Two Decades Hone a Ju-Nel Home to Perfection

Rick Hibbs considers that great homes aren’t about storage or shelter, but about creating chances for encounters. Directed by this sentiment, Rick, an architect, and his wife, Susan, patiently spent two years renovating their 1959 midcentury home, constructed by architects Lyle Rowley and Jack Wilson of Ju-Nel Homes. Theirs was the first home built at the Lake Highlands area of Dallas from the Ju-Nel team.

During that 20 decades, Rick and Susan remained focused and busy. They upgraded the kitchen, bathrooms, windows, floors and surfaces; enlarged the principal bedroom and living room; added a family room; and constructed a pool in the backyard, doing much of the work themselves. Their decision making that was slow allowed them to approach each phase of renovation. “We’ve always made our conclusions just for us,” Rick says. “That is, we built it to our own way of life rather than based on traditional ideas about what a house should be.”

at a Glance
Who lives here: Rick and Susan Hibbs; sons Wesley (age 14) and John (11); Jessie that the Jack Russell mutt; Robo dwarf hamsters Larry, Moe and Curly; along with some fish
Location: Lake Highlands area of Dallas
Size: 2,900 square feet; 3 bedrooms, 3 baths

Sarah Greenman

The first phase of remodeling the home, which occurred from 1994 to 1996, consisted of cosmetic upgrades into the kitchen and installing new surfaces in the living and dining rooms. “Opening up the walls of the kitchen allows us to participate in everything that’s going on, while preparing a meal,” Rick says.

Sofa: Florence Knoll; coffee table: Noguchi; feces: Herman Miller Eames Walnut Stool B

Sarah Greenman

Rick installed custom wood windows . From the living space, they run the whole length of the rear wall, offering a great view of the yard and pool area.

After viewing countless ranch homes in the area during their first home search, the couple asked their Realtor to find something much more interesting. That’s when they found that the Ju-Nel home. “I walked straight through the house to the yard and explained instantly we’d take it,” Rick says.

Lounge seat: Womb Chair, Eero Saarinen; artwork: giclee canvas print, Copralux

Sarah Greenman

Floor-to-ceiling maple shelves highlight the ceilings and provide space for artifacts and books. “Modernism is all about honesty in using materials, allowing them to express their usage and ease without extra ornament,” Rick says. “I think our home is an extension of those ideas. We have spaces, finishes and furniture that reflects the way we live: open, flexible and functional.”

Theater seats: Eames Lounge and Ottoman

Sarah Greenman

“I was not going to get a preservationist approach,” he states. “I followed the model that was set but also desired a 21st-century sensibility.”

Bar stools: Delta by Mart Stam; counter area paint: Renoir Red, Sherwin-Williams

Sarah Greenman

As an architect, Rick takes inspiration from a broad swath of modernist designers and artists. He loves Charles Rennie Mackintosh from the 1890s, German Bauhaus from the early 1900s, American and Danish performers from the 1950s along with the Italian modernists of the 1980s. These influences come up all around the home, particularly in the dining room, where converging lines, natural surfaces and organic forms unite.

The oil painting on the far wall is a spectacle of the Trastavere area in Rome, purchased at the Piazza Navona when Rick and Susan were there in 1998.

Sarah Greenman

Dining seats: Brno Tubular Chair, Mies van der Rohe; pendant lights: Le Klint 172 by Poul Christiansen; trio of prints: Wassily Kandinsky

Sarah Greenman

Rick designed the front doorway, mail slot and sidelights; his father built all of them. Slate flooring reflects the original entrance layout, which was terrazzo tiles. Rick designed the handrail around the descending stairs into the right and had the steel frame fabricated. He along with his father carved the cherry handrail, made the maple panels installed them at the frame.

“We spent the first 3 years in turmoil, under construction from the moment we moved in,” Rick says. “When you perform the job yourself, it is a part of you, and you have the choices and the results from the very beginning.”

Print over stairs: Picasso; Persian carpet: Irani Hamedan routine

Sarah Greenman

This is one of Rick’s favorite views in the home. The accent wall gives a beautiful backdrop for a George Nelson platform bench plus a Willem de Kooning print. The pottery on the bench, a present from Rick’s parents, has been created using the horsehair raku method.

Wall paint: Renoir Red, Sherwin-Williams; area carpet: Iranian prayer rug

Sarah Greenman

The principal bedroom, which was enlarged in 1998, has a different tree house feel on account of the wall of windows framing the canopy of a massive pecan tree in the backyard. “I’ve a love-hate relationship with the pecan tree,” Rick says. “The foliage is amazing, but it seems like there is not a month from the year if its not dropping pecans.”

An accent wall, inset and painted red, acts as a headboard for the platform bed.

Chairs: Wassily, Marcel Breuer; accent wall paint: Renoir Red, Sherwin-Williams

Sarah Greenman

The Wassily Chair, a modern classic, pairs well with a Persian rug woven in a Chechen pattern. Pictures taken by Rick to a family trip hang at a trio within the seat.

Since Rick is an architect, he and Susan were able to purchase most of their furniture straight from producers. The Hibbs also like to shop for home goods at Collage, a secondhand modern furniture shop in Dallas.

Sarah Greenman

Sarah Greenman

The bath has one on the opposite wall along with two closets, one envisioned here. Rick designed and constructed the habit hinged mirrors. He used exactly the same style in all of the house’s three baths. The watercolor over the bath was purchased in Rome from a street artist.

Credenza: Florence Knoll

Sarah Greenman

Son Wesley’s room is a well-appointed space using a twin bed and leather Poäng chair from Ikea. The couple bought the mobile, designed by Alexander Calder, from the Art Institute of Chicago. The window treatments are custom-made room-darkening Roman shades.

Pendant lampshades: Skimra, Ikea

Sarah Greenman

Son John’s room is comparable to Wesley’s, using a twin bed and workstation. The artwork print over his desk is “Zero to Nine” by Jasper Johns. The mobile is the Mondrian Mobile from Greenberg Kingsley. Both pieces were purchased from the Art Institute of Chicago.

Pendant lampshades: Skimra, Ikea

Sarah Greenman

The grass-green hall bath, shared by both sons, includes limestone floors. The framed artwork is a print of “La Joie de Vivre” by Henri Matisse.

Countertop: granite, Gallo Veneziano (used throughout home)

Sarah Greenman

Formerly a large storage space and an unfinished bathroom in the garage, this remodeled room was designed to function as a playroom, an office, a guest room and a living room. Eleven-year-old John states, “This is my room — the guy cave” The Hibbs bought the charcoal drawing over the green loungers at an auction.

Sarah Greenman

Ju-Nel homes are commonly constructed on oddly shaped, heavily wooded lots and located around a tree. Rick designed and constructed the pool, spa and deck at 2011. The garden has low-voltage landscape lighting plus a lawn made of artificial turf.

Sarah Greenman

Sliding doors off the living room open into a broad deck and steps that lead down to the spa and pool. “My dad is a lawyer, and all I could see was that the liability issue,” Susan says of the pool. “But ultimately it’s been great for our family.”

Sarah Greenman

The deck also boasts an outdoor kitchen with a built-in stainless steel Jenn-Air gas grill, refrigerator and sink. Outdoor-rated ceiling fans, two ceiling-mounted gas patio heaters along with also a remote-controlled mosquito misting system keep the family comfortable during Dallas’ hot summers and cold winters.

“I love how our house enhances our experiences with our family and friends, how it accommodates our little household and 60 people because of my parents’ 50th-anniversary celebration,” Rick says.

