Luther Lashmit's Adamsleigh: The Junior League of Greensboro and Traditional Home's Showcase House April 2013

Thanks to the Junior League of Greensboro and Traditional Home, the spot light is on Luther Lashmit, a Winston-Salem, North Carolina native and architect to the industrial revolution scions of the early 20th century.  Tobacco, textiles and furniture revived the broken post civil war South, in the same way that the electronic, and computer revolution generated fortunes at the end of the 20th century. World War I fueled Southern industries as soldiers required uniforms, underwear, socks and gun-stocks, as armies consumed vast quantities of tobacco. Cone Mills of Greensboro produced miles of denim while their heirs fed the modern impressionist artists in Paris. With the South resurrected, versus reconstructed, Southerners transferred their positions as plantation owners to estate builders.  The Junior League Showcase House in Greensboro is one of Lashmit's period house masterpieces. Commissioned by textile (hosiery) business man, John Hampton Adams, Adamsleigh has endured as a prime example of the American Country House Movement, comparable to the great estates of Palm Beach, Philadelphia, Newport and Long Island.

Luther Lashmit, of the offices of Northrup and O'Brien was undoubtedly commissioned to lead the Adamsleigh  project, because of his great success with Graylyn, the home of Natalie Lyons and Bowman Gray of Winston-Salem.  Northrup and O'Brien had maintained close communication with the local Lashmit throughout his education and career. Receiving his architecture degree from The Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh, PA.,  Lashmit went on to win the prestigious Fontainebleau Fellowship, studying at the revered Ecole des-Beaux-Arts, traveling extensively to survey the great houses of England, France and Italy. Having taught architecture in Georgia and Pittsburg, Northrup and O'Brien brought Lashmit home to create the Gray's magnificent Norman Revival estate which was to be the second largest house in North Carolina after Biltmore.

A Portion of the Graylyn Front facade

Lashmit, in conjunction with the Northrup and O'Brien office assembled an unrivaled team to complete the vision of the sophisticated and well traveled Reynolds Tobacco magnate and his wife. Europe had not fully recovered from the Great War and wealthy American industrialists traveled throughout Europe and the Mediterranean purchasing masterpiece ancient rooms, fireplaces, paneling and flooring for their trophy estates. Arthur Cassell Graffin of Baltimore designed and procured much of the interior architecture with Northrup O'Brien. Very notably, J. Barton Benson, a wrought iron master craftsman of Philadelphia, created the detailed intricate gates, locks, railings and other metallurgic flourishes through out Graylyn and later Adamsleigh. 

The distinguishing departure of the Country House Movement from its feudal predecessors is aptly noted by Harry Desmond and Herbert Crowly in their early survey: Stately Homes in America (New York: D. Appleton & Co., 1903) 

".....our greater rural residences are..... occupied by people who, no matter how varied and sincere, their interest in their country places {may be}, spend their money upon the land without any reference to making money on it."

Graylyn Rear Facade

Harvard trained landscape architect, Thomas Warren Sears, who had worked with Fredrick Law Olmsted was introduced to North Carolina and Virginia industrialists via his Reynolda House Commission through Charles Barton Keen, chief architect of the earlier R.J. Reynolds estate, across the street. The collective design team was easily transferred to the Adamsleigh project. While there are many vernacular similarities, adaptations were made to create a unique estate. 

Unusually this house remained in the original family from inception to 2003.

Employing a brick veneer versus Graylyn's stone facade, makes Adamsleigh more Norman English than French Norman. Characteristics of these European houses adapted for 1920's tastes included fewer, but more spacious rooms for grand entertaining with open floor plans. Picturesque, French style estates were designed to look as though they had grown organically over time transitioning from fortifications to homes. To achieve these ends, Lashmit massed irregular outlines along asymmetrical wings. Graceful, quaint chimneys rose above round, square or hexagonal towers pierced by narrow windows enclosing spectacular vertiginous medieval staircases. The Graylyn stair tower has holders for plants and flowers that are reminiscent of Addison Mizner's Worth Avenue. Creative cribbing is common in design, and my friend, Tom Gray who wrote his Master's Thesis on Graylyn discovered an identical previous image from the Newbold house in Laverock, PA. 

