THE THORNTONS' HOUSE - HUNT was going nowhere-one property after another proving “so expensive yet so cookie-cutter,” recalls Josh Thornton. At the close of a particularly frustrating day, he asked his then-pregnant wife, designer Summer Thornton, “If we could live anywhere, where would it be?"
She didn't hesitate: “That white house on the corner." She was referring to an elegant but run-down, 19th-century townhouse a few blocks from their Chicago condo.
PREVIOUS SPREAD: Handmarbled ceiling paper (Marbled Art) crowns the apricot living room. Summer and her son welcome guests on an entry stairwell cloaked in panther print carpet (Stark).
Though it wasn't for sale, Josh contacted the elderly owners anyway. As luck would have it, they were happy to sell so long as they could rent the ground floor as a pied-à-terre for themselves.
The sunny second-floor kitchen overlooks a walled courtyard. Range, Lacanche OPPOSITE: Flowering cherry standards and maidenhair fern flourish in the side garden.
In the courtyard, classic stripes (fabric, Perennials) cloak steel dining chairs. Stone flooring, Exquisite Surfaces
“The trellised walls in the garden room are my ode to The Decorator-legends like Bunny Mellon, Parish Hadley.
-INTERIOR DESIGNER AND HOMEOWNER SUMMER THORNTON
OPPOSITE: The lattice-cloaked garden room. Brass sconces, Circa Lighting
This story is from the May - June 2022 / Volume 36 Issue 3 edition of Veranda.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May - June 2022 / Volume 36 Issue 3 edition of Veranda.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Should my holiday decor "match" my interiors?
Even designers aren't immune to joyful chaos. For her home, Atlanta-based designer Katie Wolf is \"all nostalgia, all day long. Bring on the reds and greens, the school-made ornaments and even the multicolored lights!\"
SANCTUARIES of JOY
When does a closet become a portal to our passions? We teamed up with three top tastemakers to imagine their pie-in-the-sky storage spaces, from a china-filled entertaining lab to a winemaker's exuberant workshop.
You Are Cordially Invited to a SPIRITED HOLIDAY SOIREE
Join illustrator and bon vivant TUG RICE for a lively, piano-fueled cocktail party, where creatives mingle with whispers of artists past in his Sutton Place apartment.
Will Travel For
Who among us can resist a good treasure hunt? Especially when the prize is an object of singular curiosity. Here, three artful adventurers pursue their obsessions from California to north-central Europe.
BEYOND THE FEAST
Thanksgiving dinner is only the beginning for Charleston hoteliers Jaimie and John Dewberry, who extend the revelry with drop-in cocktails at their 18th-century home and a Black Friday boat ride on their vintage Chris-Craft.
TOAST of the TOWN
At her Manhattan apartment, stationer and Dear Annabelle founder Marcie Pantzer hosts a New Year's celebration as graceful as the lost art of letter writing.
THE LEGACY KEEPERS
Editor in chief Steele Thomas Marcoux explores how Charleston preservationists are harnessing the city's vernacular to reinterpret the past and forge a richer future.
Now Booking NEXT-LEVEL LUXURY
From estate revivals in Genoa and Baja to extravagant villas in Egypt and Bhutan, the year's top hotel debuts are raising the bar with bespoke craftsmanship, garden romance, and all-out escapism.
In To the PINK
On New Year's Day in Palm Beach, The Colony Hotel's Sarah and Andrew Wetenhall welcome friends for a casual courtyard fete, alight in the landmark's signature color.
TRIMMED IN TRADITION
Fresh-cut Fraser firs, evergreen boughs, and more than 6,000 string lights herald the arrival of Christmas at North Carolina's historic High Hampton resort, instilling the woodsy, old-fashioned warmth of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