Sarah Greenman

Rick recently constructed and constructed a pool theater with surround audio. (Susan lounges here with boy Wesley, while John swims near Rick.) “Our proudest times are if we have family parties for vacations, or family and friends come over to watch a soccer match, or celebrate birthdays,” says Rick. “The home simply works for anything is occurring.”

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Warm Minimalism at Pittsburgh

For Julia Reynolds and first-time homeowners Chuck, decorating their home was really a lesson in editing. Chuck, an electronic strategy consultant, and Julia, the owner of a home decor boutique, desired a clean, minimalist and mostly monochromatic look for their Pittsburgh home. They admit to some meticulous design procedure — which occasionally led to lengthy email exchanges about a single purchase — but the outcome is a carefully curated and stylishly customized residence.

in a Glance
Who lives here: Chuck and Julia Reynolds and their dog, Jake
Location: East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh
Size: 2,150 square feet; 3 bedrooms, 11/2 bathrooms
Year constructed: 2009

Jason Snyder

The couple’s foreclosed home is just one of six in their neighborhood constructed in 2009 by East Liberty Development and designed by Pfaffmann + Associates.

The homeowners installed a modern slatted wood screen to enclose their courtyard and guarantee a modicum of solitude from the street.

Jason Snyder

The large and inviting front porch is a nod to the type of the older homes in the neighborhood, but is rendered here in concrete rather than wood.

Parts of the outside are clad in a composite siding made from recycled wood.

Jason Snyder

The couple’s living room is kept minimalist, with accessories and pillows from Julia’s store, The Shop in East Liberty. The doors behind the sectional connect to the central courtyard and the kitchen outside that.

Flanking the doors are framed photographs taken by Chuck’s brother. Chuck grew up with a darkroom in his family’s basement, so that he shares an appreciation for photography with his sibling.

Sectional: Double Pebble, CB2; java table: Origami, West Elm

Jason Snyder

The black and white art in the entrance sets the tone for the couple’s minimalist aesthetic. Julia made the “Liberty” printing.

Artwork: Stephen Tuomala (left), “Tribe” by Gregory Beauchamp (correct)

Jason Snyder

Julia made this accent wall in the guest bathroom, which has been inspired by a Marimekko wallpaper pattern. She first produced a grid of sponge-applied paint, then used a brush to paint around every world to blur the edges. The DIY job took about a week to finish.

Towel: Hammam, West Elm

Jason Snyder

For Chuck and Julia, one of the numerous selling points of this house was all of the natural light, especially in the spacious dining room and kitchen. Contractor Chris Rhodes made the black-stained concrete countertop in kitchen.

Dining table: CB2; seats, bar stools, pendant lights: Ikea

Jason Snyder

The smallest of these 3 bedrooms serves as a shared residence office. The sleeper sofa comes in handy when family and friends trip from Washington, D.C., the couple’s hometown. The picture throw pillow was made by Nell & Mary — one of Julia’s favourite designers from her shop.

Sofa: Kivik, Ikea; wall sconces: Aläng, Ikea

Jason Snyder

The couple worked with local craftsman Colin Carrier of London Pattern to design and make this steel bookshelf. The bookends are magnetic and can be reconfigured in any arrangement.

Jason Snyder

The Reynoldses designed and made this headboard in the guest bedroom. The knotty pine was sourced from a local hardware store and has been bolted to the wall. The little built-in side table is encouraged by L-brackets.

Jason Snyder

Julia and Chuck hang in their courtyard with their mixed-breed dog, Jake. The couple enjoys fun in this area, and Julia wanted to make sure it was nicely lit irrespective of the time of day. She strategically hung outside string lights in a zigzag pattern to make an intimate gathering room at nighttime.

Outdoor sectional: CB2; exterior lights: Amazon

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Out Of Baseball Factory to Homey Loft at Toronto

When Robert Van Every casually popped to a neighborhood open house one day in Toronto, he was not expecting the attic to blow him away. But the distance was just what he’d always wanted. Located inside a former Rawlings baseball glove factory constructed in 1902, the area needed an industrial shell which held contemporary finishes, 10-foot ceilings, original wood beams and exposed brick. “I immediately began imagining myself alive here; it was really meant to be,” he states.

He purchased the attic and got to work filling the area with standout classic furniture for a smart but dim look which permits the many expansive windows to play a constant loop of the West Toronto area. “This is my final dream house,” Van Every states. “It is what keeps me inspired.”

in a Glance
Who resides: Robert Van Each and his greyhound, Jason
Location: Roncesvalles area of Toronto
Size: 1,300 square feet; 1 bedroom, 2 bathrooms

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

Windows wrap the attic, flood the area with light from the north, south and west, while warm wood ceilings and floors soften the exposed brick.

Van Every maximized space with a large sectional, weighty bronze lighting and a coffee table he created with old crates and a classic marble top.

Sofa: Mirabel, Domison; rocking seat, Thonet, Worth Village; lighting: Bronze Copper Pendant, Tom Dixon; rug: Alvine Ruta, Ikea

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

The elevation and openness of this loft initially drew Van Every to the distance, which, he states, lends itself very nicely to entertaining.

The fireplace was not something he believed he’d ever desire, but he can not imagine living without it.

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

On the very first night in his new attic, a couple of days before Christmas, as he waited to get the paint to dry in his bedroom Van Every place his bed on the floor in front of the fireplace and curled up with a glass of wine. That moment may have been the impetus for the positioning of the greyhound’s bed nearby.

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

The kitchen had aged, although the attic had not been remodeled since the ’80s. Concrete flooring set the space apart from the wood-floor living room.

Green seat: Value Village; taxidermy, Smash!

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

The kitchen’s galley style helps keep the jumble of entertaining confined to the wide-open living spaces. A Persian-inspired rug, combined with a taxidermy deer head and also a midcentury armchair, adds eclectic flair.

Rug: Valby Ruta, Ikea

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

Van Each created this small seats nook off the kitchen ; he enjoys his morning coffee and news. “My decorating philosophy relies on expertise,” he states. “I imagine how I wish to use a space and then work out the best possible furniture positioning. Each area has a reason to be.”

Suitcases double as storage due to their favourite magazines.

Seat: Papa Bear, Hans J. Wegner

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

Van Every’s favorite recent purchase is a bright aqua Era seat he found on Craigslist.

Chair: Era, originally from Design Within Reach; dining table: Stornäs, Ikea

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

The sunken principal bedroom is an exercise in simplicity, with intricate empty frames and a simple hanging pendant lighting which illuminates the hot wood ceiling.

Bed: Svelvik, Ikea

Jenn Hannotte / Hannotte Interiors

The building allows Van Every, revealed here with dog Jason, to walk and bike to virtually everything in the Roncesvalles area of West Toronto, where he’s lived for the past five decades.

Your turn: Show us your attic!

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Kitsch and Humor Meet Midcentury Modern

Clean lines, good bones and a quintessential midcentury apartment roof attracted James and Cindy Stolp to their Dallas house, despite its poor state. “The home was in horrible shape, but we knew we wanted it the moment we stepped inside,” Cindy says. “We definitely had on our ‘possible’ glasses when we bought this home,” James adds.

James, a designer and cofounder of smart-home-technology firm Smart Things, and Cindy, a freelance interior designer and stylist, each have a strong personal aesthetic. Their love of contemporary design, pop art, kitsch, graphic and typographic layout, architecture and midcentury design informs each inch of their property. “We’ve got a sense of humor,” says Cindy. “Modern design could be so uptight, but we wanted our house to be warm and approachable — a place where our kids would like living.”

at a Glance
Who lives here: James and Cindy Stolp and their sons, Jack (age 5) and Mike (3)
Size: 2,000 square feet: 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms
Location: Highland Meadows neighborhood of Dallas

Sarah Greenman

Kitschy art, midcentury furniture and contemporary light fixtures make for an eclectic yet cohesive combination from the dining area. The Heywood Wakefield dining place and two midcentury hutches placed side by side keep the room grounded with honey-colored wood.

