Styling: Whispell Rd, Shokan

Looking from the open plan kitchen into the dining room, with the living room off to the right. To the dining table set up I added the pink rug and yellow chairs for some color, and set the table with props from my collection.

72 Whispell Rd is located in Shokan NY, a few minutes drive from Boiceville. This was a real estate listing that Winona and I worked on in March of this year. We had worked with the owners previously to style and shoot another airbnb property they own in Chichester, so I was already familiar with their style and it was fun to work with them again. The owners had moved in and lived here for a month before deciding that it wasn’t the right home for them, so as a result the home was partially furnished, missing lots of furniture, and there were tons of boxes everywhere.

For this project I worked with NYC based interior designer Elaine Chun to fully stage the house which took several days of work. Trying to be as sustainable as possible, I borrowed a lot of furniture and rugs from their Chichester property, as well as bringing my own props. We also purchased plants from The Sill to add some greenery. I’m working on some before and after styling posts so you can see what the house looked like before we worked our magic on it but for now enjoy these after photos.

The music room. The house has a large open plan top floor which could be reimagined in a multitude of ways as a studio space, work space etc. We decided to make part of the space into a music room. I set up the instruments and added the rug, chairs, art work and plant. This turned out to be one of my favorite rooms in the house.

As Whispell Rd is a large house and there was so much to be done to get it ready for a photo shoot, Elaine and I spent a couple days prior to the shoot date prepping and planning, and one full day setting up the house. We used a lot of items the owners had in storage as well as my personal props to bring the rooms to life.

In the open plan kitchen, I added the red bar stools and multi colored stools. I always like to add fruits, vegetables, plants and flowers in the kitchen, and create little stories to help buyers imagine themselves in the space.

Looking from the living room towards the dining room and porch. This room was bare aside from the couch and the blue chairs. I added the rug, leather chair, stools, coffee table and couch pillows that I indigo dyed. The walls were also bare and we added the tulip poster which came from the owners other rental property.

I love this sweet wood stove and created a vignette with a vintage chair, pillow and plant.

On the right, some bedside table styling in the master bedroom. The light from the window is so lovely.

A view of the Master bedroom from the doorway. The only things in this room were the bed and side table. Elaine and I added the rug, chair, lamp, plant, artwork and accessories to bring the room together.

Top left: We set up the record player cabinet and added the lamp and art to the piano. Top right: In one of the kids rooms we hung art work, styled the shelves and added linens and throw pillows to the bed, as well as the rug.

Bottom left: We made this first floor room into an office, with a desk in front of the window and seating area. Bottom right: View of the hallway from the front door.

On the left: One of the kids bedrooms. I added the rug, fabrics, pillows and artwork.

On the right: To this bathroom I added the striped runner and colorful towels. The pink shower curtain is so fun :)

The finished attic has multiple nooks. On the left I styled the shelves with books and decorative objects. On the right, I created an enticing window seat area to relax in.

Whispell Rd has a large wraparound porch. What a dream! Elaine and I created a few different seating areas to break up the space and added plants and rugs.

Left: The screening room. The basement in this house is comprised of several large rooms. We set one space up as a movie room with a big screen tv, couch and coffee table. I don’t generally rent furniture for shoots as it can be expensive and is not in everyone’s budget, but the room really needed a large couch so we rented this one for the shoot from North Country Vintage.

Right: We turned a large room on the second floor into a kids playroom.

And finally, how about that view?! This aerial shot of the house shows a view of the reservoir and surrounding mountains.

Photos by Winona Barton Ballentine, Words & Styling by Venetia Boucher