Easily one of the most influential people in fashion, Anna Wintour has become a powerful figure in her own right. Her reputation precedes her and you’d be hard pressed to find a soul within the fashion world who hasn’t, at the very least, heard of her. As, arguably, the most powerful person in fashion journalism, Wintour’s busy schedule sees her hopping from New York to Paris and London and back again, so here is a look at the place she chooses to retreat to; Anna Wintour’s house in the Hamptons:

Wintour has been working in the magazine industry for 50 decades, starting as an editorial assistant at Harper’s Bazaar in London in 1970. In 1983 Wintour was offered a job at Vogue by Conde Nast’s editorial director Alex Liberman. Wintour successfully negotiated a salary that was double what was initially offered, as well as a newly created role, Vogue’s first ever Creative Director. In ’85 Wintour took over editorship of British Vogue, taking over control of the magazine and its staff – it was during this era that Wintour picked up the moniker ‘nuclear Wintour’.  Eventually Wintour returned to American Vogue as editor and the rest is fashion history. 

Wintour owns a townhouse in Greenwich Village, which was partially funded by an interest-free $1.6 million loan provided by Conde Nast’s president S. I. Newhouse, but it is her ever-growing estate in Long Island that is her favoured retreat. Located in the town of Mastic, on the Forge River. The estate is reached by a private gravel road in Old Mastic and encompasses 42 acres of land reaching down to the water’s edge at Lons Creek. 

In 1998, after previously summering in Bellport, Wintour decided she favoured space over exclusivity by opting for a property in the ‘blue-collar town’ of Mastic. She was rewarded with an affordable but handsome estate built in 1820 in the classic colonial clapboard style that has become synonymous with The Hamptons. Over the years, the estate has grown to encompass neighbouring properties including an 1834 farmhouse ‘with loads of additions and 12 poky bedrooms,’ Wintour described to World of Interiors, and a 5.9 acre waterfront house that had been marketed for $799,000 but was later purchased by Wintour for $350,000.

The interiors were decorated by Carrier & Company, a husband and wife team who are known for their neutral colour palettes and ‘chic’ fresh dressings.  ‘We often joke that Jesse and Mara are like contributing editors to my own private magazine. Both at Vogue and at home, they always bring a grand vision to the table – along with invaluable expertise and an impeccable eye. It continues to amaze me that they managed to turn a series of broken-down barns into a wonderful compound for my family.’ Explains Wintour in a foreword for Carrier & Company’s interior design book ‘Positively Chic Interiors’.

The informal, rustic interiors are matched outside by the ‘relaxed’ verdant gardens that surround the estate. Landscape extraordinaire, Miranda Brooks, was tasked with designing the gardens with lush lawns, garden rooms and topiary. ‘There’s a combination of wanting order – so the architectural side of it is very planned and every view has been thought about – but I want it to feel loose and not have any rigidity to it.’ Explained Brooks to the New York Times in 2017. According to Andre Leon Talley, who attended Wintour’s son’s wedding at the estate back in 2014, Wintour owns a set of garden furniture by Manolo Blanik.

The estate has been the backdrop to both of Wintour’s children’s weddings in 2014 and 2018, respectively. It is also the scene to annual celebrations between Memorial Day and Labor Day when the estate opens to Wintour’s family and friends. The house frequently appears on the instagram accounts of both of her children, these occasional peeks show that the interiors have hardly changed in the twenty or so years since they were first decorated.

See more of the interiors of the house in Carrier and Company’s coffee table book, or see more of the garden in the New York Times’ feature. You can also see a selection of images from inside and outside the house on our Anna Wintour’s House Pinterest Board.

images: Bee Shaffer, Google maps