Table, chairs: Strictly Hey-Wake; pendant lighting: West Elm; art: We Are 1976

Sarah Greenman

The Stolps bought many of the furnishings online. “Cindy isn’t afraid of getting furniture shipped,” James says. Some of her favorite sites are Furnish Me Vintage, Etsy, eBay and Fab. The pair looks to Lula B’s for furniture and accessories and We Are 1976 for art when shopping locally.

Paint: Iced Cube Silver, Benjamin Moore

Sarah Greenman

A badly constructed remodel in the 1980s divided up the house into little spaces. The first thing that the Stolps did was remove the walls and open the main living area to a fluid space.

They also installed a bank of windows across the rear side of the home. The rectangular window theme repeats throughout the home.

Club chairs: Fab

Sarah Greenman

“Some of the significant design challenges in this home was furniture placement,” says Cindy. “I wished to keep the house from feeling like a giant bowling alley.” Therefore the Stolps created separate seating areas while still maintaining ample room for visitors flow.

Bookcase:
Ikea

Sarah Greenman

A blue-gray tile fireplace, circular shag rug and midcentury sofa make another comfy seating area at the far end of the main living space.

“The watch artwork is titled ‘A Mother’s Love.’ It is by Oklahoma artist Matt Goad and has been a present from James to me for our 15th anniversary,” Cindy says. “The baby bears are such precise representations of the boys. It is difficult to surprise me, but I was shocked by this bit, and it remains the funniest present James has given me.”

Sarah Greenman

Before going into their house, the Stolps dwelt in a loft apartment in the Deep Ellum neighborhood of downtown Dallas. “We’re so accustomed to attic living we re-created the attic feel in our house,” says James. Wide-open spaces, light walls and lots of natural lighting are hallmarks of this home.

Sofa: Lula B’s

Sarah Greenman

A little half bath close to front door pops with dim gray walls, a wall-mounted sink and thematic travel art.

Paint: Rocky Coast, Benjamin Moore

Sarah Greenman

A little anteroom is the best spot for a TV, sofa and classic movie posters. “We had such a hard time locating a sofa that would fit in the space we ended up using one custom made,” James says.

Sofa: custom, Cantoni

Sarah Greenman

Space tends to be lacking most midcentury houses, so the couple use an oversize Italian kitchen unit referred to as a schränke to carry things in the eat-in kitchen. “No loft, no garage and terrible storage means we must find creative,” says Cindy.

Pendant mild: FL/Y Suspension Lamp by Kartel

Sarah Greenman

The kitchen includes a glowing smattering of orange, blue, gray and wood accents.

Fiberglass bar stools and a trio of pendant lights bridge the space between the kitchen and the dining space.

Bar stool foundations: Modernica

Sarah Greenman

The Stolps maintained the wood cabinets but updated the space with stainless steel appliances.

Backsplash tile: ModWalls

Sarah Greenman

They created a play area off the kitchen for their own sons, Mike and Jack. “I wanted them to get their very own play space where I could watch on them,” Cindy says. The carpeting floor tiles specify the area and make the sensation of a room within a room.

The conical pendant lighting in the corner of this room is original to the home. Cindy rewired many of the original fixtures with assistance from Royal Touch Lamp & Fixture Service.

Table, chairs: Area; storage device: Stuva, Ikea; place carpeting: Flor

Sarah Greenman

Wall-mounted shelves and a Herman Miller desk chair keep the house office tidy and stylish.

Shelving: Lula B’s

Sarah Greenman

Cool aqua and daring green brighten Jack’s bedroom. The Stuva storage system from Ikea keeps toys, games and clothes tucked away.

Paint: Hazy Blue, Benjamin Moore

Sarah Greenman

Mike’s area comes alive with bright green with blue accents. “Kids deserve good layout, and our boys are extremely happy with their bedrooms,” Cindy says.

Paint: New Grass, Benjamin Moore; storage: Stuva, Ikea

Sarah Greenman

Sugar cube tile in a double sink from Kohler create the boys’ bathroom a showstopper.

Sarah Greenman

Simple furnishings and ice blue walls make for a calm main bedroom. Each of the home’s three bedroom doors includes a tiny rectangular window on top. “We were planning to put frosted glass in the doors, but then I decided against it when I realized that I could glance in at the boys while they were sleeping,” Cindy says.

Paint: Hazy Blue, Benjamin Moore; bed frame: Russel Wright Studios; bedding: Draper Stripe, DwellStudio

Sarah Greenman

“When we first saw the home, we fell in love with the apartment roof. But horizontal roofs are high maintenance,” says Cindy. “Whenever it rained, I’d start pacing through the house looking for leaks.”

“The roof was also badly insulated,” James says, “along with the Texas heat would beat down on it. We could not keep the home cool.”

A brand new roof with appropriate insulation, ventilation, furnace and drainage operate ran the Stolps $17,000. “It was worth every cent,” says James.

Roofing: Tillery Roofing Service

Sarah Greenman

James and Jack high-five from kitchen. “When we moved in, nine years ago, the neighborhood has been in transition,” James says. “Our friends thought we were mad, since the place was economically sad and sort of beat up. But Cindy and I had faith in it, and it feels like the sun is shining on Highland Meadows.”

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Travel Treasures Personalize a Denver Comedian's Home

When comedian Adam Cayton-Holland is not traveling to perform stand-up, he’s enjoying his 1885 Victorian in Denver. Although the avid traveler — 30 countries and counting — told jokes before this season on Conan, he takes himself seriously enough to provide his house with purpose, displaying artwork and collectibles from his excursions. With an eclectic mix of family heirlooms and travel memorabilia influenced by Cayton-Holland’s dad and art-collecting grandfather, this hot and innovative atmosphere provides a welcome intermission between gigs.

in a Glance
Who lives here: Adam Cayton-Holland along with his puppy, Annabel
Location:Baker neighborhood of Denver
Size: 1,500 square feet; 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms

Lauren Mikus

Cayton-Holland relaxes from the master bedroom along with his puppy, Annabel. “I remember bringing her to my home for a puppy, and I thought, ‘Now this is my property,'” he states.

“I travel a lot for work, and when I come home, among the first things I do is walk my puppy. I like to check on the few-block radius round here and see what, if anything, has changed. Folks say they always find me walking my puppy. It’s my way of announcing, ‘Hey I am back.’ I like things like this.”

Lauren Mikus

Cayton-Holland regularly hosts friends and fellow comedians in his bedroom that is . “A lot of comedians come into town for a monthly stand-up comedy show I do called The Grawlix,” he states. “People are always wanting to come in town for it, so we try to fly comics and then they wreck together with me for a few days. I prefer trying to give them a wonderful spot to stay.”

Lauren Mikus

He’s traveled all around the world and at a single point called the Spanish city Santiago de Compostela house. So obviously, virtually every decor piece in his house includes a narrative along with a passport stamp. A print in the Ecuadorian artist Oswaldo Guayasamin hangs over a vintage record player. A classic Indian wood carving out of Denver’s Antique Row on South Broadway hangs in an adjacent wall.

This dining set, nevertheless, is a family heirloom.

