An antique bed canopy and striped upholstery lend old-world charm to one of Le Lappe’s 11 guest rooms.

A Tuscan Affair

Hidden in the hills of Montevarchi, a centuries-old estate gets a hand-painted second act, courtesy of decorator Remy Renzullo and his partner

By Matthew Bell

Remy Renzullo never set out to run a hotel in a quiet corner of Tuscany. The 34-year-old Connecticut-born decorator was busy overseeing renovations at Castle Howard in North Yorkshire, and dashing between clients in the U.K. and New York. But then, at a party in London, he met Niccolò Calabrese de Feo, a 27-year-old architect living in Portugal, whose mother had inherited the Pratolino estate near Montevarchi, an hour from Florence. Among its properties was an 11-bedroom hotel.

Renzullo and Calabrese de Feo fell in love and were soon engaged. It seemed only right that he should lend his future in-laws a hand with the renovations.