Behind the Hedges

It’s a rare moment when one celebrates the artificial, but a well-considered and beautifully crafted fake can be absolutely essential for completing a room and, by extension, a home. Whether it’s painting a wall, a window frame or fixing a piece of fine furniture, the art of faux finishing is indispensable in any luxury homebuilder…
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Celebrities, warring spouses, trampolines… Our panel of real estate experts tell all about their most memorable open house experiences. I had sellers who were getting divorced. I scheduled an open house and they both decided to stay and have a fight while there were buyers walking through the house. Expletives were flying until ultimately one…
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Sandcastle at Quogue, the lavish property at 216 Dune Road, is now in contract. Listed by Jeremy Ryan at The Corcoran Group (last asking price $17.299 million), this luxury home features 5 bedrooms, 7.5 bathrooms, 9,000 square feet on 1.72 acres, heated infinity pool, library, media room, numerous fireplaces, garage, beach rights and more. The…
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Aesthetics have long played a role in the creation of fine furniture, yet the decorative arts are often considered inferior to fine art. Today, studio and art furniture makers like Sag Harbor’s Nico Yektai are showing collectors, curators and interior designers that usefulness and good art are no longer mutually exclusive.​ “The idea that a piece of…
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Two truths and a lie: Real estate can be fun. Lawyers can be funny. Real estate law doesn’t make for compelling entertainment. Readers of Behind the Hedges are no doubt familiar with real estate attorney Andrew Lieb and his column, “Lieb at Law.” Lieb’s witty columns delve into the nitty-gritty of real estate law and…
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Hamptons home professionals understand the importance of creating homes that are luxurious, attractive, durable, cost-effective, energy-efficient and technologically advanced. From custom builders to interior decorators, appliance experts to window wizards, solar power pros to property management gurus…the East End home needs them all. Following the adage “if you build it, they will come,” the premier…
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In an increasingly digital landscape where reading from tiny screens has become commonplace, the value and beauty of books may be lost on some, but a grand and comprehensive home library will always denote status and taste. After all, as George R.R. Martin writes in A Dance with Dragons, “A reader lives a thousand lives before…
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Hamptons architecture showcases a rich visual diversity of history and design. The architectural vernacular of the area spans from the 1660 Halsey House in Southampton to the cutting-edge Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill. An ideal activity is to drive around the East End and admire the passage of time, marked by the juxtaposition of…
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There’s nothing like a beautiful, private estate to call home in the Hamptons, especially when it’s got custom amenities and luxuries such as a sauna, gym, office and massage room. A listing in Bridgehampton has all this and more. Listed by Geri Vitale at Town and Country Real Estate for $7.395 million, 321 Pauls Lane…
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It’s not unusual for people of taste and refinement to live surrounded by beautiful art and fine furnishings, but few would deny that our most treasured objects are the ones we use day after day. The vessel brimming over with morning coffee, the plate where we lay our toast, the bowl abounding with fruit–all are…
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