Last fall I had the pleasure of visiting the Ruthmere House in Elkhart, IN. I couldn’t get past the gorgeous ceiling in the foyer. I snapped the photo you see with my cell phone, but in person the ceiling is absolutely stunning. The colors and design are historically accurate to 1910.
Detail of a painted ceiling design. The colors are gorgeous!
I would love to paint something like this on our dining room ceiling.
Detail of the ceiling stencil.
The Ruthmere website has an online reproduction of the 1910 Souvenir Booklet featuring photos of the house when first opened to the public upon completion. It is fascinating to see how the home was furnished.
See photos of stained glass windows, wall murals, floor tile and more.
Update
If you enjoy touring homes, Copshaholm is located in near-by South Bend, IN. Have lunch or dinner at Tippecanoe Place. There are also two Frank Lloyd Wright homes in South Bend, although I don’t think they are open to the public. Both South Bend and Elkhart have many older, beautiful homes.
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Wow, that’s gorgeous! I’ve always been a bit jealous of homes with beamed ceilings, but a detail like this would be an amazing way to add character to a plain dining room or living room ceiling, like in my place. Thanks for sharing!
That would add lots of character!
Wow, thanks for the post about the Ruthmere Mansion. My husband and I are in Chicago and always looking for places to go by car, we had no idea this place existed so we’re really happy to have found your post.
If you are in the area you should also visit Copshaholm. It is an amazing must-see! This is located South Bend, IN; which is next door to Elkhart. You could have lunch at Tippecanoe Place, a mansion built by the Studebaker family which is now a restaurant (this is also in South Bend). There are 2 Frank Lloyd Wright homes in South Bend. I am not sure if either is open to the public? Frank Lloyd Wright homes in Indiana: http://www.peterbeers.net/interests/flw_rt/Indiana/indiana.htm
The area is filled with beautiful, amazing old homes and mansions. Enjoy!