Family Treasures

One of the big things going on in my life right now is getting my parents Cape Cod house ready for sale. It's a big, and emotional, task as anyone who has done this knows. Luckily, my parents took great pride in their house of 30 years and were not pack rats. My Mom tended to throw everything out while my Dad was an archivist at heart. If you want the receipt for pretty much every major (and sometimes minor) purchase, it was filed. He has a notebook on the house - everything that was done, photos from when they bought it (it was dated looking then and was only five years old at the time), and how much he spent on the original renovations such as the new kitchen he designed and installed himself. He also had file folders documenting every other house they owned in their married lives. While they lived here for half their married lives, they actually owned five other homes across Massachusetts, upstate New York and New Jersey before returning to Massachusetts.

And so, now along with sorting all the personal bits and bobs (I should call them Dots and Bobs because that was their names) of a lifetime, we're also taking care of all the minor cosmetic things that need doing. This house was their pride and joy and I intend to honor my parents by passing it along to the next family in as good condition as possible. I have contractors here repainting the outside, the bathrooms and installing a new stove and microwave - things of that nature. I took the photo above last week on the one nice day we've had yet this spring because I wanted to capture the fleeting beauty of the magnolia tree. By the time the house is ready to be on the market (end of May likely), the blooms will have dropped. But taking over will be the gorgeous cherry tree on the far right of the photo - which right now barely shows any budding.

I've also hired a professional Organizer - Sharon Fisher of Come to Order! - to help me sort through the house, packing, donating, tossing, etc. It's a big job and I knew I couldn't handle it myself. Too often, we, especially women, feel we're supposed to be doing everything without help. Pooh on that, I say! I even had Peapod deliver my groceries this week. Sharon got the job done far faster than I would have on my own and kept me focused on making decisions and moving forward. In a couple of weeks I'll have a bunch of my own stuff and furniture not needed to stage the house moved to storage, a junk removal company come take away that stuff, carpet cleaners, etc, etc. It's a busy time, but it takes a lot to dis-assemble a long life of memories. And it reminds me to own less and treasure what I have more.

Speaking of treasures... in RoyRoy news, he had his neuter operation last week. I was supposed to be keeping him in the cone of shame, but hated doing it, so I've been keeping on top of him, even sleeping on the sofa with him to make sure he didn't chew the stitches. They yesterday morning I noticed they were gone. Oops. Brought him to the vet and they said one remained but all looked good. I also got the side-eye for not keeping him more immobilized. So, I bought this inflatable donut that attaches to his collar. I put it on him after dinner last night and he promptly fell asleep. His own personal pillow, I guess. I finally slept the night in my bed and he did so in his crate (well, most of the night anyway). Two more days and the final stitch can come out!

A family wedding

This is a big week for my family! My lovely niece Libby is getting married on Saturday!!

I took Libby and her sister Katie out to tea at the Taj Hotel a couple of weeks ago to celebrate. That's Libby on the left. When I first met her fiancé two years (or was it three?) ago, I said to my Mom that we'd just met her future grandson-in-law. Unfortunately, my Mom didn't make it to the wedding (which is very sad indeed as she so wanted to be there!) but we're not going to let that dampen our spirits. It's a big exciting day for all the families.

The wedding is at their church in Warwich RI, and the reception is at the Botanical Center at the Roger Williams Park in Providence. I thought I'd share some photos of the venue.

via

I actually don't know how the space will be decorated for the wedding, but am excited to see it. Hopefully the day will be nice - you never know in Springtime in New England!

One thing Libby has done that is so sweet is that she's put together a framed series of the wedding portraits from all four grandparents and both sets of parents  which will be hung up at the reception - a real homage to both sides of the newly formed family. Libby is also wearing my Mom's lace mantilla cathedral length veil which she bought it Venice 60 years ago.

I rarely (and by rarely, I mean never) do fashion here on my blog, but I wanted to share my dress which I'm very excited about! It was from Nordstrom and I bought online - luckily it worked. A big thanks to Lisa Marie's Boutique in Marshfield for doing the hems because of course, it needed about 6" taken off the bottom!  I still need to figure out some kind of wrap or jacket - it's only going to be in the 50's or 60's on Saturday.

Wishing Libby and Ryan all the happiness in the world - it's your wedding week!

My latest posts on Williams-Sonoma

Hi all - sorry for being such a no show on the blog recently! So much is going on in my life and business, it's hard to keep on top of it all.

My little RoyRoy had his neuter operation yesterday. He's mostly keeping calm and still today, sitting in the window at my feet. Trying to keep the cone of shame off him as much as possible - it's so huge on his little head he can barely walk with it on. Poor little baby! He's actually two, so not that much of a baby, but he is my baby!

I have two new articles up on the Williams-Sonoma Designer Marketplace blog:

6 Things I'd Tell My Younger Designer Self

and 

How To Get Your Design Work Featured in Local Media

I'm starting the design of a formal living room in a house I've been working on for a few years. We're taking inspiration from this sofa found on Pinterest:

Love it.

Finally, for designers, I have a great giveaway coming up, so stay tuned!

A traditional New England style home in a surprising location

Currently on the market is this traditional New England style home designed in 1978 by the famous New England Architecture firm of Royal Barry Wills Associates, Inc.. I'll share at the end of the post where this house is located - as I said, it's a surprising location for such a quintessential New England style.

