The Lake Forest Showhouse and Gardens is one of our favorite Chicago design events. The legendary, biennial event has been a premier fundraiser for The Infant Welfare Society of Chicago for over two decades, and each and every showhouse is brimming with artistry and inspiration.

This year’s featured house is Pembroke Lodge, a 3.5 acre estate, designed by noted architect Henry Ives Cobb in 1895. Over the years, David Adler and interior designer Francis Elkins also worked on the house. We’re thrilled that PAGODA RED art and objects can be found throughout the 30,000 square foot home, in spaces created by longtime clients Sarah Dippold Design, Michael del Piero Good Design & Randy Heller Pure and Simple Interiors.

Sarah Dippold believes that design can “elevate the rituals of everyday living.” Her philosophy is evident in the house’s Second Floor Hall and Stairs, which she reimagined as a chic place to linger, rather than just pass through en route to a different room. “Setting a tone and creating an atmosphere in a common space is important because it makes an impact on everyone in a household, everyday. For this space, we had to consider that we were designing a hall leading to seven unique rooms. We wanted the space to feel neutral, fluid, elegant and aligned with the era in which it was originally created.” Dippold kept the original banisters and balusters, but surrounded them with contemporary neutral and captivating abstract forms, including a Bocci raw porcelain light fixture and custom runner from The Rug Company.

The stark contrasts of white & black throughout the stairway are softened by warm shades of grey and curving, organic forms. Gold metallic accents, chromed wall sconces and a freeform mirror catch the light and bring an edge to soft upholstery and plush carpet patterned with abstract marbling.

Three objects from PAGODA RED add dimension to the hall and stairs, including the sculptural painting Midnight Garden 01 from Patrick Burns’s newest series Concrete Gardens. On a side table, a lingbi scholars’ rock beckons, encouraging a moment of stillness and contemplation. This limestone sculpture originated in Anhui province, China, where the finest scholars’ rocks (gongshi) are found. To finish the space, Dippold chose a drum-form side table of hand-turned solid stone, known as a painting stone, selected for its patterning resembling calligraphy ink. When Dippold visited the gallery to select, she was very thoughtful in choosing a painting stone that “reminded her of a landscape that best complemented her neutral palette.”

Pembroke Lodge also features an enormous veranda, which was beautifully redesigned by Michael del Piero and Randy Heller, who collaborated on the space. We’ve worked with both del Piero and Heller on individual projects and it was great fun to see what they created together. The terrace, once cold and austere in marble and white, is now a wonderland of natural textures and rich fabrics.

Both designers are renowned for their immaculately edited spaces, which tend toward the serene and sophisticated, rather than the colorful or eccentric. Now, Pembroke Lodge’s veranda is at once both modern and timeless, with an eye-catching juxtaposition of curved and angular lines.

Throughout the veranda, objects from PAGODA RED are artfully layered into a quiet mix. Side tables of root wood and woven leather add texture and rough luxe appeal. Near the sofas, two solid limestone drums echo the soft shades of grey throughout the room. On a paneled credenza, a Qing-era mirror stand elevates a serene landscape painting and a mottled Tsubo Jar, once used for rice wine and spirits in Meiji-era Japan, is repurposed as a poetic vase for flowering branches, contrasting the lush greenery with bold shape.

We’re so appreciative of the designers who featured objects from PAGODA RED in their installations, as well as all the interior and landscape designers who worked on this remarkable 30-room estate. Thanks also to the 2025 Lake Forest Showhouse Chairs and the entire Infant Welfare Society Executive Board for their remarkable dedication to this project and the children in our city.

The Lake Forest Showhouse & Gardens is open through May 25, 2025.  All proceeds from the house benefit the Infant Welfare Society of Chicago.

Tickets can be purchased here.

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