The Breakers Mansion at Christmas

We were meeting some friends of ours in Newport to see one of the mansions all decorated for Christmas.  My boys and I had toured the Breakers mansion before but we were excited to see our friends as well as all the beautiful Christmas decorations.

Though the Newport mansions were summer cottages for the rich and never used during the winter; 4 of them are left open through the holiday season and are all decked out.  We went to see The Elms last year at this time and wanted to see another one.

The decorations did not disappoint!



The main hall is filled with poinsettias and even a poinsettia tree (which we were able to get close to later on in the tour).






There were pink poinsettias to match the tree and décor in this room




The dining room had a large fireplace and look who's peeking out!


Even the billiard room was all decked out for the holidays.  I loved the lanterns of baubles lining the mantle.



Back in the main hall I had the boys pose near the poinsettia tree and then fell in love with the beaded garland hanging on the two (matching!) smaller evergreen trees.




Even though there are like 20+ fireplaces in the house they were all decorated.


There were so many trees and they were all amazing.  I love that they theme each tree around the color scheme of the room.






Mr. Vanderbilt's bedroom was decked out in red and green with lots of top hats and trains.  So very fitting for this multi-millionaire who made all his money with the railroads!



Mrs. Vanderbilt's room was all white and red with birds.




Each of the balcony railings is covered with lit garland and bows too; and there are a lot of them




The loge usually has large open-air spaces that face the sea; they are closed up for the winter and in that room they set up a large train set.



While I would find it impossible to pick a favorite tree, I did love this one with the large crystal icicles hanging from it.



The tour ends with the kitchen and butler's pantry and you just not believe this gingerbread house until you see it in person- it's a replica of the Breakers mansion in food form!


We also loved the candy/ food themed tree behind it.



Comments

  1. Cristina - Memories of the PacificDecember 15, 2019 at 6:34 AM

    What an amazing tour! I love the Christmas decor. The Breakers Mansion is the type of place I love to visit when I travel. I'd love to learn more about the mansion!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 15, 2019 at 6:45 AM

      It is a self- guided audio tour and it is really rather amazing to hear all the facts about this "summer cottage" of the Vanderbilt family. It's crazy to think what they spent for a house they only use a few months out of the year.

      Delete
  2. DawnDecember 15, 2019 at 8:41 AM

    WOW! WOW! What a gorgeous mansion. I love all of the color themed trees and the architecture of the building is amazing. Love the rooms. We live in the shadow of Biltmore the main Vanderbilt estate. It is insane to think about the money poured into these homes.
    Blessings, Dawn

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 15, 2019 at 3:47 PM

      It really is staggering... that whole lifestyle is just amazing to me.

      Delete
  3. Dee | GrammysGrid.comDecember 15, 2019 at 12:21 PM

    Everything looks nice! Can you imagine living in a house like that? We'd surely have to hire a staff to help us run it, huh? Thanks so much for linking up at the #UnlimitedMonthlyLinkParty 7. Shared.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 15, 2019 at 3:47 PM

      They had a lot of staff helping to run it for sure (and lots of hallways for them to move room to room without being seen by any guests).

      Delete
  4. The Lucky LifestyleDecember 15, 2019 at 4:05 PM

    Wow, how gorgeous! That gingerbread house (mansion) is unreal!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 15, 2019 at 4:57 PM

      We could not get over that gingerbread mansion; we can barely get the walls to stay upright on our small, traditional gingerbread house (that we buy pre-made!). LOL.

      Delete
  5. Carol @Comfort Spring StationDecember 16, 2019 at 6:54 AM

    What can I say? It's absolutely gorgeous and I love your photos. #MMBC

    ReplyDelete
  6. Handmade in IsraelDecember 16, 2019 at 7:33 AM

    How gorgeous! I would love to see all the fabulous trees! Especially like the poinsettia tree and the one with all the birds.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 16, 2019 at 10:12 AM

      I do love seeing all the trees and how they decorate each one with just a few key ornaments/ colors.

