Dragonfly Designs: February 2017

A project I'm working on...

As a designer, I work on all sorts of projects. Sometimes people just want to focus on a room or two. Other times, I might be helping a client to furnish a newly purchased house. But I also work on start-to-finish construction projects where I am involved from the very beginning, helping to design rooms and specify finishes and furnishings before anything even exists. These projects can take many months or even years to complete. In fact, one of the projects I have been working on recently has been going on for almost two years now, and we are still not quite finished. I thought I'd show you the great room area from this project today.

This was a house that was built in the late 90's. I worked on it originally around 2005, when my client first purchased it. It's a vacation house on the lake and because it gets a lot of heavy use, it was starting to show signs of wear. Additionally, with an expanding family (new grandkids), the house needed a few new bedrooms and bathrooms. We started out with the simple intention of adding the two new bedrooms onto the existing second story, which previously only consisted of a master suite. However, as we got further into the project, almost the entire house got taken down to the studs and just about every surface material was replaced.

Again, we're not quite finished, especially with accessories and artwork, but here are some photos of what things are looking like now in the great room...

Great Room Seating Area--area rug from Stark Carpet, sofa fabric from Glant and trims from Samuels and Sons, toss pillow fabrics from Fortuny. There is a lot of heavy log work in this house as you can see on the ceilings, the posts on the cabinetry and the trim-work on the hearth. Some of it was saved from the original construction and other logs were added in the remodel.

The client loves soft colors and wanted a warm inviting, family-friendly atmosphere in the great-room which often hosts large groups and family holidays.

The walls are all Venetian plastered in a soft beige and the rustic floors are from Du Chateau...

Du Chateau antiqued and heavily distressed reclaimed flooring.

In the entry we used antique Jerusalem Stone pavers, shipped over from Europe. Their soft colors blend in beautifully with the Venetian plaster-work...

Close-up view of the love-seat and coffee table by local wood artisans, Finishing Touch of Tahoe City. The green leather swivel chairs were part of the 2005 decorating and are from Hancock and Moore. Everyone in the family loves these as they rock, swivel, recline and can be turned around to face the wall of windows lakeside.

This gorgeous little side table and lamp are from Gregorious Pineo.

Detail of the metalwork on the table.

I love the rusted steel detail on the coffee table leg. Finishing Touch also supplied us with a rustic mantle, bar top and the kitchen island counter top. They are currently at work making bedside tables for all the bedrooms and I can't wait to see them completed!

The rustic floor is so pretty with the soft colors on the furnishings.

Ottoman details--fabric top from Fortuny, leather sides and rustic trimmings from Samuel and Sons.

Sofa detail showing the Glant chenille fabric with leather and nailhead trims from Samuel and Sons.

Centered over the coffee table, is a large light fixture from Gregorious Pineo. Here you see the logwork trim on the ceiling and surrounding the cabinetry and fireplace.

Bar area. Again, artwork and accessories are something we're working on. The charming copper pendants are from Aldo Bernardi.

Close-up of bar stools. Trim by Samuels and Sons.

I have tried to include photos of the lake-side wall of this room, but the reflection on the lake creates so much glare that the photos are useless. My apologies for not being able to include any of these shots.

Metalwork by Truckee's Mountain Forge.

A banquette handles large crowds in the dining area. Fabrics are by C & C Milano. Braided leather trim by Samuels and Sons.

A detail of banquette fabrics from C & C Milano.

Another huge Gregorious Pineo chandelier hangs over the dining table which was custom made by Bausman.

In the kitchen, a custom hood from Mountain Forge takes center stage.

The custom cabinetry from Bervid Construction is gorgeous.

Finishing Touch supplied the live edge island countertop.

A custom wildflower mural from Country Floors centers over the range.

We are still working on many aspects of this house and finishing up our punch list. Tops on our to do list are accessories and artwork, but these will come together shortly.

The contractor on the project was Eric Bervid and the architect was Dennis Zirbel.

