Joe Ruggiero, host of HGTV's Best of American Design, tours the home of a Russian-professor-turned-designer whose use of antique architectural elements in a new home makes it appear centuries old. Pat Guthman, now specializing in obscure antique brokering, incorporated 18th-century architectural elements into a new, spacious, light-filled home. The new building was designed around favorite architectural elements, an easier task than fitting architectural elements into an existing structure. The antique paneling on the fireplace wall came from a house in upstate Connecticut and helped determine the design of the building (figure A), as did an antique door arch, which was turned into two archways so the detailing on each side would face into the room. One arch looks onto a hallway designed around aged paneling, still lovely with its centuries-old painted yellow finish (figure B). This new building made to look old provides the perfect backdrop for a collection of authentic antiques, including a Philadelphia cabinet with original paint, a 1750 tea table, a Regency birdcage outfitted with hand-blown glass details and copper trays and an expansive table embellished with a painted American flag.
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