Margaret, a cousin to England’s Queen Elizabeth, resided mostly in France with her husband, Prince René of Bourbon-Parma, until her death in 1992 at age 97. (The family was forced to flee La Carriere during World War II, temporarily taking up residence in New York.)
La Carriere’s historic character is underscored by its arched windows, antique high-beamed ceilings, and expansive fireplace. If the new owners feel hemmed in, though, incomparable views of the Mediterranean are available from multiple terraces and a rooftop jacuzzi.
There is no reserve, but the property was previously listed for $13.1 million. Bidding opened yesterday with Concierge Auctions.
Then and now in Larchmont
A lot has changed in the quarter-century since 61 and 65 Woodbine Avenue appeared in the pages of Architectural Digest. The two homes, which make up a single estate in Larchmont, New York, were the work of architect Elliott Rosenblum, known for designing stores for Barneys, Calvin Klein, and Saks Fifth Avenue.
His client was a Westchester County psychotherapist who was relocating and wanted a space that was “snug enough for two but able to accommodate her and her husband’s extended friends and family,” according to the original article from 1997.
Rosenblum’s solution was a pair of Shingle-style houses that would be right at home in Nantucket: A 13-room, 7,500-square-foot main house where the pair could spend the warm-weather months, and a 10-room 4,000-square-foot “cottage” where they could winter.
The original structures on the property, which date to 1907, were stripped down to their foundations to make way for Rosenblum’s expansive design. Now both residences are on the market for the first time, listed for $6.8 million with Carey Federspiel of Julia B. Fee Sotheby’s International Realty.
A comparison of the original shots from the 1997 spread and new photos from this year show that, while the world outside is very different, these homes are much the same.
“The eyebrows, the cupolas, the antique wood floors, and cabinetry are all there and beautiful,” says Federspiel. “The wood in the home hasn’t been whitewashed or painted gray like so many homes in the past decade.”
In fact, the only things that have grayed are the cedar shingles, which have naturally weathered from their original brown.
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