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Sources

SOURCES Overall: architecture and interior design, Minion-Gutierrez in New York City. Front Exterior: stone, San Francisco Cobblefield by Cultured Stone in Toledo, Ohio; Arte De Mexico lanterns, West Essex Lighting in West Caldwell. Rear Exterior: patio furniture, Smith & Hawken in Westfield (now out of business); pool furniture, Fortunoff in Wayne (now out of business). Foyer: flooring, Patina Inc. in Ventura, California, through Hardware Designs Inc. in Fairfield; light fixtures, Fine Art Lamps through West Essex Lighting; upholstery fabric, Brunschwig & Fils in New York City; pillows, Barneys New York in New York City. Family Room: patterned chair and ottoman, custom by Minion-Gutierrez with fabric by F. Schumacher & Co. in New York City; floor lamp and onyx-top coffee table, Tui Pranich & Associates in New York City; candlesticks, Robert Allen/Beacon Hill in New York City; sectional, custom by Minion-Gutierrez with fabric by Roger Arlington in New York City; bay-window valance, custom by Minion-Gutierrez with hand-tooled leather by Kravet and trim by Samuel & Sons, both in New York City; Alfonso Marina console, Ebanista in New York City; lamp on console, Julia Gray Ltd. in New York City. Dining Room: flooring, Patina Inc.; candleholders, faux-stone dining table, and Portuguese chairs, Michael Taylor Designs in New York City; chair fabric, Cowtan & Tout in New York City; china, Neiman Marcus in Short Hills; chandeliers, Niermann Weeks in New York City; ceiling treatment and moldings, J.P. Weaver Co. in Glendale, California; window treatment, Robert Allen/Beacon Hill fabric with Kravet trim; centerpiece, Lexington Gardens in New York City. Library-Media Room: foreground chairs and bench under coffee table, Baker Knapp & Tubbs in New York City with leather from Lee Jofa in New York City; mahogany bronze and lacquered coffee table, Minion-Gutierrez; striped chairs, Robert Allen/Beacon Hill with Brunschwig & Fils fabric; sofa, Avery Boardman in New York City with mohair fabric from Robert Allen/Beacon Hill; foreground table, Lorin Marsh in New York City; lamp conversion from antique candlesticks, G. Evans Antiques in Lambertville; 1930s globe, Stamford Antiques Center in Stamford, Connecticut; painting over fireplace, Evalyn Dunn’s Gallery in Westfield; white oak woodwork, designed by Minion-Gutierrez and fabricated by Mountain Millwork in Toms River; glazed linen inserts in upper woodwork, Fauxtastic in Freehold. Kitchen: stools, Hickory Chair through Seminole Furniture Shop Inc. in New York City; cobbled limestone and Country Floors backsplash tile, Mediterranean Tile in Fairfield; uba tuba granite countertop, Apex Marble in Cedar Grove; Barcelona cabinetry, Wood-Mode in Kreamer, Pennsylvania. Breakfast Room: stone, San Francisco Cobblefield by Cultured Stone; wall arrangements, Lexington Gardens; diamond upholstery, F. Schumacher & Co.; solid upholstery, Brunschwig & Fils; table, Guy Chaddock through Robert Allen/Beacon Hill; window treatment fabric, Kravet; custom iron window hardware, J-Art Iron in Culver City, California; chandelier, Fine Art Lamps through West Essex Lighting. Master Bedroom: bedding fabric, Kravet and Robert Allen/Beacon Hill with trim by Samuel & Sons and Clarence House in New York City; woodwork above bed, Enkeboll Designs in Carson, California; window treatment and window seat fabric, Robert Allen/Beacon Hill. Master Sitting Room: sofa, Niermann Weeks with Hines fabric; coffee table, La Forge Française Ltd. in New York City; Alfonso Marina chair, Ebanista with Scalamandré fabric; fireplace tiles, Mediterranean Tile; antique French starburst clock, Peter Wallace Ltd. in Lambertville; window treatment fabric, Robert Allen/Beacon Hill. Master Bathroom: windows, Jefferson Lumber & Millwork in Lake Hopatcong; window fabric, Kravet; chandelier, West Essex Lighting; handmade urn tiles, Mediterranean Tile; tub and fittings, Hardware Designs Inc. Younger Daughter’s Bedroom: wallpaper, Sanderson in New York City; bedding, canopy, and valance fabrics, Summer Hill Ltd. in New York City with trim by Houlès in New York City; antique fan above the bed, Stamford Antiques Center; desk chair, Seminole Furniture Shop Inc.; balloon pictures, Louis J. Solomon in New York City. Older Daughter’s Bedroom: bed, Benicia Foundry & Iron Works in Benicia, California; bedding fabrics, Brunschwig & Fils and Kravet with Kravet trim; chair and ottoman, Edward Ferrell Ltd. with Brunschwig & Fils trim; window treatment and window seat fabrics and trims: Brunschwig & Fils and Kravet; tuffet, Neiman Marcus; chandelier, West Essex Lighting; needlepoint lampshade, Apropos in New York City.

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From the August/September 2010 Issue:

European Elegance

  • Writer: Mary Vinnedge
  • Photographer: Barry Halkin
  • Designer: Russel Minion

Old World style meets modern-day function in a new Union County home


Article Photo
enlarge | The owner asked that the home appear to have had additions through many decades. The mahogany front door is a custom Minion-Gutierrez design.
The client knew exactly how she wanted to build her Union County home.

