The Awakening of ST. Pines cont.
So the renovations continue…slowly…we concentrated on the outside this summer…adding perennials that were deer/horse/cat/dog proof. Not an easy task. We also built an outdoor horse arena, and bought 2 new horses. That made it extremely difficult to come inside.
Little 3 year old Django
I would have never described myself as someone who is afraid of commitment. I can advise a client to ‘go for it’ when it comes to doing bright colors and extremely bold finishes. However, when it comes to my own home, it feels like a very big commitment and therefore takes a bit of contemplation before I make a decision. In my last house, it took me 6 months to pick the perfect white. (It was Gypsum by Pittsburgh Paints.)
We worked a bit on the library upstairs and, as I suggested in my last posting, Arden and Piper’s bathroom needed desperate help. There had been a roof leak and rot in the walls. Before we could start doing the interesting stuff, we had to do a lot of fixing. The wood ceiling, the walls, the fan, the plumbing etc…I managed to convince my husband to put a heated floor in their bathroom. My rationale for that was maybe they would get out of bed easier in the morning knowing getting ready would be a pleasant experience.
Bathroom Palette (Before and Afters coming soon!)
Floor Tile Wall Tile Countertop Cabinets/Ceiling/Beams
Lighting
One thing that stood out for me in my choosing of finishes:
Design Integrity.
Integrity in Style
How the elements and principles are used is the recipe that gives a certain style its unique characteristics. For example…a rustic modern style would use a lot of texture and line would be more linear versus curvy. I wanted to pay homage to the initial design of the space.
2) Integrity in Materials
There are a lot of products in the marketplace that are a reproduction of the real thing. Rugs that look like wool, plastic laminates that look like wood and wall and floor tile that look like real stone or wood. Being authentic was important to me in my material selection. Choosing the real deal vs the knock off can increase the budget. Often, it ends up being less expensive because it is more durable and lasts a lot longer.
My inspiration so far has been directly outside my door. The tall Jack Pines. The concrete used inside and out. The large fir timbers used inside and out.
Here are some photos and inspirations:
A Jack Pine tree was the inspirtion for the marmoleum flooring in the library. Marmoleum is an natural product and an enviromentally friendly floor made with 43% recycled content.
Here shows how the wool carpet beautifully transitions to the natural concrete.
As we head into winter, we have some ambitious plans for the kitchen and ensuite bath…..we will see what happens.
-Tammy