Bravo's Long Island 'Princesses' dish on their homes
At one point ... my mother and I re-amped my room with a lot of dark woods and warm florals. I love the Ralph Lauren aesthetic," says Erica Gimbel, 29, of Bravo's "Princesses: Long Island." Her favorite piece? "My four-poster bed. When I was younger, it made me feel like a queen, like I was royalty." The room features several similar, ornate, dark pieces of furniture, creamy faux peau de soie wallpaper, elaborate swag window treatments, loads of throw pillows and blingy accessories. Credit: Bruce Gilbert
A princess needs a tiara for sure. But bottom line? She's nothing without a castle. And according to Bravo TV, Long Island has its fair share of princesses, as evidenced by the cable network's buzzy new reality series "Princesses: Long Island." The show follows six mostly pampered, college-educated Jewish women in their late 20s and early 30s still living at least part time in their parents' homes on Long Island. Their exit strategies? Find a prince capable of creating a lifestyle comparable to the one each has enjoyed since she was a wee little princess.
But back to the castles -- a visit to the homes of three members of the cast from the North Shore proved that all palaces are not created equal. How does the royal set live? There's Erica Gimbel's '90s contemporary in Old Westbury, complete with a pool and a tennis court; Chanel "Coco" Omari's big, custom expanded stucco farm ranch in Saddle Rock Village of Great Neck; and Ashlee White's Roslyn development Colonial that boasts a swimming pool shaped like an Absolut vodka bottle.
Despite the differences in the home's styles and neighborhoods, there are common threads besides their parents' granite kitchen countertops. They all have an interest in decorating, though they neither own nor rent their own homes.
"I'm obsessed with beds, couches and living room sets," says Omari. "I love everything from fabrics to furniture to knobs," says Gimbel. And White adds, "I'm always picking out things that I love and saying, 'I want this in my home.' "
Have a look at the lifestyles of the princesses.
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