Grayln stair tower

Adamsleigh has come through a remarkable era of singular family ownership. The current asking price of $4,000,000 will hopefully attract a preservation minded buyer. Meanwhile, we will tantalize you with the empty rooms that are being reinterpreted by this talented roster of designers building on the legacy of the great Country Home architects, landscape designers, interior architects and artisanal craftsman. 

 Adamsleigh

I chatted up Suzanne Kasler in her stunning space at Hickory Chair today and her excitement over the project was refreshing.  She relayed that Miles Redd was up to his usual theatrical magic and was afforded a great amount of creative latitude. I noticed world class floral designer, Randy McManus, was  present and accounted for. Blogger friends Lisa Mende and Traci Zeller have been sending fun, behind the scenes posts worth perusing. The list is endless and it will be fascinating to see an intact American Country Place refurbished by a complimentary contingent 83 years after inception.

Suzanne Kasler waxed poetic about the original metal, window doorways that flank the house:

"These are the doors we want to install in both contemporary and traditional houses, we can't get enough of it now, and there they are exactly as we want them from the 1920's."

 Rear Terraces by Thomas Sears at Adamsleigh

 Adamsleigh aerial view

 Adamsleigh mantel detail

The Thomas Sears Gardens at Adamsleigh

 I spoke with charming architect, Bob Myers, who spent many years working and traveling with Luther Lashmit. He was impressed by the fact that Lashmit moved brilliantly in multiple vernaculars and was able to adapt skillfully to modern architecture. Notably, Merry Acres, for  R.J. Reynolds Jr., was a 1940's marvel. Dick Reynolds received his pilot's license from Wilbur Wright and was also a competitive yachtsman. He wanted his house to feel like one great cruise and Lashmit delivered. 

Softened by nautical curves with extending decks, a pilot's house and smoke stack/chimney, Merry Acres is a wonderful idiosyncratic home.  I, for one, think houses should have personality. Luther Lashmit had a fluid, creative ability to treat with the past and effortlessly leap into the future. 

Kind thanks also to my friend Tom Gray for encouraging me to read his master's thesis on the Graylyn Estate with much scholarly insight into the work of Luther Lashmit, Arthur Graffin, J. Barton Benson, Northrop and O'Brien,  and Thomas Sears.

I hope you will all come to visit the Junior League Show House 

sponsored by Traditional Home. 

We are honored by an enviable roster of top designers. 

April 20th-May 5th

3301 Alamance Rd., Greensboro, North Carolina

Do not miss some of the wonderful events and opportunities to meed the designers. 

More Later!! 

The High Point Market is opening today!! 

If you are looking for furniture, lighting and accessories for 

your home, call us at 336-705-1316. 

Easter Entertaining

Happy Easter everyone!!

Whilst many of us have empty nests, we console each other during some of the holidays with pot luck dinners that do not over tax the host, and allow individual's specialties to shine. Last year, with the girlies home, I went all out with the flowers and daughter #2 did an amazing job arranging them.

This year I struggled with my selection of Ranunculus, Tulips, Daffodils and Iris. Despite the tape I grid over the containers, my dainties flopped over like tired ballerinas.

After much pushing, and tucking piled upon  even more dissatisfaction, I ripped them out of the largest container and tried working with smaller more manageable bouquets. The fabulous effect of last years flowers was derived from massing many small arrangements creating an exuberant interior garden. Now, I remember. This year, the flowers were pretty, but nothing like daughter #2's effusions.

We have a ginourmous kitchen island that is the center of the action.  We dance around each other, weaving in and out between cooks and guests  with the practiced rhythms of a minuet. Mrs. R. and I are in charge of the main course and as usual it was an experiment. The food critics present gave it an enthusiastic thumbs up, so I will happily share it with you. It is extremely easy so I encourage you to give it a try. Cooks Illustrated is a trusted source for my frequent safaris to the culinary frontiers. Rethinking Leg of Lamb in the April 1013 is without a doubt the best version I have ever tried.

