Staying with granny always brings back happy memories, especially for Aerin Lauder. “We always celebrated Estée’s July 1st birthday here. My sister Jane and I would spend the night. She loved taking us to the diner for frankfurters and ice cream milkshakes.” Bequeathed the 1930s Greek Revival home in Estée’s will, Aerin retreats to East Hampton whenever she can. “My family stays here for most of the summer, but we also enjoy weekends in the Fall and winter. It’s a relaxing and peaceful escape from New York City.” It’s also where she has spent lockdown, “cooking delicious new recipes, doing at-home workouts and going for walks”.

Instagram followers will have spied vignettes of the home, which also features in Jennifer Ash Rudick’s new book Summer to Summer, Houses by the Sea, in which each of the houses reflect the owners’ personalities and particular seaside location. In this case, it’s a deft weaving of two design aesthetics: Estée Lauder’s classic furniture anchors each room and bears the hallmarks of her long-standing working relationship with renowned decorator Mark Hampton, and reflects her favourite colour combination of blue and white. To this backdrop, Aerin has added freshness and vigour. “We started with a very traditional home, which we then updated with a younger and more effortless sensibility in mind,” says Aerin. “I felt strongly about maintaining the old-world charm, as well as a few others small touches that served as happy reminders of Estée. My grandmother’s bedroom, for example, is exactly how she left it. The house has such a strong sense of heritage, tradition, family and wonderful memories that the styles of different generations seemed to come together easily.”

Lauder and her husband, investment banker Eric Zinterhofer, added a wing to accommodate their family (Jack, 20, and Will, 19) creating a kitchen and family room on the ground floor with a master suite and additional guest bedrooms above – Aerin’s nieces are frequent summer visitors. Aerin engaged architect and designer Daniel Romualdez, who worked on her Aspen home, to gently update the interiors. “I loved the house as it was but didn’t want it to be a monument to my grandmother. Tastes change and the way people live changes.” Ornate pieces were replaced with clean-lined sofas and chairs covered in both white and richly coloured linens. Lauder also relied on colour master Donald Kaufman to create a blue and grey palette for the walls. “I’ve started leaning toward more neutral backgrounds, as they give me the flexibility to play with various colours. I tried to embrace what my grandmother had done but with a fresh twist. Estée said anything can be beautiful if you take the time.”

The most recent accessories are a few pieces from Aerin’s latest collaboration, Aerin x Diane James, “The collection of faux flowers is classic, elegant and paired perfectly with my favourite vases.” The result is a home which is fresh rather than fussy, perfect for al fresco entertaining, something Aerin has elevated to an art form. Her top tip? “I’ve seen some beautiful tabletop pieces on Cabana’s website.”

The sunroom adjoining the living room features cane furniture with cushions in Bennison’s Petronella fabric.