Wow! what a stunner.

This magical place is a Victorian home on Pine Street, nestled atop the hill in Stillwater, MN. Owned by my clients Seema & Prashant. They purchased the home a few years ago and have transformed it (from a floor to ceiling - 90’s floral wallpaper - eye sore), to this stunning - self curated - work of art. Full disclosure, I did not design this home. Seema has a talent of her own to create beautiful spaces. She hired me to assist her in the realizing of her vision. I supported her efforts by removing endless wallpaper, repairing the plaster walls, painting, and installing curtain rods, bathroom fixtures, and hanging artwork.

Parlor

My main motivation to highlight this project, is because it is an amazing example of personal style. My greatest joy as a designer is helping my clients find their “freak flag,” and express it in their home. Seema is by no means a freak, but she has a fascinating ability to incorporate found objects as both functional design elements (see canvas sacks as window treatments) and unexpected decor selections.

living room

Another thing I love about Seema’s style, is the level of eclectic style mash-up she is able to arrange. A modern West Elm chandelier fits right in with her mid-century arm chairs and coffee table. To deepen the complexity, rustic antique side boards, and classical nude drawings anchor the walls. You might look at these objects individually and not see how they fit together, but somehow, this works! This sort of array brings a depth to a space that cannot be found in a catalog.

Formal Dining Room

When I asked Seema what her inspiration is, she spoke about the relationships and memories linked to each item. She told me “I have been collecting for 23 years. Each item has a memory attached to it. I can remember fighting with my husband over whether or not to buy the leather arm chairs in the parlor, shopping with my daughters as they develop their own taste, or arguing with family about the decency of displaying nudes in my home.” Each piece was tied to a place in time, associating the life station in which she was with every item. That kind of intimacy within a collection, that is how you create a Home.

Foyer

Master BEDROOM

This room, was the vein of my father and my existence! The wallpaper took a week, with 2 people working full time, to remove. The special thing about it too, was under the paper were messages written from the past describing the year (mid 90’s) and the current events of the people that lived there at the time. As frustrating as it was, I have great memories of working on this home with my dad.

I also find Prashant’s willingness to sleep in such feminine decadence delightful!

Zoya’s rOOM

Seema’s daughters are not without their own style! The concept for the 2nd level bedrooms were an array of french macarons, and each of her girls got to pick the hue that best suited their personality. Zoya chose orange, because she loves to play basket ball. The mix of colorful textiles and original framed kid art show the uniqueness of her creativity.

Zara’s Bedroom

Zara is the more feminine of the two. She selected pink for her bedroom color. In the days of everyone wanting gray walls, it was a treat to get to work with this color pallet! I love the mix of pattern & texture in this room. It is an envelope I like to push in my own design, but many clients struggle to see how 2 or more very different patterns can compliment each other. The trick is to work with scale. Pair one large print (like the floral duvet cover), with a smaller scale print (the striped sheets), and a couple of subtle textures (sequin throw pillow and waffle weave curtains). The connective factor is the color scheme. This technique brings a deeper dimension to the space, and is a great way to personalize a bedding collection.

Den

Now that we are all inspired…

Let’s take a lesson from Seema & her family, and use our homes as a collection of objects that associate to a greater relationship. That time we were antiquing with our mother, a family heirloom past down 5 generations, objects collected from the beach on our family vacation. When each object has soul, it shines through the space as a whole. It is too easy to surrender to the shiny objects in catalogs or on showroom floors (which are great to incorporate an item or 2 here and there), but their luster dulls quickly. Be thoughtful, and your home will be sincerely you & therefore timeless!

A home to Pine for