Roast Butterflied Leg of Lamb with Coriander, Cumin, and Mustard Seeds

 Serves 8-10 (we doubled it and really could have served 25)

LAMB:
1 butterflied leg of lamb, (6 to 8 lbs)
Kosher salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 shallots, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 piece ginger, sliced into 1/2-inch-thick rounds and smashed, (1-inch)
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
3 bay leaves
2 strips lemon zest, (2-inch)
SAUCE:
1/3 cup chopped fresh mint
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 shallot, minced
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Salt
Pepper

Directions

1. FOR THE LAMB: Place lamb on cutting board with fat cap facing down. Using sharp knife, trim any pockets of fat and connective tissue from underside of lamb. Flip lamb over, trim fat cap so it's between 1/8 and 1/4-inch thick, and pound roas to even 1-inch thickness. Cut slits, spaced 1/2 inch apart, in fat cap in crosshatch pattern, being careful to cut down to but not into meat. Rub 2 tablespoons salt over entire roast and into slits. Let stand, uncovered, at room temperature for 1 hour.

2. Meanwhile, adjust oven racks 4 to 5 inches from broiler element and to lower-middle position and heat oven to 250°F. Stir together oil, shallots, garlic, ginger, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, bay leaves, and lemon zest on rimmed baking sheet and bake on lower-middle rack until spices are softened and fragrant and shallots and garlic turn golden, about 1 hour. Remove sheet from oven and discard bay leaves.

3.Leaving the oven at 250 degrees, thoroughly pat lamb dry with paper towels and transfer, fat side up, to sheet (directly on top of spices). Roast on lower-middle rack until lamb registers 120°F, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove sheet from oven and heat broiler. Broil lamb on upper rack until surface is well browned and charred in spots and lamb registers 125°F, 3 to 8 minutes for medium-rare.

4. Remove sheet from oven and, using 2 pairs of tongs, transfer lamb to carving board (some spices will cling to bottom of roast); tent loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for 20 minutes.

5. FOR THE SAUCE: Meanwhile, carefully pour pan juices through fine-mesh strainer into medium bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids. Stir in mint, cilantro, shallot, and lemon juice. Add any accumulated lamb juices to sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste.

6. With long side facing you, slice lamb with grain into 3 equal pieces. Turn each piece and slice across grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Serve with sauce. (Briefly warm sauce in microwave if it has cooled and thickened.)

My Notes: I was religious with the meat thermometer, not trusting my oven calibration. It is something of an act of faith to go ahead and sear the meat under the broiler at this point, since it's looking a tad on the blue side. I heated the pan drippings and juices dropping the herbs, shallots and lemon juice in for a quick stir, before pouring the sauce over the sliced lamb. 

Now for the dessert, I searched around because we wanted something fruity, without refined flour or sugar. We hit on Mango and Lemon Syllabub and it was a hit!!  Mrs. P. made this easily in under 1/2 hour with my new Vitamix, which I finally sprung for and adore. In my enthusiasm to dive in, I forgot to take a photo but I am using the images and recipe from Grace's Sweet Life which is an adaptation of a BBC good food recipe. It is exactly what we want to top off a hearty meal. It is beyond quick and simple. 

