Johanna Roselle’s Bolognese Sauce
Inspiration is everywhere.
We began 2017 at The Philadelphia Museum of Art, happily wandering through room after room of priceless artwork, and decorative objects from all over the world. Often people remark on how beautiful our store looks, and are amazed that neither Keith nor I have a background in design. Over the years we’ve gotten very good at selecting and presenting the objects we sell basically by just looking at everything, everywhere. Most of the largest museums have several floors filled with completely furnished rooms from different periods and even other countries on exhibit–making it possible to soak up several centuries of interior decorating–in just one afternoon.
Next up in January was Atlanta and the America’s Mart, literally over a million square feet of the latest and greatest in Home Furnishings and Accessories, and we wandered around there for several days. Besides thousands of vendors and products, America’s Mart featured a series of room-size vignettes styled by a half dozen leaders in American interior design.
Everything old is new again. While the first interior is from 18th century England, on display at The Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the second by a very 21st century Austin Texas designer, you can see similarities. Pattern, color and texture are blended, not matched. And some objects are simply timeless, like blue and white porcelain, or an architectural mirror. Which leads me to the next bit of wisdom.
Don’t be so quick to get onto the next trend. Sometimes a tweak, an addition or a subtraction is all you need. Maybe adding a contemporary lamp, or a modern painting will add a dash of spice to a room that is beginning to look dated. In the photo above, the owners of a fabulous century home were over their formal, darkwood dining room, but they were not about to give up on elegance either. The answer? An oversized rustic table partnered with contemporary art and an antique crystal chandelier. Who wouldn’t want to linger over coffee and dessert in this room?
It doesn’t hurt to try something new. One of the happier moments at British Cottage has been the introduction of upholstery. We started with Hickory White, a third generation, family-owned company from North Carolina and then in the spring added Century Furniture. Also, family owned and based in North Carolina, Century offers us access to the new miracle fabric, Crypton and a whole host of different designs.
Listen to the experts. When we get the chance, we buy the floor samples at the Century and Hickory White showrooms when we go to the furniture markets. That way we get the latest fabrics (which may not be in stores for months) and the newest styles–put together by world-class designers for the next season’s looks in home furnishings. Along the way, we get a free lesson in design. I mean, who ever thought you would find mid-century modern at British Cottage? But we loved this sofa with chaise by Century Furniture so much we decided to give it a shot.
Don’t be afraid to take it up a notch. We get why RH went all gray. It takes some thought (and balls) to add in color, but the payoff is huge when you do. Lillian August used these ancestor portraits in her showroom and after thinking about them for a year we decided to get them. That pop of color and the scale of this artwork makes the whole store look better. 
Lastly, have some fun. Decorating is all about making your home, and by extension, your life more enjoyable. It does not have to be perfect; it has to be welcoming. When I grew up in Rumson 1000 years ago many of my friends lived in huge houses with huge rooms with matching carpets and couches and window treatments and guess what? Nobody was allowed in them!
Meanwhile, our kid-centric, (there were six siblings plus innumerable chums) pet-friendly house was filled with mismatched, hand-me-down furniture and we had people everywhere. No rooms were off limits; the sunroom might house a ping pong table one year, a pool table might be in the dining room the next. Trust me, the joint was always jumping.
Mealtimes were huge in our family. Our happiest moments were when our mom (of Anglo-German descent who, fortunately for us, grew up next to a large Italian family in Rhode Island) cooked up a Sunday Sauce with Sausage and Meatballs. However, I think we might have enjoyed this Bolognese Sauce from the Roselle family just as much. Gene, and his wife Johanna, live in Tinton Falls and have been British Cottage customers for years. It took nearly a year of pestering, but I finally got the recipe!
Johanna Roselle’s Bolognese Sauce
Add a glug of olive oil to a large cast iron pot, and saute 1/4 pound of diced chopped pancetta until brown. Then chop and add one medium sized onion, one stalk of celery, half a red pepper, and four large garlic cloves then cook until soft–about eight minutes
Add one and a half pounds of ground pork or two pounds of ground sirloin (I mixed them together when I made this recipe because it is a known fact I am unable to follow directions). Add salt and pepper to taste, and cook for about ten minutes on low heat.