Lauren Mikus

The comedian attributes his style — what he describes as that of a “tenured professor’s office” — to his father, a civil rights lawyer, and grandfather, who was an art dealer. When he was growing up, his father “needed a room we called ‘the library’ because of the number of books,” he states. “My father had only festooned the place with paintings — Indian arrowheads, old binoculars, garudas from Indonesia, Persian carpets, old lamps. It’s very eclectic, but everything gets the feel of being a treasure. I have always wished to emulate ‘the library’ from the living room.”

It was a challenge to distinguish the living room and dining room, but afterwards what Cayton-Holland describes a “war of attrition,” he now loves his open area. “I slowly acquired more and more stuff, which I deemed fitting of the space, and now it seems full and lively. I am still moving. Next I need a player piano.”

A kitchen rug, just past the dining room, hides a panel that opens to a stairway leading into a basement. The previous homeowner was a contractor who upgraded the area, and this is one of their home’s few untouched original features. “To get down to the basement, you have to scale down,” the homeowner says. “It’s kind of terrifying but also really cool, because you can see the skeleton of the home and an old staircase I assume led up to storm-shelter doorways now just goes nowhere.”

Lauren Mikus

The homeowner and his dad are known to regular antiques shops and are great friends with local antiques dealer Rick Rose.

The antique chest here originated out of a Mexican monastery and dates back to the late 1800s. The three birdcages are also antiques.

Lauren Mikus

Typical of early-20th-century homes, the walls in this house are extremely thick. Red paint adds dimension to the doorway between the dining room and the kitchen.

Lauren Mikus

Masks from Senegal line the stairs from the foyer to the next story.

A vintage window framework that has been a Christmas present from Cayton-Holland’s sister hangs out of the 14-foot ceilings.

Lauren Mikus

The foyer’s mission-style furniture piece is from an antiques shop in Colorado Springs and holds the homeowner’s many hats.

Lauren Mikus

Once leased to a roommate, this space is now tCayton-Holland’s office, using a mission-style desk, chair and lamp.

Mexican folk art retablos and tapestries out of Mongolia and Indonesia adorn the wall.

Lauren Mikus

Cayton-Holland sometimes performs in Los Angeles in The Meltdown, linking other comics, such as Pete Holmes, Rory Scovel and Brent Weinbach. The place is found in the back of a comic shop, and for each display a poster is made. Some of them decorate the cupboard doors.

Lauren Mikus

Cayton-Holland relaxes on front porch with Annabel. “I am always visiting new cities, and I always love returning to Denver,” he states. “It’s fun to be a part of a city that’s constantly defining itself, that no one has really written the book on yet. This makes you feel a part of something. There is a spirit of anything that you need to see or do, you can do it here.”

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Patterns at Play at a Scotts Valley Home

When Stacey Costello and her husband, Brian, made a decision to update from their little bungalow, they found a easy tract home that has been an ideal canvas for adapting to their lifestyle. “It was size at first sight,” says Stacey. “The inside was like a mansion for us. It was a simple tract home, but we knew we can do everything to make it our own.”

They worked together to redesign and personalize almost every aspect of their house since then — such as all the surfaces, the light, the flooring and the facade. Now their house is a unique and gorgeous addition to their neighborhood and a real manifestation of the loved ones.

in a Glance
Who lives here: Stacey and Brian Costello, son Patrick and dogs Ruby and Coco
Location: Scotts Valley, California
Size: 2,400 square feet; 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, office

Shannon Malone

“I stuck to three to four colors to keep it calm and easy,” Stacey says. “I mainly use greens, whites, creams and chocolates.” She loves how the neutral tones and white walls set the scene due to her decor, furniture and art.

Nearly all paint throughout the house is custom-mixed Benjamin Moore.

Leather seat: Crate & Barrel

Shannon Malone

Stacey is a interior designer, so her home frequently ends up being a style lab to test potential ideas for her customers — she consistently has more custom throw pillows than necessary. She rearranges them frequently and plays different color combinations, designs and fabrics.

The coffee table is a family heirloom dining room table that has been cut with her grandfather.

Sofas: Restoration Hardware; ceiling light: classic mercury glass

Shannon Malone

The kitchen “was such a labour of love. I simply love being in here,” she says. The couple changed every detail in this area: flooring, cabinets, lighting, appliances and window treatments. The color of the backsplash tile has been custom created by Sonoma Tilemakers.

Shannon Malone

This is where her family gathers and hangs out often. “I am big on eating every meal along with a family,” she says.

Though she loves her cabinets, Stacey plans to eventually repaint them white.

Light fixture: Urban Electric

Shannon Malone

A daring purple wall color and an artful display of styled Manolo Blahnik shoe prints make for a stunning statement from the downstairs powder room. Stacey also made the shower curtains with two picture materials.

Paint color: Bonne Nuit, Benjamin Moore

Shannon Malone

The formal living area doubles as a dining room and entertaining area, and will be home to Stacey’s selection of serving pieces and collectibles. She had this hutch custom built for the distance.

Stacey refinished and handpainted the dining table, including custom slip covers for the seats. For a better transition to the living room seating area, she uses a backless seat as seating.

Shannon Malone

Stacey instantly fell in love with this collection of classic French patio seats in a store in Mill Valley, California. After arriving home, she could not quit considering the set, so she called the store in hopes of purchasing it, only to find out it was marketed.

As luck would have it, it was her husband who purchased the seats and was planning to give them as a present. “Brian knew I’d call the store asking for them, and made sure that the employee didn’t inform me he’d bought them,” Stacey says.

Floor light: Saffron and Genevieve

Shannon Malone

Stacey loves the accumulated, layered look. She is inspired by a Really feminine and somewhat French aesthetic, and by designers like Mary McDonald, Jan Showers, Charlotte Moss and Susan Kasler.

This faux fireplace in the living area was passed to Stacey from her grandma. It was added here specifically to exhibit the mirror.

Coffee table: Craigslist

Shannon Malone

The living room sofa is a custom upholstered piece by Lee Industries, decorated with throw pillows designed by Stacey.

In the formal living area and the family area, classic shutters found at a store in Los Gatos, California, add architectural interest.

Shannon Malone

Custom rug lining on the staircase gives the household dogs more grip on the flooring.

This seat on the staircase is a reupholstered family heirloom. Stacey’s father built the shelving unit, and it is currently home to a selection of antiques.

Art: Cary Nowell

Shannon Malone

Stacey altered the upstairs landing to a workspace for her style company. The office area is covered with personal sources of inspiration and unique artwork.

Shannon Malone

This dresser on the staircase landing was Stacey’s first classic purchase. She purchased it for $99 when she was 16, and it’s moved with her to each new home.

Shannon Malone

Stacey’s workspace leads to one of the bedrooms, which functions as an additional work area for the arts and crafts.

Shannon Malone

“My son, Patrick, wanted his room for a ‘gentleman’s room,” Stacey says. Keeping this in mind, she made with darker brown and grey colors, aiming for a more complicated but still young aesthetic.

Shannon Malone

Stacey picked a dark blue hue for Patrick’s upstairs bath, giving the space a more masculine feel. She made custom-made curtains, additional accumulated decor and changed out the mirror.

Paint: Newburyport Blue, Benjamin Moore

Shannon Malone

Stacey chose neutral colors and a unisex decor for the master bedroom. The mattress is made of walnut with a custom made and a custom-designed canopy. She had the small tufted seat made for their dogs to enjoy.

Shannon Malone

The couple gutted the master bath, raising the bathtub size and the shower area. They installed custom cabinets and tile, and also an integrated medication cupboard disguised as a wall mounted mirror.

Tile: Sonoma Tilemakers; stool: Wisteria

Shannon Malone

Stacey brought her decorating technique for her garden, too. “I layered all the plants and decor to provide it more privacy,” she says.

