The Shiny Sheet
On the Market: Updated home in Palm Beach’s Estate Section was Ivana Trump’s ‘Solo Mio’ Friday, November 13, 2009
Long known for her wry sense of humor, Ivana Trump, after her divorce from Donald, christened her Bermuda-style Palm Beach home Solo Mio – “Mine Alone.”
She especially liked the overgrown, jungle-like landscaping that thrived on the grounds of the house at 190 Via Palma, three blocks north of The Mar-a-Lago Club in the Estate Section, explains Ted Gossett, the Realtor who bought it from her to use as his own home.
But Gossett preferred formal English-style gardens, so he removed every tree and bush on the property to make way for clipped lawns, manicured hedges and glossy-white benches.
Light, space, privacy and outdoor “rooms” – these were items on his wish list. “In Florida, it’s about living outside rather than inside,” says Gossett, who is affiliated with the Palm Beach brokerage of Sotheby’s International Realty.
Gossett’s goals were easily achievable at the home, where there are four bedrooms, four bathrooms and two half-baths. In all, the house offers 4,733 square feet of living space, inside and out.
The house itself is perfectly scaled for the 145-foot-by-145-foot lot, which gave him room for his gardens, he says. And because streets rather than buildings surround the property, his home is private, with lots of natural light. Elgan Lane borders the west side of the lot, while the front of the house faces a landscaped entry into an estate on the other side of Via Palma. Behind the hedge that encloses his pool is Algoma Road.
With renovations and landscaping complete, he says, its time to sell. Acting as owner and agent, he has listed the house for $5.25 million through Sotheby’s.
Among Gossett’s improvements, he removed a chain-link fence that edged the front boundary and created a welcoming old-Chicago-brick courtyard entry with two sets of columns set off by limestone finials.
On either side of the motor court are symmetrical areas that serve as entrance “halls” to the formal gardens on the east and west sides of the house. Each is an-chored by four royal palms.
A stone obelisk anchors one end of the pool, which is surrounded by manicured hedges that provide privacy.
The library has a variety of architectural features, including a wooden Federal-style mantel, built-in bookcases, cove molding and a chair rail with applied molding above and below.
The formal dining room has a handpainted mural above wainscoting.
“I built the walls with limestone that came from Authentic Provence on Clematis Street,” he says,
referring to the upscale home-and-garden emporium owned by Wolfgang Hofherr in West Palm Beach.
The central garden Gossett calls “the middle garden room. Wolfgang ordered the terra-cotta pots that I’ve placed at each corner, so that I could have my lemon trees.” All of the gardens are bordered by formal sculpted hedges.
The east side of the central garden opens to the pool area, protected by high hedges on the far side. “The limestone statue of Diana and the 12-foot obelisk are from Authentic Provence. Punctuating the corners are elevated lead urns that came from England,” Gossett says.
To one side of the pool is a cabana that can double as a guest apartment or staff quarters, with its bedroom, kitchenette, sitting area and bathroom. And sheltered next to the main house is an outdoor loggia shaded by an awning equipped with overhead fans. This space is edged with plants and showcases a lead fountain from England.
Inside the house, the entrance hall features a Cuban-tile floor. To the west is a guest-bedroom suite, while on the east is the entry to the living room. “All the rooms have 10-foot ceilings,” Gossett says.
“In the living room, I put in the Colefax and Fowler draperies, and I took out some of Ivana’s wood paneling.”
The effect is bright and cheery. The living room, painted a pleasing shade of butter with cream woodwork, has a masonry fireplace, built-in bookcases and recessed lighting. “It’s graciously sized,” says Gossett, “at 18 by 28 feet.”
The living room floors are covered in wide random-width oak flooring – the same material found in the dining room and library.
The entire south side of the room opens to the indoor loggia, where a bank of French doors captures views of the terraces outside. The loggia includes a wet bar, a seating area and an informal dining area.
With creamy-yellow walls, the library stands to the east of the living room. Its yellow-and-white Stark wool carpet complements architectural features that include a Federal-style mantel, built-in bookcases and a chair rail with applied molding above and below.
In the southeast corner of the house is the master bedroom suite, with its bank of walk-in closets. The large bathroom boasts a marble-tile floor, a soaking tub, a walk-in shower, double vanities and a separate room for the toilet.
The bedroom has French doors that offer a view of the pool and a bay window large enough to accommodate a settee. Two chairs stand nearby.
“Every corner of the house has a bedroom suite – the library could be used as a master suite, too,” Gossett says. “This floor plan is private for guests or a family with older children. Every bedroom has its own bathroom, walk-in closet and built-in bookcases.”
The dining room is just west of the living room and loggia and is detailed with cove molding and wainscoting topped by a hand-painted mural of tropical plants. A wall of four windows opens the room to the west garden.
A painted-wood floor adds interest underfoot in the kitchen, where Gossett kept some of the original cabinetry intact. Countertops and backsplashes are tiled. Other details include three walk-in pantries and French doors that open to the outside loggia. Among the appliances are a KitchenAid dishwasher and Sub-Zero refrigerator. A hallway leads to the guestroom suite to the west of the pool.
For information about 190 Via Palma, call Ted Gossett at (561) 252-7570.
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