Private Newport - with Bettie Bearden Pardee

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Gilded Age


A Notable Newport Estate, The Orchard Part 2

5 / 28 / 266 / 9 / 26

In a town of many old mansions, most have become house museums or condominiums or have been turned into dormitories and classrooms for a local university. Only a special few,… Read More

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A Notable Newport Estate, The Orchard. Part 1

5 / 21 / 265 / 26 / 26

Memorial Day reminds us that summer is just around the corner, when friends return from all parts of the country and houses are “opened for the season.” One of those… Read More

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Coaching Weekend, Starring Rosecliff

8 / 21 / 258 / 21 / 25

And just like “that”, Coaching took over the island the weekend of August 15-17. With 2 separate “drives” on Friday and Saturday and one Sunday morn, the number of people enjoying… Read More

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Reliving the Gilded Age: Coaching comes to Newport

8 / 14 / 258 / 14 / 25

Living in Newport, with its many exceptional homes, gate houses, stables and carriage houses, complemented by grand specimen trees on manicured landscapes, gives one the sense of existing in another… Read More

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A Gilded Age Christmas, Part 2

12 / 7 / 235 / 28 / 24

As I begin this post, I realize that there’s a fact about Christmas in the Gilded Age of which many are probably not aware…the Vanderbilts, and others in their “set,”… Read More

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A Gilded Age Christmas , Part 1

11 / 30 / 235 / 28 / 24

It is glorious in Newport any time of the year, but especially at Christmas! And with all the attention “The Gilded Age” series has garnered I thought I’d begin my… Read More

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The Gates of Newport

9 / 29 / 225 / 28 / 24

Inspiration seems truly “around every corner” when you live in a setting as beautiful and historic as Newport. Just the other night, I attended a lecture on Frederick Law Olmsted… Read More

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A Newport Tradition: Coaching Weekend

9 / 1 / 225 / 28 / 24

As though scripted by Julian Fellowes, Coaching Weekend returned to Newport August 18-21 after a four year hiatus, just as the first season of his “The Gilded Age” TV series… Read More

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Newport’s Clarendon Court

9 / 16 / 219 / 29 / 24

Clarendon Court (1904) represents everything the words elegant, classical and sublime bring to mind. In this important Newport residence, there is the added distinction of a noted Gilded Age architect,… Read More

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Champ Soleil, a 17th Century-Style French Chateau

7 / 29 / 215 / 28 / 24

By any measure, 1929 was not an auspicious year…except, perhaps, in Newport. For that was the year that an exquisite version of the hunting lodge at Versailles, La Lanterne, was designed… Read More

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About Bettie

Author of Private Newport and Living Newport, designer of the Parterre Bench, national lecturer, and entertaining expert.
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privatenewport

One of the last great mansions built in Newport, Bois Doré has quietly watched generations come and go. Its name translates to ‘gilded wood,’ a fitting tribute to the golden avenue of pollarded lindens that transforms the entrance each autumn. Beyond the pink stucco walls lies a house where every room tells a story, of art, gardens, entertaining, and a distinctly European elegance that still feels timeless today.

Some homes are admired. Others are remembered. Bois Doré has always been both.

Which detail would you linger over first?✨
#privatenewport #boisdoré #gildedwood #privateliving #privatehomes

View Instagram post by privatenewport

Jul 23

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Open post by privatenewport with ID 18006654782756454
One of the last great mansions built in Newport, Bois Doré has quietly watched generations come and go. Its name translates to ‘gilded wood,’ a fitting tribute to the golden avenue of pollarded lindens that transforms the entrance each autumn. Beyond the pink stucco walls lies a house where every room tells a story, of art, gardens, entertaining, and a distinctly European elegance that still feels timeless today.

Some homes are admired. Others are remembered. Bois Doré has always been both.