Pretty Woodland Wall Treatment

Made from pine cones, vines, sticks, pods and other natural woodland bits and stuff. Beautiful!

This stunning wall goes way beyond loving-hands-at-home-style arts and crafts. Using natural materials, this elegant design mimics French boiserie (lower panel) and chinoiserie (upper area). Absolutely stunning! So get out your glue guns, folks...

This is an upstairs attic room in a country home owned by the proprietors of Boxwoods, the ultra-charming house and garden store in Atlanta.

"Transformed into a guest room, the third-floor attic space is a celebration of nature and human creativity. Randy decorated the walls by appliquéing real pine cones, acorns, hickory nuts, sweet gumballs, and honeysuckle vines onto them. The lower walls resemble ornate paneling; the upper walls’ fluid floral designs suggests the patterns from crewelwork. The room is a favorite for the children of visiting families."--Traditional Homes

Source: Traditional Homes Camp Boxwoods Attic Guest Room

The gorgeous country house, overall is a traditional Southern home, however, there are some very nice Black Forest pieces in it, and several other rooms have elements that apply to cabin decorating, too.

A beautiful stone fireplace has been enhanced with a white painted mantle, white-painted antique mirror and a collection of creamware, old crocks and silver.

Beautifully carved black forest chairs and a pair of magnificent antler candlesticks. The centerpiece also seems to be a carved Black Forest box of some sort.

A wonderful rustic kitchen--perfect for any cabin. Spectacular wide plank floor and matching wide planks on ceiling. The charming cabinets are actually an old candy counter cut in half (by the way, this is a look you could ask your cabinet maker to mimic--and don't forget the turned feet). The hood is fantastic!

I love the way this fireplace has been constructed with layers of elements. From the columns, to the carved garlands, the corbels under the mantle and the diagonal bead board. Add a coat of paint, and the whole conglomeration comes together as one beautiful unit!

Another Pinterest Page to Love--Bavarian Designs

I keep stumbling across these charming Pinterest pages where someone has lovingly put together an utterly charming collection of mountain images. The one I found today is called "Bavarian Design" and it's full of graphics, painted pieces, and furnishings with Bavarian patterns and motifs. If you love old school Swiss chalet style, then this is your board. It's a great resource for anyone out there who is creating a ski chalet and is looking for some authentic inspiration. Love it!

Click on the photo to link to the page.

By the way, I was happy to see a number of images included from this site as well as several from our online store: TahoeDreamInteriors.com.

Contemporary Rustic Style in Aspen with Richard Hallberg

Contemporary European chalet style is making its way to Aspen.

This project by Richard Hallbert is everything that is contemporary chalet style. It's clean, light and bright, with modern finishes and furnishings. Most importantly, clearly on display is that special element of oh-so-contemporary tongue-in-cheek referencing to mountain motifs and traditional craftsmanship that you see in today's modern European chalet style.

Just exactly what makes up that special element? It's the fur pillows, the hair-on-hide upholstery, the antler, horn and bark materials, the huge rustic logs. And yet, these references to the past and the traditional are judiciously sprinkled into what is, in all ways, a very modern interior.

This is a primarily white color scheme with a few touches of black.

Notice the very rugged rustic wood, both in the architectural elements such as the over-scale log posts and beams and in the furnishings and accessories, as well.

The wall texture gently undulates and the flooring consists of rustic wide planks in a grayed, distressed and aged finish. All this "hand-crafted" detail is in stark contrast with extremely modern elements such as this striking entry table.

In the den, furnishings are minimal, rustic, and in natural materials and muted colors. Distressed leather, horn, fur, wool and stone gently mix.

Again, in the kitchen ultra-modern elements contrast with the rugged and rustic.

A modern lucite coffee table is placed next to traditional antler furniture pieces. At the foot of the modern linen covered clean-lined upholstered bed is an Adirondack style birch bark trunk. White shag carpeting on the floors and modern artwork contribute to the overall contrast of slick, sleek and modern vs. rustic, nubby, natural and traditional.

