Designing Your Weekend

If you plan your weekend just right you can enjoy back-to-back home design events from Friday morning, July 8, through Friday evening and into Saturday, July 9 and Sunday, July 10. It’s all design all the time…and all for a good cause.

Get ready to be dazzled by beautiful homes, historic properties, priceless antiques and decorative items for the home and garden at separate fundraisers for the John Jermain Library in Sag Harbor and the East Hampton Historical Society in East Hampton.

Start with the Friends of the John Jermain Library’s Annual House Tour for the benefit of the library on Friday, July 8, between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. There are six fabulous homes featured in this summer’s self-guided tour – three historic houses in the village, one on the water in Bay Point and two on the water in North Haven. [expand]

I attended last year’s library home tour with my cousin Pam McLoughlin, who has a summer home in Noyac. When I picked up our tickets I received an easy-to-follow map to the featured homes, and because I was new to the area, I asked Pam to drive while I read the map. I recommend this carpooling technique, as it is much more fun to share the house tour experience with a friend. We saw new and historic homes, elegant and eclectic homes, and even an artist’s studio or two along the way. There was also a much-appreciated refreshment break at the most beautiful waterfront home on the tour. We had no trouble getting around to all six homes, fortified by High Tea!

But back to Friday, July 8. From 6 to 8:30 p.m., the East Hampton Historical Society’s 2011 Antiques Show kicks off with a Preview Cocktail Party hosted by honorary chair Newell Turner, editor-in-chief of House Beautiful. “I’m honored to join with the Historical Society to kick off the antiques show,” said Turner. “Every summer brings a new wealth of top-quality design gathered from up and down the Eastern seaboard.”

Tickets to the Preview Cocktail Party are $150 and include admission to the Antiques Show the following two days. Proceeds benefit the East Hampton Historical Society and the event offers patrons an early opportunity to view and buy the extraordinary array of antiques and collectibles for sale all weekend.

Now in its fifth year, the East Hampton show is widely recognized as the premier antiques event on eastern Long Island. And while I unfortunately missed last year’s show, my colleague Tamara Matthews–Stephenson did attend. See her story, featuring an interview with Newell Turner, also on this page.

Both the outdoor Friday night Preview Cocktail Party and Antiques Show on Saturday and Sunday take place on the historic grounds of Mulford Farm, located on James Lane in the heart of the village of East Hampton. This historic property features a rare and restored 17th century farmhouse as well as several barns and outbuildings that are among eastern Long Island’s oldest.

More than 55 antique dealers will feature antiques and decorative items for the home and garden. Vintage rattan and bamboo furniture, lighting, textiles, architectural elements, American formal and country painted furniture, Art Deco and Moderne furniture, garden ornaments, wrought iron accessories, industrial items, paintings, trade signs, period jewelry, weather vanes, and mirrors will be offered.

Twenty-five A-list interior designers who work in the Hamptons are also supporting this year’s show on the Designers Committee. This year’s list includes Jamie Drake, Steven Gambrel, Shelley McBee, Noel Jeffrey, Marshall Watson, Tom Samet and Robert Stilin, to name just a few.

House Beautiful, BNY Mellon Wealth Management and Polo Ralph Lauren are all returning corporate sponsors, and the organizers are pleased to welcome sponsor Channing Daughters Vineyards. Catering will be provided by Brent Newsom and live music will be performed by Jane Hastay and Peter Martin Weiss.

The John Jermain Library House Tour takes place on Friday, July 8 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets are $35 each in advance at the Wharf Shop on Main Street and, beginning July 6, at the library’s temporary location at 34 West Water Street (the library is currently undergoing major renovations). On the day of the tour, tickets will be sold for $40 on the grounds of the library’s historic location at 201 Main Street. 631-725-0049.

Admission to the East Hampton Historical Society Antiques Show is $10, with early buying at $20. Show hours are Saturday, July 9, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with an early-buying hour at 9 a.m. On Sunday the show is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The show offers an on-site café for a light breakfast and lunch on Saturday and Sunday. Tickets for the Friday night Preview Cocktail Party are $150 and include admission to the Antiques Show the following days. For tickets please contact the East Hampton Historical Society at 631-324-6850, e-mail at info@easthamptonhistory.org, or visit the East Hampton Historical Society’s office, located at 101 Main Street, East Hampton, from Tuesday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at www.easthamptonhistory.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the gate the night of the party. [/expand]