Your guide to the heart of Litchfield County:
Discover local stories, hidden gems, and must-know events.

Luna Garcia, a vintage home decor buyer, shares some of her favorite things about living in Litchfield County.

My heart lies in Litchfield County! I grew up in Morris and Roxbury and after years on the West Coast and in NYC I found myself back in Washington along with my husband and our young daughter. When I began furnishing our home, I used many one of a kind, vintage pieces sourced from the wonderful local estate sales in our area. These pieces felt so much more satisfying than mass produced items, both design-wise and environmentally. It got me thinking—what if I could make vintage more accessible to others so they could experience the same? From that idea, my business Winston Drive was born. Using Instagram, I ship vintage home decor items and jewelry coast to coast and help local buyers source specific vintage furniture for their homes. Next year I am excited to be opening a showroom so customers can shop in person.

Luna’s Yard Sale Tips

1. Go during the first hours on the first day to get the best finds. Go during the last hours on the last day to get the best deals.
2. To find local weekend sales check Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, the local newspapers, and drive by busy intersections that often post yard sale signs.
3. If you think you’ll regret not buying an item, buy it! Nothing haunts you like the vintage you didn’t buy.

Favorite designers: Isabel Marant, Mara Hoffman, and Liberty London.

Recent coveted purchase: A floating opal teardrop pendant necklace from the 1930s.

Fave purchase of all time: My Alexander Calder Gallery Posters from Paris, 1960s and 70s.

Cherished Litchfield County activity: A walk on East St. in Washington ending at Waldingfield Farm’s produce stand.

Never leaves home without: My Koziol Tasche XL Tote, perfect for hauling found treasures!

Beloved music: Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and Maggie Rogers.

Favorite place to hike: Macricostas Preserve in Washington.

Favorite holiday tradition: Cutting down our own Christmas Trees at Averill Farm in Washington and driving through the roadside luminaries in the center of Roxbury on Christmas Eve.

Now reading: “Followers” by Megan Angelo.

Signature drink: I make my own “Santagria” every holiday! It’s delicious and dangerous.

On her wish list: An onyx and diamond gold navette ring from 1880.

Go to hostess gift: Always vintage! I grab teak coasters or brass candlesticks from my shop.

Fave Litchfield County restaurant: Tandoori Flames for Indian in New Milford!

Shop local this season for all of your holiday gifts, and give your friends and family another reason to fall in love with Litchfield County. Our holiday gift guide highlights unique ideas from local brands designed to pamper, dazzle, and wow everyone on your list.

The Hen’s Nest

The Front Page Beauty Bar & Barber

The Lulu Face Co.

Hays Worthington

Blueprint CT Kitchen & Home

Friedrich’s Optik

Litchfield Distillery

Ideal Jewelers

Coco Lily

KMR Arts

DK Schulman

Litchfield Distillery

Terston

Kent Fitness Matters

The Spa at Litchfield Hills

The Spa at Litchfield Hills

Katie Re Scheidt 

Newtown MediSpa

Designer Debra Blair Creates Christmas Magic

By Joseph Montebello

Linden Hill Farm in Lakeville is the perfect setting and owner Debra Blair is a master of creating a magical Christmas celebration. An expansive circular driveway leads up to the main entrance of this Georgian Revival house built in 1929. The 75 acres that accompany it were once part of a 2000-acre land grant given to a local farmer by King George III. Blair, principal of Debra Blair Design, began her career in the design department at Bloomingdale’s and started her own business in 1979. She has worked on both residential and commercial projects and is known for her ability to create elegant, luxurious, and livable interiors. Blair shares with us some tips she recently learned on how to create a lush holiday mantel display.

“I really don’t start putting things together until the week before Christmas,” she explains. “I usually start with the Christmas tree. It’s a long process and happens in stages over a three-day period. First, the lights, then the ornaments, lastly, the garlands, tartan bows, and crystal icicles. Blair has an extraordinary collection of ornaments garnered over time.

“I love old ornaments and whenever and wherever I find them, I buy them,” she says. “I also inherited collections from my mother, my aunt, and my grandmother, so I have amassed quite an assortment.”

