I'm ready for spring already, and enticing us with her
spring green bench is author, garden connoisseur
and former magazine editor Bettie Bearden Pardee.
Her new book Living Newport: Houses, People, Style
is inspired by her
beloved city of Newport (Rhode Island).
Living Newport: Houses, People, Style
(Glitterati, 2014)spotlights 17 properties, all of whose owners she knows personally.
Bettie's third book treats us to enchanting gardens, life by the sea,
and the intimacy, easy elegance, sophistication, and history of
one of the oldest cities in the country.
Hammersmith Farm
Of Newport, Bettie reports,
"There is no phoniness. Newport attracts people who are taken with the city’s authenticity. I don’t think they come here as preservationists, but they fall in love with the iconic homes that they buy. They don’t do anything to the property but refresh it. They make cosmetic updates, such as paint, rewiring, and polishing the bronze sconces."
Narragansett Bay
Hammersmith Farm
Bettie's own Newport home (Parterre) is magical.
Have we died and gone to France?
Ahhhhhhh. Truly a heavenly home.
Aren't Parterre's gardens exquisite?
Indoors, I love how Pardee decorates with books:
(these images are from her site)
I appreciated seeing these vignettes since I have
been meaning to address my overflowing shelves
and decorate with my own treasured picture books.
For an insider's view of the private homes and gardens,
soirees and pastimes of both the old guard
and new tastemakers of this fabled town,
look no further than Living Newport: Houses, People, Style
.Have you visited this part of the country?
Peace to you right where you are.
