At This Scenic Upstate New York House the Interiors Have an Anything-Goes Spirit—All the Way Up to the Chandelier In the Tented Bedroom

Designer Rafael de Cárdenas implemented the “chill” design directive for Francesca Bodini’s country home set on nearly 1,000 acres in Dutchess CountyFrancesca Bodini’s weekend retreat sits discreetly on her father’s 1,000-acre estate in Dutchess County, New York. Raffaella Bortoluzzi Architecture conceived the low-slung structure in a restrained palette of materials to harmonize with the property’s existing outbuildings. For the landscape, Bodini worked closely with Drake Design Studio principal Sarah Drake Weihman to achieve an equally exacting vision. “I was really specific and only wanted wild grasses, no flowers. And everything had to be wild, or it had to grow independently,” says Bodini. Rafael de Cárdenas designed the interiors and Structure Works Construction served as contractors on the project.Francesca Bodini already had a pristine Upper East Side apartment. For the country, she wanted to loosen up. Newly divorced, Bodini decided the time had come to create a permanent retreat on her father’s nearly 1,000-acre estate in Upstate New York, where she grew up spending bucolic weekends and summers. Here, Bodini was pining for neither a laborious undertaking nor a museum-like showplace. “I wanted everything to be chill for my kids and the dogs,” says the mother of three school-age children. “It’s meant to be very comfortable, usable, not overly precious, and fun at the same time.”In the formal living area near the home’s main entrance, custom sofas by designer Rafael de Cárdenas upholstered in Dedar fabrics flank a Xavier Lavergne coffee table atop a custom Tai Ping rug. A 1960s French chaise longue, circa 1972 Meret Oppenheim side table, and vintage rattan stool complete the arrangement. On the wall, Allan McCollum’s Collection of 90 Drawings provides a graphic backdrop; the Roman shades are fashioned from a Holland & Sherry textile. Vintage Moroccan StoolVintage Traccia Table by Meret OppenheimAnother view of the formal living area highlights de Cárdenas’s custom sofa upholstered in a Dedar fabric, paired with a Xavier Lavergne coffee table atop a custom Tai Ping rug. Behind it, Allan McCollum’s Collection of 90 Drawings provides a graphic backdrop to objects Bodini has collected over the years. “This felt really casual and kind of easy and sort of born through casual conversations and jokes,” reflects the designer of the undertaking. “There was something kind of nice about having this project that was mutually cool.” The obvious collaborator was her longtime friend and designer Rafael de Cárdenas. A former Calvin Klein menswear designer known for atmospheric, sophisticated interiors (as well as stores for Skims, Cartier, and Nike), de Cárdenas had served as a casual creative sounding board for Bodini over the years. She trusted him to bring not only his singular eye but also a degree of levity to the personal undertaking.When Bodini has the house to herself, she gravitates to the sunroom, where meaningful pieces collected over the years have found a natural home. For the custom millwork and upholstered niche, de Cárdenas collaborated with Studio Townsend and Jouffre. In the foreground, Luteca armchairs and Bodini’s own sofa surround a vintage Lorenzo Burchiellaro coffee table alongside a vintage rattan stool. The carpet is from Beni Rugs. In the sunroom’s seating niche, Peter Beard’s Untitled (Picasso Sheet) hangs above a bench upholstered in a Dedar fabric and illuminated by vintage Murano glass sconces. A 1960s French bamboo table is among Bodini’s favorite pieces; the ceramic at left is by Kazunori Hamana and Yukiko Kuroda, while the lacquer side table at right is by Christophe Delcourt. Much of the home’s art was acquired with longtime adviser Meredith Darrow, who first introduced Bodini to de Cárdenas. “It felt very fresh, very immediate, and not super thought-out, which sometimes is great,” says de Cárdenas, whose other current projects tend to be “a lot more intense.” The duo’s breezy rapport belies the scale of the yearslong endeavor: a light-filled, 10,000-square-foot contemporary house by Raffaella Bortoluzzi Architecture, layered with pieces from Bodini’s collection, custom designs by de Cárdenas’s studio, and artworks procured with adviser Meredith Darrow, who originally introduced the client and designer.Western exposure bathes the dining room in dramatic sunset light. Espasso dining chairs by Lina Bo Bardi surround Bodini’s own table atop a Christopher Farr rug. Overhead, a Josef Hoffmann Wiener Werkstätte Fabric Department pendant from Woka Lamps illuminates the arrangement. Hoffmann x Werkstätte "Fabric Department" ChandelierMud Austrailia Nest Bowl LargeBodini’s father, businessman Daniele Bodini, purchased the property in 1982. A trained architect and engineer himself, he had opinions about a new house visible from his own hilltop residence. Working with Bortoluzzi, he helped ensure it harmonized with the estate’s barns