Shannon Malone

Brian wanted the outside of their house to have an appearance that was similar to that which he watched growing up on the East Coast. The couple additional shingled siding, larger columns, a custom made door and an overhang above the door.

Shannon Malone

The Costellos’ two dogs, Ruby and Coco (here with Stacey) are a big part of the family members and provide a warm welcome to all their visitors.

Do you reside in a gathered, personalized home? Share it with us!

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A Dallas Home Goes Modern and Artful

First-time homeowners Matt and Mary Emma Hawthorne orchestrated a modern remodel of the Dallas house like experienced professionals. Their secret? A crystal-clear vision and lots of research. Matt says, “We wanted a fresh, intentional space prepared for our artwork and artifacts.” Mary Emma adds, “But we wanted to do it right the first time.”

Both Matt and Mary Emma possess a similar layout aesthetic, letting them move ahead on their remodel with a unified vision. Matt, an expert photographer, provided a computing eye for detail, colour and space. Mary Emma, an artist, attracted her keen understanding of texture, layering and organic forms. Together, this young couple produced a modern gem with a handmade feel.

at a Glance
Who lives here: Matt and Mary Emma Hawthorne, their 1-year-old son, Oliver, and cat Parker
Location: Lake Highlands neighborhood of Dallas
Size: 3 bedrooms, 2 baths
That’s interesting: Mary Emma’s father is a lifelong art collector and awarded the family lots of the pieces exhibited in the house.

Sarah Greenman

The Hawthornes spent the first five years of the union in a small apartment filled with hand-me-downs, saving their pennies for some time when they can create their own dream space.

Sarah Greenman: Tell me about your decorating Procedure.
Mary Emma Hawthorne: After forfeiting for such a long time, it had been this fun to pick out furniture and fittings.
Matt Hawthorne: We see furniture as artwork also. When we had been making initial decisions about furniture, we chose a blueprint and cut out furniture contours to scale and moved them around on the paper until we had the ideal configuration. Everything was planned.

SG: How would you describe your own personal aesthetic?
MH: That is tough. It is a lot of things. Urban. Modern. Organic. Eclectic. Minimal.
MEH: I seek out authenticity. Some of the “artwork” in our house is just real artifacts from our journeys. A drum from a box or Indonesia from Ghana. We enjoy things that are real.

Art: “Water Well,” by Mary Emma Hawthorne, dining table: Bo Concept; seats: Design Within Reach; bookcase: Expedit, Ikea

Sarah Greenman

SG: How did you realize that was the ideal house for your renovation?
MH: We wanted a house that had no prior renovations. Why pay for updates which you’re only going to take out? It was built in the 1950s, and we enjoyed the floor plan. We dissected each house that we looked at and knew that this one would best match our vision.
MEH: We spent a lot of time in each home. I believe what I enjoyed the most was that the face of the house was directly across, accentuating the clean-line texture.

Art (far left): Beast sculpture by Patrick Mehaffy and “Nana” by James Havard

Sarah Greenman

SG: After you chose the house, how can you decide on a contractor?
MH: We went with Scott Powell of New Leaf Construction since he was confident he could do exactly what we wanted within our budget.
MEH: We just sat down and chatted with builders. Some of them had their own ideas about layout which didn’t jive with what we wanted.
MH: We were very picky.

Sofa: Gus Modern; java table: Anthropologie

Sarah Greenman

SG: I understand you were on a budget. What was your greatest steal?
MEH: The 3 globe pendants dangling in the kitchen. I used to be a screen coordinator at Anthropologie and got them for $30 apiece rather than the first $200.

Bar Condominiums:
Sportsman’s Guide

Sarah Greenman

The excellent room is anchored by a huge piece of abstract artwork by Dirk de Bruycker, which greets guests as they enter the front door.

Sarah Greenman

Oliver just celebrated his first birthday and loves to scoot around the house. He is, building a escape down the hallway to his bedroom.

End table: Crate & Barrel; lamp: Bo Concept

Sarah Greenman

Oliver’s area is filled with vintage toys and whimsical artwork, much of it created by Mary Emma. The red screen-print above the crib is by Evan Hecox.

Crib: Walmart; dresser/changing table: Oeuf

Sarah Greenman

Wire baskets under a wooden chair provide storage room for Oliver’s books and trinkets. The silver roadster from Design Within Reach was a present.

Armchair: Small Castle, Baby Bliss

Sarah Greenman

Oliver’s playthings are neatly tucked away on shelves by Ikea.

SG: How has your home’s design changed since you’d Oliver?
MEH: It has not. After we were pregnant we had been nervous. Spaghetti on walls! But I couldn’t care less today.
MH: The house stands up. If Oliver bangs a toy on the wall, I believe “uh-oh,” but it is fine.

Sarah Greenman

Although the hallway bathroom is small, it is inviting and well appointed. Mary Emma points to the countertop and says, “This is a struggle that I won. Matt wanted a different whitened, but this white has little flecks in various earth tones. It goes great with the wood floors.”

Sarah Greenman

The guest area doubles as a workplace. The artwork above the bed is among Mary Emma’s first functions.

Sarah Greenman

The office is a clean, compact space. The framed Polaroids above the desk were shot by Matt. See Matt Hawthorne Photography for much more of his photography work.

Desk, drawers: Ikea

Sarah Greenman

Mary Emma’s desk can be from Ikea. The seat is a discovered object she obtained while working at Anthropologie. The artwork above the desk is by Cody Hudson. It was a present from Mary Emma’s father purchased at The Public Trust a gallery at the Regional Deep Ellum neighborhood.

Sarah Greenman

Atop her desk is Mary Emma’s prize possession: a paintbrush that once belonged to abstract impressionist Agnes Martin.

Sarah Greenman

A low-lying platform bed covered in a strong grey quilt, either from Crate & Barrel, is the centerpiece of this master bedroom.

Art: Waddy Armstrong (over headboard), Mary Emma Hawthorne (next to TV); lamp, side table: CB2

Sarah Greenman

SG: Where are your favorite places to look for home products?
MH: We enjoy Design Within Reach, West Elm, Bo Concept, global markets while traveling and small, interesting boutiques.

The master bath is simple, practical and monochromatic with a double sink and a huge glass walk-in shower.

Sarah Greenman

There was no backyard landscaping once the family moved in, so that they brought in 10,000 pounds of dirt, built a short retaining wall by hand and installed grass. Potted succulents, aloe and agave anchor the edges of the patio.

Painted brick, dark grey trim and bright green grass create a pure framework that showcases the home’s crisp, clean curb appeal.

Sarah Greenman

Mary Emma retains Oliver while Matt leafs through a few of his art books. The excellent room, with a view from the bay window, is a favorite spot for the Hawthorne family.

SG: what’s your advice to homeowners interested in remodeling at a modern style?
MH: Don’t rush it and don’t be trendy.
MEH: We often see modern remodels that seem cool at first, then quickly become obsolete.
MH: And do your research. Make sure your contractor is on precisely the same page. His answers must be in line with the homeowner’s vision.

Do you have a creative, modern home? Share it with us!

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A Venetian Courtyard Shows Mastery from the Details

From the early 1960s architect Carlo Scarpa (1906–1978) helped transform the ground floor and courtyard of This 16th-century Palazzo Querini Stampalia to the Fondazione Querini Stampalia, a museum and cultural Association between St. Mark’s Basilica and the Rialto Bridge in the heart of Venice, Italy. In previous years the base had occupied the building, but flood of the earth floor meant the spaces that there could not be used to their entire scope. Scarpa’s interventions helped maintain the building usable and also an important cultural complex in town.