From the map on their website, it's clear that the majority of their work is in the Northeast, with a smattering of locations around the country and other parts of the English speaking world. I wonder if the Australia and Virgin Islands locations are American's abroad looking for a feeling of home, or just fans of the style.  RBW has been designing houses since the 1920's and not all the early houses were in the classic New England vernacular - some were quite modern and other's very European storybook looking. Check out their chronology of houses here.  From the start, RBW was sought after for his classic and simple homes, many of which featured classic 1-1/2 story Cape Cod style.

Interestingly and incorrectly, the real estate listing and the news story which features this mystery location house I am featuring here as a Cape Cod style house - which it's not, it's a classic symmetrical center entrance Georgian style (1700-1780).

Cape Cod style houses were always small, with single story fronts. Below is a row of period Cape homes that are on a main street here on Cape Cod - I took this photos a couple of years ago and featured it in my White Houses of Cape Cod blog post - one of the most viewed posts I've done due to web searches for Cape Houses and White Houses. Cape Cod style houses feature both center and side front doors, with chimney's that run up the center of the house. Historic New England has a wonderful guide to architectural styles here.

When I first saw this house listing, I wondered if the interiors would match the classic New England exterior, or would it be done in the well-known style of its location (to be revealed later).

I was happy to see that the insides do indeed match the outsides - though the decor is probably a little "too" for my personal taste. I wouldn't mind a little mixing of styles and periods. The classic front entrance features pine floors and a simple staircase. I'd have loved to see some rugs here - a jaunty stripe on the stairs possibly.

The formal living room features beautiful paneling, made by Cliftondale Woodworkers of Saugus, Massachusetts (the story says Maine, but I'm pretty sure that it's MA). The furniture seems to be a bit dated - possibly it as last done in the early '90's. The rug, however, is the perfect worn looking oriental. New Englander's are known for keeping things till totally threadbare, so this fits right in!

The library's paneling and bookshelves are painted in Williamsburg Red.

The formal dining room features a fireplace and simple chair rail and wainscot.

By today's standards, this is a pretty small kitchen area, but I like it. The brick floor continues the (Williamsburg) red color theme into the space, which also has gray/blue cabinets in a simple flat panel design. I would have liked the beams to be a little wider and maybe a little less refined looking. It's funny, this color scheme is identical to my parent's open concept kitchen and family room - with the blue wood working, red brick accents and colonial styling including Windsor chairs, blue checked sofa and worn oriental rugs.

The large master bedroom features tongue and groove floors and more beautiful panel work. I like the collections of books in the window seats and the angled walls flanking the fireplace.

This bedroom features hand stenciled walls.

This shared bathroom (aka Jack and Jill) is dated and could definitely benefit from an update.

This is one of the bedrooms off the bathroom. I like that there's a little more color in here than we see in the other bedrooms.

An upstairs family room just screams '80's/'90's doesn't it?

The house is listed at over 5,000 sq. ft. - which doesn't look possible given the interiors we've seen - but must include out-buildings and the "wings".

The prevalence of outdoor seating areas is a real tip-off that we're not in New England here! Not that we don't have outdoor spaces, but our season is so short they aren't as common as other area's of the country.

So, any idea where in the US this house is situated?




























When I started looking at the photos, I wondered if the interiors would be traditional to the architecture, or showcase the very different style known as the Houston style, as showcased on my friend Joni Webb's blog Cote de Texas. Yes, this New England style house is located at 11030 Greenbay Street in Houston, Texas. It's on the market for $3.5Million - you can see the real estate listing here and there are several more photos of the house. All photos except my Cape Cod house photo are by TK Images.

So, what do you think? I have to wonder if they know the style isn't "Cape Cod", but feel it's more evocative than "Georgian", or that "Colonial" is mundane and "New England" style is too vague? Marketing is always a factor...

California Closets partners with Room to Dream Foundation

Way to go, California Closets!

The Room to Dream Foundation is pleased to announce California Closets of New England has agreed to be the official closet provider for the foundation’s room renovation projects.

 

“We are excited to be partnering with California Closets of New England,” says Room to Dream’s founder, Stefan Nathanson. “Every contribution made has allowed us to give back and put smiles on the children and families we serve. Having California Closets donate closets is a tremendous resource that goes directly to our end goal of providing lively but functional rooms for kids in need.”

 

The Room to Dream Foundation is a Boston-based non-profit organization dedicated to creating healing environments for children and adolescents suffering from chronic illnesses. Focusing its services on children and families living in low- and moderate-income urban and suburban areas, the foundation raises funds through donations and several events throughout the year. Additionally the foundation relies on the generosity of professional and amateur artists, interior designers, builders and others who volunteer their time to transform the living spaces of the afflicted child and his/her siblings, creating a room to dream of a healthier future. The foundation typically undertakes six to ten projects a year.

 

California Closets is an industry innovator and category leader, known for their custom designs, intuitive organization, and a commitment to creating an exemplary customer experience.  As the creators of the custom designed and installed storage industry, California Closets continually invests in innovative design solutions by sourcing trend-setting materials from around the world. California Closets installs more than 2,000 systems each year and has more than 8 showrooms throughout New England. “It is our pleasure to partner with Room to Dream as the official closet provider,” said Laura Stafford of California Closets. “We are looking forward to working together to make a positive impact on the kids and their families.” For more information on California Closets, please visitcaliforniaclosets.com.

Designs by Marilyn McLeod, Project Manager Mike Collins architect, Photos by Michael J. Lee