Chateau- Sur-Mer
Chateau-Sur-Mer was the first of the Rhode Island house we decided to visit, and I've been saving this one because it was actually my favorite. This house had the distinction of actually being a full time residence, and it was gorgeous. Everybody who knows me knows I prefer smaller houses, but I am all about the sparkle, and this house was full of the sparkle! It didn't have the same overwhelming opulence of the Breakers, the beauty of this house was in the (not actually small) details. I know we are supposed to focus on metal work on this page, but the wood work in this house was amazing!
Honestly, it was the ceilings that sealed my love for this house. There was so much work put in to a part of the house that honestly not a lot of people take the time to notice. There was even a fo-skylight in the center space of the house. It snows too much in that part of the country for it to be a real sky light, but honestly it fooled all of us on the tour.
There was also some truly beautiful paintings done on the ceilings! On the underside of the stairs there was a beautiful tree growing up to the next floor. This theme was carried though the house with the ceilings being the focal point to the more subtle walls.
None of this is to say that the walls were not also done to a high level. There was gilded wall paper and beautiful tapistries.
One of my favorite rooms was the ball room. I think part of why it was my favorite was the colors that were used, but I also liked that if felt approachable. It wasn't nearly as massive a space as the others, and doubled as a sitting room during the day, or when not hosting big parties.
The metal work was sprinkled throughout the house, many of the statues, Chandeliers and all of the fireplaces, as well as the obvious fencing outside. This house unlike the Breakers was built and remodeled over time, and so there wasn't the same rush in acquiring pieces for the house. This meant that more of the metal work in this house was hand forged rather than machined. I'm sure as the years have passed many of the things that needed to be replaces were replaced with more modern work, but it is still pretty, and can be used more inspirationally.