Fabulous
Formality
When Jim and Miriam
Morton purchased their three-story town home in Riviera
Dunes at the Hammocks in Palmetto, Florida, they turned
to interior decorator Grace DeVito of Baer’s Furniture
and Design Studio in Sarasota to assist them in furnishing
their home. With 13 years of decorating experience at Baer’s
alone, DeVito is experienced in knowing just what it is
her clients are looking for when decorating their homes.
Not only is she adept at her craft, DeVito is also a people
person who, more often than not, develops relationships
with her clients that last far beyond the end of a design
job.
In this case,
her clients are full-time Florida residents. Jim is a prominent
local businessman, while Miriam commutes to Dallas weekly
on business. In addition the Morton’s regularly entertain
in their home, which features an elevator and travertine
marble floors throughout. On the ground floor are the garage
and a media room, on the second level a powder bath, living
and dining rooms and kitchen, while the two bedrooms and
further two baths are located on the third floor.
After her initial
interview with the Morton’s, DeVito and her clients
decided that a design plan with a formal look would best
suit the Morton’s busy lifestyle and entertaining
needs. At the same time, comfort would be key. To achieve
this feel, DeVito settled upon a warm and elegant color
palette that would be both livable and formal and her use
of silk fabrics coupled with a mix of soft chenille’s
finished the look.
On the ground
floor, the media room has a relaxed feeling and is the perfect
location for entertaining. Three of the walls are done in
gunmetal gray, while the fourth window wall is covered in
floor-to-ceiling black curtains in a silk Robert Alan fabric.
The curtains were created by Suncoast Workrooms in Venice,
who executed all the window treatments in the home. The
chocolate brown leather sofa is by Restoration Hardware
and faces a 60” flat screen television. Elements for
entertainment continue in a grey chenille chair-and-a-half
with storage ottoman and the six seat walnut poker table
that stands behind the couch and is accompanied by armchairs
with brown leather seats. On the wall behind the card table
hangs a 3x5 ornate silver mirror by Lam Lee, whose pieces
are featured throughout the residence. The evening kitchen,
complete with wine cooler, refrigerator and sink, offers
cherry cabinetry and a black absolute granite countertop.
The space also boasts an elaborate tiled bathroom complete
with shower.
The second floor
living and dining rooms are designed for more formal entertaining.
The living room features Brazilian hardwood floors and the
furniture and fabrics are from the Sherrill line. The couch
is covered in cream colored chenille, while the two side
chairs are done in a bronze silk that is repeated in the
silk window treatments that are topped by chenille tapestry
swags and feature D’Kei trim. The gunmetal and glass
coffee table is by CTH. The wall facing the windows holds
an ornately carved stone fireplace topped by a flat screen
television and all of the accessories in the room are from
Baer’s. A focal point of the room is the Ralph Lauren
buffet that stands before the windows and the nearby gold
and silver pedestal topped by a black Lam Lee vase.
The dining room
walls, painted in the same classic bagel tone that appears
throughout the home, have been embellished by off-white
picture mouldings that mimic the crown moulding. The room
is the perfect setting for both entertaining and intimate
dining with its round glass topped table by Artifacts and
the accompanying chairs that feature skirts in a turquoise
COM fabric by Henredon. The bronze and turquoise fabric
was also used for the cornice boards at the windows and
lines the cascades. The drapery panels and swags are done
in a Robert Allen silk and are paired with Ado sheer panels.
A ten-foot cream-colored shag area rug anchors the table
and chairs. The Lam Lee console table is topped by two lamps
and a pair of crystal candlesticks. Classic Florals of St.
Petersburg furnished the trees and topiaries that were placed
here and elsewhere throughout the home.
In the striking
second floor powder bath, Tango Art in Naples faux painted
the walls in black and silver, which is the perfect foil
for the bombe chest from Fine Furniture that is finished
in silver crocodile and topped with a luxurious black granite
top. A graceful floral arrangement and two crystal lamps
complete the elegant ambiance of the room.
The third floor,
where the two bedrooms are located, has been designed to
provide solitude and tranquility. The furniture in the master
bedroom, by Fine Furniture in a Pacific Rim style, features
a headboard boasting inlaid parquet squares. The sumptuous
silk bedspread in a Kravet fabric is done in soothing shades
of cream and accented by pool blue and brown pillows, all
of which were custom made by Fabric Works in Hialeah Gardens.
Accessories by Baer’s dress up the two nightstands,
which also feature bronze metal and crystal lamps by Fine
Art. At the windows, pool blue silk panels are flanked on
each side by brown silk panels and the Kravet tapestry valences
incorporate the same pool blue and brown hues used throughout
the room. An elaborate metal wall hanging above the bed
finishes the space to perfection.
The second bedroom
is a study in understated elegance and features a rich headboard
by Fine Furniture in walnut and black leather. A gold bedspread,
dust ruffle and accent pillows are covered in Robert Allen
fabrics and were made by Fabric Works. Fine Art bedside
lamps and Baer’s accessories lend luxurious touches
to the space. In this room, the window was first covered
in a Silhouettes shade by Hunter Douglas and then given
tie-back panels in the same rich gold fabric used for the
bedspread. The top treatment, a straight cornice board,
features a black and gold striped fabric.
The end result
of DeVito’s design is that the Morton’s have
a beautiful home that perfectly blends their dual needs
for creature comfort and formal entertaining and, not too
surprisingly, their friendship with DeVito seems to have
no end in sight - they all spent Christmas together in Maui.
Courtesy of Grace
DeVito,
Allied ASID, IDS Associate
Baer’s Furniture and Design Studio
5301 Clark Road, Sarasota, FL 34233
941 923-4200
www.baersfurniture.com
Written by Helena
Wellesley
Photography by
Burt Kellerman
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