Blair’s favorite room to decorate, however, is the dining room. This season it has a silver and white theme. “The tree is easy to put together,” she explains. “But the dining room is fun and I try to do it differently every time and decide how elaborate I want to get. We have a big holiday meal on Christmas evening since many of our guests arrive late Christmas Eve. I usually serve prime rib, Yorkshire pudding, salad, scalloped potatoes, and assorted vegetables. My sons think I should do this every week!”

Blair and her guests take advantage of the magnificent surroundings and appreciate what country life has to offer. “We cross country ski and snowshoe on the back field, take long walks on Christmas Day and enjoy our son’s fire pit in the woods behind the barn, toasting with cider we make in the fall.”

There are Christmas vignettes throughout the house, including the kitchen. Strolling through the rooms one feels the warmth and holiday spirit that the house exudes.

Blair added something new to her repertoire this season—the mantel decoration in the living room. Last December she had the honor of being invited to help decorate the White House.

“It was an amazing experience to be working in this historic building on such a huge project. The man in charge of mantels showed me some tricks to creating its décor.”

Here is the simplified version:

1. Start with a long and very full garland of pine—fresh or artificial. If you use lights, add them at this point. Use plastic stocking hooks to attach the greens to the mantel.

2. Slip fresh evergreen cuttings into the garland to create fullness. I like a garland that drops to approximately ⅓ the height of the mantel. Don’t be afraid to use a lot of pine cuttings—the more you have, the better.

3. Usually the center of the mantel should have a centerpiece or focal ornament. Have more ornaments than you think you will need. You want the mantel to look very full. When you are happy with your design, weave ribbon in and around the ornaments. Use wired green wood picks to attach the ornaments and the ribbon.

4. Remember, you want to make a big statement, so don’t skimp on materials.

The last line is Blair’s mantra and the reason for her spectacular Christmas house.

Elyse Harney moved to Salisbury over 60 years ago when her husband took on the position of managing partner at the White Hart Inn. The couple raised five children who have continued to grow the successful family businesses—Harney & Sons Tea and Elyse Harney and Elyse Harney Morris Real Estate. Harney shares some of her favorite holiday memories with us.

My husband, John Harney, graduated as a veteran from the Hotel School at Cornell in February of 1956. We had looked at the Covered Bridge Inn in West Cornwall right after the floods of 1956 while John was still in school but we did not have the finances for leasing a country inn. However, two years later, one of John’s Aunts had the good grace to leave us a little packet after her death. We immediately called George Denny of “America’s Town Meeting of the Air” Fame in West Cornwall to see if his little dream village was still in operation and the Inn available. 

In 1960 Donald Warner and Reese Harris decided to save the local Inn—White Hart Inn in Salisbury. My husband John signed on as the Managing Partner and Salisbury became the place we could never leave. 

So many of our memories of the holidays centered around the Inn which became a focal point of the community. The town green had a large pine and John, who was still fit from his Marine Corps days and inspired by the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center, would climb the tree to decorate it with lights. The Lighting of the Christmas Tree at the White Hart is still the official beginning of the Christmas season in Salisbury. Christmas carols are sung by the Salisbury Hotshot Band, candles are lit to read the words of the carols, and hot chocolate and cookies are served to all. The joy of the feeling of warmth and friendship when we are singing cannot be adequately described. Everyone is full of love and the joy of sharing that with others.

Photo Credit: Anne Day

Olive Dubois, who ran the front desk at the White Hart, was famous for her gingerbread village which she baked fresh every year. She had a marvelous china collection of homes, villagers, the ski jump, the churches, and school all on display in the lobby of the Inn including lights and music.

The Feast of St. Nicholas on December 6 was our family’s start to Christmas; with socks filled with oranges and nuts, the threat of coal for the naughty, as well as candles on the Advent Wreath announcing the days getting closer. The chapel services at both Hotchkiss and Salisbury are so beautifully filled with readings and music—the only challenge is to get there in time to have seats. 

