Home tour: A modern farmhouse in Connecticut filled with eye-catching art and vintage pieces

Enveloped in the lush landscape not far from the Long Island Sound shoreline, the original house used to be an 1800s structure with only one room before it was rebuilt in the 2000s, and renovated in 2020 to fit two additional storeys and five more bedrooms.

Sprawling 6,800 sq ft across three levels, the open-plan living space includes a separate recreation room and office-slash-TV room, whereas two of the six bedrooms were converted into one, and another an office space.

“The renovated farmhouse would qualify as a modern farmhouse style now, updated and streamlined into a cleaner contemporary layout with larger windows [overlooking the greenery],” says Fine, in regard to the full-time home that exists today. 

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Being the previous owner of the home gave Fine exceptional insight when it comes to designing a place that is more in tune with the family’s narrative, claiming that her job was “simply to make it a great home for them.”

“I knew all its best secrets; I understood exactly how the light moved throughout not only the day but really how it shifted throughout the year,” she shares. “This helped me make choices about how each space best functioned for the different desires of my clients, and what would be highlighted by the changing sunlight and seasons.”

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While the clients were inspired by the textured design details Fine is known for, the interior designer filtered her design style through their eyes, reinterpreting it in a way that is uniquely in line with their lifestyle and preferences that resulted in a new design direction with a few nods to shared taste. 

During the nine-month-long process, Fine lived in the house during the first six months, “standing in spaces when considering the smallest details in terms of what could be improved upon, and planning all the design features, all the way down to elements like colours,” she elaborates in retrospect.

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Starting with the family and the surrounding natural environment where the home is, Fine kept a neutral palette with earthy tones connecting to the exterior environment.

Calming pale moments give pause throughout the home, while deep green in the powder room emulates the lush yard, and the blue living room sofa echoes the nearby waters and sky. 

Meanwhile, plaster, limewash and textural wallpapers achieve subtle grounding, adding to the uniqueness of the spaces, such as the wood accents of the exposed beams in the living and dining areas, and fireplaces that were retained from the original 1800s farmhouse.

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Distinctive layers were then created through contemporary upholstered furnishing with luxurious materials–mohair, shearling and wovens, alongside dense colour or pigment with hints of reflectivity through curated vintage pieces with character and patina to ground the pale-toned, modern structure.

“I loved working on the sitting vanity in the subtle primary bedroom,” Fine divulges. “It all centres around this spectacular vintage mirror I found, which anchors everything while reflecting the outdoors as well as the sunlight.”

“Underneath the waxed plaster accents, the room is peaceful but filled with some interesting moments, like the vintage red lamp from Blackman Cruz,” she adds. “We took some chances with the art walls in this room, such as the straw artwork from Sarah Myerscough Gallery, and wound up loving it.”

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Finally, with a passion for living with art, Fine was thrilled to hunt for contemporary work to place in the home, simultaneously mindful not to fill the home to the brim so the homeowners have room to add future pieces.

“Part of what the clients responded to was my personal art collection acquired over many years. They had a few great pieces but needed many more, and we worked together collecting art for the spaces,” Fine says. “That process became a very useful source of inspiration, as I could see the colours and styles that inspired them, and let that guide the interiors as well.”

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Striking finds are peppered throughout the home, including those on display in the dining area: Finnish Pekka Paikkari’s ceramic-made art piece by the credenza, and Dresden-based Existential artist Goran Djurovic’s oil-on-canvas painting at the breakfast nook.

“I don’t really design with art, but there is always an opportunity to create an interesting dialog between the art in a home, elevating and playing with what speaks to the homeowners, both for art and interior choices,” she adds in conclusion.

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