Newport – Day 3… Marble House, upstairs downstairs.

April 20, 2025 Rivergirl 14 Comments

Moving on upstairs and around the balcony..

We find a portrait of the master of the house,

William K. Vanderbilt.

And a memorial room to his youngest child and avid yachtsman, Harold Stirling Vanderbilt. Harold successfully defended the America’s Cup three times and is known for inventing the rules of contract bridge. When a subsequent owner of Marble House put it up for sale in 1963, it was Harold who stepped in and donated the money to the Preservation Society for its purchase.

Thank you Harold.

Down an impressive mahogany paneled hallway…

My bad knee ached at the thought of the servant’s stairs, but down we went.

And how do you know they’re the servant’s stairs?

Because there are locked bars at the base to keep the riff raff delivery people from mixing with the family.

I’m not sure why the butler’s office has a parrot, but there he is.

My husband got a huge kick out of this water heater and its primitive but effective level indicator.

The kitchen.

I can’t imagine how stifling and busy this space must have been for the 6-8 weeks of summer residence.

Husband loved the old coffee grinder.

Someone still polishes those copper pots today.

No thank you!

A French chef and 6 assistants prepared the meals.

On the 15 foot coal fired stove.

Alva, at a costume party.

The annual auto parade, where cars were covered in flowers and driven on parade.

Then? $382,500.

Today?

$380 million.

😳

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A few funnies.

April 19, 2025 Rivergirl 15 Comments

We’ll start with Lord Dudley Mountcatten because he always makes me smile.

Kristi however, does not.

I hate everything about Crocs.

The look, the feel…

And I’d venture to say that cat agrees.

Funny image, but the AI comments on the bottom are priceless.

His Lordship attempting to climb into the fox food bag.

Worst. Cocktail. Name.

Ever.

Worst president.

Ever.

😉

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Newport – Day 3…. The Gilded Age was real, not just an HBO series.

April 19, 2025 Rivergirl 17 Comments

The Grand Salon of the Marble House was very much that.

Also known as the Gold Room for obvious reasons, the walls are covered in 22 karat leaf.

Move the furniture and it serves as a ballroom as well.

The decorative elements are borrowed from Versailles, that other simple cottage across the pond.

Heading up the marble front stairs is an experience in itself.

You tend to run out of adjectives and simply gawk.

Here’s the husband, doing just that.

It really isn’t hard to imagine giant skirted ladies, dripping jewels, floating down the stairs on the arm of someone fabulous here .

Consuelo Vanderbilt’s bedroom. Eldest child, she married Charles Spencer-Churchill, the 9th Duke of Marlborough.. and clearly loved the color red.

The lady of the house’s boudoir.

Alva married well and took New York and Newport society by storm, elevating the Vanderbilt name to the highest rung on the social ladder.

Oddly enough she was a feminist and became heavily involved in the women’s suffrage movement, building a tea house on the property to hold rallies in support of women winning the right to vote.

Her bedroom is ultra feminine and covered in silk.

The HBO series The Gilded Age filmed in quite a few of the Newport cottages and used many of the rooms in Marble House as set decoration inspiration.

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Newport – Day 3…. Marble and dragons and gold. Oh my.

April 18, 2025 Rivergirl 23 Comments

When we visited the Breakers on our third morning in Newport and bought our tickets for entry, we purchased the multi pack which allowed us to tour three of the Preservation Society’s properties.

So that afternoon we parked off Bellevue Avenue and walked to number two.

Past ornate wrought iron gates….

Past houses with extra large lawn ornaments….

Along giant slabs of slate sidewalks…

To our destination.

Marble House was built between 1888 and 1892 as a 39th birthday present for Alva Vanderbilt from her husband, William. At a total cost of $11 million, ($384 million today) it consists of 500,000 cubic ft. of marble that cost $7 million alone. Considered the most lavish house in America, this 50-room summer residence was still called a “cottage” in the Newport tradition.

And yes, there was a whole lotta marble.

On the floor, the walls and the ceiling.

Gold?

The dining room has that in spades. Even the chairs are covered in it.

The library/morning room.

Alva loved France, French art and French architecture.

And because she acquired a collection of Medieval and Renaissance art she had a gothic room built to display them.

As one does.

It’s a charming little space.

Understated and plain.

Not!

Heck, it even has a dragon.

🐉 😊🐉

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Let’s play.

April 18, 2025 Rivergirl 26 Comments

Because it’s Friday and that’s what we do here.

My roommate put a dead (headless 🤢) mouse in my shoe.

My roommate comes into the bathroom and watches me pee.

My roommate hides under the bed and attacks my ankles as I walk by.

