Spring in New Jersey is all about getting outside—but one of the season’s most spectacular events actually happens indoors. Mansion in May, a designer showhouse and garden tour that only takes place every other year, is now open for visitors.
Mansion in May Designer Showhouse and Gardens is an extraordinary undertaking in which members of the Women’s Association of Morristown Medical Center find a vacant mansion that’s redesigned in its entirety by dozens of interior decorators and landscapers. Wildfair in Chester Twp. has taken on a new identity over the past several months, and is now on view from May 1 to 31 for everyone to see.
Wildfair is a 220-year-old estate that sits on 55 acres of a former farm, gristmill, sawmill and millstone workshop dating back to 1804. Formerly known as Black River, the fieldstone house was changed into an elegant country estate in the 1930s and again in the 1990s. The 9,000-square-foot mansion has 38 indoor spaces, including eight bedrooms, six bathrooms and three powder rooms. Outside, there are 10 landscaped areas, from gardens to wellness spaces to serenity along the pond.
There are high ceilings with skylights along with unassuming spaces like a laundry room or hallway transformed in the most beautiful way.
The rooms are numbered in order, so you can follow a path through the entire house: up beautiful staircases, through decorated hallways, and down floors so you don’t miss anything. Volunteers are stationed throughout to guide you, and designers are on site to share the inspiration behind every detail.
It’s hard to choose a favorite room, but some that stood out are Limoncello Laundry, which turned the washroom into the Amalfi Coast, and the Wanderer’s Library, which is part of a beautiful nook and staircase, with an incredibly beautiful French clock at the top. Other standouts include:
–The Speakeasy, which includes a game room and a wine cellar
–A Creative Way of Living Nursery, which is inspired by Andy Warhol
–The finale inside Wake Me Up Before You Go’s coffee bar
–Spot on the Cloud’s bathroom
–The Women’s Closet Hideaway’s primary closet
–Spring Fete’s bedroom
The back outdoor space is glorious, with a patio, pizza oven and barbecue area, and an inground pool that has lounge chairs immersed in the water.
A tour gives you a glimpse into the family’s life, too. Look around for photos of the Epifanos, who will move into the space after the event closes; they can choose to keep the rooms decorated as-is, or choose their own decor.
Mansion in May began in 1974 as a House Decorating Fundraiser, and has raised almost $14 million in the 50 years since for Morristown Medical Center. Wildfair is the 21st fundraiser. Proceeds this year benefit the new Proton Therapy Center at Morristown Medical Center.
Tickets are required to enter the mansion, but without a ticket you can still have lunch inside the horse barn, where tables and chairs have been set up inside a tent; shop at the boutique; or stroll the gardens, including the wellness space overlooking a small waterfall.
Mansion in May takes place at Wildfair in Chester Twp. from May 1 to 31, open daily from 10 am to 4 pm (last entrance is at 3 pm). Tickets are $50 through tomorrow, and then $55 during May. You must be at least 10 years old to visit; no infants or pets are permitted. The house is not handicap-accessible. Tickets include a self-guided tour of the interior (plan for an hour at minimum), an audio tour of the exterior, and a collector’s edition of the Mansion in May Journal. You must park at a lot at 80 W. Main St. in Mendham and take the free shuttle.
Here’s a sneak peek of the designs … but you need to see it in person.
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