Bonnet House Blog

Bonnet House Museum & Gardens visitors can participate in a unique VIP experience every second and fourth Wednesday of each month.  Normally closed areas of Evelyn and Frederic Bartlett’s private living quarters will be opened for these special tours, expertly hosted by our seasoned Bonnet House docents, and showcasing rooms not seen on our other tours. The special tours take place from 2 to 3pm, and cost is only $20 per person.

The special tour is offered in groups of 10 to allow for questions and discussion. Limited reservations are available, and pre-registration is required.  Please note that the ability to climb stairs is necessary to fully participate in the tour.  A video presentation at ground level will accommodate those guests unable to climb stairs. The main house tour is not included – if you are interested in viewing the main house, normal admission fees apply.

Bonnet House is located at 900 North Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304. For more information or to pre-register for the Behind The Scenes tours, please visit us at www.bonnethouse.org/calendar/ or call (954) 703-2606.

Bonnet House Museum and Gardens’ 15th annual “Impressions” juried art exhibit and fundraiser will open on Thursday, March 5, 2015 at 6:00p.m.  We are honored to welcome back Irvin Lippman, Executive Director of the Boca Raton Museum of Art, for his third stint as guest juror.

This popular juried art exhibit will showcase artists from throughout Florida and the artists’ personal interpretations of America’s architecture, nature, or culture.  All guests and participating artists are invited to cast votes for their favorite artist in the exhibition.  The artist receiving the highest number of votes will receive the People’s Choice Award, awarded the opening evening.  All of the artwork in the Impressions exhibition will be available for sale, with 50% of the proceeds benefiting Bonnet House Museum & Gardens.

Additional highlights of the evening will include fine gourmet food, fine wine and entertainment throughout the house.  The exhibit is set to open with a private showing for V.I.P. guests starting at 5:00 p.m.  V.I.P. guests will be treated to champagne and hors d’oeuvres in the upstairs living quarters and veranda of Frederic and Evelyn Bartlett and be the first guests to the exhibit.

Bonnet House is located at 900 North Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304.  The Impressions exhibition will be on display from March 6 through May 3, 2015 during Bonnet House regular tour hours.  Formal invitations will be mailed in February; if you would like to add your name to the mailing list or would like to enter your work to be considered, please call (954) 703-2614 or visit us online at www.bonnethouse.org/impressions.

“In the Details,” an exhibition of works by the Bonnet House Fine Artists, is set to open Thursday, January 15 at 6pm in the Carl Weinhardt Gallery at Bonnet House.

The theme for this exhibit focuses on the fine points of the Bonnet House property and buildings, small vignettes of things we might otherwise not notice, and fresh interpretations of artifacts, architecture, flora and fauna throughout the Bonnet House Estate.  The exhibit will run through March 1st and is open to the public during regular tour hours with paid admission.

The opening will include a wine reception from 6-8pm and is free for members and $5 for non-members at the door. A percentage of all art sale proceeds will benefit Bonnet House programs.

Bonnet House is located at 900 North Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304 (just east of the Galleria Mall, across from Birch State Park). For more information, please contact Monica Estevez at (954) 703-2614.

One of Fort Lauderdale’s most popular music series marks its return on Thursday, January 22 at 7pm, when the Bonnet House Museum & Gardens kicks off its 19th season of the Young Artist Music series with a performance by the University of Miami’s Frost Opera Theater, featuring graduate students pursuing Masters and Doctorate degrees in the University’s Department of Vocal Performance.

The exciting new season of Concerts Under the Stars continues on February 12 with the Lynn University String Quartet, followed on March 12 with the Florida Atlantic University’s Latin Vocal Ensemble, and culminating with the April 9 presentation by Florida Grand Opera’s rising stars.

Beginning as a community outreach program, the Young Artist Music series has successfully become one of Bonnet House’s most treasured programs. Individual tickets for this very special 19th anniversary season range from $35 – $45 per performance and series tickets from $120 – $160, so everyone can enjoy truly outstanding musical evenings of Concerts Under the Stars. And to accentuate what is quite possibly the “best entertainment deal in town,” wine, dessert and coffee will be included in the price of admission at each performance.

Bonnet House is located at 900 North Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304. For more information or to purchase tickets, call (954) 703-2614 or visit us at www.bonnethouse.org/calendar/

Bonnet House Museum and Gardens has experienced a dramatic surge in Spanish speaking visitors, so we have added a special weekly Spanish language tour. The first of these will take place on Saturday, December 13 at 10am, with tours available every Saturday at the same time from then on. All tours are approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes in length and will be led by a Bonnet House certified docent. Visitors can purchase tickets at the Welcome Center on the morning of the tour.  The cost for the tour is $20 for adults and $16 for students ages 6-12.

For more information, please contact Monica Estevez at (954) 703-2614 or [email protected].

Bonnet House is located at 900 North Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304. For more information and details, please visit www.bonnethouse.org or call (954) 703-2614.

