The sixth annual Holiday House Hamptons Designer Showcase is in full gear in Bridgehampton.
Founded in New York City in 2008 by interior designer Iris Dankner, Holiday House’s designer showcases are a chance to check out the work of some of New York’s hottest interior designers while also raising money for breast cancer research.
“The last two years it’s just grown in the Hamptons and then we added Palm Beach, so we have not gotten to do a New York one,” says Dankner, CEO of ID Creations.
Not Just Business: It’s Personal
During a routine mammogram, Dankner was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 40.
“Twenty-seven, 28 years ago, nobody talked about breast cancer,” recalls Dankner. “My doctors put me back together, but emotionally what helped me heal was fundraising. It was just my way of giving back.”
After forming a team for Susan B. Komen’s Race for the Cure and joining the organization’s board, Dankner had an epiphany: She’d combine her two passions of interior design and fundraising to eradicate the disease with the Holiday House concept.
“I named it Holiday House because I feel every day after cancer is a holiday,” Dankner says.
Over the years, Holiday House has raised over $2 million, with funds going to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and locally to the Ellen Hermanson Foundation in Southampton.
“We’re not going to stop until we can live in a world without breast cancer,” says Dankner, noting that her goal is also to make women more aware that they must be diligent about getting mammograms and doing self-exams.
Rooms With a View
An integral part of what makes the Hamptons showcase a big hit is finding the right property, notes Dankner.
“That’s really the key to our success: and it’s tricky,” Dankner says
This year Holiday House Hamptons is happening at 4 Windy Hill, part of Windy Hill Estates, a 23-acre parcel of a proposed seven homes developed by Christopher Burnside, a real estate agent with Brown Harris Stevens.
Inspired by local farmhouses in the area, Burnside designed 4 Windy Hill as a shingle-sided farmhouse with a modern take.
“I did 11-foot sliding doors, walls of glass, a fireplace that is suspended on three sides by steel,” Burnside says. “I wanted to make it super high-end, like a resort, so I have a 50-foot pool with a waterfall and sunken tennis court and glass railings that overlook the balcony.”
Designing for a Cause
Among this year’s 20 designers is Andrew Petronio, a principal of KA Design Group, who is making his Holiday House debut with his design of the first-floor primary suite.
“It’s a contained space, which had a lot of allure for us,” says Petronio, noting that much of that level has an open space concept. “You could really shut the door and when you go through that door you’re walking into the KA Design world.”
Sometimes designer showcases can be over the top, Petronio says, but he expressly wanted their design to align with work they’ve done for their Hamptons’ clients.
“Our room really reflects the tastes and sensibility of something we would execute for a client in the Hamptons,” Petronio says.
The room features neutral palettes: a beachy vibe with texture on the ceiling and on the walls.
“A lot of texture but not necessarily a lot of color. It’s a very peaceful sanctuary,” Petronio says.
Returning to Holiday House for a second year, Christian Siriano, a fashion designer and winner of the 2007 season of Project Runway, started Siriano Interiors three years ago, which also includes a 25-piece custom furniture collection.
Utilizing his expertise in fabric design from the world of fashion, Siriano places an emphasis on the touch and the feel of fabric and has a penchant for using bouclé, mohair, tweed and velvet.
“I want clothes to feel really good on the body,” Siriano says. “When you’re sitting on a beautiful chair, I want it to have that same feeling.”
While he favors bold colors in fashion, Siriano goes for more of a Zen, calming atmosphere in the home: somewhere you can decompress.
For the showcase, Siriano decorated the open great room/breakfast room/kitchen, which is surrounded by glass.
“I try to bring in some elements from nature: some wood tones, things that felt natural,” he says. “I wanted it to feel modern, but I didn’t want it to feel cold.”
Making her Hamptons House debut, Susan Galvani, founder and principal designer of Spruce Interior, wrapped a second-floor bedroom in hand-painted taupe wallpaper with flecks of gold.
The three defining elements of Galvani’s Holiday House design are natural materials, such as linen and grass cloth, artisan-made furnishings and connecting with the natural beauty of the Hamptons.
Galvani lit the bedroom with a parchment lamp, handmade ceramic lamps, and a rope globe light and surrounded by the bed with white oak nightstands with cane lower shelves and a photo of a Copenhagen interior.
To connect with the surrounding landscaping, Galvani added a bleached maple Ursa chair and botanical printed textiles and nature-inspired artwork, including an oversized photograph of a Nantucket beach scene. There are also abstract geometric pieces and a painting of Maine’s coastline.
For the bathroom, Galvani chose grass cloth wallcovering in a bluish-green hue that’s used throughout the room and a botanical Roman shade.
“I wanted it to feel really warm and cozy and I really wanted to celebrate the work of smaller production artists and artisans,” Galvani says.
Holiday House Hamptons Designer Showcase runs through September 8, Thursday to Monday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 4 Windy Hill Lane, Bridgehampton. General admission: $40 To purchase tickets, visit holidayhousehamptons.com
