Steven Stolman and Rich Wilkie: Living With Seaside Ease and the Gift of Entertaining

Living with finesse comes naturally to Steven Stolman and Rich Wilkie.

Their Southampton condo displays instinctive intent of merging charm and exuberance in a residence that is intuitively curated for effortless entertaining. Displaying an articulate grasp of complementary eras of design throughout, their playful and conventional psyche introduces elevated character to living large in a small space.

Built in the 1970s, their condo development holds its own with the architectural qualities possessing a suburban, faux Tudor design. In recent years the complex has been given a pronounced revamp following the palette of the Peter Marino Art Foundation on Jobs Lane, which was formerly the original Rogers Memorial Library.

Naming the place “Kittywampus” — that’s Midwestern speak for a little off kilter and mixed up — perfectly describes their peripatetic life that encompasses mainly Palm Beach and Chicago in other seasons.

An alumni of Parsons School of Design, Stolman commented on his journey after graduating. “I immediately became a Seventh Avenue worker bee, ultimately opening my own eponymous stores beginning with Southampton in 1995,” he said. “At our height, we had seven stores from New York City and the Hamptons to Palm Beach to Beverly Hills. In 2011 I was asked to serve as president of the venerable textiles house Scalamandré, which was the honor of a lifetime.”

Staying devoted to his talents, Stolman now consults for various companies in fashion and home on matters of product development and brand strategy. He currently lends his aptitude to J. McLaughlin, where he was invited to help them expand their cocktail and evening offerings.

Wilkie received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Michigan and his master’s in management information systems from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. He actively serves as a VP of financial software for Oracle, the software giant.

South-facing and boasting three expansive skylights, the sunlight invitingly streams though, making it one of their favorite attributes of the property.

“You will generally find me on the left hand corner of the sofa,” Stolman said. “Rich loves the walled terrace. We love having cocktails out there at sunset and watching the deer parade across the top of a berm that separates us from the neighboring school’s athletic field.”

With a varied art collection, noteworthy pieces that sing to the space are a painting of Fowler Beach by Jarvis Wilcox, two midcentury abstracts and photojournalist Slim Aarons’s “Four Kings of Hollywood” signed by Slim himself. Displaying many framed family photographs, there is additionally an evident praise for the recent portrait they acquired by Palm Beach artist Peter Vey in honor of their 12th wedding anniversary.

The main dining area cleverly melds an array of stimulating materials exhibiting a steel Alessi tray surrounded by a parade of glass Tiffany votives on a circular dining table while artistically complemented by blonde hardwood wishbone chairs.

The open-plan kitchen, dining and living area is painted in “Carrington Beige” from Benjamin Moore, allowing objects and artifacts to take the stage in full strength. Bobcat fur stools request a nod of attention in addition to the stylized and appetizing sitting area. Taking its own magnetic stance is the Mies van der Rohe MR 20 tubular steel and black leather cantilever chair marking a flattering contrast to a monochromatic white Christopher Spitzmiller ceramic lamp.

Keeping it practicable and refraining from being overly indulgent, Stolman commented on the fabric choices. “I particularly love Tillett’s iconic chrysanthemum print, typically done on cotton, but for here I had it printed on Sunbrella, as we use it both indoors and out,” he said.

He reminisced on the design process of the residence.

“I’ve been a designer of one thing or another my whole life, so I sort of did it myself,” he said. “But Bunny Williams, arguably America’s finest interior designer, taught me that a well-appointed room should be like a great salad — a little bit of this, a little bit of that. Otherwise, it looks like a showroom. I joke that our place is ‘decorated by diseases and dogs’ as pretty much everything comes from thrift shops that benefit nonprofits that focus on HIV/AIDS care, cancer and arthritis research and animal welfare.”

With exceptional proximity and access to the beaches, it is essentially a beach condo and a beacon for relaxation. The primary bedroom expresses oceanic depth with walls painted in the color “Blueberry” from Benjamin Moore. A woven water hyacinth settee gives contrast of texture, dressed with tartan reversing to leopard print throw pillows of Stolman’s own design.

Entertaining is a way of life for them and an embedded enjoyment in their weekly routine.

“It’s all about spontaneity,” Stolman said. “Our bar is open for friends the moment we shut down our respective offices for the day. We’re always well stocked with what we know our friends like, plus the kind of nibbly bits that make people happy at cocktail hour. Right now I’m obsessed with serving these spicy little cheese coins from the Rustic Bakery in Petaluma, California. Like every other Hamptonite, we live for fresh produce. Once the lettuces, tomatoes and corn are ripe, we’ll exist on those along with something simple on the grill. There’s only one thing that draws me to one of the handful of restaurants that we will brave the crowds to go to, and that would be clams, clams, clams!”

Aiming to create a calm, neutral, “windows and doors open” envelope for their books and art and a place that would glow at night when filled with friends and candlelight, the biological layout of the condo flows with prevalent ease. A pure and serene place to reside in the summer season.