The ceiling in our historic Colonial’s living room is peaked so we fill it with a big tree next to the Steinway. I mention the Steinway because that was the occasion of several beautiful afternoons when Joel Revzen—a conductor at the Metropolitan opera and his wife, an opera singer—joined us for Christmas carols. Dinner on Christmas Eve was formal depending on the time of Mass but Christmas dinner was always roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy which my husband could do to perfection (mostly). The Christmas dinner has to be late afternoon to allow for some outdoor enjoyment depending on the weather but absolutely mandatory are the Christmas crackers at each place. First comes a prayer of grace traditionally from the youngest and then snapping the crackers with everyone looking foolish in their paper hats. 

I cannot think of a more perfect spot in the world to raise a family and to celebrate the wonders of Christmas. We are so blessed with all the natural beauty here as well a climate which is changing, but still a healthy one. This Christmas we will all have to count our blessings—and try to figure out safe ways to continue sharing this joy. 

Artist Magaly Ohika Finds Solace in Cornwall

By Wendy Carlson

You might think that after growing up among the hustle bustle of the lower East side, Cornwall might be way too subdued a place to put down roots. But for artist Magaly Ohika it offers the solitude she craves. Before she moved into her house, which is perched on a hillside above the Housatonic River, she lived off the grid in a cabin on top of Bald Mountain with her partner George Wolfe, a woodworker.

She shares her house with her mother and space is tight so her studio doubles as her bedroom, but functions like a Matryoshka doll. Within it, she houses her pets: two cats, three rotund hamsters—Jellybean, Twiggy and Willow—and a Chinese dwarf hamster named Loki. Her two dogs have taken up residence on her sofa.

The menagerie of animals are her extended family. So are her colorful, abstract artwork of children, which she calls her “wacky whimsical characters.” The paintings, drawings, and mixed media depictions of children have a primitive doll-like style: their heads are balloon-shaped, and facial expressions are simple marks. She writes in her blog theitsybitsyspill.blogspot.com, “Everything I create is based on the innocence and beauty of children, friendship and the bonding between them and the little gestures that makes them special. The little girl inside me inspires me to stay true to what I love.”

When she was a child, Ohika couldn’t stop drawing. “My Mom would get calls from my elementary school teacher that I was drawing all the time and not doing school work,” she says.

Not surprisingly, she went on to attend Art and Design High School in New York, and after graduating she enrolled at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She landed a job that most kids would consider a dream, designing superhero figures and plush animals for toy companies. But the work kept her from creating her own art. 

“It was very limiting. I wanted to paint and I didn’t have that freedom as a designer,” she says. She moved to Puerto Rico with her parents, who are from Puerto Rico. After meeting Wolfe who was traveling there, she moved with him to his hometown Cornwall. 

“I don’t have children of my own. I can’t,” Ohika explains further. “So I’ve created my own imaginary characters and I bring them to life by giving them each personality.” As an artist, she finds inspiration for those personalities by observing people, noting their imperfections and their reactions and behaviors. Ohika draws inspiration for her work from artists Jean-Michel Basquiat, Joan Mitchell, Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, and Egon Sheile.

She savors the peacefulness of her New England natural surroundings. Winter is one of her favorite times, when the snow falls and houses are strung with holiday lights. “It’s so quiet outside, you can hear the river rolling past and that is all,” she says. “I love my solitude, being near nature, and I can’t live without my art. It’s my oxygen.”

Magaly Ohika

Tierney Moran Discovers a New Passion Through Flowers 

By Wendy Carlson

Infusing a home with flowers, whether it’s an elegant vase overflowing with blooms or a simple bedside table bouquet, brings us closer to the natural world. During the cold, winter months, that can be a powerful connection.

Tierney Moran has always known that flowers can transform an environment and create a sense of well-being. “Flowers are both beautiful and fleeting. Maybe that’s why they hold such an attraction for us,” says Moran, who creates stunning floral arrangements for friends and family and works freelance by referrals.

But it wasn’t until a friend asked her to help with a floral display for a luncheon several years ago that she realized she enjoyed creating arrangements on a larger scale. She started out self-taught, working largely for friends and family. Soon, her kitchen in Watertown was overflowing with blooms. As word spread about her work, a priest at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, a grand Italian Renaissance-style Roman Catholic church in Waterbury, asked her to create the floral arrangements for the church.

