The glamorous, revamped grounds of the storied Claremont Resort.
True design resorts have traditionally been laborious to come back by in Down East Maine, a rugged area between the state’s Midcoast and the Canadian border. However that’s to not say the delectably scenic, sparsely populated area (properly, most of the yr anyway) doesn’t deserve one. Down East receives greater than its fair proportion of seasonal out-of-town revelers, drawn by unspoiled nature and stuck-in-time fishing settlements studding the rocky shoreline—they usually’ve been lengthy craving a brand new dwelling base to savor the down-to-earth delights of genuine Maine. Finally, the reimagined Claremont Resort in Southwest Harbor is ready to appease design-lovers venturing to Acadia, fusing native heritage and sensibility with a microdose of glamor harking back to Europe’s best grand dame resorts.
A room contained in the Phillips Home, which overlooks the pool.
Properly earlier than its post-transformation reveal this summer time, The Claremont had been one of the vital storied lodging on Mount Desert Island, the place Down East Maine’s predominant points of interest are concentrated like Acadia Nationwide Park (the one nationwide park within the Northeast) and its storybook gateway port city Bar Harbor. Situated on six acres on the mouth of the Somes Sound, the only fjord on America’s east coast, the Nineteenth-century retreat is now underneath the path of Kennebunkport hotelier Tim Harrington and his enterprise associate, Debbie Lennon. For the lodge’s considerate redesign, they anchored the idea to the legacy of the McCues, the household who took possession of the landmark property in 1968. Though it exudes a particular reverence for the previous, The Claremont was additionally refreshed with modern options and top-notch styling to enchantment to probably the most discerning aesthetes.
The lounge in Fiddlehead, one of many wooded cottages.
“It’s an ongoing dialog: How can we ship a nostalgic expertise whereas layering on trendy facilities?” says Krista Stokes, The Claremont’s Lead Designer and Artwork Director. “We completely love the previous craftsmanship of the varied buildings and have executed little or no construction-wise so we are able to maintain most of those particulars.” At this time’s Claremont has been expanded to host 51 lodging in whole: 34 visitor rooms, 12 cottages, 4 suites, plus a secluded three-bedroom waterfront Ocean Home. The plush grounds additionally boast a lavish spa, croquet membership, heated out of doors swimming pool, and a quartet of meals and beverage shops together with upscale restaurant Little Fern and Harry’s Bar. “We modernized the methods, ensuring we, as a part of our legacy, make sure the constructing’s integrity and shore it up for the following 100 years,’’ Stokes continues.
Harry’s Bar is a tribute to Southwest Harbor’s maritime previous with painted wooden and vintage nautical … [+]
For assist realizing the brand new challenge, Stokes enlisted Boston-based Keeler & Co. Interior Design. “We [approached] the design with the identical stage of care and a spotlight to element that was given to the constructing course of a century in the past, celebrating native craftsmanship, that includes iconic wallpapers and making a bespoke expertise that’s true to the areas and the historical past in every of the property’s many buildings,” explains Laura Keeler Pierce, Founder & Principal Designer of Keeler & Co.
For the interiors in the primary visitor suites and customary areas, the workforce dreamed up a complicated coloration palette of blue, inexperienced, yellow and pops of cranberry and cherry that reference the encompassing nature and the island past. The serene shorefront cabins have a backcountry camp-meets-nautical temper board as an alternative, full with wooden panel partitions, stone fireplaces, and retro Americana paintings. “Arriving on the property, it is unattainable to not see how The Claremont is located in one of the vital particular spots on Mount Desert Island,” says Pierce. “Add to that, the storied historical past of the constructing, a spot that has seen generations of friends and celebrations—a lot of the inspiration for the design is in sustaining that nostalgic, bygone period that friends have loved for years on the property.”
Playful customized wallpaper from Sister Parish, a designer with deep roots in Down East Maine, brings collectively new- and old-world attraction. Materials and textiles had been sourced from legendary British label Morris & Co., nodding to the sentimentality and the English affect that permeated American design on the flip of the Nineteenth century. Scattered all through the property are antiques plucked from round New England, in addition to an array of artworks from native artists.
Wallpaper from Sister Parish brightens up a visitor suite within the Most important Home that overlooks the Somes … [+]
Inspiration was additionally present in previous iconic pictures of individuals in trendy costume, having fun with the mundanities of on a regular basis life in model. To Stokes, these visible references revealed how easy moments and locations could be elevated—and appreciated— when there’s extra of an acute give attention to particulars: “The gardens, the woods, the harbor, the smells, the mountains, the native folks. All of it’s magic,” she says. “We’re non permanent inhabitants on this stunning property and our honest hope is to make it higher for future generations.”