Photo and Recipe from Grace's Sweet Life

Mango & Lemon Syllabub

(adapted from BBC Good Food)

Serves 6

For the Lemon Syllabub:

• 12 ounces heavy cream
• zest of 1/2 lemon & 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 4 tablespoons honey

For the Mango Purée:

• 3 large mangoes, peeled and stoned, 1 finely chopped (reserve 1/4 to serve)
• 4 teaspoons honey
• juice of 1/2 lemon

To serve Mango & Lemon Syllabub:

• flesh of 1/4 mango, finely chopped
• mint sprigs

1. For the syllabub, with a hand-held mixer or wire whisk, whip the heavy cream until slightly thickened.  Add the lemon zest, lemon juice & honey, with a wooden spoon, stir to combine.  Let sit for 2 to 3 minutes.
2. For the purée, put the flesh of 2 mangoes in a food processor or blender and blend to a purée.  Add the honey and lemon juice and blend until smooth. With a spoon, stir in 3/4 of the finely chopped mango.  Spoon the purée mixture into the base of 6 glasses.
3. Spoon the whipped cream mixture on top of the mango purée.
4. Garnish with the remaining 1/4 finely chopped mango and add a sprig of mint.

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Nieuw Neo Georgian! Ruard Veltman's Mountain Masterpiece

House Beautiful has a fantastic spread on this beautiful mountain retreat in the April issue. We posted this article in August of 2010 and thought you would enjoy our thoughts on the subject as well.


Ruard Veltman collaborated with my friend "Mrs. G.," creating a spectacular home for her family of 6 in the English country vernacular of Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens:  "Sir Edwin, father of  neo-Georgian architecture, please meet Dutch born, Ruard Veltman, of nieuw-neo-Georgian architecture!"

This detail from the rear of the house illustrates the fusion of both schools: The Arts and Crafts ethic of combining hand crafted regional materials with swooping rooflines, deep eaves with Lutyens exaggerated Georgian windows, mullions, and transoms. From the inspirations of the pre-Raphaelite ideals,  Lutyens interpretations evolve and thrive in the ateliers of Bobby McAlpine where Ruard Veltman collaborated for many years. 

Nieuw (Dutch for new)-neo Georgian, interpreted by Mrs. G and Ruard Veltman, recombined from Atelier McAlpine, Fitz--meaning bastard son of--Lutyens, Fitz-Georgian, Fitz Pre Raphaelites, and Fitz Louis XIII , in an au courant grisaille color pallette, is all I have to say! Lets go through the bastards--shall we? 

Candida Lutyens sketch

Candida Lutyens, works within the legacy of her Grandfathers vision. Here we see the Georgian geometric paneling, windows, stone fire surround with the mixed geometry of arches and circles within the space that were the play things of her ancestor. 

Bobby McAlpine: Beautiful Homes: Late Summer edition 2009

These ancestral Elements also echo within the Mrs G./Mr. V. living room--Tall Georgian style windows, concrete or stone fire surround, naturally shaded palettes. Recombinant McAlpine, well bred DNA, marries provincial Regency Louis XIII Os de Mouton chairs (sheep horn stretchers), with a new aesthetic. New solvents react, mixing the French regency design period (1560-1643) with the Lutyens Arts and Crafts innovation (1810-1910). Both periods express changes in style, united by economic forces. The meteoric prosperity rise of the middle class, launched a Queen's wave to the past. Both visions unite as economic cusps.  Stately declines--nieuw rises, often with economic shifts,  often with enduring stylistic effects. Lets look around again. Grand takes on modern era--edge, tempered by soft velvets and palette. 

Edwin Lutyens struggled with his aristocratic wife, who immersed herself in the Spiritual Theocratic, schools of the era. Lutyens loved mixing geometrics, and Mrs. G. has had a contemporary seance in this vignette--triangles, on x's, on squares, upon rectangles,  within circles--the woman is all harmonious, oxymoronish, symmetry and complication. Welcome to Mr. G.'s world! 

Ultra modern lighting in the foreground gets invited to the party. The best parties, like interiors include all ages and types.  Mrs. G. explained that the gray palette throughout the house was inspired by the Jasper John's exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  Mrs. G. wanted the architectural interplay of Geometry and curve to dominate the conversation. The neutrality of tone creates intimacy, and comfort. According to the Met's Johns catalogue, the grisaille application was: "to evoke a mood, at other times to evoke an intellectual rigor that results from his purging most color from his works." 

