When an Italian sports executive inherits his grandparents’ estate outside Florence, he turns to his designer sister to bring new life to the villa they have loved since childhood
EVER SINCE HE WAS A LITTLE BOY, Carlo Pallavicino fantasized about owning his grandparents’ Tuscan estate. The ocher-hued villa, most likely built in the 18th century, is situated 1,000 feet above sea level, and its tower (an old dovecote transformed into a lofty living room) offers commanding views of nearby Florence and the emerald-green countryside. Pallavicino’s grandfather made olive oil from the property’s olive trees, grew Sangiovese grapes for wine, and raised chickens so that his family would always have fresh eggs. Towering evergreen oak trees surround the garden, with a forest of cypress and pine beyond. Pallavicino spent summers there with his two older sisters, and the 32-acre estate remained a giant playground for him after they went off to college and moved away from Florence. “The tower could be the most fantastic place,” he remembers thinking. “I imagined I could work up there, with a phone and a computer, in such a marvelous position.”
His mother, Mariella, eventually inherited the property, which is called Villa Tavernaccia, or “tough tavern”—in a former life, it served as a pit stop for bandits—but she preferred city life. So in 2014 Pallavicino, by now one of Italy’s most successful sports agents, representing professional soccer players around the world, finally acquired his dream house. He shares it with his wife, Valentina, and, when they are home, their two children, Assia, who is 22, and Emilio, 19.
この記事は Elle Decor の April 2017 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Elle Decor の April 2017 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
MORE, PLEASE
Eric Hughes joins forces with Standard Architecture to transform two neighboring homes into a sprawling family compound.
SIZED TO FIT
Designer Nannette Brown reimagines a new-build apartment with unexpected depth, character, and texture.
Play It Cool
In balmy Texas, Ashe Leandro brings urbane style and a chill vibe to a home in a historic district.
Mic Drop
For former talk radio star Tom Joyner, Studio Roda creates an oceanfront pleasure pad with out-of-sight views and disco-era glamour.
EYE IN THE SKY
How do you cozy up a Manhattan high-rise? Call designers Hendricks Churchill.
THE JOY OF KØKKEN
In Brooklyn, a writer transforms her kitchen into a space of warmth and connection, blending personal memories with Scandinavian design.
CURTAIN RAISER
ELLE DECOR partners with designers Christine and John Gachot to refresh an iconic lounge at a New York institution, the Metropolitan Opera House.
The Empire Strikes Back - A 19th-century gem in Cambridge, Massachusetts, gets a tour-de-force restoration thanks to Frances Merrill of Reath Design.
Is it possible to simultaneously go back in time and leap forward? This was the challenge a couple set for themselves upon purchasing a salmon-pink 1869 house in Cambridge, Massachusetts, not far from Longfellow House, the National Historic Site that served as George Washington's headquarters during the revolution. We loved all the beautiful old details of this house, the homeowner says.
Just Like That, But Cheaper. -One writer tried to replicate a classic ELLE DECOR interior in his apartment. Could he do it for $500?
It was all about the green curtains. In 2008, to my great surprise, I was offered a ninemonth fellowship based in New York City. I had lived there twice before, both times unsuccessfully, meaning I had failed to create any kind of significant social life, and so this was a chance not only to do research for my new novel, but also an opportunity to get things right. I swore I wouldn't let the city break me a third time.
And How! - Decorator Nick Olsen transforms a Sag Harbor home into a Hamptons retreat with an irreverent humor.
If you must go to the Hamptons, however-because it is devilishly good fun, after all-you may notice an apparently modest, low-slung cottage on Sag Harbor's Main Street and think, with a comfortable sort of feeling, Now that is how a house should look. Nestled amid the Botox bars, helipads, and club-staurants, it could almost set the sordid world aright both a rebuke and a solution to the chaos that surrounds it. A real home.