It was a massive undertaking for Moran, not only for the multitude of arrangements but for producing large displays that would accommodate the incredible space.

“It was so different from creating tabletop arrangements. But I also love the challenge of creating arrangements that complement beautiful, architecturally designed public spaces,” she says.

Last year, Moran, who has a background in graphic design, completed a program in floral design at the Flower School in New York City, where she worked with many incredible city designers. She started photographing work and posting them on Instagram @TierneyMoran. The FlowerSchool put her on their “Feeds to Follow” series and Flower Magazine, an industry publication, began posting her images.

Although her posts draw tons of “likes” and more referrals, Moran demurs when asked about her own talent. “People can create their own beautiful arrangements at home, if they follow a few simple design rules,” she says.

“Color and balance are important, and you have to understand how things grow, not in the literal way, but you have to understand how flowers move and bend in the natural environment so when you put them together in an arrangement it all makes sense.” Texture is also important—take the much maligned carnation, for example. “People overlook carnations as inexpensive and common, but they have a lovely fragrance and ruffled edge and when you mix them with other varieties they add a layer of interest,” she says.

With her eye for floral design, Moran could have easily turned her passion into a career, but she enjoys it too much to get mired down in running a formal business. Instead, she works free lance taking referrals, and finds that she enjoys the success that results from forming personal relationships with clients.

“When I create a beautiful bouquet and see the look on a person’s face when I deliver it, to me that’s satisfaction. That’s what I like about my work the most, seeing the joy flowers can bring to people.”

By Tovah Martin

You already know what houseplants can do for your psyche. Here’s what they can do for your décor.

Somewhere deep in your heart, you always knew houseplants were the answer. Every year, as the days shortened and the chill weather turned everything outdoors brown, you felt the yearnings for something green. You always suspected that the solution might lie in that little potted plant gracing the floral section in the supermarket. But then, your inner designer pushed back. You need to do something with an edge. For you, it has to be architectural, or skip it. 

So, your suspicions were spot on, because houseplants do come to the rescue. They literally breathe life into a room and turn a spotlight on nature. There are thrilling houseplants out there, but you might need to frequent some nurseries or specialty shops (consider stopping by Pergola in New Preston) to find them. No matter what your look—whether it’s mid-century modern or early Pompeii—there’s a houseplant out there to fit the mood. 

Agaves 

If it’s architecture you need, agaves can do the trick. Their long, sleek arms make a statement. Go to Michael Trapp’s website, and you’ll find them prominently portrayed. Can you think of a better endorsement? They come in a varied size range from small, spikey versions that look like swollen porcupines to majestic individuals with swooping, articulate appendages. The only issue is that they come equipped with some fairly impressive barbs at the tips of their succulent leaves. Some people see that artillery as ultra-cool, others fear puncture wounds. If you have children or bouncy pets, you might want to think twice. Or, you can clip the weaponry off without damaging the plant. 

And the beauty of agaves is that they’re truly easy to grow and take care of. Forget to water? Not a problem unless you do it repeatedly over a beastly prolonged span of time. They’re cool with cramped roots and, although they prefer a bright window, they’ll learn to live with less. 

Succulents

Expanding on the agave theme (but skipping the thorns), there are succulents galore out there and you can pretty much pick a favorite and run with it—they all work in a sunny window. If you like rosettes, go for an echeveria. If stark upright branches are your thing, try fire sticks (Euphorbia tirucalli). And if tongue-like leaves lined with dozens of tiny rose-like “babies” is a likable look, adopt a mother of millions (Kalanchoe hortagel). Size range can stretch from little nuggets to succulents that stage a major presence. As for cultivation, check out the advice for agaves.

Fiddle-leaf Fig

Fiddle-leaf figs are enjoying a major spike in popularity right now. Pay a visit to anyone, and you’re apt to meet one or more loitering in the living room. Green thumb or not, Ficus lyrata is the go-to roommate for wannabe indoor gardeners. And truly, these small trees with large, glove-like leaves on woody stems make a strong, intriguing statement. 

