All fall we’ve been admiring the just-opened Little Cat Lodge in Upstate New York, with quirky, fresh interiors by design co. LoveIsEnough. Here are 11 design details to borrow from the mountainside inn and tavern.
Photography by Chris Mottalini, courtesy of LoveIsEnough.
The 100-year-old, seven-acre site is tucked at the base of Catamount Mountain in Hillsdale, New York.
1. Add elements of the alpine.
“A postcard sent from Little Cat Lodge might remind you of Hokkaido, Japan’s winter refuges, 1950s and sixties Western Massachusetts ski culture, or rural cabins in the Swiss Italian Alps,” the design team says.
2. Paint it red.
Wood paneling painted tomato red greets guests and diners at the entrance to the tavern.
The team preserved much of the original structure, adding color, eclecticism, and surprise.
The furnishings draw from alpine cultures both near and far—the Catskills and Hudson Valley, the Berkshires, Switzerland, Germany, and Japan—with details sourced from Hancock Shaker Village, Holler and Squall in Kingston, Battle Brown in Hudson, and elsewhere.
3. Choose chunky over clean-lined.
The design team sourced maple from Catamount Mountain and enlisted local woodworker Megan Offner of New York Heartwoods to create custom furniture for the tavern, bar, and dining room.
In the tavern, as throughout the inn, unexpected textures mix: herringbone brick floors with rough wood paneling, plum-colored leather with black-painted brick.
4. Lean into unexpected textures.
The inn is the project of longtime friends and restaurateurs Noah Bernamoff and Matt Kliegman, and the Tavern is helmed by James Beard Award-nominated chef Jason Bond.
5. Paint little surprises.
Everywhere there are small hand-painted surprises, as here, with another black cat and a botanical sprig illustrating the yellow banquettes.
“Checkered daybeds and rustic architecture with riots of color speak an alpine language property-wide,” the designers say.
6. Drop in a patterned daybed.
Another riotously patterned daybed (and chair).
The inn’s 12 guest rooms feature “hints of Japanese ski fantasy, mixing species of wood with Noguchi lights, butter yellow gingham, and vintage objects sourced all over New England.” The light is Isamu Noguchi’s Akari VB-13C.
7. There’s always room for a Noguchi light.
Much of the guest room furniture was custom built by Primary Visual; some have “Swiss/German-style floral fabric on the bolsters behind the beds.” Each room also includes “a storybook scene painted by local artist Esmé Shapiro on pieces of wood that were culled from Catamount.”
The guest rooms are finished with a very subtle scalloped molding.
8. Try scalloped trim.
9. Get out the vintage embroidery.
Further evidence of the Grandmillennial/granny chic trend?
We’ve previously noted rugs in the bath, but Little Cat Lodge takes things a step further, with hardy braided rugs underfoot.
10. Bring braided rugs into the bath.
More is more when it comes to wood paneling at Little Cat Lodge.
11. Say yes to wood paneling.
The ground play host to activities year-round.