Celebrity Homes: Frédéric Fekkai’s Stunning Country Home in Provence

celebrity homes

Celebrity Homes: Frédéric Fekkai’s Stunning Country Home in Provence

May 14, 2017

apple pear crisp

Celebrity Homes: Ina Garten's Apartment & Why She's My Secret Weapon

March 28, 2017

Ina Garten standing near bookshelves and orange sofa in East Hampton home

Celebrity Homes: Ina Garten in her East Hampton home

Ready to peek inside the celebrity home

(a beautiful Manhattan apartment)

of Ina Garten?

I bet it won't surprise you that I have been forever in love

with the Barefoot Contessa, the brilliant and beautiful

Ina Garten, for obvious reasons.

She has incredible taste and shares it.

Her decor style is simple and tasteful, with restrained elegance.

She creates the best recipes and entertaining ideas

which are realistic and achievable.

She loves dessert.

She strives for ease but won't

do the impossible and then orchestrate

matters to make it all look easy...

there's a transparency I have come to trust.

Her cookbooks are gold.

A couple of winters ago, we were invited to

a dinner party where I was asked to bring dessert.

I know my way around the kitchen, but

I'm not sure I have ever been so nervous

about preparing a dish.

The host of the party has legendary chef skills,

and he was cooking us courses paired with

fine wines I knew we would remember forever,

and my dessert would follow all the magic and

deliciousness as the last taste guests would remember.

So who do you think I turned to in my hour of need?

The Barefoot Contessa, of course.

Ina Garten's Apple and Pear Crisp

I made Ina's Apple and Pear Crisp and

bought the best vanilla ice cream I could find.

The host/chef (who did not know what I was bringing)

served it in individual magnificent French enamelware

dishes which were absolutely perfect, elevating a very

simple dessert to European chic status.

And how did dinner guests respond

after the most amazing quail, emu, squid, etc?

With sighs and gratitude.

It was a hit.

The host even remarked:

"I don't bake, so this is special."

Sometimes I bake it in individual ramekins.

My Apple and Pear Crisp in individual ramekins

You can count on Ina Garten to

deliver the lovely, whether she is

decorating one of her beautiful properties

or schooling you in preparing a fabulous

meal ahead so you aren't

slaving away from guests in the kitchen.

I love her devotion to her husband and

how she shares her personal journey so beautifully.

Here's what she told House Beautiful a few days ago:

"Jeffrey and I had been married for two years when we went

camping in Normandy, France. The woman who owned the

campsite offered us beef bourguignonne, and I was like

"Yessss!--we had very little money, and I'd been using

a small gas stove in the tent. Well, the meal was extraordinary.

I had to figure out how to re-create it, and I used Julia Child's

Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I taught myself to

cook using cookbooks; now I'm obsessed. But I had

no place to keep them - they were piled on the floor

in stacks! So I built them a home."

I knew Ina's backstory about how in D.C. she

practiced recipes all week long before serving

dinner to guests on the weekend, and that perhaps only

sounds crazy to folks who are not mad about cooking

since I used to do the same thing as a work-at-home-mom

who loved to experiment and practice in the kitchen!

The Gartens moved to a new apartment on Park Avenue

last summer and are selling their 1-bedroom Manhattan

apartment which you may have seen featured in

an interiors magazine or on her show.

It's a home with an airy, European, relaxed,

Belgian feel that so many of us admire.

Let's tour it and then peek at her new city apartment.

Belgian style Manhattan apartment of Ina Garten

Bookcase: a 16th cenury reproducion from Axel Vervoordt's Belgium shop

Some particulars:

1920's Manhattan residence
Magnificent leaded glass window
One bedroom
Oversize master suite
Two-story living room
Galley kitchen

Source: AD
Interior Design: Daniel Romualdez
Photography: David Paler

Celebrity Homes:Who can forget those infamous pumpkin curtains!