The most modern of tubs, contemporary artwork and a modern side table contrast with the softness and fullness of the white shag area rug and a plump linen covered chaise. Up above, a large complicated white-painted antler chandelier further contrasts with the simplicity below.

Back in the master, the red Lucite coffee table and a large red artwork add jolts of color and excitement to the overall white color-scheme.

Source: Veranda Magazine If you'd like to read the story about how the house was created, see the original article. http://www.veranda.com/decorating-ideas/a1753/aspen-colorado-house/

Cabin Antiques

Some people just have a discriminating eye. They instinctively know quality. They immediately spot the highest level of craftsmanship. They know balance, beauty and color harmony.

I am still loving a pinterest page I discovered called "Find Me One". It's been put together by someone with an eye. Someone who loves mountain collectibles, especially, (be still my heart) European mountain antiques. She loves Black Forest, carved bears, Tramp Art style, folk art, transferware and, of course, pieces decorated with antlers and pine cones. Plain and simple, every possible sort of Old World mountain-oriented collectible has been included.

But...this girl has taste. The items she's selected for her board are not just any old item with a bear slapped on it. This is a beautifully curated collection of the best of the best, the rarest, the hardest to find, the most beautifully crafted. Be sure to check it out. You won't be disappointed. And, if you're newly discovering the world of mountain antiques, this page can provide a great education as to what is out there and options for what you might want to set out to collect.

To see the Find Me One Pinterest board, click here.

And, by the way, if you love all things about cabin living, I've been putting together my own share board with lots of links to great articles from around the web with all kinds of things that spark my interest about mountain living, and cabin decorating. Clicking around to various content on the board is a great way to spend a snowy afternoon. Hey, I think we have a few of those coming up this week!

My board is called "Living a Beautiful Mountain Life". Click here.

One of Canada's Top Designers Updates an Old Family Cabin in Cottage Style

Colette van den Thillart worked for years for Nicky Haslam in London before returning home to run NH Canada.

Van den Thillart states that this lakeside cabin has been a part of her life for as long as she can remember. The original cabin was built by her grandfather, then used by her parents during her childhood and has now fallen under van den Thillart's care. As the years go by, the size of the crowd enjoying the cabin has increased (as is often the case with family cabins) and it finally became obvious that additional space was needed.

According to Van den Thillart, she wanted to avoid "Canadiana" in her decorating of the remodeled space. Instead, she has come up with a fresh, pretty, definitely English-cottage-influenced style for the cabin. However, the look is at the same time both more casual and more stylish than traditional English cottages, and yet, surprisingly perfectly suited to lake house living. The entire effect is one of old mixed with new. Colette says that as she looks around, she sees many objects from her past, but there is also so much in charm and livability that she has added.

See if you don't want to be there as much as I do...

Van den Thillart placed Canadian barn siding on the walls of the new living room and searched out an antique mantle for the fireplace.

A pretty seating area.

Adjacent to the new living room, a dining room with additional seating was added. While the ceiling tongue and groove was left untreated, the log walls were painted a soft grey blue and the trim a crisp white. The overall effect is pretty, comfortable and fresh.

The kitchen cabinets were found in her London neighborhood and shipped to the cabin's location in Muskoka Canada. The kitchen has the look of "collected" cabinets that you see in English country cottages. This part of the cabin was original to the house. Van den Thillart states in the video how much she loves the old wood patina on the ceiling and floors. Again, the softly painted log walls are so pretty. These work beautifully here because of the old wood surfaces contrasting with them. If the ceiling had also been painted, it would not have quite the charm.

Colette in her new casual but oh, so pretty new blue and white Master.

A casual mix of fabrics and cottage furnishings in this light-filled room. There is nothing so fancy here that you can't lounge around and be comfortable. And yet everything is an absolute pleasure to the eye.

To really appreciate this cottage and see more on how it all came together, you really must see the video below.

http://houseandhome.com/tv/segment/relaxed-traditional-cottage