The trick to growing the fiddle-leaf fig lies in generous watering. They love to drink––and be generous with their container. Cramped roots are going to dry out frequently and become a nuisance factor. As far as light is concerned, they’re cool with indirect light. 

Ferns

Lacking light? Turn to a fern. They’ll do fine in a low-light situation. You’ll find incredible diversity in ferns and all those fronds groping around gives a room a cozy, earthy, woodsy ambiance. Most ferns commonly sold are easy to grow, although you might steer away from the Boston fern which looks like a bad hair day and drops fronds the moment you forget to water. And watering is a big issue for a fern, don’t repeatedly forget to serve drinks.

Crotons

The perfect foil for mid-century modern is a croton with large, carnival-colored leaves. We’re talking flaming orange and bright yellow with olive-green veins. This is a standout plant that brings the periphery of a room into focus. They’re tidy, but will drop leaves if their soil is parched. Usually sold potted as a threesome, you’ll want to be fairly generous with the container.

Ornamental Grasses

If you figured that grasses were only an outdoor garden thing, think again. Almost any sedge (carex) will add a sense of outside to your indoor scene and they’re sufficiently compact to grace a windowsill or wherever you find room. Their blades are striped with silver, gold, or tawny and they beg to be touched. Or try bringing in a fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’) for plumes that feel like bunny tails. Indirect light is fine, but all grasses are thirsty. 

No matter what your style, plants are going to improve your outlook inside. Compared to what isn’t happening in your garden outside at this time of year, houseplants are lifesavers. And you’ll be surprised at how easy they are to entertain once you get your mojo in gear. 

Spreading Love Through (Virtual) Song

By Hannah Van Sickle

Mustering joy this holiday season will be a challenge for many considering the ongoing global pandemic. As if on cue, a trio of award-winning musicians have a precious and timely gift to share: as part of an initiative to spread joy through music, October Project has released their Virtual Choir of Joy video on YouTube. Emil Adler, Marina Belica, and Julie Flanders were inspired last March as cities around the world came together each night to raise their voices—in solidarity and song—to honor healthcare workers and acknowledge explosions of grief and turmoil across the country; in response, the group decided to offer Joy as an antidote to so much pain in a troubled world.

“Expressing the unbridled spirit of defiance to the despair of being locked down” was the animating force behind this collaboration—featuring 163 performers from 15 countries, including one alto saxophone and a sock puppet—Flanders explained. The group’s response to adversity felt natural considering their shared outlet, singing—not to mention breathing—was suddenly deemed dangerous. Participants were curated through an open call on Facebook and the October Project website; well over 200 individuals responded, and 165 recordings were ultimately uploaded including a drum corps from Austin, Texas and a hip-hop dancer from Australia. A team was then assembled to produce the virtual choir video, including local stars Ulrich Vilbois, a video editor from New Preston who has won numerous Emmys for ESPN, and Ed Boyer, a Grammy-Award winning audio engineer based in Ridgefield whose credits include the Pitch Perfect movies and Pentatonix. The video premiered, and the Spotify single launched, on October 30 (hence, the group’s moniker); their ‘Season of Joy’ campaign on social media was geared to carry people through the adjacent winter holidays.

Of course, there were hurdles. “You don’t look like you hope to look, and you don’t sound like you hope to sound,” Belica of South Kent chuckled. On the production side, human rhythms set the tone, not algorithms, and there was no escaping the latency—or technology lag—when joining together over the internet. “It had to be asynchronous, not synchronous,” Belica explains of the virtual choir that, in the moment, served a means to an end: a solution for groups to remember what it is like to sing together.

Creating space to breathe and sing, after months of confinement, has been the epitome of the holiday spirit for the October Project musicians. “Being able to breathe freely is a gift not everyone experiences,” Flanders points out, in a nod to George Floyd’s last words as well as those affected by widespread forest fires on the West Coast. “When you take away breath—even for a moment—you interrupt life,” she adds, drawing a parallel to the “collective gasp” experienced by so many of us, together, over the past eight months. Belica prefers to look ahead. “Joy (The Virtual Choir Version)” is the first single from a new choral recording of The Book of Rounds: 21 Songs of Grace—an entire album of songs meant to soothe and lift the spirit—which will be released over the coming year. As such, Belica wraps her sentiments neatly with a tidy bow:  “We are launching joy as a leap of faith, as a wish we have for today and the coming year.”