My roommate likes belly rubs when he’s high on catnip.

How about you…

What does your roommate do?

(If you’re not lucky enough to share your space with a feline, feel free to substitute dog, hamster, bird, lizard etc)

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We are beyond disappointed.

April 17, 2025 Rivergirl 30 Comments

Remember my fabulous birthday gift to my husband this year?

The chance for him to live his dream of attending the taping of an Antique Roadshow?

Well, the bastards didn’t choose our entry.

My husband won’t be able to stand in line for hours clutching his beloved treasures. He won’t be able to meet the Keno brothers, or chat up Kevin Zavian. Even though I sent in our form the day after they announced, even though my husband is their number one fan.

Damn them.

My guy is inconsolable.

😰

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Newport – Day 3…. The Breakers finale and a fabulous Irish pub.

April 17, 2025 Rivergirl 17 Comments

Finishing our tour of the top floor we strolled across the upper loggia.

It was a semi outdoor sitting room.

Filled with wicker furniture, rugs and potted palm trees in its day.

The ceiling is a continuation of the painted sky from the great hall.

Looking out…. you can see the waves breaking over the cliffs that give the house its name 30 feet below.

Here’s the husband taking a picture of the servant’s stairs.

The kitchen was large and extremely workable.

Which is a good thing considering the size of the dinner parties they had to cater.

Here’s the separate two story butler’s pantry that housed the china. Because why have one 50 piece pattern… when you have the space for 20? The family’s 1,000 piece monogrammed Tiffany silver was kept here as well. In the locked safe. Away from the possible sticky fingers of the 40 person staff.

Here are some exterior photos of the house.

The sun was hard to avoid so pardon the rays here and there.

We visited the Breakers once, decades ago in the summer… and the grounds were lovely.

Me, in 1989, tan and thin.

Husband in 1989, still active duty and thin.

In March 2025 things were mostly brown.

World’s largest bird bath?

I can’t imagine having this type of wealth.

Or living in this type of home.

But it sure was fun to wander around and pretend we did.

We spent the entire morning here and were famished by the time we were through. Reading in the brochure about a cafe on the grounds, we brought our appetites.

Only to discover the elaborate building had no kitchen, just bottled drinks in a cooler and bags of chips.

Bit of a let down, that.

After battling the crowded Thames Street waterfront…where there were ample restaurants but no parking, we drove a little farther and discovered Zelda’s.

A wonderful Irish pub favored by locals.

Nautically themed…

With an anchor chain serving as bar foot rail…

We happily settled in for lunch.

My cocktail of choice?

PRICKLY PEAR SPRITZ

RUFFINO PROSECCO, FRUITFUL PRICKLY PEAR, ELDERFLOWER LIQUOR, FRESH LEMON

Perfection!

And ooh la la.

A weird selection for an Irish pub… but their shrimp and grits was da bomb. They were fried, which was also weird, but everything was perfectly cooked and spiced. Tender shrimp, creamy cheesy grits, I was a happy camper.

There’s a very large Irish presence in Newport. Most of whom are ancestors of the original indentured servants brought over to serve the wealthy and build their fabulous summer homes. The robber barons are gone, but the Irish remain. And because of that….you’re never very far from a decent pub.

😊

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Can you hear my husband groaning from there?

April 16, 2025 Rivergirl 24 Comments

The search has begun.

Yes, we’re finally breaking down and shopping to replace our…. are you ready for a shock?…. 39 year old mattress.

We bought a seriously high end Stearns and Foster mattress in … gulp! … 1986 and it has served us faithfully for a very long time. We’ve flipped and rotated for decades but it’s finally gasped its last breath and needs to go.

Have you shopped for mattresses lately?

It’s a whole new world.

Aireloom… handmade, beloved by Ronald Reagan who put them in all White House bedrooms, and firm enough to make me happy.

The prices however, did not.

Stearns and Foster firm? My second choice but about the same price.

Serta firm? Not firm enough and I was beginning to feel like Goldilocks. Please note the husband’s thrilled expression that we were making the rounds of furniture stores again.

And speaking of furniture, if we’re replacing the mattress…

Perhaps it’s time to replace the 39 year old bedroom set as well. Problem is our old set is solid mahogany and, well… solid. Today’s bedrooms? Not so much.

Unless you buy Amish.

If they can hold a horse…

(PS… that bureau wasn’t $750, just the mirror which is sold separately)

What’s that strange pillow on the sectional couch we walked by?

A pet bed of course.

🤣

After a full day of shopping with no decisions made, my husband was ready for alcohol… and to be honest so was I. Lying down on mattresses that cost $6,000 plus will do that to a girl.

Spiced pear margarita and calamari to start.