Raise the heat to medium and add one and a half cups of whole milk and a dash of grated nutmeg and cook until the liquid has almost evaporated–stirring frequently. Then add one cup of dry white wine, and cook until that nearly evaporates.
Add two cans of plum tomatoes roughly chopped and one cup of chicken stock and gently simmer for at least one and a half hours. Keep remembering to stir the pot and add more milk if the sauce gets too thick. Add some fresh basil at the end.
Serve over pappardelle with freshly grated parmesan cheese.
And don’t forget the Christmas Crackers. Happy Holidays!
Monmouth County never fails to deliver when it comes to home design. There’s the eastern seashore with its mix of vintage and ultra-modern roosts built to embrace coastal living, and then out west lie the century old farms that made New Jersey the Garden State.
Reflected in the mirror over an antique pine bench (from British Cottage) in the foyer of her new home is Angie Lambert. Angie is a writer and a photographer, 
From the foyer, you are swept into the multi-story living room–which until a few weeks ago housed only the family pool table! However, since the Lamberts were planning a Halloween/House Warming bash furnishing the living room became a priority. And one we were happily able to help them with. I love how the custom Hickory White Chesterfield sofa and Bergere chair, plus the two navy Century armchairs, all look like they were made for this room.
The kitchen was renovated in the late eighties and was probably the cat’s meow at the time. Although I am not quite sure about the green countertops–or even what material they are made of–they look nice with the terracotta floor and classic all-wood cherry cabinets. And I mean really, how many all-white bespoke kitchens with Carrara marble will look this good after 30 years?
On the other side of the kitchen is the family room, which in case you were wondering, is where the pool table landed. 
Angie repurposed a huge Pottery Barn hutch to make a fabulous workstation, added a pub table and chairs from yours truly and made another great room for young and old to relax in and enjoy.
Beyond the pool table is the greenhouse that made me–yes–green with envy. Angie was kind enough to adopt four of my super-sized Boston ferns that were never going to survive the winter outside.
I love how Angie (with a little help from a chum, Denise Dobken) was able to take our large heron print, an antique pine cabinet, a more transitional style coffee table and an armchair upholstered in herringbone and pull it all together. This is a teachable moment for anyone interested in home decor. It doesn’t have to match–it just all needs to blend. Don’t be afraid to go big and play around with scale.
You cannot believe how good this smells and how wonderful it tastes. It was like eating pizza from heaven, a perfect marriage of warm, melted cheese, and freshly cooked bread all enlivened by a dash of rosemary and thyme. I don’t bake much but that is going to change!
We really do have a British cottage–it just lives on a lake in Maine. The outdoor recreation there is fabulous but every so often you just have to put the paddle down. Fortunately our next favorite thing is interior design so we are always tweaking the decor. And now, at the end of our fourth season, it is really coming together.
Crammed or cozy–it is a fine line. But painting the walls and ceilings a luscious BM Dove White makes the rooms seem twice as big and almost airy. Large windows and a super simple color scheme keeps your eyes on the view, which is right where it belongs. Like living on a boat, it all works because there is a place for everything. Instead of a console table there is bookcase (from our factory) behind the couch. The vintage black velvet armchairs add some zip to the room without taking up too much floor space leaving room for an overstuffed slipcovered couch that is perfect for schmoozing–or snoozing. And we just had to squeeze in a spool chair for balance. 
We knew we wanted a large, rustic dining table so we could play games, do puzzles, and fold wash there, as well as dine elegantly. This one works because the wrought iron base, while decorative, is minimal, making it seem a lot smaller than it really is. Upholstered chairs might seem an odd choice for cottage living, but I figured if we had a crowd they could do double duty as extra occasional seating.
The kitchen was made by the factory in Hungary that makes all of our bespoke furniture. It is plain and simple and that is the way we wanted to roll. Dining is important to us, especially when on holiday, but nobody wants to spend time cleaning and fussing. The two inch thick oak counter tops and painted cabinets are basically spray and wipe which works for me! The lack of upper cabinets and shelves makes the space feel more open and the fact that everything is put away always makes it look tidy.