About three excursions to Venice, I have seen the building three times, but the latest trip was the first once the courtyard was available. This ideabook files my trip to the ground floor, the courtyard and other parts of the building. Scarpa has been a master of producing magnificent details, as you’ll see.

John Hill

Being in canal-rich Venice, the Querini Stampalia base is accessed by bridge. (In recent decades, the entry shifted from a Scarpa-designed bridge to a different one on the opposite side of the building). A glance from across the canal reveals the major spaces in Scarpa’s transformation: the entry space behind the gates, the exhibition hall outside and the courtyard in the rear.

John Hill

Access from the bridge means that people move through the entrance sequence differently now. The distance from where this picture was taken was formerly a dead end — an exhibition space that has been permitted to flood throughout the greatest waters. Now it is the primary access from the ticketing booth and the bookstore to Scarpa’s ground-floor spaces and the upstairs library and museum.

John Hill

Scarpa’s treatment of the room behind the two gates is genuinely remarkable. Does his layout nevertheless allow water within the building (not uncommon in Venice), but it celebrates the water by means of a succession of steps at several heights and also a cantilevered border on the raised walkway. The walkway’s surface actually contrasts with the high-water line.

John Hill

Marking the transition between the entry hall and the exhibition space beyond is a glass wall emphasized by an enclosure. The complex articulation of the stone panels makes the enclosure seem to be for something particular, but in fact it simply covers a radiator.

John Hill

A closer look in the enclosure — awaiting the courtyard in the distance — provides a glimpse of the black radiator that functions the exhibition space. The entry hall is an interior space, inside the confines of the building but available to the elements, so this transition is in fact very important. In this regard, giving a lot of attention to the radiator enclosure makes much sense; it marks an important change within the realm of the ground floor.

John Hill

The exhibition hall appears fairly simple, but it consists of concrete, stone, metal and glass in an asymmetrical grid. The lines on the floor and the glass bits in the wall give the distance a rhythm toward the courtyard.

John Hill

A detail view of the wall illustrates how much attention Scarpa gave to the materials. The elegant travertine stone panels on the wall comparison with the rough concrete on the floor. The brass railing separating the 2 groups of travertine was created as a service for lighting fixtures; it certainly doesn’t seem as pragmatic as its objective.

John Hill

At 1 corner of the exhibition hall, a door opens to a distance that leads to the staircase. The form of the door recalls the radiator enclosure, meaning that Scarpa produced a world of details that he repeated to give consistency to the project. As we will see, that does happen again, but the tactic did not limit his saying.

John Hill

The courtyard is a beautiful space characterized partially by two neighbors, a brick wall covered in ivy. In this space Scarpa added a concrete wall to help define smaller areas (behind it is what’s now a café) and also to install distinct components inside the grassy courtyard.

John Hill

One of these elements is a tiny square pool with lily pads. It may seem odd to add water attributes to a courtyard in Venice, but given how Scarpa celebrated the canal’s water, so it is not surprising that he created this aquatic anchor from the backyard.

John Hill

From the cement walls, Scarpa also added a receptacle that collects rainwater. I see it also as a vase for flowers or for carrying other things. The mosaic line that goes across the cement wall is just another detail that Scarpa reiterated; it is observable around the swimming pool in the previous photograph, and we are going to see it later back inside.

John Hill

Yet another water element is found in the courtyard: a linear trough that visitors experience immediately when walking outside. The fountain is perpendicular to the concrete stripes in the hallway, the canal and also the entry walkway. While the overall motion is from front to rear — canal to courtyard — these perpendicular pieces make the motion more meandering than direct. Like the square pool, the fountain is covered in lily pads, but instead of a metallic enclosure it is all concrete.

John Hill

The head of the fountain is a lovely carved stone piece that makes the water trace a circuitous path before it goes on its own way.

John Hill

In the opposite end of the fountain, a scupper deposits the water into a round basin. This detail recalls Japanese gardens with no derivative. While barely repeating design themes from other parts of the building, the dividing of the stone still seems to fit in with the whole.

I love to believe that the predominant motif is a L-shape profile — a balance of both different types of motion in the design — that are available regardless of formal details. Look at the first photograph in this ideabook to see an L-shape profile in the decorative patterning about the metal gates.

John Hill

One such L-shape profile occurs on a wall panel in what was traditionally the main entrance on the ground floor. Although this space has lost its importance in the general fluidity of the building’s promenade, details such as the board, the mosaic floor and the way the walkway is held back from the walls are still present and part of the encounter.

John Hill

The old principal entrance leads to the staircase and to access to the library and the museum upstairs.

The rebuilt portal exhibits Scarpa’s sensitivity together with older buildings. (He seemed to possess specialized in changing older buildings to new uses, given projects like this and Castelvecchio, a castle in Verona, Italy, transformed into a museum)

The architect did not mimic the old details, but he respected them in how he handled the finishes and the way he used the portal site as a transition to the upstairs areas.

John Hill

The last group of photographs focuses on details in the staircase. In this photo we can see three of them: the handrail supports, the opening for the light in the landing and the stairs.

The first two will be discussed soon, but notice the way the risers have a gap in the center. This may seem frivolous, but they draw attention to the fact that the treads and the risers sit on top of and facing the old stone staircase. The 20th-century stone pieces shield the 400-year-old steps.

John Hill

The steel handrail supports are still an intriguing detail, one that I believe is related to the treads. Instead of bringing down them, potentially landing on the new treads, Scarpa gave them a more Z shape (or can it be two L shapes?) To avert this. Hence the handrail is positioned over the tread, but the service is rooted in the old measure, calling attention to the gap between old and new. Similarly, the new wall panels stop short of the treads, revealing the older walls.

John Hill

In the landing, marking the entry to the library, is a round light fixture. Below it is a ceiling using a double-circle cutout, a layout that resembles a single mobile mutating, as though the light has begun to divide into 2.

John Hill

Halfway up to the library is just another light fixture, square rather than round yet picking up on an identical paired theme.

John Hill

This last detail is a view of the landing as the stair turns 90 degrees. This flip is celebrated via the round notch that occurs in the junction of the borders of the tread and the landing. The detail is a version on the square top found from the radiator enclosure. Many people probably wouldn’t notice this stair depth (I did not notice it before going back down the staircase), but it reveals how no detail was too small for Scarpa; they were significant.

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A Melbourne Gem Harnesses Feng Shui

When bed linen designer Tracie Ellis bought her home in Melbourne, she knew that it was special. The home immediately stuck out, a midcentury stone in a neighborhood filled with Victorians, Edwardians, California bungalows and recently developed constructions. Ellis also lists of a number of different features that endear her light-filled residence: “Unlike other houses on the block, our home faces our neighbors rather than the road. In addition, we have loads of outdoor space, a lovely kitchen and a small collection of art to which I’ve grown quite a attachment,” says Ellis.

at a Glance
Who lives here: Tracie and David Ellis and their dog, Max
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Size: 2,000 square feet
That’s interesting: The house’s first architects were John and Phyllis Murphy, known for designing the 1956 Melbourne Olympic pool, one of Australia’s most defining modernist structures.

Sharyn Cairns

Ellis eliminated two French doors from the living room space and replaced them with big sliding glass doors, bringing the living space and the outdoor deck space together as one big space.

“The leading deck contested us. The wisteria tree introduced a few problems, and we made sure to not damage any of its origins. It was planted in 1954, and that I still have this image of this being a tiny shrub,” she states.

Sharyn Cairns

The flooring, a mild wood out in the front deck and also a darker completed blot from the living room, makes a subtle differentiation and transition from indoor to outdoor space.