And for our Spanish-speaking friends: El Museo y Jardines Bonnet House ha experimentado un gran aumento de visitantes de habla Española, y por lo tanto hemos decidido añadir una excursión semanal especial en Español. La primera de éstas tomará lugar el sábado 13 de diciembre a las 10am, con excursions disponibles todos los sábados a la misma hora desde ese día. Todas las excursiones toman aproximadamente 1 hora y 30 minutos, y serán dirigidas por un guía certificado de Bonnet House. Los boletos se pueden obtener en el Centro de Acogida en las mañanas de las excursiones. El precio de la excursión es $20 para adultos y $16 para estudiantes entre las edades de 6 y 12 años. Para más información, por favor contacte a Monica Estevez al (954) 703-2614 ó [email protected]

Bonnet House Museum and Gardens will be blooming during its Orchid, Garden & Gourmet Food Festival – featuring the 8th Annual Orchid and Exotic Plant Sale – on December 6th and 7th from 9:00am to 4:00pm! Plant lovers and orchid enthusiasts will have the opportunity to see and buy an exclusive selection of orchids and exotic plants sold by over 40 local vendors, and the two-day event will feature gourmet food trucks, libations, orchid care lectures, cooking and gardening demonstrations, orchid displays, live music and a farmer’s market.

Don’t miss one of the year’s most anticipated events! The entry fee is $12 for members and $15 for non-members for the fair and grounds and an additional fee of $5 for the self-guided tour through the house. Parking is free. For more information, please call (954) 703-2614. Tickets are now available online at www.bonnethouse.org.

What do Ringo Star, Celine Dion, Willie Nelson and Barbra Streisand have in common? All have recorded songs written by Steve Dorff!

On Thursday, November 6, 2014 at 7 PM, Songwriter Steve Dorff will be performing on the Veranda at Bonnet House Museum & Gardens. 

Steve Dorff has been dubbed an enigma who has evolved into a gifted composer in every musical field. He is a fixture on the nation’s charts. His dossier includes nine #1 film songs and 15 Top 10 hits, including the Kenny Rogers’ classic “Through The Years”, a BMI 3 million performance song, as well as “I Just Fall In Love Again “, the Anne Murray record that captured Billboard’s #1 Song Of The Year honors.

Join us on the Veranda for a live performance by three-time Grammy nominee Steve Dorff. Two glasses of wine will be included sponsored by Shady Lane Cellars. Premium and General Seating available. General seating is $40 for members and $45 for non-members. Premium seating for members is $45 and $50 for non-members.

Bonnet House is located at 900 North Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304. For more information and details, please visit www.bonnethouse.org or call (954) 703-2614.

No, we’re not referring to the passengers . . . we’re talking about sharing a fascinating slice of Florida history while enjoying a fun river cruise aboard the Carrie B on Saturday, November 8 at 3:30 p.m., as Bonnet House presents “Cruising Down The River: Speakeasies, Gangsters and Rumrunners.”

Hear about the shadier side of the history of the New River, and the scallywags and scoundrels that lived, worked and played along its shores in our not-too-distant past. Featured speakers include Melissa Timo, Outreach Coordinator for the Florida Outreach Network at Florida Atlantic University, and Birch Willey, long time Fort Lauderdale resident. And enjoy live music performed by Gold Coast Banjoes and 2 glasses of wine generously provided by Red’s Bar & Package Store. Cash bar will be available for water, soda, cocktails and snacks.

Admission is $45 for members and $55 for non-members. The yacht embarkation site is 440 North New River Drive East in Fort Lauderdale. For more information and to reserve your seat, please call (954) 703-2614 or (954) 653-1554, or visit www.bonnethouse.org/calendar.

Bonnet House Museum & Gardens, accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is recognized as a historic landmark by the City of Fort Lauderdale. The story told here spans and parallels a wide swath of American history and makes a visit to the estate a uniquely educational, entertaining and truly unforgettable experience.

Having previously served as the Curator at Bonnet House Museum & Gardens from 1996 to 2002, Denyse Cunningham is now absolutely delighted to return to this magical place to oversee the restoration and preservation of the beautiful 35-acre estate in Fort Lauderdale. A graduate of the State University of New York at Oswego with a degree in Fine Arts, Denyse earned her Master’s Degree in American and New England Studies from the University of Southern Maine, and has been a professional curator of historical collections for over 30 years. Her field of specialization is early twentieth century decorative arts, and for the past 20 years she has worked with collections throughout southeast Florida. For the past 12 years, Denyse served as the Curator for the Broward County Historical Commission, where she did programing, exhibits, arranged the archives and assisted numerous researchers.  She is an active member of the American Alliance of Museums, the American Association of Archivists and the Society of Florida Archivists, and is a founding member of the Gold Coast Archivists.She and her husband, Bill, reside in Boca Raton, Florida.

Bonnet House Museum & Gardens, accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is recognized as a historic landmark by the City of Fort Lauderdale. The story told here spans and parallels a wide swath of American history and makes a visit both to these pages and to the estate a uniquely educational, entertaining and truly unforgettable experience. Bonnet House is located at between the Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway at 900 North Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304. For more information and details, please call (954) 563-5393 or visit BonnetHouse.org

Our world-famous orchid collection is one of the many reasons why a visit to South Florida is truly not complete without time spent at beautiful, historic Bonnet House Museum & Gardens. Our greenhouses and display house hold approximately 1,200 beautiful, exotic plants in various stages of development. And as a special treat for orchid enthusiasts and novices, our popular Orchid Greenhouse Tours will resume on the second Tuesday of each month, starting August 12. Our Bonnet House Orchid Curator will show you around our greenhouses and discuss how our orchids are bred and cultivated – including our impressive seedling program, with orchid seedlings available for purchase. These tours are offered from 11am to 12pm, in groups of 15 to allow for questions and discussion, for $20 per person.

The story told at Bonnet House Museum and Gardens spans and parallels a wide swath of American history and makes a visit both to these pages and to the estate a uniquely educational and entertaining experience. Bonnet House is located at 900 North Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304. Limited reservations are available, and pre-registration is required. To register, please call (954) 703-2606 or visit BonnetHouse.org.