1. House of the Week: Treetops Bedford-Katonah Estate
$14.5 million
Annual property taxes: $150,430
Katonah
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It’s easy to imagine the former life of this stately, elegant, and timeless 1903 stucco English manor house (known as Treetops) and its surrounding sweeping grounds where the past and present blend seamlessly. Telltale signs of its historic past are evident through all 16 rooms, including a front-to-back entrance hall, exquisite moldings and millwork, high ceilings, period hardware, original hardwood floors, and distinctive windows. The estate was built on land steeped in history. As the story goes, John Jay, the country’s first chief fustice, owned the surrounding 400-plus acres, then known as Katonah’s Wood. Englishman Henry Pellew, widower of John Jay’s granddaughter and later husband of her sister (still following?), built a home on top of the property’s highest point. After the original house burned, the Pelew family sold most of Katonah’s Wood to Clarence Whitman, a wealthy importer, who built the current house to which several additions were added over the years. Coincidentally, Whitman also became a chief overseer and planner of a newly revamped Katonah village. “It’s unusual for such an exquisite property to come on the market,” says listing agent Patty Carpenter. “This property is a dream come true. It has everything imaginable—a stunning main residence perfectly sited on nearly 20 private acres, lushly landscaped grounds with numerous outdoor rooms including an apple orchard with four varieties of apples, a pool, a tennis court, outbuildings, and a phenomenal guest house with its own driveway. And, if that’s not enough, it’s located in the heart of Bedford’s foremost estate area and on the Bedford riding trails. It is absolute perfection!” For more information, contact Renwick Sotheby’s International Realty listing agent Patty Carpenter at (914) 953-4662 or visit www.sothebysrealty.com.
2. Save the Date for Design Inspiration!
Get inspired and get professional practical design tips from Barbara Fina, of Sleepy Hollow-based Fina Design Interiors. Fina’s May 3 workshop, hosted from 6:45 to 9 pm by Club Fit (584 North State Rd, Briarcliff), promises to provide concrete ideas perfect for simple home improvements or as the foundation for a major renovation. Either way, you’ll leave with specific ways to transform your home into personal space that’s beautiful, functional, and more aligned with the way you want to live. As a bonus, participants also will be treated to drinks and small bites. Save your seat now—RSVP to Joe DaRonco (914) 250-2783 or jdaronco@clubfit.com.
3. Creating the Perfect Garden at Duck Hill 
If you want to know what’s really behind the success of a well-planned, gorgeous garden, consider spending an evening with garden writer and designer Page Dickey in a special lecture at the Chappaqua Public Library (195 S Greeley Ave) on Thursday, April 19, from 7:30 pm to midnight. Dickey chronicled her 30-year experience in creating her own garden (North Salem’s Duck Hill) in her book Embroidered Ground: Revisiting the Garden. As the featured speaker for the spring Rocky Hill Lecture Series, she will share the pleasures and pitfalls of her efforts, along with her secrets to gardening success—from structure to the interplay of pattern and texture. Dickey, co-founded (with Bedford garden designer Penelope “Pepe” Maynard) the Garden Conservancy’s Open Days program that opens hundreds of private gardens around the country to the public each year. According to the event’s site, Dickey promises to discuss “gardening with a husband, with wildlife, with dogs and chickens, and the challenge of simplifying her garden in the years ahead.” The lecture series is sponsored by the Friends of Rocky Hills, a Garden Conservancy project in Mount Kisco. Admission is free. For more information, call the Chappaqua Public Library at (914) 238-4779 or visit www.gardenconservancy.org. To visit Duck Hill, contact the Garden Conservancy at info@gardenconservancy.org. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call (845) 265-2029.
We profiled master gardener Page Dickey in our spring 2012 issue of Westchester Home (click here for entire article).
4. Take in Top Tablescape Designs
The inspired works of top tablescape designers will be on full public display once again, this time on Tuesday, April 17, from 3 to 5 pm at 583 Park Avenue (at 63rd St) in Manhattan in a reprisal of what was formerly known as Flowers & Design [AND IS NOW CALLED?]. Mix and mingle with some of New York City’s most creative designers while getting a first-hand look at their elegant and dramatic dinner-party settings at the event sponsored by The Horticultural Society of New York. Admission is free for HORT members and $10 for non-members. For more information, contact Stephanie Chin at schin@thehort.org or (212) 757-0915, ext 101. To learn more about this year’s tablescape designers or to register, visit www.thehort.org.
5. Who knew? NYASLA Landscape Design Exhibit
April is Landscape Architecture Month! Who knew? In recognition of the special month, an exhibit co-sponsored by The New York Chapter American Society of Landscape Architects and The Horticultural Society of New York continues to run through Wednesday, May 2 at The Horticultural Society, 148 W 37th St, 13th floor, in Manhattan. Gallery hours are from noon to 6 pm, Monday through Friday. The exhibit features photographs, plans, and drawings from the 2012 award-winning projects in landscape architecture, design, and planning. For more information, visit www.thehort.org or call (212) 757-0915, ext 121.
We welcome information about fascinating homes on the market or real estate/home-related news and events—send to Karen Odom at kodom@westchestermagazine.com.
