A long-overdue tour of my mom’s house felt especially appropriate during our recent whirlwind Thanksgiving visit. When in Manhasset, New York, you might as well stop by and admire the home she and my stepdad have carefully crafted over the past decade.
My mom has classic, formal tastes—very traditional and refined. It’s not exactly the style we have in our house, but it’s one I deeply admire. She’s an accomplished attorney who works long hours, so it makes sense that she invests time and thought into creating a comfortable, elegant retreat for herself and her husband. The result is a warm, lived-in home with plenty of thoughtful details.
The house is a four-bedroom Tudor-era home built in 1941 that they purchased ten years ago and renovated from top to bottom. They preserved the beautiful stone facade but updated nearly everything else: the driveway was repaved and adorned with a cobblestone medallion, and the landscaping was redesigned with shrubs and small trees arranged at varying heights to echo the roofline. The changes honor the home’s original charm while bringing it up to date.
The entryway captures that blend of original features and renewed polish. The house still displays some of its original arched doorways and cut-glass chandeliers—fixtures my mom cares for meticulously. She has a routine for cleaning those chandeliers that borders on obsessive, ensuring they sparkle. During the renovation they removed old carpeting, refinished the floors to restore their shine, and kept many of the period details that give the home its personality.
The kitchen and bathrooms are where my mom’s creativity really shines. The original kitchen was spacious but in disrepair, so they gutted it and created a bright, classic space. They installed neutral-toned travertine for both the floors and the backsplash, paired with dark oak cabinets and black-flecked granite countertops. The combination feels timeless and collected—perfect for entertaining.
My mom added whimsical touches to the kitchen that keep the design from feeling overly predictable. She used varied backsplash tiles, including lighter tiles embossed with three-dimensional kitchen motifs like pears, adding a hint of personality. One clever detail is the matching granite windowsill above the sink—easy to wipe clean and a subtle, polished touch. She also installed an undermount sink and a glass cooktop long before those features became mainstream in the neighborhood.
To create an informal dining area, they bumped out the floor plan to add a sunny eating nook. My mom had the table custom-topped with the same granite used on the counters, which reduces the amount of wood in a room already dominated by oak cabinets and keeps the visual balance light and reflective rather than heavy. It’s a smart solution for someone who wanted an all-purpose surface without adding more wood tones.
One of my favorite moments on the tour was seeing how my mom repurposes furniture. She found an antique, curvy table and had it retrofitted as a bathroom sink base—topped with granite and fitted with plumbing. That clever conversion looks like a custom vanity straight out of a design magazine and was a cost-effective way to create something unique from a discounted piece that had a damaged top.
The sunroom is bright and comfortable, furnished with a few masculine pieces from my stepdad’s earlier days. My mom recently added valances around the windows to finish the space—an update she was very proud of, even though I tried to convince her that full-length curtain panels (like we used in our own sunroom) might be a softer option. She liked the idea but hasn’t made the change yet, so the valances remain—for now.
The main bedroom is airy and sunlit with yet another chandelier—my mom’s signature touch. She borrowed a pink chandelier that used to hang in our dining room, and it fits perfectly in her traditional scheme. Small decisions like that make the house feel curated and personal rather than staged.
The master bathroom offers more evidence of my mom’s knack for creative, functional design. She converted a dresser into a double-sink vanity by adding a granite top and undermount sinks. The result provides generous storage and a tailored look. She hung two matching mirrors—one above each sink—to give each person a defined space, which is a thoughtful alternative to a single large mirror.
Outside, the back patio extends the living space. Accessible from the expanded kitchen and the sunroom, the patio uses cobblestone pavers and low limestone-topped walls wired for lanterns, creating a warm atmosphere for outdoor entertaining. My mom admits she might have made it larger if she had the chance again, but the space already accommodates large gatherings—she hosted a successful party for 50 people there—and the screen of evergreen trees planted five years ago provides privacy without feeling enclosed.
To close the tour, here’s a family photo from a wedding that shows my mom and stepdad alongside other relatives. The house is a reflection of their life together: traditional, thoughtfully designed, and full of memories.
Thanks for joining this tour of my mom’s beautiful, classic home. Her formal aesthetic may not have fully influenced my own decorating choices, but her creativity, resourcefulness, and love for thoughtful design certainly have. Love you, Mom—thanks for opening your home.