Casa Serenità is the Story of Us
What is Casa Serenita? To fully understand the name behind the brand, we must start at the beginning.
My husband Jerry and I have lived in NYC for a long time (he’s a native New Yorker, and I’ve been here almost 17 years!). We met six years ago, and it was an instant attraction. We knew we had finally found our needle in a haystack—he for me and me for him. Within six months, we moved in together and started creating our beautiful haven in the city.
Our home is a hideaway from the craziness of New York City. While we loved the city’s high-intensity energy, that, on top of career stress, often wiped us out when we returned home at the end of the day. That said, it was necessary to us that our home felt calm, serene, peaceful, organized, and, most importantly, inspiring. Our home has always been where we recharge our batteries, even before we lived together.
I’m a Libra, and Jerry is a Taurus; we are both ruled by the planet Venus and are natural aesthetes. We love the finer things in life- beautiful food, gorgeous surroundings, sensual scents, fine art, music, and luxury travel—but we like all this our way. That is, laid back, easy, classic, unpretentious, and natural. When I think of the aesthetic encompassing our style, it’s somewhat Wabi Sabi combined with Japandi—yet it’s still our own thing. I like to call it yin and yang. We’re somewhere beyond minimalism; we don’t like sparse décor, but we don’t like extremes like maximalism. We both appreciate a mixture of things yet balanced.
Much of this was shaped by our travels to beautiful hotels like Be Tulum and Nomade in Mexico, Casa Cook in Greece, and La Plage in Corsica. Through our visits to these stunning places, we realized that we actually had a style that seemed to resonate and be shared by others. The people traveling to these destination hotels, including us, favor organic, artistic, classic design, surrounded by the beauty of nature, complimented by good food, music, and good drinks shared with loved ones.
Over the next few years, we would bring this style home repeatedly, turning our Lower East Side waterfront condo into our little getaway in the sky. Through COVID and the events of the next three years, we enjoyed our view and our home, but as time passed, we started to change. The city was losing its charm for us. We were frustrated by the feeling outside our door. It was becoming too much for us, and we wanted to find peace somewhere else out there, away from the hustle and bustle of the city.
That first big hiking trip to the Catskills in 2021 and the little cabin we stayed in nestled in the woods (not a house in sight) led us to this new chapter. We would spend the next two years looking for a place like this to call our own. We lost out on several purchases because the housing market was highly competitive. As a result, we shifted our course a few times, looking at several rural areas in New York: the Catskills, Garrison, Pound Ridge, Bedford, and even Connecticut before we found Casa Serenità. When we did, it was like she was waiting for us all this time.
She was built in 1955 by a gentleman named Warren, who relocated with his wife to Pound Ridge from New York City. He was a commercial pilot, and she was a flight attendant. Both wanted more for their lives and knew that if they stayed in New York City, they might not get that serene life they hoped for. I read his bio in a book about the elders of Pound Ridge--wow, that was pretty amazing! I could relate to the part where he describes how he and his wife were “in constant passing,” never stopping until they realized that this was not the life they wanted. (This sounded very familiar indeed). They made a life-changing decision, purchased five acres with a pond, and started building their new home and life. They had two daughters, one of whom had her wedding on the property. It was evident that Warren and his family created many beautiful memories in this home.
Warren’s bench remains on the property, though worn down and sun-faded. It’s too shaky to sit in, but it now serves as a plant stand on the property. This is Wabi Sabi, all right, embracing the beauty of time, rain, snow, and the sun beating down on Warren’s bench for decades. This is just one way we are honoring the history of our home.
And now, our chapter begins in the brick bungalow that Warren built. I wanted to name her, like those historical fancy estates you read about in history books. I chose Casa Serenità because it means serenity house in both Italian and Spanish. This was also a way of honoring Jerry’s Italian ancestors and mine from Mexico. It’s also how we feel as we enter the property, and drive past the trees and pond. The craziness of the city melts away. Sometimes, I get teary-eyed when we return because I can feel the new life ahead. I want it so badly. My patience and faith are tested over and over again, yet I know in my heart that all is unfolding in divine timing. As we walk in the door, we’re greeted with a big hug from our home. She waits for us all week to return to her every weekend, and someday, hopefully, soon, we will stick around full-time.
Casa Serenità is more than our home. It’s an extension of our love for this place and each other, translated into an energy and feeling. We are creating a lifestyle and quality of life with and for each other, which I hope to help you begin. Thank you for being here with me, with us, on our journey of making this cute bungalow in the woods our own. In some ways, she already is and always is. I can’t explain it, but it’s that feeling that we belong here. We all deserve that feeling—including you.
XOCD