Celebrity Homes: Galley Kitchen in Former Manhattan Apartment of Ina Garten

Bedroom in Belgian style Manhattan apartment of Ina Garten

Celebrity Homes: Simplicity in this Bedroom

Luxurious bathroom in Belgian style Manhattan apartment of Ina Garten

Celebrity Homes: Bathroom in Ina Garten's former Manhattan Apartment

Images below: via

Belgian sofa and bookshelves in Belgian style Manhattan apartment of Ina Garten

Ina Says she prefers highbacked sofas like these because she's not tall

Celebrity Homes: Another image of the Bedroom

Celebrity Homes: Ina Garten's Former Manhattan Apartment

Galley Kitchen in Belgian style Manhattan apartment of Ina Garten

Belgian stone countertops, open shelving, and steel window

Belgian Stone Counters in Ina Garten Kitchen

Celebrity Homes: Stunning Leaded Glass Window

Dining Area in Belgian style Manhattan apartment of Ina Garten

Celebrity Homes: Ina Garten

Bathroom in Belgian style Manhattan apartment of Ina Garten

Celebrity Homes: Detail in Bath of Former Apartment of Ina Garten

Ina in Living Room of Belgian style Manhattan apartment of Ina Garten

Celebrity Homes: Ina Garten

Where did she move?
A 2,450 s.f. pied-à-terre in the Philip House
on Park Avenue

It's a 2 bedroom, 3 bathroom apartment with 3 fireplaces
and the former home of Nancy Novogrod, former editor-in-chief
of Travel + Leisure and Condé Nast’s House & Garden.

The New Apartment

The living room is 36 x 19 with 10' ceilings

Ina Garten's Park Avenue Apartment

Celebrity Homes: Ina Garten's Park Avenue apartment

Kohler sinks, Dornbracht-polished nickel faucets, E.R. Butler & Co. hardware,
a Miele dishwasher, and a sub-zero stainless steel refrigerator

Celebrity Homes: Ina Garten's Park Avenue apartment

We cannot blame Ina for wanting her city kitchen
to live larger, but is anyone else a little sad
she's letting go of that 1920's gem
so perfect for housing her personal treasures?

Stay tuned for tours of Ina Garten's
Paris apartment, Hamptons Barn, and of course,
her well-known East Hamptons home.

Here's my post about
Meg Ryan's NY apartment
if you missed it, and here are
a couple of recent posts you might enjoy:
40 Beautiful House Exteriors to Inspire
A Stunning Modern Farmhouse Renovation

Peace to you right where you are.

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Ashton Kutcher

Celebrity Homes: Ashton Kutcher Home by Giannetti Home

March 10, 2017

Ashton Kutcher room by Giannetti Home

This is not a typical celebrity home tour since

Ashton Kutcher's home became a showhouse

for a good cause and is why we are treated

to these peeks of gorgeous rustically elegant

farmhouse Giannetti patina style.

Just a few days ago, you may have seen

Ashton Kutcher

testify to a Senate Foreign Relations Committee

on the subject of anti-sex-trafficking efforts,

and what a powerful and stirring plea it was.

Ashton Kutcher

Ashton's organization THORN combats

child sex abuse by using digital technology,

and seeing his testimony encouraged

so many people advocating for the welfare

of children.

Even though the topic

is dark and depressing, I am so grateful

there are organizations such as Thorn on a mission.

Flashback to the 2011 showcase room Brooke and Steve

Giannetti designed for Ashton Kutcher

and Gilt Home Showhouse to benefit

the DNA Foundation (Demi and Ashton Foundation).

Five top West Coast interior-design teams

transformed Ashton Kutcher’s onetime bachelor pad

into a stunning showplace, and tickets were sold

to tour it...this Giannetti room

was my favorite.

Proceeds from tours of this home benefited

DNA Foundation, a charity founded to combat

human trafficking.

The Giannettis imagined a story of a world traveling

artist with a desire to create a comfortable place

to gather with friends and tell stories

and display his collections.

What I love about this beautiful room?

This soothing, tranquil, Aquarian palette

Steve Giannetti's Water Series art

All the character from the antique accessories

and, of course,

all of that luxe velvet and linen.

Ashton Kutcher room by Giannetti Home

That Tapestry Rococo Wing Chair!

Ashton Kutcher room by Giannetti Home

Nick sofa - Ashton Kutcher room by Giannetti Home

Swedish Clock Cabinet -Ashton Kutcher room by Giannetti Home

Ashton Kutcher room by Giannetti Home

Ashton Kutcher Showhouse

Were you familiar with this organization
and/or Ashton Kutcher's charity project
from a few years back?

Did you have a chance to read my
BRCA journey or see my new under one minute video?

More Giannetti projects which may
capture your heart:

Patina Farm

House on a Cliff

Beach Cottage

Malibu Farmhouse

Peace to you right where you are.