Design in Depth: Jewels for Self and Home

By Stacy Kunstel

Jewelry is decoration for the body. Furnishings and accessories are the jewelry for the home. Now there’s a store in Litchfield, Connecticut, that combines both.

Photos by Stacy Kunstel

Cara Hotchkiss opened Oliphant in the center of Litchfield last May, making it for an even hotter summer in this second home/vacation destination. A skilled jewelry maker with a passion for eye-popping color, Cara’s necklaces, earrings and rings have long been go-to items for the preppy-cool.

Now she’s combined her pieces with sofas, tables, art, lamps, pillow and accessories to create a lifestyle store. Cara dresses the store as she does herself with chic combinations like neutral gray upholstered side chairs combined with geometric pillows in a Palm Beach green. Geometric and chevron prints along with bright gourd lamps round out welcoming room vignettes. The accessories–whether jewelry or items for the home–live well together.

For more Connecticut design finds, check out:

No Holds Barred: Printmaker Roxanne Faber Savage

A Passion for Pottery: Weston Potter Frances Palmer

Ahead of the Curve: Fairfield Artist Laura Spector