INTERIOR DESIGN MATTERS The Inside Story

By: Kitty Golding

​An 1850 Greek Revival home received  a new addition and a renovation when we teamed up with Ryan and Rebecca Olivier of Whitmore Lake.  They had lovingly restored much of their historic home by themselves and were ready to tackle an 800 square foot expansion of the kitchen and the 2nd floor master bedroom.   After interviewing the clients and seeing their love for color and pattern, we set out to bring these new spaces to life by starting with a colorful toile – The same pattern but different color was used in the kitchen and the bedroom as the inspiration.  We asked them what they found most enjoyable about the process of their interior design project,  and Rebecca, a fabric fashionista replied that seeing all the options of textiles and samples for the space was indeed one of the best parts.  She chimed in to say, “I love fabrics, patterns and colors and enjoy looking at the samples and options. Our home has a very specific aesthetic and Kitty and team really were able to honor this look while still pushing it a bit in a new direction.”
This was the first time this busy couple worked with an interior designer – both of them experiencing a different perspective this time around -  Rebecca was not the one sewing the custom draperies and Ryan was not installing the trim.  
We took the opportunity to layer textures, color, lighting and patterns – paralleling the layers of history and character  experienced in each room of this old home.  Rebecca was excited about the two different cabinet colors in the kitchen.  She mentioned that she  never would have selected the natural cherry, and had been thinking of green cabinets but loves the custom blue color we ended up with – all which came together during the design process. We also designed a very traditional and fitting tile backsplash using Pratt and Larson tiles, bringing in the colors of the cabinets and the window treatments, and spanned the cabinets with a subtle blue quartz soapstone countertop.
The style, cohesiveness and longevity of design style were all aspects of their project that had to be foremost in the details. Rebecca wrapped up by saying, “ having a finished project that was layered and interesting and timeless and made sense with our home's overall existing aesthetic was definitely accomplished."
 
 

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