We had just enough room to squeak in an island and a pine pantry cupboard–also from the British Cottage oeuvre. It is nice to have the extra storage and seating, and space to put things away. Clutter is the enemy of tight quarters!
The other furniture in the room is a large antique pine chest of drawers from Hungary–which is big enough to share–and a toile slipcovered armchair that came from Domain twenty years ago. It is the perfect spot to repair to when the gang is in town.
The queen is a British Cottage reject–we were fooling around with changing the headboard shape and it did not come out right. But all was not lost because it fits perfectly into this alcove with just enough space left for an antique pine nightstand. We have been selling versions of this for over thirty years and they never fail to deliver.
The metal day bed is for his little brother.
And there is still room for a little office space for me. Some people don’t like to work on vacation but having the internet available 24/7 makes it possible for us to get away as often as we do.
Naturally when in Maine you want to be outside. But sometimes the rain falls, or the snow drops or the fog rolls in. Then it is nice to have places to curl up with a good book, sip a cup of strong, sweet tea, or cuddle a small child. And that is what this cottage living is all about–making time for family, for reading, or even–heaven forbid–a nap!
I never really liked the painting. It always seemed creepy and sad but when you summer in coastal Maine it is hard to avoid the legendary Wyeth and I am bedazzled by many of his other works. At least once a year I make a pilgrimage to The Farnsworth Museum in Rockland to soak up some Wyeth-ness and this year, for a few extra dollars purchased a ticket to visit The Olson House in nearby Cushing.
If you get a chance, go. And go soon because it is only a matter of time before the house is cleaned up, and the public partitioned off. Right now every room is accessible and virtually untouched from the days the Olsons lived there. You can see the rooms as Andrew Wyeth saw them and know how terrible, and how wonderful Christina’s world must have been.
It was really good, but if you can’t get to Maine anytime soon don’t fret, my recipe may just be better.
A hundred years ago Sea Bright was just a small fishing village nestled on the sand spit separating the Atlantic Ocean from the Shrewsbury River. The humbleness of the town was in direct contrast to the grandeur of the large vacation homes surrounding it. Mainly owned by wealthy New Yorkers, they employed architects, like the renowned Stanford White, to design intricate, multi-storied shingle style houses so they could enjoy the Jersey Shore’s ample sunshine and refreshing sea breezes in comfort.
This beautiful building is a survivor–no mean feat considering it sits barely above sea level a stone’s throw from the river. Nor’easters, and of course hurricanes are a constant threat–the latest was Sandy in 2012.
While the side yard is a parking lot–this is a working marina after all–
there is a large front lawn that ends where the river starts. Flanked by daylilies and hydrangeas, and a huge border of what looks to be ornamentals, but is, in reality, a massive vegetable garden, it is the perfect spot for plunking down with a book on a sunny day–or to have a party!
Their experienced floral designers always make sure we have gorgeous flower arrangements on all the tables (we always do a sit-down dinner). And they also schlep over these huge palms that we use to decorate the inside of the tent.
Somehow it all comes together. It doesn’t hurt that one of the owners of the fabulous 
This year he served a grilled salmon that belied any thought of the Salmon Fatigue Syndrome I have been suffering lately.
Part of the fun of having a cottage on the Maine coast is connecting with my sister and her family. She married a Mainer 30 years ago and has happily lived on the Pemaquid Peninsula–a bucolic landmass encircled by craggy clumps of rock and endless sea–ever since.
In the bedrooms there are patchwork quilts and lace curtains to soften all that knotty pine. The daybeds are just perfect for curling up for a nap or reading on a rainy day. And finally, when darkness falls, it is lovely to open the curtains and lie back and watch the stars glimmer while drifting off to sleep.
Minimalism is not Laurie’s thing and collections abound; from bottles to mermaids, there is something fun to see everywhere you look.
But I digress. Because on this day we were not here to admire the view, or the eclectic interior, even better–we were here for a Lobster Bake!
Once a summer they host a Lobster Bake and luckily we were on board for this one. Trust me, this is not for the faint of heart. The menu included 48 lobsters, 20 pounds of steamers, 36 ears of corn, 10 pounds of potatoes and 24 eggs! And let’s not forget to mention the hot dogs and hamburgers, steak tips, appetizers and blueberry buckle–there was, no doubt, enough food to sink a battleship!
