Hanover House style is equal parts quality, comfort, elegance and individuality. There is no Hanover “look”. We consider it of paramount importance that the interiors we create reflect our clients’ interests and personalities. And we take enormous pride in the quality of our workmanship. Our craftsmen are, we think, the best in the city. And we can handle any job, from a whole house renovation to the simplest of window treatments.
Cincinnati Library
This Cincinnati library was designed to complement the owner’s collection of Han Dynasty and Tang Dynasty objects, as well as other Oriental treasures.
The architectural woodwork, which had been bleached, was painted a soft sage green, highlighted by distressed hand gilding, and finished with an amber glaze. The major fabrics, from Lee Jofa, were chosen for their eighteenth century look, and to complement the soft tones of the Aubusson carpet.
The idea was to create a restful retreat, an at-home vacation from their busy lives, where they could enjoy their memories of travel, surrounded by the fruits of their collecting “labors”.
Dining Room
This dining room, in a Federal style house dating from 1930, reflects the client’s interest in and knowledge of early 19th century Chinese Export porcelain, particularly blue and white Canton wares, precisely the sort of pieces that would have been used in a house of the period.
The furnishing are likewise appropriate to the architecture: English and American pieces of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The carpet is a Chinese antique. The color scheme reflects the client’s love of blue and yellow in combination.
The fine Chippendale chairs are upholstered in Lee Jofa fabric.
Drawing Room
Several rooms from this project are illustrated here. The house was built in 1904, very much in the mode of the English Aesthetic movement. It had been updated only once, by the second owners, who added a few Art Deco touches in 1930.
Our clients, only the third owners, chose to restore the house completely, updating all mechanical systems, bathrooms, etc., but kept the spirit of the original house, reopening fireplaces that had been closed in the 1930’s renovation, restoring the large terraced garden to its original form, and removing accretions like panel moldings that were inappropriate to the architecture. This drawing room reflects the owner’s sophisticated and eclectic “eye.”
The furnishings and artwork are drawn from four centuries: the large armchair is English, from the William and Mary period (circa 1680), but it seems perfectly content beside the classic modernist steel table that dates from the 1960’s; the painted armchair is English, Neoclassical; the side chair is one of a set of Italian examples that date circa 1810. The magnificent marble fireplace surround is also Italian, circa 1700. The sofa, the large ottoman in front of it, the black painted, Art Deco inspired footstools, and the banquette in the foreground were all built and upholstered in Federation’s workshops. The table lamps are all unique, created from antique Chinese pieces. The window treatments are Scalamandre silk, trimmed with antique Italian, metallic fringe. Sofa and banquette fabrics are from Clarence House. The Queen Anne double chair is upholstered in silk damask by Rose Cummings. The Italian side chair’s covering is Fortuny.
Both the William and Mary chair and the painted armchair have fabrics from Gray Watkins.