and indoor riding, soccer, and tennis facilities. The resulting low-slung structure is clad in understated materials, with a sloping bronze-colored roof, stone chimney, expansive glazing, and teak siding.The primary bedroom was the one space Bodini wanted to feel “fancy.” A custom bed frame by de Cárdenas, upholstered in Pierre Frey fabric and dressed in Matouk linens, is flanked by vintage sconces from Provence. Walls throughout the house are finished in a Limestrong limewash. De Cárdenas tented the ceiling in Dedar Fanfara silk shantung around a crystal chandelier inherited from the client’s grandmother. “When she gave it to me, it wasn’t wired because the people who worked for her every night would put candles in it and light it,” Bodini says. The custom bed is upholstered in a Pierre Frey fabric. The custom nightstands are clad in an ash veneer. The bed is dressed in linens by Matouk. In a sitting area adjacent to the kitchen, custom seating by de Cárdenas upholstered in Pierre Frey fabric and accented with pillows in Dedar textiles is joined by a Lābrica drinks table with lacquered bands and a B&B Italia side table by Jean-Marie Massaud. Holland & Sherry sheer drapery frames the space, while an artwork by Solange Pessoa hangs above a Tai Ping rug. Capirucho Drink Tableby LabricaOutdoor Modernist Armchair by Michael Van BeurenIn the serene primary bath, daylight filters through one of the home’s many skylights onto a tub from Cocoon. Above it hangs a framed print of Somerset by Simon Roberts from Flowers Gallery; the ottoman is by Pierre Paulin. Inside, Bodini and de Cárdenas found a new purpose for cherished possessions that hadn’t quite belonged elsewhere. “She had acquired a lot of things over time that we thought were cool,” the designer says, “and this was an opportunity to use them.” Her grandmother’s crystal chandelier, rewired after years of holding actual candles, now hangs in the primary bedroom, which is tented in dreamy silk shantung. A beloved 1960s French bamboo table with tile inlays anchors the sunroom, where a glass coffee table Bodini bought years ago in Portugal also found a home.In the hallway the walls are covered in an eggshell limewash, and the Gio Ponti chair is from Cassina. The sconces are from the Invisible Collection. In the breakfast area, dining chairs and a table from Pinch Design gather beneath a vintage Stilnovo ceiling light, which casts a dramatic glow after sunset. The vase, circa 14th-century Maiolica jug from Faenza, and tableware are all from Bodini’s own collection. Pinch Avery Dining ChairVia Coquina Murano Miro PitcherThe same anything-goes spirit extends to smaller objects. “I have an addiction to consuming flatware. I must have 25 sets of china,” Bodini says. “So I started bringing up all the weirdest ones I had because I was like, ‘I don’t know what to do with this, and it’s actually fun up there.’”In the kitchen, the island is topped in Tortuga marble from ABC Stone. Dornbracht fittings complete the streamlined space, while ceramics by Gérard Hofmann from HDC Antiquités line the upper shelf. Alongside Darrow, de Cárdenas oversaw the decorative curation, specifying creamy limewashes, paint palettes, and millwork while filling out the rooms with custom furnishings. In the sunroom, custom sofas wrapped in earthy Dedar shades are equal parts elegant and inviting. In another sitting area nearby, a geometric chaise-cum-settee positioned beneath Allan McCollum’s Collection of 90 Drawings is, for Bodini, precisely the kind of tailored anomaly only de Cárdenas could have devised.In a child’s bedroom, slipcovered beds from RH flank a Burke Decor nightstand atop a Beni Rugs carpet. Vintage Archimede Seguso Murano glass sconces punctuate a wall wrapped in a cheerful Bien Fait mural. Sol Panel Wallpaper by Bien FaitVintage Nautilus Shell VaseLooking back, the designer—who has been listening to a lot of Madonna lately—finds an unlikely analogy in an interview with the singer. “They asked her why she didn’t work with [record producer and songwriter] Mirwais on something—she wanted to work with [fellow producer] Stuart Price instead,” he says. “Madonna said Mirwais is very cerebral, and she loves that about him, but sometimes she just wants to make dance music.”An outdoor dining table overlooking the Dutchess County estate, which Bodini’s father, businessman Daniele Bodini, purchased in 1982, is set with circa 1960s ceramics by Gérard Hofmann from HDC Antiquités. An outdoor table and bench underneath the trees on the nearly 1,000-acre estate. The landscape design is by Drake Design Studio. Not a subscriber? Join AD for print and digital access now.Sign up for our daily newsletter to get the best of design in your inbox.David Foxley is a senior editor and design writer with nearly two decades of experience. He has held executive editor roles at publications including Air Mail and Architectural Digest, where he remains a regular contributor. As Executive Features Editor at AD, David oversaw all digital home tours, editing and writing ... Read More