Elizabeth Garber Daniels just couldn’t relate to the Hamptons. She tried, for her partner’s sake. But she kept edging toward Litchfield instead. Forman School made such a major impact on her as a former student, whenever she thought about buying a home, Litchfield slipped into her line of vision. Meanwhile, her mother was rooting for a historic home, and Litchfield also came to mind. The 1886 Frederick Barnard house (built for the tenth president of Columbia College and the namesake of Barnard College for women) was the first property Daniels was shown. It was perfect. “I’m from Cincinnati, Ohio, so owning a historic New England home was very special,” says Daniels.
Although the home’s history and architecture spoke to Daniels, it needed a fresh eye. An interior designer, Daniels—who used to oversee the flagship Williams-Sonoma Home store in New York City—is all about emboldened color. She plugged that insight into the iconic Colonial Revival, resulting in plum-colored walls in the living room, a red-orange guest room and a midnight blue office. That brilliant daring ultimately spilled outdoors.
To create a collar around each dogwood, Hillman chose Hakonechloa macro ‘Aureola’ for all-season performance.
By punctuating the backyard with ‘Mandarin Jewel’ Kousa dogwoods, recreation is possible, while the lawn is given year-round drama.
Surrounded by a sea of ‘Blue Billow’ hydrangeas, chaises from Westminster Teak are shaded by umbrellas from Frontgate.
Custom pillows made of ikat fabric provide pops of blue on Pottery Barn wicker furniture, which was spray-painted white to stand out beside the pipevine screen that came with the house.
A stone wall was built and paired with a classic Lutyens bench, then backed with Hydrangea ‘Limelight.’
Framed in boxwood, clematis climbs tuteurs, while a necklace of Nepeta ‘Walker’s Low’ skirts a row of Hydrangea ‘Limelight’ in the distance.
To brighten the alcove behind the garage, Daniels found a finial through Pennoyer Newman, then Hillman enhanced the tableau with Miscanthus ‘Rigoletto’, Hosta elegans, Alchemilla mollis and Salvia ‘Caradonna.’
Daniels was on the verge of tackling the foundation planting when her mother saw a magazine article featuring a local landscape designer. What began as a birthday gift given from mother to daughter turned into an ongoing collaboration. Designer/plant connoisseur Glenn Hillman lives and gardens intensively only a few doors down. Not only does he know which way the wind is blowing in Litchfield, but he shares a respect for classicism with an artist’s eye for color.
Meanwhile, Daniels was expanding the floorplan outside because the partner who abandoned Long Island for Litchfield became Daniels’ husband, bringing some of his beachside affinities to the property. The fact that he can sunbathe for hours warranted a patio. The fact that Elizabeth would rather lounge under an umbrella required an expanded outdoor space. The raised brick deck that accommodates both inclinations looks meant to be, but also steps out to combine elegance with eye-riveting color. On the patio, sunny yellow contrasts sailor blue with plenty of patterned ikat pillows and ginger jars repeated throughout the seating area. A massive planter spills with herbs footsteps from the kitchen. And it’s all framed in a froth of ‘Blue Billow’ hydrangeas—as per Hillman’s recommendation for replacing the ‘Endless Summer’ hydrangeas that endlessly failed to flower.
That tag-team formula for design is a template Daniels and Hillman repeat continually. What started in 2012 became a tradition. They both like drama-with-roots. She leans toward brightly colored clematis and hunts down favorites, he enhances them with plants he knows will work. Together, they’re working around the entire space. Rather than your typical open lawn, Hillman punctuated the backyard with an allée of ‘Mandarin Jewel’ Kousa dogwoods selected for their orange fruit. Each dogwood is given its own smart square bed, framed in a froth of variegated hakonechloa grass—again to bring out the fruit color. “We tie it all together,” Hillman explains.
Around the periphery, Hillman ran borders planted with pollinator-pleasing perennials and shrubs. Practicing ecological design, he keeps a finger on the pulse of newest research developments globally. Daniels also adds to the brew, staging spring bulb extravaganzas that she selects personally—like tulips, daffodils, ‘Mount Everest’ alliums and Spanish bluebells. The bulbs are indicative of a trend. Initially, when Daniels was a weekender, dividing her time between Litchfield and the city, she requested low-maintenance solutions. Now that Litchfield is her base, Daniels can shoulder additional plantings and the maintenance they entail. In the most colorful and tasteful terms, more magic is coming to Litchfield.