Although Ellis opened the front living areas, she and her husband requested for hidden sliding doors to close off rooms and make intimate areas throughout the home. “I enjoy a open floor plan, however that I also enjoy the ambiance of spaces that are defined,” she states.

Light pendant: Nelson Bubble Lamp, Y Lighting; chair: Bertoia Diamond Lounge Chair with Seat Pad, Design Within Reach

Sharyn Cairns

Ellis and her husband met with a feng shui expert until they moved into their property. “She informed us that the place had a fantastic feeling, that it was a happy location. But she pointed out the changes we needed to create, such as changing door-opening directions and moving doorways, so that we can keep the fantastic energy,” says Ellis.

Sectional: Bosko, Jardan Sofa; pouf: Fez, Morroco

Sharyn Cairns

Any scratches on the floor are probably from Max’, as Ellis and her husband normally have a shoes-off policy in the home. The walls are clad in Aalto’s Inherent White, Ellis’ tried and trusted shade of inside white paint.

Coffee table: Barcelona by Harry Bertoia, Design Within Reach

Sharyn Cairns

Sharyn Cairns

The kitchen is your hardest-working room in the home. Ellis, a passionate cook, evaluations out various recipes and delights in entertaining her family in the heart center of the home.

“My husband and I spend hours and hours discussing new ideas for our home decoration company, Aura, in the kitchen. We are always reading through books and magazines, using the island as a location to house the clutter,” says Ellis.

A regret? Failing to install undersurface and built in electric outlets for their laptops.

Bar stool: Charles Ghost Stool by Philippe Starck, Space Furniture

Sharyn Cairns

“For good feng shui, we added the walnut wood cabinets and dining table so there’s a grounding, natural component in the kitchen and dining room. Our last home was very minimal and all white, so that I love that the kitchen is not totally white,” says Ellis.

Sharyn Cairns

Like many homeowners, Ellis admits that she cleaned up for the inside shots of her house. “Right now our home office is filled with tear sheets and disposition boards for our country house in Kyneton, Victoria, so we’ve had to relocate control fundamental to the kitchen,” she states.

The couple also stores their big group of magazines and travel books in the home office. “We are constantly dreaming of our next adventure,” says Ellis.

A abstract painting by Ellis’ mother, Robyn Donovan, gives the white and black space some color and feel.

Sharyn Cairns

One of the designer’s treasured pieces of artwork is by Mitjili Napurrula, a gorgeous red and white canvas with “amazing depth and rich red hues,” Ellis says. Her husband bought it on their first wedding anniversary.

Sharyn Cairns

Floating his and hers sinks create this master bath chic, functional and space efficient.

Sharyn Cairns

For someone who layouts bed linens for a dwelling, Ellis has an unexpectedly casual approach into the bedroom. Pendants dangle from the ceiling and take the area of desk lamps, drawing the eyes up. An Eames chair creates a fashionable substitute for a bedside table, because its mould has more depth for stacked novels, the day’s clothes and other loose items.

Sharyn Cairns

“I really like a mattress that is put together nicely and layered, but my own linens are not fitted or crisp. I relish in the lived-in look. I really don’t iron my linen,” says Ellis.

Here, the couple’s beloved pooch adds that lived-in appeal into a energizing ruby-red guest room.

Bed linens: Aura

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A Maine Beach Cottage Evokes the Sea

Interior designer Tyler Karu and her husband, Brendan, are year-rounders in a tiny coastal community peppered with summertime visitors — and Karu, a Maine native, would not have it any other way. “Our house seems really Maine to me. Believe it or not, walking across the beach by our house gets me feel Maine in my spirit,” she says. The designer expresses her connectedness to the place by sprinkling her home with components from her and her husband’s history — and of course, filling each room in the house with nautical tokens that evoke the rhythms of the sea.

in a Glance
Who lives here: Tyler Karu, Brendan Ready and their dog, Haddock
Location: Prouts Neck, Scarborough, Maine
Size: 1,700 square feet

Landing Design

A vintage life preserver and a fishing escape hang on a post by the dining area, a symbol of the way the homeowners’ lives are attached to the goings-on by the docks. Dinners are punctuated by the crashing of the waves surrounding.

“The brutal winters make the summer and drop that much more enjoyable for us year-rounders who live here,” says Karu.

Landing Design

In the living room, Karu tempered the formality of a gray tufted sectional by layering in splashy throws, pillow cloths and a striped custom-upholstered wingback chair. The bamboo dividers and chevron-pattern jute rug add heat into this light-filled location.

Sectional: Bludot; rug: Serena & Lily; lamps: Portland Architectural Salvage; wingback: Hudson’s Bay

Landing Design

The corner reading corner theme is Maine nautical matches ’70s glam — a fantastic example of Karu’s penchant for unique pairings. The designer uttered the rocking chair in the family home; the glass ball is a vintage fishing float, a nod to the house’s coastal context and her husband’s seafood enterprise.

Fishing float: Portland Architectural Salvage

Landing Design

A vintage cabinet in the dining room homes serving pieces. Some are family heirlooms; a few are collected from flea markets as well as from Target. The white skull, by artist John White, was a present from an aunt.

Landing Design

The kitchen island is made of an old railway cart. Karu added the pub extension after bringing the cart indoors, so the whole block no longer fits through some of the doors.

A look through the kitchen window reveals a garden within walking distance of the beach. “It’s always a wonderful sight to see friends and family relaxing in the living room or totally wiped out in the guest room after a complete day at the beach,” says Karu.

Landing Design

A portrait of the family’s beloved Brussels Griffon, Haddock, with a Maine Art College student hangs above the muse and version within an antique settee.

Art: Laura Alexander

Landing Design

The guest room, dubbed “Haddock’s Room,” strikes a nautical note using its navy blue partitions. “This chamber is where Haddock hangs out. He sits on the bed or side chair and watches folks come and go from the window,” says Karu.

Landing Design

Leon Levonstein, Karu’s great-uncle, was a urban photographer. “Some of these framed photographs are his, such as the small one of my father as a young boy,” says Karu.

Other framed photographs are from Karu and her husband’s wedding. The print is by illustrator Hugo Guinness.

Landing Design

The couple’s bed frame is a piece from Karu’s childhood; the wood detail on the bed resembles both a compass rose and a ship’s wheel. Even though the bed frame and the throw pillow evoke a nautical theme, plantation shutters, an antique Persian rug and vintage bedside tables lend the room an eclectic touch.

Art: Gary Copeland; seat: Calypso Home; side tables: eBay; wall paint: Ice Cube Silver, Benjamin Moore

Landing Design

A captain’s mirror above a refurbished vanity which has been abandoned in the garage pulls the eye — but look closer in the master bath and you’ll see a less obvious piece that conjures up that boat-on-the-dock texture: cleats from a marine supply shop that Karu utilizes to hold her bangles.

Wall paint: Smoke Embers, Benjamin Moore

Landing Design

The next guest room stays flexible with twin beds out of Karu’s husband’s childhood.

Wall paint: Steep Cliff Gray, Benjamin Moore

Landing Design

The designer called Manhattan home; she pays homage to the Big Apple with a framed subway map print by Triboro Design that leans against the wall. She dressed her home office table using an old Williams Sonoma duvet cover.

“Although I feel more productive in my Portland office [about 7 kilometers off], I am a lot more creative in this room in your home,” says Karu.

Landing Design

After Karu and her husband moved into their beach cottage, they set the goal of restoring its original appearance and texture. “We inherited a home that has been reeling from a few dated renovations, and we have been chipping away at it gradually ever since,” says Karu.