A fair amount of heavy lifting is required so it helps if a few strong men are part of the program. First a fire is started:
Then the children gather seaweed to line the bottom of metal troughs. Next comes the lobsters.
Then potatoes and onions wrapped in foil, and partially shucked ears of corn are added. (There I am in a key supervisory role on the right).
Top with bags of steamers, and a couple of dozen eggs in the carton.
Add the seaweed and lug on top the fire.
Toss in a few buckets of sea water and 45 minutes later it’s all done.
Here is just part of the crew on hand that perfect Maine summer day. From 86 to almost two years old a great time was had by all. Even young Oscar here, who clearly did not appreciate his seaweed chapeau…
brightened up after an afternoon nap in the arms of his good friend, Laurie.
When a customer from North Jersey called last week to check on the status of her classic farm table from our factory in Hungary–meant to arrive in May but now coming in June, sadly–she told us the same table she was waiting for was featured in a Rumson home in this month’s HGTV Magazine!
And sure enough, there was our British Cottage table! But it didn’t start out with this Rumson family. About 15 years ago a couple from Spring Lake had had it with the traditional layout of their perfectly located home. He cooked, she loved to entertain, the sequestered formal dining room and barely adequate kitchen were not working for their lifestyle. So they blew out the back of the house, and the wall separating the dining room and the kitchen and made a fabulous room overlooking their fabulous garden. They added new cabinets and state of the art appliances then anchored the whole shebang with a custom British Cottage farm table.
Basically, we have been on the road all spring, finding inspiration and beauty everywhere we go. Nothing, however, tops young Charlotte here. Our newest grandchild, and look, at just seven months, already a lady who does lunch!
We started out in April in North Carolina at the 
We did not buy the rug (only because it was not for sale), but we did buy this fabulous ecru velvet Chesterfield sofa along with the two coordinating armchairs. Classic, elegant, vintage, but with a smattering of modernity, that is our British Cottage story.
Looking at this vignette, you have to wonder; is this really the best a billion dollar company can do? Crank it up. Go get those Fiezy rugs and a coffee table that doesn’t clash with everything. While you’re at it, rethink your artwork. And accessories. Come on Warren, it’s definitely time to up your game; hire some new buyers, and show Nebraska some style.
It was architecturally awesome; I loved the polished concrete floors, the M.C. Esher-esque seemingly never-ending series of arched doorways, symmetrical room settings, and the high-reaching ceilings. Sadly the products were every bit as lacking, in their own way, as the items at Warren’s Nebraska Furniture Mart. Not that they were ugly or poorly designed but, after you’ve seen one crystal chandelier, one upholstered linen chair, and one low-slung couch, there’s fifty more to look at. Enough already!
But we had other fish to fry:
Nordstrom’s to shop:
And Farmer’s Markets to frequent. 
Next up was the hunt for tables. While we build a lot of our own product at our factory in Hungary, High Point Market gives us the opportunity to augment our inventory with some of the latest designs on the market.
Originally built in the mid 1800’s as a lighthouse on a hill on the eastern Middletown border, this house exudes charm and personality. From the entrancing private lane, you enter through the iron gates to a lushly landscaped, circular drive topped by this simply lovely home. I want to say it is the icing on the cake, or the jewel in the crown–it is really super.
I walked through the periwinkle blue door straight into a kitchen right out of the original Smallbone Catalogue.
Smallbone is an English firm famous for introducing “unfitted kitchens” to the United States. Totally bucking the trend of build-in, built-up, over-built kitchens that are now the norm, an unfitted kitchen features freestanding furniture and appliances and a variety of finishes and materials. Utterly charming, yet totally serious with industrial strength appliances, this is my dream kitchen.
Upstairs, besides the master bedroom (which has an en suite bathroom to swoon over), there is an enchanting guest room and bath, another bedroom they use as a dressing room and a spiral staircase that leads to a ladder that leads to the cupola where the lighthouse used to be. It is like the stairway to heaven; you keep climbing and climbing and finally you get there. You can literally see for miles!