October Project

Lead Photo Credits:

Hair:  Sanina Rizvic, Washington Hairport, Washington Depot
Make-up;  Linda Temkin, Lulu Face Company, Litchfield
Jewelry: Trish Becker (Julie Flanders), Yatra (Marina Belica)
Photo Stylist: Nina DeWolfe

Local Bantam Private-Label Wallpaper Company Twenty2 Enjoys Success Amid Pandemic

By Jessica Grutkowski

It’s easy to fall in love with Litchfield County. Its charm, rich history, and bucolic landscapes, paired with interesting architecture and ubiquitous artisan community make it a special place for locals and visitors alike. Like many long-time city dwellers, Kyra and Rob Hartnett fell in love with the area and decided to lay roots in the country.

The love affair with Litchfield began when Rob’s parents moved there in 2000. While house-sitting, they perused a real estate brochure from the grocery store and saw the perfect 1846 Bantam farm house.

“We loved the soul and history of the area—dating back to the 1700s—but also how it infused mid-century modernism,” says Hartnett. “We knew the garage would make the perfect studio space for our growing wallpaper design business.”

Admittedly self-taught designers, the couple was influenced by their grandmothers’ shared passion for decorating with textiles, wallpaper, and antiques. Together, they have propelled Twenty2 to become a successful private-label wallpaper manufacturing company that helps more than 100 businesses develop and produce their own collections. When asked about the meaning behind their company name, the couple explained, “It’s our lucky number and both of our ages when we first met!”

This year’s quarantine has created a boom for the wallpaper industry. “People are embracing the power and sanctity of personal spaces, using wallpaper to help express their unique personality,” explains Hartnett. The Hartnetts are inspired heavily by their community, including fellow Litchfield resident Emily Dalton, co-founder of Jack Black, one of the largest U.S. men’s personal care brands. “She has been a huge inspiration and guide while navigating the challenges of running and scaling a business,” shares Hartnett.

Twenty2 currently offers more than 72 different color ways in its grasscloth collection alone, all of which are sustainably sourced and hand-dyed. “I love our grasscloths layered on metallic foil, which add texture and shimmer to the wall,” says Hartnett. “We’re proud to print many of the most beloved, inventive wallpapers on the market,” notes Hartnett. “We still offer our own curated collection of eco-friendly natural grasscloths through our website and various showrooms.”

Bringing a design concept to paper involves many careful steps. Twenty2 spends anywhere from one to six months developing digital artwork with its customers—originating anywhere from a napkin sketch to a fully-formed wallpaper pattern.

“In some cases, we photograph original artwork in-house, develop pattern repeats, and then produce the wallpaper,” explains Hartnett. “Once the files are approved for production, made-to-order wallpaper has a five-week lead time.”

Designers continue to break from tradition with wallpaper, utilizing pattern and texture to create unexpected pops. Recently, the Hartnetts worked with a Nashville client to create a “vibrant wallpaper cave,” with their friend Andra Eggleston’s wallpaper. “No room is off limits,” says Hartnett. “Bathrooms can be tricky, but as long as they are well ventilated, we have papers that can handle moisture.”

Twenty2 is honored to work frequently with artist Derrick Adams, including the recent installations at the Hudson River Museum in his “Buoyant” exhibition. The couple also enjoyed helping Voutsa create its iconic Memphis-style mural that wrapped around a large spiral staircase at The Kips Bay Showhouse in 2018.

A Rescued 250 Year Old Farmhouse

By Wendy Carlson

Michael Quadland is big into heavy metal—not the jarring music of Metallica or Iron Maiden, but battered, bent, warped, patina-flecked, rusty metal. An artist, Quadland draws inspiration for his abstract paintings and sculpture from the Works Progress Administration and Ashcan schools that found beauty in the industrial landscapes of early 20th-century. But he also has a soft spot for vintage houses. So, in 2016, when he stumbled upon a 250-year-old farmhouse in Morris, he saw an opportunity to create a home, studio, and gallery wrapped into one.

