If you had traveled with the Marquis de Lafayette to the Piedmont region of Virginia in 1824, you would have been amazed to come upon a beautifully proportioned village being built in the finest tradition of Renaissance planning. Ten pavilions, connected by colonnades extending from a great building resembling the Roman Pantheon, rose impressively above…

In 1784 Thomas Jefferson found himself in France as our first ambassador. While he was there he fell in love. Arrested by its striking classical beauty, the patriot became smitten with a small Roman temple in Nîmes known as the Maison Carrée (square house). Describing it as “the most perfect model existing of what might…

With these furnishings, Cas Gasi Ibiza’s cozy, rustic settings can be recreated with your own patio, or any other outdoor space—perfect for spending your days soaking in the sun. Sunbrella White Sand Patio Umbrella by Crate and Barrel, $459, CrateAndBarrel.com  Seek shelter from the sun with this 9-foot-wide umbrella in a chic white shade. The…

Miles away from the ordinary, yet mere minutes from the glitz and glam Ibiza has become world-famous for, is a quaint hotel in a picturesque valley. Nestled amid sumptuous orchards and olive trees, Cas Gasi is a 19th-century Spanish country house that was transformed from private residence to luxury hotel more than two decades ago….

With flowers in bloom and spring in the air, it is time to brighten many aspects of our lives, especially our homes. So fold up the heavy blankets, change those flannel sheets, and lighten your proverbial load with brighter spring decor. Seek the beauty of nature and integrate it into your home. It’s time to…

A column capital’s intricate decorative motifs, an arched window’s perfect proportions, a majestic Greek statue beneath a frieze—you’ll notice these fine architectural details in New York City if you take a moment to look up at some of the buildings, those landmarks that have been preserved over the course of the city’s history. Italian architect…

One Friday afternoon in December 2013, estate sales specialist Robin Psota got tipped off about a trove of collectibles in a house just north of the Los Angeles International Airport. She fought her way through traffic, donned gloves, and sifted through a pile of debris in an upstairs room. “I’d never seen such a hoarder…

Florence is a city of secrets. As you walk through the ancient streets, large wooden doors open, revealing monastic courtyards, previously unknown workshops, and fresco-filled entranceways. There’s always something new to discover. On a sunny spring afternoon, therefore, I shouldn’t have been surprised to stumble across a hidden courtyard filled with tropical plants and sprawling…

If walls could talk, what stories would they tell? During the Civil War, Union soldiers occupied the region of Helena, Arkansas. They quartered inside a Greek Revival-style home that belonged to a local Confederate soldier. It was a stately mansion built in 1858, with a robust pediment and tall, elegant columns on its facade. Union…

Celebrated interior designer Phoebe Howard often visited her grandparents’ farm in Alabama as a child. It was there that she first nurtured an appreciation for a well-tended home. “Visits with people were a big deal. Everybody spent time together, and it just sort of made a lasting impression on me—that your house is really important…