FARMHOUSE STYLE WITH A TWIST
Designer Amy Zantzinger styled her family’s waterside retreat in Maryland to be an elegant, yet casual, farmhouse. Her look combines rustic farm tables, lanterns and antique weather vanes with contemporary lighting and white marble bathrooms. Here are som
1 Paint most of the rooms in the same white paint.
Zantzinger chose Farrow & Ball’s All White. “It’s fresh and crisp. We don’t want people to be distracted by the walls. We want them to look out the windows at the views,” she said.
She sampled a number of her goto paint colours in various spots, studying how they looked at different times of day. Benjamin Moore’s White Dove and Simply White were two other colours considered, but White Dove was a bit too grey and Simply White too creamy.
2 Stick with linen.
Many of the curtains, chairs and pillows in the house are made of linen. “There is a casualness about linen that I like,” Zantzinger said.
In the living room, she blended beige linen curtains, blue linen cushions on wood-frame chairs and linen striped pillows. In the master bedroom, the seafoam linen curtains create softness and a gentle frame for the view of the water.
3 Collect white platters for casual country meals.
Zantzinger and her family love to entertain, so she has a stash of white stoneware platters from places including Ikea and Restoration Hardware. She likes the kind with a higher lip so nothing spills out.
“My platters are clean and simple; they showcase the food,” she said. Her style is to combine several foods — such as lots of tossed greens with chicken salad in the middle — on one big platter. She often shops when she travels, especially in San Francisco, which she said has some of the best home stores in the U.S.
4 Combine many kinds of lighting.
Zantzinger spent a lot of time figuring out the right light fixtures for each room. She sought out interesting old sconces and lanterns, such as a 1930s ship light from a Dutch naval vessel to hang in the mud room. “Vintage fixtures give texture to a home. If the fixtures are all new, the place can look like a lighting showroom.” Because so many chandeliers and pendants have exposed bulbs, she chose bulbs that complemented or contrasted with the fixture. In some, she used the Edison-style exposed LED bulbs that give off a warm glow. Candles add ambience; she likes to light them at dusk, not before.
5 Find new uses for old silver.
Adding some silver to a more casual setting creates interest and patina. Zantzinger has a collection of silver pitchers, julep cups and vases she amassed over the years. “Vintage silver looks great when placed on an old wood table,” she said. You can find pieces at flea markets, thrift shops and vintage stores. Zantzinger fills old silverplated water goblets with wildflowers she picks in nearby fields.