      Delete
  7. Meditations in MotionDecember 16, 2019 at 7:57 AM

    We have visited The Breakers before, but never when it was decorated for Christmas. Gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Sparkles and LattesDecember 16, 2019 at 12:37 PM

    Those decorations are unbelievable. I love seeing houses all done up like this. I wish someone would come over to my house and set it up like this!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 16, 2019 at 3:40 PM

      I wish someone would come to my house too! I picture things like this but that's now how my house or tree ends up looking...

      Delete
  9. Shelbee on the EdgeDecember 16, 2019 at 1:12 PM

    Oh wow, Joanne, what a splendid place! I think the pink room is my favorite. And I do love the white poinsettias. Thanks so much for sharing this gloriously festive place!

    Shelbee
    www.shelbeeontheedge.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 16, 2019 at 3:41 PM

      It really does put me in such a festive mood. We're already planning on which one to tour next year...

      Delete
  10. laurensparks.netDecember 16, 2019 at 3:14 PM

    Wow! Thanks so much for taking us along for the tour.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Tamar SBDecember 16, 2019 at 6:34 PM

    Oh wow!!!! I need to get down there!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Claire JustineDecember 17, 2019 at 1:18 AM

    Oh wow, what an amazing place to visit. It is beautiful all decorated for Christmas :) Thanks for linking up #CreativeMondays

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 17, 2019 at 5:11 AM

      They do such an amazing job; this is the second mansion we've seen and we are blown away by the decorations.

      Delete
  13. Veronica LeeDecember 17, 2019 at 8:49 AM

    WOW! What a fabulous mansion! Love the amazing photos!

    ReplyDelete
  14. AniDecember 17, 2019 at 9:34 AM

    Wow, this is insane! I've never heard of this mansion before. Do you visit mansions as a fun family trip, or more as an educational trip (not that they are mutually exclusive)? I've never thought to visit mansions, but after seeing these pictures, I really think the kids would love it. And that poinsettia tree?! GORGEOUS! I want one now! I'm going to have to look up tutorials to make a small one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 17, 2019 at 12:47 PM

      A little bit of both for sure. We started touring them a few years ago when we were studying the Industrial Revolution and the role of the Vanderbilt's and other industry tycoons. The tours are self guided with headsets and prerecorded messages about life in that time period, what went into maintaining and building the houses, etc. so it's a great history lesson and my boys just love going.

      Delete
    2. AniDecember 19, 2019 at 11:18 AM

      That makes sense, I'm curious to see if my kids would respond to it. My daughter probably would because she's four and big places with decorations are still exciting to her. But I'm curious if my son will respond to the history. That was me up there by the way, I finally made an account so now I can comment a lot easier.

      Delete
    3. Joanne December 19, 2019 at 3:41 PM

      LOL. I was surprised at how much my boys ended up enjoying it.

      Delete
  15. French Creek FarmhouseDecember 18, 2019 at 10:01 AM

    Wow! What a gorgeous place! And the floral is just stunning!! So glad I stopped by from "Tuesdays with a Twist"! xo, Kristi

    ReplyDelete
  16. Teresa BDecember 19, 2019 at 4:41 AM

    That's an amazing place. I love all the different Christmas trees. Thank you for sharing at The Really Crafty Link Party this week.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne December 19, 2019 at 5:30 AM

      I loved all the trees too; they're each so pretty.

      Delete
  17. KathyDecember 27, 2019 at 8:29 PM

    I had seen the Breakers 25+ years ago in the summertime. These pictures were fantastical! I enjoyed them so much. Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Shooting Stars MagJanuary 2, 2020 at 1:48 PM

    Woah, this place is gorgeous. I love all the decorations. That gingerbread house is pretty amazing too.

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne January 14, 2020 at 5:21 AM

      They really are quite something to see; it's unbelievable to hear about what their lives were like too.

      Delete

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