The dining room has provided a genial gathering place for presidents, prime ministers and the crème de la crème of international society.
Apart from adding expensive heating and air conditioning systems and slightly modifying the antediluvian kitchen with paint, a new floor, countertops and appliances, the couple did little to alter the house when they arrived in 2005. “I resisted the urge to do a ‘Martha Stewart kitchen,’ ” Irene Danilovich notes as the family’s three svelte dogs, Aphrodite the poodle, Gabriel the dachshund and Holly the cocker spaniel, scurry for a pre-dinner snackette at their benevolent mistress’s side. “I just loved the 1950’s look and the old tin cupboards and decided not to change it,” she says.
The “Upstairs, Downstairs” contrast between the kitchen and adjacent reception areas is most apparent in the living room, where easy comfort reigns despite an initial “drawing room” aura conferred by plush window treatments, art and antiques. While the space defies strict stylistic definition, “Eclectic English Country House” fits as well as any. The eye is drawn to the elegantly carved Adam mantelpiece and its gilded overmirror reflecting the opposite wall’s floor-to-ceiling shelves filled with bibelots and books, many bound in full calf. Museum-quality standouts include a set of Goya etchings and a pair of heroic oils by 17th-century German painter (and Poussin student) Friedrich Wilhelm Reuter that depict Biblical scenes from the life of Joseph. Modern bronzes and a collection of blue and white Chinese export porcelain complete the “Treasure House” effect along with an Empire chest fronting additional bookcases on the rug-less parquet floor.
