Design Update: Castine, Maine Lake House

“Hi! Would you have time to chat sometime this week? We recently bought a vacation home in Maine and would love to explore some updates and redesign. Thanks!”

15 months after completing their Brooklyn, NY apartment, two of my very favorite clients reached back out with a very special project in mind - a lake house they just purchased in Castine, Maine! This isn’t the first time I’ve worked on a second home with a client and I am incredibly humbled for the opportunity to continue good work with people I thoroughly enjoy!

When I first saw this place I was all in.
(every photo in this post was taken by the clients - they are truly amazing!)

I love two things about this:
1) The gorgeous structure and architecture of this home, and
2) How terrible it looked when we began

This job is a classic example of the perfect cosmetic update. It wasn’t hard at all to imagine what this home could be!

Pretty amazing, right? Since this home will be used as a vacation place, the clients do plan to rent it out when they’re not there. This dictated much of the design and selections for the home - durable, family friendly elements were a must, and using some of the homes existing pieces where possible helped stretch the budget.

We still have a little ways to go, but I thought it would be fun to share how far this home has come since September! Items left to do include painting the window frames black and updating the dining room and kitchen lighting. There is also a guest room/office that we’ve been chipping away on and that will be included in the final reveal in a few months!

Come on in, friends!

Repositioning the existing sectional and adding a pair of forest green armchairs gives the living room an intimate, cozy feel in this cavernous space. The clients really wanted the sofa to face the windows, so I believe we turned it a whole 180 from where it had been. We’ll be adding an old, rustic bench along the back side, which conveniently leads right outside to the screened porch.

When I was told this home would be rented out, I really wanted to add some special touches unique to Castine. A pair of framed maps helps visitors identify where they are in this very special, undisturbed part of Maine.

Reusing the existing coffee table and media console were easy options - they work well in here as functional pieces that don’t stick out. The style direction we were after was a modern rustic/farmhouse vibe - primitive, functional pieces, nothing too modern or fancy.

Browsing for textiles in this home has been the MOST fun. All pillows and rugs came together just beautifully. I haven’t updated the throw blankets yet but I think a couple fresh selections will pull this all in just right! Isn’t the light in here so lovely?

I absolutely can’t wait to see the new lights installed over the dining table and island. I think you’ll really like what I found! Little different, but everything about this design has been a fun opportunity to step outside the box.

The kitchen required the most effort from the clients - I picked out a few paints for them to sample, they sent some pics, we finalized, and then they got to work! They painted all the cabinets Light French Gray by SW, and the island Newburg Green by BM. But one of my favorite updates in here was removing the previous yellow-y shelving unit and replacing it with natural wood shelves on simple iron powder coated brackets. Done and done! I can’t wait to see what the kitchen will look like when the window frames are all painted black. Cannot. Wait.

This past year has been deeply hard in so many ways and I can honestly say this project came at just the right time. I needed this level of creativity, I needed a project that would rejuvenate my soul and allow me opportunity to see some fruit from my efforts. Every time I sat down to work on this place I felt my mind enjoying the escape. While I’ve not stepped foot in this house, I’ve loved every second of working on it and studying its every corner, nook and cranny. More to come soon when it’s ready for it’s big final reveal!

Thank you so much for coming by, friends. Stay warm and stay safe out there!

Bieber's Home Christmas Tour 2020

Hello and Welcome! I really miss spending more time on here with you all but do look forward to this annual tradition over the holidays! To be honest, two days ago such a tour didn’t even cross my mind. It’s been a slow roll out of holiday decor and each year it feels like we use less, with more emphasis on the items that spark the most joy. But as I placed a couple branches of boxwood haphazardly straddling our bedside reading lights, I remembered how magical the little things feel to me, and even worth sharing on our cozy corner of the web.

So with that, get yourself a warm drink and come on in!

My style lean with this house is that narrow margin where cozy meets minimal. With three kiddos it doesn’t take much for our home to feel cluttered, so I just don’t decorate with a lot on the walls or around the space. What I do use has to carry a lot of impact and lend to the goal of a warm and inviting home. For Christmas the goal is the same! This rug came from our bedroom (I swapped the two rooms’ rugs), and the brass mirror from our family room downstairs. Immediate warmth!

Before we continue I should share, for anyone new, that I have a tradition of naming our tree each year based on a celebrity/character I think it resembles. We’ve had Rosemary Clooney, Paul Pheiffer and everyone in between. This year, I’d like to introduce you to ‘Marilyn’:

I mean, it’s uncanny if you ask me.

The layout is a touch snug to accommodate the tree, but I don’t hate it! This is home in every way.

I’ve slowly been adding to our kilim collection this last year as the colors and patterns breath so much vibrancy into this space! After adding a few touches of Christmas, they have taken on a very merry vibe, indeed! The pillows, coasters, and even Albus’ bed by the fire, all add to the warmth of this home.

Our mantle this year is my favorite element! It’s messy and wispy and so very ‘us’. We aren’t a formal household by ANY means, and I think sometimes mantles can look a lot more formal than the rest of a home. I wanted to keep it low key but still special for this very dear season.

These two…what a pair.

Quick stop in the dining room before we move on! It’s a light touch but I could not love this more. I think as I’ve grown into my own style and taken the time to collect pieces I love that work well for my family, I’ve used less surrounding decor. What I see below is the contrast of the rich chocolate leather dining chairs with the whitewashed table I refinished last Summer, and the saturated black china cabinet (another summer project). It feels like a cozy English pub with no extra fuss. The magnolia is the only holiday addition here (aside from the angels Shire arranged in the cabinet), and all this room needs to feel ‘extra’ over the holidays.

