A Montecito house with unexpectedly rich interiors by VSP Interiors
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There are certain ideas that might spring to mind when thinking about a Californian interior – a beachy, whitewashed aesthetic, perhaps with a veneer of Hollywood gloss – but this rich, layered house by Henriette von Stockhausen of VSP Interiors explodes all of those clichés. Situated in the stylish coastal town of Montecito, it is the home of a client whose taste and aesthetic aligned beautifully with Henriette's own.
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As with so many of the best collaborations these days, their relationship began on Instagram. “My client, Annie, sent me a DM because she had seen the perfect off-white paint colour in a picture of a project that I had posted. It was a custom colour from Rose of Jericho, and the company couldn't ship to the US, so I helped her out by sending her some samples, and after a few months of talking about paint, she said, ‘I need some help with my house, will you do it?’”
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The only slight hitch was that the pandemic was in full swing at this point, and so most of the project, remarkably, was conducted over Zoom. “She walked me through the house in the morning, afternoon and evening so I could see exactly how the light changed. We sent her millions of samples. And then eventually, when restrictions lifted, we filled two huge containers with antiques and rugs and flew over to install it.”
The coherence of the interiors make it hard to believe that things were done in this way, but Annie's taste had a clear, specific direction that made it easy for Henriette to create schemes and find the perfect pieces. “She has a particular eye for beautiful things,” says Henriette, “and has nothing in her house that is not exquisite." Italy, and particularly Sicily, has a special appeal for Annie, and there is a kind of Renaissance grandeur to many elements of the house, such as the spectacular Italian canopy bed in the spare bedroom and the Fortuny-covered sofa in the drawing room ("we call it the palazzo sofa"). Most showstopping of all is the Iksel wallcovering in the cinema room, which was inspired by a Sicilian palace and shades into a ceiling painted with stars. Antique rugs in each room, with their beautiful reds, golds and blues, were the starting point for the colour schemes, which also tie in with the client's love of antique icons.
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All of this has been successfully incorporated into a uniquely Californian house, built into the walls of a canyon and determinedly open-plan in its layout. “It's rather magical,” explains Henriette, “sitting very quietly amidst the steep canyon walls in the middle of huge old oak trees, and every room has the most magical view of the sea.” But the layout posed some challenges. “The kitchen is in the middle of the house, and all the other rooms – the drawing room and dining room and so on – open out from it. So you have these huge vistas all through the house, which is wonderful, but the client also wanted to have the option to close spaces off and use them as discrete rooms, rather than having everything completely open.” The solution was to use curtains, and this has provided another opportunity to layer in beautiful, characterful textiles, such as a pair of tapestries from Julia Boston that divide the library from the drawing room. The windows, meanwhile, are dressed in chik blinds or antique Anatolian linen panels from Robert Kime hand-stitched together to make curtains. “The light in California can be very strong,” says Henriette, “but those curtains really soften and diffuse it.”
An extraordinary level of precision and attention to detail went into creating these interiors. The difficulty of choosing paint colours, which had brought the client to Henriette in the first place, continued throughout: “The colours that I initially suggested looked completely different in California to how they look in the UK. We tried a million and one paint samples on the walls, and ended up with custom colours. I loved that process. It was challenging but very rewarding in the end to get it right.” In all her endeavours Henriette was ably assisted by the local contractors, Lynch Construction. “Nothing was too much trouble for them,” she says. One of the highlights of their work was the creation of an alcove for the bath in the main bathroom, which is entirely lined with opalescent pieces of shell. “It's the softest shade of peachy pink, and it looks so magical with the light coming in, I can't tell you.”
When there is a perfect meeting of minds between interior designer and client, the results can be enchanting, and so it has proved with this house. The pair are now great friends, with a relationship that has outlasted the job itself. “It was so easy and so fun,” she says, “because we were both looking for exactly the same things. I would suggest something and she would instantly get it. And once it all comes together like that, it's really not like any other project.”
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Paul Massey1/15Henriette designed the coffered ceiling in the dining room. The chik blinds throughout are by Tissus d'Helene, and the curtain fabric is by Arjumand's World in Milan. The tablecloth is from Cabana and the plates on the wall came from the local shop Indian Pink in Montecito.
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Paul Massey2/15A silk wallpaper from Pierre Frey makes a rich foil to painted bookshelves in Edward Bulmer's ‘Light Olive Green’. A pair of antique verdure tapestries from Julia Boston form the curtains that close off the space.
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Paul Massey3/15The bookcase on the right is from Soane Britain. The sofa is from Jamb, upholstered in a De Gournay velvet. The antique Howard armchairs are covered in an Etro paisley.
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Paul Massey4/15In the kitchen, the units are painted in Edward Bulmer's 'Cerulean Blue. The walls are in a custom shade by Rose of Jericho. The lamp is from Vaughan with a custom shade by Nushka.
Paul Massey5/15In the loo, a custom de Gournay wallpaper is the backdrop for an antique chest of drawers made into a vanity unit. The walnut-handled taps are by Waterworks. The wainscoting is painted in Edward Bulmer's ‘Sea Green’.
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Paul Massey6/15A lamp from Vaughan with a Nushka shade sits on top of an antique table by local dealer Mark Gelinas.
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Paul Massey7/15In the cinema room, a custom Iksel wallpaper called Palermo Gardens decorates the top of the room, above panelling in Edward Bulmer's ‘Drab Green’. The chairs are from Jamb, paired with an antique card table from Robert Kime.
Paul Massey8/15In the wine cellar, an antique French patisserie table sits in front of custom wine racks by Lynch Construction. The antique panel was found by Annie at a local market.
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Paul Massey9/15In the main bedroom, the walls are painted in ‘Mountain Green’ by Rose of Jericho. The amazing antique panel behind the bed is from Robert Kime, as are the painted Italian chests that serve as bedside tables. The bed was designed by VSP in collaboration with the client and made by Nicholas Walton. On the bed is an antique bedspread, antique red cushion from The Lacquer Cabinet, and gold cushions in a Pierre Frey fabric.
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Paul Massey10/15The antique bed is from Robert Kime. The border around the top of the walls is from Iksel.
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Paul Massey11/15The bathroom is painted in Edward Bulmer's ‘Rose Tinted White’, while the shell wallcovering was created by Maya Romanoff. An antique apothecary cabinet from Christopher Hall stands on the left. The blind is made from a hand-embroidered Namay Samay fabric.
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Paul Massey12/15The window seat is made up in raw silk from Pierre Frey, with Fortuny cushions. The 1920s wall lights were the client's own.
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Paul Massey13/15In the grounds is a building designed to look like a Japanese temple, which now serves as a dining room with an outdoor kitchen.
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Paul Massey14/15In the dining room, the antique chairs are covered in a stripe from Arjumand'ss World stripe, and a vintage embroidered Mexican tablecloth adorns the table. The curtains were made from leftover Anatolian panels patched together.
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Paul Massey15/15