More:
Dip a Toe Into Modern Nautical Style

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Master Gold and Silver's Metallic Mix

Metallics are all the rage at the moment, which means silver and gold alike are topping the décor charts. If both hit your fancy and you’re worried you are going to have to select one or the other, you can breathe a sigh of relief. Gone is yesterday’s perception that silver and gold do not belong at the same ensemble; in actuality, mixing them is supported.

Metallics are dynamic by nature, and the mix of silver and gold in particular lends not just an intriguing contrast but also a feeling of visual measurement and feel. With the right balance of the two, your house can feel equally tasteful and eclectic.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed or intimidated by this venture, keep reading for several recommendations to begin making the look work for you. Happy mixing!

For People design

Don’t feel like you need to go wild off the bat. Rather, build your confidence by beginning small. It might be as simple as introducing a chair with silver elements into a space with gold accessories.

Garrison Hullinger Interior Design Inc..

Or pull gold accessories right into a room with silver hardware. By starting with smaller quantities of both gold and silver, you can get a sense for how the 2 metallics play off each other without worrying about too permanent a commitment.

Amoroso Design

Play with vignettes. Don’t feel like they have to be complicated: Transferring a silver chair under a gold-framed image will give you a feeling of how each component acts within the space.

Jamie Laubhan-Oliver

Add more silver and gold accessories for your vignette to see how different colors of every interact. Try many different objects until you get the balance right. Knowing how to attack equilibrium in smaller sections will give you more confidence to pull off the colors across the space, if that is what you’re aiming to ultimately do.

CIH Design

Instead of accessories or frames, see how gold or silver furnishings work inside a vignette. Being both silver and gold, this piece does double duty: it is silver backsplash produces a balanced contrast against the gold lamppost and image frame.

For People design

Once you’re feeling more sure of yourself, you can pull silver and gold further into the area. In case you have gold near the top of the area, such as in a light fixture, pull down the color by including a rug with gold accents. Pepper the space in between, for example table surfaces, with silver accessories to achieve that feeling of balance.

Nina Jizhar

Step away and look at the big image. Have you ever chosen curtains with a gold hue in your dining area? Center your desk in front of the chimney and hang on a silver ceiling fixture; even once you walk in the space, you are going to see just how one complements the other.

Heather Garrett Design

This is another case of looking at the big image. In case you’ve got several gold pieces in your walls, think about balancing the look with a silver coffee table or even silver accessories beneath your current coffee table.

Susan Jay Design

Be daring with your contrasts. Finish a silver vanity counter in the toilet with a gold sink and tap.

Sindahl

Consider how you see to your walls. 1 option is to pick wallpaper with metallic features, then fill the space with silver and gold accessories to play off the wallpaper.

Chic Decor & Design, Margarida Oliveira

Or think about translating among those colors into a relaxing shade with paint. Think buttery gold or silver grayish silver. These can mix with both silver and gold accents without stealing the show.

Martha O’Hara Interiors

In case you’ve got a large space, look at creating a separation of places by concentrating more gold in 1 space and more silver in a different. In this bedroom, the sitting area features more colors of silver while the mattress itself is heavier in golds, creating distinction in every space. On the other hand, the entire area as a whole feels cohesive as the drapes and paint pull in both colors.

Jerry Jacobs Design, Inc..

Look at going big with a single colour and settling for accents with the other. This set of Japanese silver screens invigorates this space with an eclectic punch; gold accessories onto the coffee table provide just the ideal subtle variation.

Panache Interiors

Or if gold is more your colour, make a splash with a ceiling painted in the shade. A mattress frame in silver complements the daring paint option so it will not seem overwhelming. Who could not help but feel glamorous beneath this stunning ceiling?

More:
With Metallics to Brighten Up Any Space
Adding Shine to Your Home With Metal and Metallics
Sparkly and Heating: Decorating With Gold

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5 Fragrant Mid-Century Modern Homes

The term Mid-century Modern tends to be pitched around aimlessly (I’ve been guilty of this myself), so we’re going to have a look at some dazzling houses that truly embody the style. The majority of the examples below are recently renovated, to undo 1970s or 1980s renovations, to add to the square footage, and/or to make them more energy efficient.

In every job, the designers admired the spirit of the first details and plans. And we’ve got full home tours of each, which you might link over to and research through the numbered titles.

The Office of Charles de Lisle

1. 1950s William Wurster ranch: Architect Charles Delisle respected the background of the home in California’s Portola Valley, keeping the spirit of this era living by means of a mixture of modern and custom pieces.

The Office of Charles de Lisle

This new custom built cupboard plays a classic mid-century color palette and blocky geometry, but includes a fresh appearance.

The Office of Charles de Lisle

A group of ceramics is a nod to the background of mid-century in California.

Watch the rest of the home

Hammer Architects

2. Mid-century Modern second home on Cape Cod: The first butterfly-roofed wing to the house on this site was designed by Henry Hebblin, who’d studied together with Eero Saarinen and functioned for Alvar Aalto.

When Mark Hammer was hired to winterize the home and layout an improvement, he kept Hebblin’s part of the home and gleaned inspiration from the butterfly roof.

Tour another modern Cape Cod renovation by Hammer Architects

Hammer Architects

The last renovation was designed with sustainability in mind. The once seasonal dwelling now functions as a yearlong home, with elements that can be shut off and save energy when there aren’t guests, also makes the most of natural light. Most importantly, Hammer has created continuity between the mid century and the new structure.

Watch the rest of the home | More about Cape Cod/Boston’s Regional Modernism

Beth Dotolo, ASID, RID, NCIDQ

3. Family-friendly Mid-century Modern: Pulp Style Studios was charged with developing a stylish nest for a young family. A gentle modern approach filled with vibrant color was the answer. The classicly open space is grounded with all the lively Missoni rug and includes a classic Bertoia Bird Chair.

Beth Dotolo, ASID, RID, NCIDQ

A child’s size Cherner table and chairs is perfect for small modernists. There are many classic child-sized pieces on the market these days that it’s easy to take a mid-century aesthetic into childrens’ bedrooms and playrooms.

Learn More About Cherner Chairs

Beth Dotolo, ASID, RID, NCIDQ

The artwork arrangement is a variation on the classic modern grid, alternating horizontal and vertical rectangular frames. It is a wonderful way to keep the family photos on screen in a tight, modern manner.

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Jenny Mitchell

4. Atomic Flair from the Blue Ridge Mountains: For blogger and vintage maven Jenny Mitchell, the home was love at first sight.

Her attention for atomic style and talent for discovering thrifted treasures have caused a fun and cheerful home that combines old and new seamlessly.

While a self-described”minimalist-maximalist,” Mitchell knew that all this terrace needed was two bright butterfly chairs to provide it a big mid-century pop of design.

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Gary Hutton Design

5. 1962 Custom Eichler House Renovation: Located on San Francisco Bay, the house’s original mid-century charm was wiped out by a misguided 1980s renovation. Designer Gary Hutton was able to get his hands to the first plans and bring this home back to its original glory.

Gary Hutton Design

Nothing brings out a mid century house’s best like among the best royal furniture and art collections around. Here we’re looking over a Nelson Marshmallow Sofa to a first Andy Warhol.

Gary Hutton Design

Saarinen Executive Chairs, a Florence Knoll table plus a PH Pendant create the ultimate mid-century area.

Gary Hutton Design

Ultimately, a rare Eames match table using a massive slice by Sarah Morris from the backdrop produces a vibrant corner. In terms of the head to the desk, I don’t have any idea. Does anybody know its history? Please discuss in the Comments section. See more of the home.

More:
Modern or Contemporary: What is the Difference?
Warm, Mid-Century Makeover
When MoMA Is The Next Door Neighbor

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