Come on down to our family room - a rarely shared space!

This is our play room and TV room, so we use this room hard! I think this is only the second time I’ve really done anything decorative with it for the holidays, but I need to replicate this every year because the kids have LOVED it!

These cafe lights are on pretty much all day. Sometimes I’ll notice a kid has brought their laptop down here to do virtual school under the lights. How fun!

Heading up to our bedrooms, let’s take a peek into Shire’s first! There is just something magical about her freshly painted mint green walls with the rich Christmas greens, reds and brass.

My sister graciously gave Shire her American Girl Doll tree a few years ago on loan, and it’s the number one item Shire looks forward to unpacking every holiday season. Such a special piece that reminds her of her Aunt.

I think it’s safe to say Shire’s room feels festive even without the garland or Santa pillow LOL! It’s definitely the saturated floral curtains - they’re always fun, but especially fitting at Christmas!

Last stop ( because NO ONE needs to see the boys’ room)! I swapped the living room rug with this room, so now this room has a gorgeous light blue kilim rug which I’m especially enjoying with the mossy green duvet and rust colors peppered around!

A swag of boxwood hanging from each bedside sconce is it for this space, but what a fun touch to add for a few weeks! Because it’s the only additional element for the holidays it feels more impactful.

Imperfect and asymmetrical, yes. But impactful, nonetheless.

That’s a wrap on this years holiday home tour! If you’re in the mood for a little trip down memory lane, here's 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015. I wish you and your family a very wonderful holiday season. I know much looks different right now from years past, and I won’t make light of the very personal struggles you have personally felt this year. But I hope that joy finds you wherever you are today.

‘May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow’
Romans 15:13

Thank you so much for coming by! This community is precious to us and we appreciate you so very much.

Much love,

Design Reveal: Sweet Dreams, Brooklyn

It’s weird times, indeed. I know every single one of you has had to adjust your regular way of life in some way, shape or form. If you have been fortunate enough to still have your job, there’s a good chance that looks a lot different now than it did 6 months ago - So many companies are figuring out how to continue their operations remotely and out of office. While I have always done my design work remotely, there is one aspect I’ve thoroughly enjoyed doing in person - finishing photos! I’ve shared before that I only get to take photos of about 15% of my completed projects, so when the opportunity arises to take pictures it feels like Christmas morning!

About a year ago one such project was wrapping up just beautifully in Brooklyn, NY, and I was hoping to make it up to take pictures along with another project in the Chelsea neighborhood. As it happens, COVID struck before I made it up there and I was sorely missing this project in my portfolio (and getting to share it here with you)! So I reached out to the client who I’ve been in touch with by the natural evolution of friendship in the process, and she was totally open to taking the pictures for me! We even scheduled a virtual styling session, which looked a lot like this for an hour:

Despite my face it really was a lot of fun! Hah! Having someone else take pictures was such a good practice in letting go of something I normally like to have control over, and boy am I glad I let go. She absolutely knocked it out of the park! I sent her the same photography tips outlined in our Interior Design Starter Guide, and she nailed it.

Before I show you around let’s take a look back at what this room started as. Now, I have nothing against lime green walls. In fact, our design assistant, Joy, absolutely rocked this StyleMutt Home project with lime green walls. But when this client and I were discussing her ultimate vision for this space, her bedroom, the lime green walls just didn’t support the end-goal.

The plan, shown below, was to create a really soft and soothing space using various neutral textures and patterns, contrasted by just a few grounding elements. We wanted to create a sophisticated retreat that represented the client’s fun and joyful personality.

And here is our plan brought to life! ALL pictures are in huge thanks to this sweet client. Her pup, Peggy, seized the opportunity, for sure!

Another look back at the beginning:

One of my favorite aspects of this project was getting to source from some small businesses I’d had my eye on for a little while. The sconces and overhead fixture by Cedar and Moss really make this room feel special. They were an opportunity to use something a little different from the mainstream. All by themselves these lights fold in that sophisticated vibe we were looking for, but they’re still unique and fun.

Hey, over here, Peggy!

This is such an awesome example of how to make a neutral palette visually interesting. Breaking up a monochromatic palette with varying textures and patterns and elements brings a room to life.

And then adding in a few contrasting elements in deeper, saturated tones grounds the space, and actually helps in making the whole room feel lighter and airier!

The beginning again,

and now.

One more time:

It was important to remember while working on this space that the same person I was designing this room for was the same person that, at one time, liked the lime green - you know that person has a bold aesthetic that doesn’t feel the need to fit in any one style box. While we wiped the green clean, we replaced it with a fun graphic paper that nods to the vibrant personality of the client.

A single statement pillow by my talented friend, Abbie at a. Naber Design pulls together the blues from the nightstands and the rug.

With bedrooms I like to make the bed and bed wall the focal point of the room. Since this client said she didn’t have any use for a dresser, we decided on a chic low lounge chair nestled near the natural light, and called it a day.

That’s a wrap, folks! This is one of my all time favorite bedrooms I’ve had the opportunity to design, and getting to share it with you is all because of the great effort of my client. Sarah, thank you. You are amazing and this was such a treat to work on with you.

Thank you all so much for stopping by today!