The rhythmic curves, of the nail head trim, break up the right angles in the geometry of the furnishings and architecture. They echo the swooshy Lutyens curves that are so characteristic of his work and relate to the counterpoint of the curvy Os de Mouton chairs. The dining area is raised above the living room adding visual dimension and depth to the large space. It creates a theatrical mood, where I for one, would have spent my childhood creating plays. The landscape, a reflection of the mountain environment, was painted by Mrs. G.'s father. 

The kitchen is very nieuw, and forgive our struggles with the light! Veltman's theory of kitchens is that as the contemporary center of entertaining, the refrigerators, dishwashers, coffee makers, and televisions should disappear. At a recent cocktail party, I was delighted to walk into a kitchen full of brightly clad guests set off by the chic aura of an upscale eatery in Soho. It is so very Lutyens, Veltman, Mrs. G. to plant a completely new space, that is united to the house in the color scheme. The accoutrement are cleverly disguised behind the paneling.

The nieuw countertop is in the cupboard or just off stage, in the pantry. Ruard is a fan of pantries, as lately, so is the entire blogosphere. Mrs. G. reports that it functions very well for a large family. 

Moving upstairs, I had to do a little detective work to discover the meaning of the head boards, and all the little hints Mr. Veltman planted all over the house, as little swooshy motifs, or footnote references. 

The eponymous Lutyens Napoleon chair was designed by Sir Edwin in 1910, supposedly after a Jacques-Louis David painting of Napoleon sitting in an asymmetric chair. I think it is because they resemble his hat. Little swooshes are repeated throughout the house. Let me know what you think!

Veltman designed this headboard, in the guest room, and I see the DNA recombined; characteristic Lutyens swoosh meets a glamourous Hollywood starlet. According to the Lutyens Furniture website: "Rhythmical symmetry.... is typical of Lutyens's love of form." I think Sir Edwin would love the nail head trim.  Evan Wood of Chandelier and Light in Charlotte, N.C. crafted the sconces throughout the house.

The  Thakeham bench has become the archetypal image associated with Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens. 

I know, I know where...is the clutter? This house is a completely new installation and has not acquired the layers and perfect additions that only time can provide.  Here, we have a Napoleon hat divided by a semi-circle. Another genuflect to the master's delight of interplay of rythmic line, geometry and the occasional symmetry.

Sir Edwin Lutyens jokingly called his neo-Georgian work, his: "Wrennaissance style." I think Mrs. G. and Ruard Veltman can add to the discussion as a Nieuw Wrennaissance style. As always, I like to leave you with a quote. Mr. Lutyens in a famous apology to his wife:

"I will wash your feet with my tears and dry them with my hair. True, I have very little hair but then you have very little feet.’

Devotion: The Country Farm Estate of Blitz and Dick Reynolds

We are re-posting our article on The Devotion Estate. With a wedding about to take place on the property, the owner decided that the views and the architecture should be a complete surprise. We will post and toast the happy bride and groom in our next installment!

As many of you know, I live across the street from the Historic Reynolda House Museum, Gardens and village. Our pastoral, small city is highly cultural and well preserved greatly, by the perseverance and generosity of the Reynolds family. I noted in my last post, on the Reynolda Estate,  that R. J. Reynolds was a highly progressive thinker who married an educated and energetic wife, to whom he accorded a great amount of personal autonomy. The estate was purchased in her name and Kate had full control over the vision, execution and management of this self sufficient enterprise--in 1917.  R.J. Reynolds died soon after the house was completed, which was a terrible loss.

From left: Mary, R. J., Katharine, Nancy, Dick, and Smith.

PATRICK REYNOLDS COLLECTION

I mentioned that I recently read: Kid Carolina: R.J. Reynolds Jr. /A Tobacco Fortune and the Mysterious Death of a Southern Icon, by Heidi Schnakenberg. It is a fascinating read. This is the story of the eldest son, Dick, who took his father's death very hard. Kate, his Mother had been warned by her doctors, owing to a rheumatic heart, that she should not have any more children. When she remarried a significantly younger man and died in child birth, Dick embarked upon a life long search for love and happiness that sadly left a great deal of scorched earth.