It was to be a one-floor ranch … and it is, almost. It would have Spanish styling … it does, but with other European influences. It would have eye-catching angles and be cozy … bingo!

The homeowner hired an architect to come up with plans, but they weren’t what she wanted. So she asked Russell Minion, an interior designer who had been working at her sister’s home, to look at the plans and make suggestions. “She loves angles, nooks, and crannies. She said she didn’t want a box,” Minion says.

He thought his friend, architect Juan Carlos Gutierrez, would be right for the project: “Two minds are better than one,” Minion quips. Between them, they drew a basic floor plan for the house in a week, and they ultimately formed their firm, Minion-Gutierrez of New York City, to partner on the project. They had no elevation at first. “We designed the house from the inside out,” Minion says.

Gutierrez says his architectural experience in Colombia informed the less-rigid design crucial to creating the angles on the client’s must list. “Also,” he says, “in Colombia you separate the sleeping area from the social area and put in an area for the maid off the kitchen,” tenets incorporated in the layout of this home. (A maid’s bedroom and bathroom are above the garage.) Gutierrez sited the home to suit three requirements: fitting with the swimming pool already on the property, taking advantage of a golf-course view, and keeping a dry basement even after heavy rains fill a nearby creek.

The client had wanted Spanish style with a full stucco exterior, Minion says, “but we thought stone [with stucco touches] was best, with a slate-look roof instead of tile” because it would harmonize better with the neighborhood. “I call it a Spanish-French-English country stone house.”


Article Photo
enlarge | The foyer’s octagonal ceiling and floor showcase the angles the homeowner desired.
Coming Together

With a clear plan in mind, Minion, his client, and her sister spent many weekends looking at homes for ideas for elements such as doors and windows.

Construction began in September 2001, and the family of four moved in during May 2003. Because of the angles — which included octagonal floors and ceilings along with complex intersections of roof sections — a master framer carefully checked every segment so all materials joined properly, Minion says. Gutierrez also closely monitored progress in the house, “my first big project in [North] America.

Construction-wise we had to have everything come together to coordinate the 30- and 60-degree angles so they would work together on the interior and exterior.”

The meticulous checking slowed the construction process but paid off: Everything came together perfectly, Minion says.

The homeowner loves the “warmth and lived-in, elegant European feel” in her house, with six bedrooms and six bathrooms (including the maid’s quarters) and two half-bathrooms. “I wanted it to look as if it was here a long, long time,” she says. “It looks European, although no sense of exactly where.” To enhance the interior of the ranch, some rooms are a step or two down from adjoining spaces, she says, and warmth emanates from the fabrics and textures. “I’m very into texture.”

The house has four fireplaces and a wealth of stone — “I wanted to bring the outside elements inside,” the homeowner explains — as well as floors with “very old dark wood.” Tradesmen working in the home once complimented Minion on the restoration of the woodwork, which confused him briefly until he realized they thought the house was vintage construction that had been renovated. “They weren’t used to seeing that type of quality in a new home,” he says.


Article Photo
enlarge | The family room has modern conveniences with a traditional atmosphere enhanced by the European feel of the tapestry above the sofa.
Beauty + Function

The home’s luxury doesn’t come at the expense of function. The homeowner says her bedrooms and bathrooms have “the creature comforts of hotels we stayed in when traveling,” including vanity areas and full-length mirrors in bathrooms. Her husband’s closet includes a place for his luggage and a dresser whose top can be used when packing. Individual family members have separate hampers for their dirty clothes.

The homeowner was hands-on in the design of every room, “but we all put the most time into the kitchen, the central focus of everything,” she says. “People feel comfortable just being there.” She requested a special touch there for her younger daughter: “I like to bake with her, and she has a lower counter that she can reach to roll out dough.”

Choosing materials and furnishings for the 7,000-square-foot house was a major undertaking, Minion says, so he kept the goals for each shopping trip manageable. At a tile store, for instance, “the homeowner was overwhelmed. I said, ‘We’ll only do two bathrooms. Pick the tile you like.’” He worked up designs from her selections in black and white on the computer, showing portions of the rooms. “She had the samples so she could see [how the elements worked together]. She had control of colors and designs. I interpreted what she wanted.”

Hindsight being 20-20, would the client or the designers opt to rethink any aspect of the project? The client is still thrilled with the house, but says she might have added another bay to the garage. For Minion the only hitch in the interior was that some window treatments needed more fullness, a situation he remedied promptly by adding more fabric.

The designers and client are so proud of the project, Minion says, that “she lets me bring clients in. Everybody I take there becomes a client, even if it’s not to their taste. They see the quality, and it’s like a calling card.”
The client sums it up this way: “Every room is relaxing, enjoyable, welcoming. It’s a home we really live in.”
- DNJ

Mary Vinnedge has written about home and design since 1992.
Her website is www.EditorForRent.com.

enlarge   The owner had soil brought in to minimize the ...
enlarge   Architect Juan Carlos Gutierrez loves the ...
enlarge   The library-media room, featuring a dramatic ...
enlarge   The kitchen’s beams, stones, and elaborate ...
enlarge   The breakfast room showcases the client’s ...
enlarge   The master bedroom’s wall treatment, pillows, ...
enlarge   The taupes and creamy tones from the master ...
enlarge   Diverse tiles and custom leaded-glass windows ...
enlarge   This room will grow up gracefully with the ...
enlarge   Color and pattern mingle in the older ...
enlarge   A swimming pool, which was on the site before ...