In recent months, former Real Housewife of New York, Countess Luann de Lesseps has been traveling the world on her cabaret tour, but where does she reside when she's home? The Countess has homes in both The Hamptons and New York City. Icons tend to have iconic houses, so Homes & Gardens caught up with her to learn all about how de Lesseps decorates in her Hamptons estate.
Lesseps shared that she's lived in the Hamptons for almost 30 years, residing in two different properties across that period. The first house was in Bridgehampton. She states: 'The original house that you see on the show is a barn that we brought from Pennsylvania. We actually brought the beams and everything and built the house around this barn conversion structure. I love the look of old barn beams, especially for the Hamptons, which is very country. But I did a very English bar in my house.' She smiled conspiratorially, 'I don't know if you remember it, but I had a very long bar. We had many fights in that bar.'
While her current home in Sag Harbor differs in style (it's a Greek revival Mediterranean home), the way she chooses to decorate with her heart remains the same. Lesseps told H&G: 'My homes are collected mixes of my life. I'm not a big knick-knack person. But when you have beautiful things like ceramics and paintings and things that are family history, it's different, right?.' Luckily, we got the photos, so you can take the tour here.
We can trust that anything holding Studio McGee's name will be as beautiful as it is functional – and it is certainly the case with this basket. The long oval rattan basket adds a stylish element to your kitchen storage needs while adding natural texture and charm to your space.
Mounted in a hand-wrapped linen mat, this distressed framed 'September in Kalamata' painting has a tonal color palette and embraces the moody feel of a stormy seaside.
These giant clam shells are so popular on Instagram, and for good reason. Keep it on your kitchen island as a fruit bowl, as a coffee table accessory, or pop in the bathroom.
Just like the Bridgehampton home, The Countess's current Hamptons property is full of history. 'It's old whaling Captain's house,' she explains of the late 19th century property. 'So that house is very different from the barn house because it's Greek revival and very simple wainscoting and wood floors and on the water. I've always wanted to be on the water.I have a boat there that sits outside of my house, which is a beautiful freedom. Instead of having your car and driving away, you have the boat and you're driving away into the ocean.'
The interiors of the home are defined by their eclectic, personal nature. de Lesseps calls it: 'real Hamptons country with a mix of all the beautiful thing I’ve collected over the course of my life.' Her coastal country decorated kitchen embodies this idea. 'I mix country because I think it all works if it's not too loud,' de Lesseps states.
De Lesseps has decorated with art in a highly personal, yet design-led manner. She explained: 'I have a real mix of new art from the de Lesseps family to French furniture from the 15th century to paintings from my Children, because they're both artists, Victoria and Noel. Noel is an incredible oil painter and Victoria is a mixed media artist, but they're both fine artists and they work in art. It's cool because I have their art, I have French art still life paintings, and candelabras from Alex's father, who was the ambassador to Monaco for 40 years. So we have a lot of, you know, old beautiful things mixed with things that are Hampton-centric or country.'
Personal portraits round out the art collection. She stated: 'I've got art from Gunter Sachs. Gunter Sachs did a whole period where he only photographed supermodels. So he did all the big names, Christy Turlington, Claudia Schiffer, and all of them. So I ran into him at a party in Switzerland. He says, ‘Can I take your picture?.’ I said ‘Sure.’ so I have that in my home in the Hamptons.' She has also included photographs from her days modeling in Milan. These conversation pieces make the home a place that feels deeply connected to its owner.
A mixture of antiques and family artifacts ground The Countess's home. However, don't make the mistake of assuming that means her home is cluttered. She explains: 'It's knowing how to mix things and not going over the top. But that's what I don't like, knickknacky things. I have a lot of photos of my children,not a ton. because I like things to be clean and tidy. I'm a bit of a neat freak.'
Outdoor space is essential to The Countess, especially for sourcing cut flowers. She told H&G: 'I love my garden because I put flowers in my garden last summer, I don't have to go and buy flowers, which is nice. I've got lilacs at a certain time of year. I have daisies. I have hydrangeas and different flowers that I decorate my house with.'
It's inspiring to see a home that feels like a personal portrait of the owner. If you were to combine all of your favorite artifacts and art pieces in one space, what would it look like?
Tickets for Countess Cabaret are available now from countessluann.com
