winterthur museum and gardens - part 2

we really enjoyed touring winterhur in delaware on sunday.  after we toured the inside of the mansion/museum, we walked around the property.  winterthur is set in a 1,000-acre preserve of picturesque rolling meadows and wooded areas.  near the home is a 60-acre naturalistic garden that looks like something right out of a fairy tale story.

walking through the gardens was like walking through a movie set.  everything was so pretty.  we were especially tickled by the fairy garden which had a thatched-roof fairy home, a witch's house, tiny little bridges, and a giant bird nest.  the details were incredible, it was nuts!

love, laurie

winterthur museum and gardens - part 1

last summer, we visited nemours mansion and gardens (the home of alfred dupont) in delaware with my parents.  we really enjoyed touring the elaborate mansion and strolling through the beautiful gardens.  my mom heard that there was another dupont mansion right by nemours, and we have been curious to check it out ever since.

on sunday, we took a trip back to delaware with my parents to see winterthur museum and gardens.  winterthur was the home of henry francis dupont.  like nemours, winterhur is also open to the public for tours.  we took a tram ride through the property, toured part of the 175-room mansion, and then strolled through the expansive grounds.

the weather held out for us, and it turned out to be a really pretty fall day in delaware.  here some pictures from our visit to winterthur . . .

^it's really hard to comprehend a 9 story, 175-room home.  in fact, it was so big, that we couldn't even find a vantage point outside from which we could see the entire building.  i really loved the roof lines and the dormer windows though.^

^this stair case was truly breathtaking.  it actually wasn't the original stair case.  the original was made of marble.  henry francis dupont was traveling and saw this stair case in another home and he had it removed from that home and put in his home.  i can't even imagine how someone goes about moving a staircase like that!^

^among the collection of china in the house was the china set off which george washington ate when he was in the white house.  that was pretty mind blowing.^

^part of the museum features a collection of campbell soup tureens.  i have never seen so many soup tureens or such elaborate soup tureens in my life!^

^found this handsome fella on the porch overlooking the grounds^

^oh, i'm telling you, those dormer windows were really gorgeous!^

^most of the property looked like a movie set.  it was so detailed and elaborate.  somehow i can just imagine a girl in a beautiful long gown descending those stairs for a fairy tale story.  it's no surprise that the property is a popular spot for weddings.  the tram driver said that there were three weddings there this weekend!^

love, laurie

nemours mansion and gardens

last week we took a trip to delaware with my parents to tour nemours mansion and gardens.  i really didn't know what to expect before we got there, but it turned out to be absolutely incredible!

we toured the 47,000 square foot mansion (yes, you read that right) as well as the expansive gardens.  you couldn't take pictures inside the house, but take my word for it, the house was amazing.  105 rooms, each more insane than the last.  there was a cedar-lined refrigerator specifically for fur jackets, two bowling lanes, a room dedicated to making and storing ice cream, and priceless art and antiques from all around the world.  i have truly never seen anything so lavish or extravagant in my life.  the most incredible part was that it only took 18 months to build this elaborate mansion.  by far, it was the most magnificent home i have ever seen.  the mansion and the gardens were absolutely pristine.  i felt like i was walking straight into the great gatsby.

^this is the view when you walk out the front door of the mansion.  i mean, come on . . . unreal!^

^this sweet boat floating in the pool next to the fountain was so very gatsby.^

^can you see the rainbow in the fountain in the top left corner?^

^the family swimming pool is an acre large.  i just cannot even comprehend that.  it's 5.5 feet deep and takes 4 days to fill with water.  craziness.^

^of course we cannot forget about the garage.  filled with a collection of insanely gorgeous custom cars: 2 cadillacs, 2 rolls royces, 1 buick, and a boat . . . oh you know, just the usual.^

^all of that walking made us hungry, so we stopped at bella coast for dinner after the tour.  i had eggplant parm for dinner and all four of us split the dessert sampler.  we thought it would be a small little thing and we would each be able to take a bite.  it turned out to be four full desserts on a wooden plank.  needless to say, we rolled out of there.^

love, laurie