Quadland first spotted the white clapboard farmhouse when he was exploring Litchfield County one day. He noticed the “For Sale” sign stuck on the front lawn, and knew immediately that he wanted to buy it.

“I’m a sucker for houses that really need rescuing, and this one really needed rescuing,” said Quadland, who renovated several century-old apartments in New York before moving to Litchfield County.

He envisioned using the farmhouse, with its simple lines and plain interior, as a space to illustrate how abstract modern art can complement even the most traditional of homes. “People look at my art and say it won’t go in my antique home, but it does,” he insists.

Quadland returned to creating art ten years ago. As an undergrad at Dartmouth, he majored in art, but his parents discouraged him from pursuing it as a career. Instead, he earned his Ph.D. in psychology from New York University and a Master of Public Health degree from Yale. After demanding New York City careers as a clinical psychologist, assistant professor of psychiatry at Mt Sinai Medical School, AIDS researcher, and eventually as a novelist––penning two books,

That was Then, in 2007, and Offspring, in 2012, he came full circle and returned to the studio.

He and his partner, Rod Oneglia, live in a contemporary home just a stone’s throw away in Litchfield. But Quadland felt he needed his own work space. At first, buying another home that badly needed updating didn’t go over well. “When Rod, who is in the construction business, saw the place he just rolled his eyes and said it was going to cost a fortune to restore. That was when he started calling it Pretty Penny Farm. But as the construction proceeded, he saw that I was accomplishing a great deal at far less expense than he thought possible. That was when he changed the name to Pinch Penny Farm. We call it “the Pinch” for short,” says Quadland.

Restoring the antique farmhouse, which took two years, became Quadland’s own project.

He worked alongside the contractors, pulling nails, filling the dumpster, and making decisions on the fly. “Perhaps the hardest part physically was that the house was not heated and we worked January through into spring. Emotionally, there was the tension of making the house livable without losing or spoiling its many original features,” he said.

Structurally, the house had good bones, but there were surprises—like when he pulled up the hallway carpet and could see collapsed floorboards right down into the cellar.

Quadland is only the home’s third owner since it was built by the Benton family in 1767. His goal was to keep the architectural integrity of the house intact by preserving its historic features, including the wide-board pine and chestnut flooring, a cook fireplace with bake oven and two smaller fireplaces around a center chimney, original doors with original hardware, plaster walls and wainscoting, and the two original staircases.

The original portion of the main house is approximately 3,200 square feet, but in the 1960s an attached barn was converted to an apartment. Quadland gutted the addition, adding a vaulted- beamed ceiling.

At first, the space functioned as his studio. Then, he decided he needed more room so he built a 2,200-square-foot studio behind an existing three-bay garage, which houses a 1957 pink Thunderbird convertible, and a 1966 Ford pickup. Vintage cars are another one of his interests.

“I come from a long line of car men,” he explains. “My grandfather with his 1941 Packard touring car. My father with his 1949 Ford convertible. My brother races cars. I have always loved cars too. Now my passion is for 1950s and 60s—the cars I grew up admiring.”

Quadland painted most of the farmhouse’s walls white, creating a gallery-like atmosphere for displaying his large-format, three-dimensional paintings, and sculptures by him and by other artists, including his partner Rod, who is also a sculptor.

These days, Quadland spends most of his time at the farm; its long history inspires him. Originally, the farm included several hundred acres of land, which is now held in conservancy. The house now sits on three acres and is framed by stonewalls, mature trees, fields, and is punctuated by two Bulls, colossal cast-bronze sculptures by artist Peter Woytuck.

“In whatever direction you look, both inside and out, there is such a strong sense of history. I often imagine someone cooking at the big fireplace, or climbing the narrow twisting staircase, or storing jars of vegetables in the cellar,” he says. Now, his artwork adds another aesthetic dimension to this old house, and another chapter in its long history.