Owing to his spectacular wealth and notoriety, not to mention looks, Dick Reynolds went on the lamb from time to time, much to the horror of his family. He would simply evaporate, and the family would have to hunt him down. I believe he experimented with anonymity to test his self worth. When he checked back in, he threw his energies into new technology and projects, receiving his pilot's license from Orville Wright, founding the earliest airfields and airline companies, using his family name and wealth to secure success. The burden of legacy is heavy. Dick Reynolds inherited his family's entrepreneurial genius, yet he was plagued by loss. He cycled through presence and absence. When he was good he was very, very good, and when he was bad, he was horrid. So, through my interest in design and architecture regarding various local Reynolds's estates, I was able to visit a spectacular portion of the Devotion Estate he developed with his first wife, Blitz--Elizabeth Dillard Reynolds.

Above: In 1934, on his 28th birthday, Dick and Blitz took possession of his inheritance of more than $25 million. “I know it’s a lot of money, but I can’t get excited,” Dick Reynolds told reporters.  I wonder what it would take? 

PATRICK REYNOLDS COLLECTION

Tobacco sold briskly during the depression and fueled by the massive inheritance Dick and Blitz assembled 11,000 pristine acres of wilderness along the Mitchell River, naming their rural retreat "Devotion,"  reflecting their strong feelings for each other.  Inspired by FDR's WPA programs, Dick sought to employ as many of the rural population as possible. The rural retreat movement was on, and with Architect, Roy P. Wallace, who had worked with Charles Barton Keen on Reynolda house, they utilized the chestnut trees that had been lost in the blight and the regional stone quarried on site. Long, deep verandas, gabled roofs, board and batten walls, with exaggerated rock chimneys all combine to create charming, unpretentious rural dwellings that compliment and transition between farm and wilderness. Fish Hatcheries, turkey, pheasant and chicken houses, cattle and horse barns are scattered around the portion that I visited.

The trout hatchery still operates and the different sections hold the fish as they mature. The magnificent lake where we spotted a pair of massive Herons that look liked Pterodactyls--I kid you not. I am just going to walk you around and let nature speak for herself!

I am not going to show you the photo of me laying on the ground clutching branches for dear life, as we scaled the hillside.

My favorite quote on design is from Hutton Wilkinson: 

"Every night I go to bed and pray that people with money will get taste, and that people with taste will get money." I think this is why I am so enamored with the Reynolda family estates, as they had both taste and money. 

If you are as fascinated as I am, regarding the Reynolds family and their estates, I recommend  you read: Devotion Rural Historic District Draft of Research for Application to The National Register of Historic Places and The National Register of Historic Lands by William Noah Reynolds. It is beautifully written and detailed. As a grandson of Dick and Blitz, he chronicles the phases of their life with honor and authority. As to the dispersal of the estate, and addressing this portion, he explains : "As part of the divorce settlement, Blitz Reynolds was awarded sole ownership of the rural estate. For the next few years, she and the four Reynolds sons -Josh, Will, John, and Zach lived year-round at Devotion. After Blitz Reynolds’ death in 1961, the property was divided equally among her sons. To this day, William Neal Reynolds II and other heirs of the Reynolds family possess large parcels of Devotion. In the 1990s Raleigh resident Charles C. McKinney purchased a key portion of the estate. During the past decade, Mr. McKinney has undertaken a major restoration of more than a dozen buildings and structures on the site,  Owing to McKinney’s stewardship, one is able to sense the original rustic architectural character of this 1930s-era mountain estate designed for R. J. Reynolds, Jr. and Elizabeth D. Reynolds."

PATRICK REYNOLDS COLLECTION

The Reynolds boys at the main house, which is on a different portion of the property.  

More Later! 

Written by Liz Morten 

with Ashley D'Auria

My brilliant intern from Wake Forest University

Congratulations on your graduation Ashley!

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