanship that influenced Tory in her designs and started her love for collecting.
So, taking ownership of this 1929 neo-Georgian manor, it was time for Tory to set about on some serious collecting missions to fill the rooms. Tory brought in architect and designer Daniel Romualdez and decorator Eve Hood to help her transform the once very formal interiors, which featured heavy chintz and needlepoint-covered English furniture.
The team wanted to create an inclusive, entertainer's home, and to embrace the house's history while also making it feel more relaxed and inviting. Tory scoured auction houses and estate sales for antique furnishings, and combined her finds with twenty first century pieces, including Pottery Barn rugs and Garrison Rousseau coffee tables.
The grand ballroom has been transformed into a welcoming living room, and throughout the home we can see hand-blocked Fortuny cottons; custom Iznik-inspired panels by France's Iksel, Karl Springer and John Dickinson pieces and Burch’s collection of Imari porcelain.
The home is set among expansive landscaped grounds, which - thanks to Tory - now feature a sunken tennis court, a basketball court and a pool, with a skateboard ramp and outdoor pizza oven supposedly in the works to help entertain her three sons. The arched white trelliswork was restored and original photographs were dug out to help reinstate the formal garden.
So, take a look at this very grand, but very inviting Hamptons home, with images by Architectural Digest..
