Meet the Reigning Queen of Cluttercore
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Mary Randolph Carter, who goes by “Carter,” is a lifelong collector, so it should come as no surprise that she has amassed her share of titles over the years. In addition to more formal designations (Creative Director at Ralph Lauren, Country Living Contributor…), Carter has been informally called everything from “the queen of junk” to “the original Annie Hall.”
She is also a prolific author on the subject of stuff, and that talent is on display in her latest book, Live with the Things You Love. Filled with the interiors of tastemakers from across the country, including those of shop owner Joan Osofsky and country style icon Mary Emmerling, the pages are a testament to how a home is truly a canvas for self-expression, not to mention in keeping with the current rise of maximalism and cluttercore.
At a time when social media has led to a homogenized approach to interiors, Carter’s outlook on design is refreshingly one-of-a-kind. The Richmond, Virginia, native’s gravitation toward objects—everything from Underwood typewriters to folk art turkeys to Elvis memorabilia (she was the president of her local fan club)—may have something to do with the fact that two fires uprooted her family at the very impressionable ages of ten and sixteen. It’s no wonder she’s inclined to hold on to things.
Live With the Things You Love: And You'll Live Happily Ever After
“I once read that every single object has a god inside, and that’s why we cherish them,” says Carter. “I believe that. And I would add that each object in our homes—passed on, gifted, or collected—also has a story that reveals not only how it came to be and how it came to us, but how it shares who we are and where we’ve been. Taken together these collections of things create the memory and personality of the places we call home.”
For Carter, “home” includes both a New York City apartment as well as Elm Glen Farm, the colorfully collected country house in upstate New York she’s owned for 40+ years. She shares both with Howard, her husband of 53 years, who—despite the four-decade influx—is still keenly aware of new additions. “Howard loves to walk through and count the paintings on the walls. “Aha!” he’ll yell to me from another room, “I just counted 165, and that’s just downstairs.”
“Thomas Jefferson once wrote, ‘That which we elect to surround ourselves with becomes the museum of our souls and the archive of our experiences,’” says Carter. “I doubt my plastic chicken, paint-by-numbers poodle, wooden daisy handbag, or hand-knitted dolls would have been the objects he might have elected to surround himself with, and yet these are some of the things that are the “museum of my soul” that I couldn’t live without.
Take a tour through the rooms of Carter’s storied Elm Glen Farm:
Entry
Just inside the front door of Carter’s country house, you can store your walking stick in what was once a concrete pipe, now romanced with painted swallows, and tip your hat hello to elk and a handmade flat decoy of a long-necked Canadian Goose.
Elsewhere, what was once a barnacol-covered corner shelf holds Carter’s collection of shell-encrusted vessels. A trio of wildlife paintings hang above a primitive hickory chair.
Gallery Wall
Carter’s granddog, Cora, holds court on a sofa bedecked with vintage handmade American flags. Above it hangs a wall of assorted artwork. “Paintings are my passion,” says Carter. “I think of each painting as an original masterpiece. No posters or prints for me. I’d rather hang a landscape or a portrait found in an art school trash bin than a poster of the Mona Lisa. This is a perfect example of how I love to mix them all.”
Kitchen
With its Fiestaware-yellow floor and cheerful checks, the country kitchen is a happy way to greet the day. “First thing in the morning we plunk ourselves down at the island and sip big mugs of coffee,” says Carter. “From there I can admire all the things that brighten this big, white space and recall their stories and why I hold them so dear.” Among them are polka dot pitchers, colorful plates by artist Nathalie Lété, and more original paintings, including a special commission by her brother Jimmie that was inspired by Le Café by Pierre Bonnard.
The wingback chair—aka Howard’s throne—was rescued out of a barn decades ago. It later fell victim to a kitchen flood, but Carter revived it with a vintage serape. The picket-painted flag was a gift from her son, Sam. “What makes life astounding, I think, is not the things we’ve collected and lived with,” she says, “but the people and the memories we associate with them. Everything I love is connected to someone special in my life.”
Living Room
One of Carter’s first purchases for her farmhouse was this metal garden table she snagged for only $10 at a yard sale. Four decades later, she and her family still enjoy sitting around it for dinner on wintry nights. “Every so often I dip a kitchen sponge in some blue paint and smear it over flaking paint and candle wax,” she says. When not in use for dining, she keeps it full with books, pottery, a candelabra, and a statue of a little girl made of clay. The painting on the wall, called Round Top, reminds Carter of the views around her and remains her favorite.
Music Room
While Carter removed the home's existing wallpaper in favor of all white walls, she took a bolder approach with other surfaces. In the music room—so named with the addition of Howard’s mother’s baby grand piano—she painted the floors a vibrant yellow, and gave the mantel a unique faux finish. “Looking at the mantel in the music room, you would think that’s exactly how I found it. Unfortunately, I didn’t find anything worth saving underneath, so I decided to create what I had hoped to find using splatters of green and black paint.”
Elsewhere in the room, music-themed artwork mingles with colorful folk art. “My favorite piece might be the little green table between the chairs signed by, or created for, someone name MOE!” she says.
Screened-In Porch
After extending the porch to make room for outdoor dining, Carter furnished the space with a collection of wicker from an antiques shop in Hudson, New York. “When we’re not sharing a meal, you might find Howard and me competing at his vintage checkerboard,” she says. The fold-up wire chandelier was a gift from her mother.
Porch Cupboard
Carter took an old cupboard, painted it white, and hung it on the wall of the porch to house things she’s hunted down from yard sales and flea markets over the years—from ceramic pineapples to patriotic goblets and handmade toy boats.
IMAGES & BOOK COPYRIGHT: © Live with the Things you Love: And You’ll Live Happily Ever After, by Mary Randolph Carter, Rizzoli, 2025; images © Carter Berg.
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