Which detail would you linger over first?✨
#privatenewport #boisdoré #gildedwood #privateliving #privatehomes

privatenewport

The rains have come and gone. The heat has broken. A languid, sublime afternoon awaits arriving houseguests, the kind of afternoon Newport seems to reserve for late July alone☀️

There is a quiet magic here after a summer rain. The gravel settles, the gardens glow, and every stone, shutter, and tree feels as though it has been waiting for the light to return✨

Aaah, late July in Newport🌊

Follow @privatenewport for the Newport most visitors never get to see..
#privatenewport #newportri #privateliving #newportsummer #privatehomes

View Instagram post by privatenewport

Jul 20

233 8
Open post by privatenewport with ID 18080317892654126
The rains have come and gone. The heat has broken. A languid, sublime afternoon awaits arriving houseguests, the kind of afternoon Newport seems to reserve for late July alone☀️

There is a quiet magic here after a summer rain. The gravel settles, the gardens glow, and every stone, shutter, and tree feels as though it has been waiting for the light to return✨

Aaah, late July in Newport🌊

Follow @privatenewport for the Newport most visitors never get to see..
#privatenewport #newportri #privateliving #newportsummer #privatehomes

privatenewport

The color of a Newport summer? Hydrangea blue💙

From quiet garden paths to historic estates, these blooms have become as iconic as the mansions themselves. Some traditions don’t need reinventing, they simply return more beautiful every year.

Save for your Newport bucket list, and follow @privatenewport for more timeless Rhode Island beauty
💙🩵💜💙🩵💜
#hydrangeaseason #privateliving #hydrangealove #newportsummer #newportri

View Instagram post by privatenewport

Jul 19

446 14
Open post by privatenewport with ID 18019412594894970
The color of a Newport summer? Hydrangea blue💙

From quiet garden paths to historic estates, these blooms have become as iconic as the mansions themselves. Some traditions don’t need reinventing, they simply return more beautiful every year.

Save for your Newport bucket list, and follow @privatenewport for more timeless Rhode Island beauty
💙🩵💜💙🩵💜
#hydrangeaseason #privateliving #hydrangealove #newportsummer #newportri

privatenewport

As July settles over Newport, another familiar ritual quietly returns. The hydrangeas bloom with the same dependable grace they’ve carried for generations, softening marble terraces, winding carriage drives, and hidden garden paths alike.

Some are expected. Others still surprise you.

Which Newport hydrangea display stops you in your tracks every summer? 🌿💙
#hygrangeaseason #hygrangeas #privatenewport #privateliving #newportsummer

View Instagram post by privatenewport

Jul 16

433 12
Open post by privatenewport with ID 18118560511865752
As July settles over Newport, another familiar ritual quietly returns. The hydrangeas bloom with the same dependable grace they’ve carried for generations, softening marble terraces, winding carriage drives, and hidden garden paths alike.

Some are expected. Others still surprise you.

Which Newport hydrangea display stops you in your tracks every summer? 🌿💙
#hygrangeaseason #hygrangeas #privatenewport #privateliving #newportsummer

privatenewport

Beyond the mansions, Newport reveals another kind of beauty…

A winding gravel path. Perfectly clipped hedges. A quiet bench tucked among summer blooms.

Parterre proves that elegance doesn’t have to be loud.

Follow along as we continue opening the gates to Newport’s most extraordinary gardens, homes, and hidden places💫
🌿 Save this for your Newport inspiration
#privatenewport #newportri #privateliving #newportestates #privatehomes

View Instagram post by privatenewport

Jul 13

130 4
Open post by privatenewport with ID 18131518648613378
Beyond the mansions, Newport reveals another kind of beauty…

A winding gravel path. Perfectly clipped hedges. A quiet bench tucked among summer blooms.

Parterre proves that elegance doesn’t have to be loud.

Follow along as we continue opening the gates to Newport’s most extraordinary gardens, homes, and hidden places💫
🌿 Save this for your Newport inspiration
#privatenewport #newportri #privateliving #newportestates #privatehomes

privatenewport

If this is your first time seeing Parterre… welcome🌸

Hidden behind its gates is one of Newport’s most enchanting private gardens, a place where every path, bloom, and clipped hedge feels like stepping into another era.

Follow @privatenewport for more places most visitors never see💫
#privatenewport #parterre #privateliving #newportgardens #newportsummers

View Instagram post by privatenewport

Jul 12

522 22
Open post by privatenewport with ID 18098672288188343
If this is your first time seeing Parterre… welcome🌸

Hidden behind its gates is one of Newport’s most enchanting private gardens, a place where every path, bloom, and clipped hedge feels like stepping into another era.

Follow @privatenewport for more places most visitors never see💫
#privatenewport #parterre #privateliving #newportgardens #newportsummers
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Bettie's Faves

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  • La Dolce Vita
  • My Beautiful Paris
  • The Enchanted Home
  • The Glam Pad
  • The Lush List
  • The Potted Boxwood
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