Washington Winter Show 2022

47 Breevort Close’s (1908-98) January 1927 wedding in New York City (fig. 12). The orange blossoms symbolizing purity and fertility compliment those seen on Close’s wedding gown, also in the collection. The flower-covered hat, worn for a semi-formal occasion was made in Washington, D.C. by Pennsylvania-born Esther Kirwan Steck, who set up her business in her home, at Connecticut Avenue and R Street NW, sometime before 1930. Post owned nearly a dozen of Steck’s confections (fig. 13). A GARDEN FOR ALL SEASONS Marjorie Post created Hillwood as a total environment for her own pleasure and to delight her guests. The gardens were an extension of the spaces within the mansion; for example, the French parterre flowed from the French interiors of the drawing room on the first floor and was best viewed from her bedroom above, installed with French furniture and decorative arts. Post made significant changes to the gardens as she was renovating the estate known as Arbremont between 1955–57. In order to create a space large enough for her spring garden parties where she might entertain a thousand people, she moved huge rows of boxwoods that bisected what is now the Lunar Lawn and had them replanted around the rose garden. She worked with sophisticated landscape architects to Fig. 14: Guests walk through clouds of color in spring when the azaleas are at the height of their bloom. Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, photographed by Erik Kvalsvik.