Innholdsfortegnelse for European Homes & Style 2015 i The Cottage Journal

If you love French, British, or Scandinavian blends of comfort and elegance, you will appreciate the character and charm of each home found in the pages of European Homes & Style. This special issue includes a collection of glorious interiors of fine craftsmanship and handsome architectural style. Here in these pages you can visit the rich tapestries, artwork, antiques, and accessories that are uniquely European. The romantic stylings of collected treasures from home and abroad will inspire you to welcome a touch of European design into your own dwelling. From the front door to the garden gate, these homes—rich in historical charm and luxurious comforts—each have a unique story and true devotion to European flair. From both formal and casual rooms to outdoor verandas and scenic views you will love…

When home builder Scott Thomson asked homeowners Tom and Kay Worley what they wanted in their new home Kay was ready with answers. “I want light and lots of windows. I want nooks and crannies, places for my books, and a garden I can see from my kitchen window,” Kay says. “And that’s where we started.” Scott sketched three plans, and Kay and decorator Pandy Agnew kept tweaking them until a plan was in motion. Kay had always loved French Country design for what she calls its “softness.” This decorating style is identified with curving lines, chandeliers, and antiques yet is still known for being comfortable. Achieving this feeling in a brand-new home with an open floor plan isn’t easy, but Pandy’s talent and Scott’s vision proved successful. Neutrals usually…

When you think of French Country style you may not be envisioning a California cottage, but blogger Courtney plays by her own rules when it comes to decorating and has found a way to combine her two loves. “I love the warmth and elegance that French Country style has,” Courtney shares. “It feels like home.” She admits that while she doesn’t like to follow any particular “rules” of decorating she does pay attention to one thing. “If you walk into a room and you smile, it is perfect,” she says. “So I surround myself with pieces that I love and make me happy.” For Courtney that means a little bit of French Country style with details like toile and gilding, a dose of cottage charm with rustic elements and timeworn…

When the residents of this Alabama home first moved from Miami nearly 15 years ago, the wife couldn’t have been more thrilled to have a fitting home for her beloved French antiques. A number of projects were soon underway as the couple made the cozy cottage their own. A complete kitchen renovation opened up the space for cooking and entertaining—two of her favorite pastimes, while the master bath was decked with a striking pair of pedestal sinks and antique mirrors. The most dramatic transformation occurred in the backyard. A true labor of love, the patio serves as an exceptional outdoor living area for the family and their friends during the warm-weather months. A highlight of the property is the darling Tudor-style carriage house. Perfect for storage now, it can become…

The Hansens are only the second owners of this unique, storied property. Diana says that she had the special opportunity to visit with the original owners while they were still living and learned a great deal about the home’s history. Once home to artists Georges and Eleanor Bridges, this 1921 studio cottage influenced by Greek and Spanish architecture is full of character and rich in history. Diana learned from Eleanor that when the couple was studying art in Europe they befriended authors Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald who both came on occasion to visit their little cottage. Diana says the Italian-style gardens would have been set for a party, lined with tables and lights, and lively music would have filled the night air. Almost a century later, the Hansens…

Bates Corkern Studio batescorkern.com, 205-414-9939 Benjamin Moore benjaminmoore.com, 855-724-6802 Betsy Brown Interiors betsybrowninc.net, 205-871-2424 Christopher Architecture and Interiors christopherai.com, 205-413-8531 Dunker Beal Interior Design dunkerbeal.com, 801-961-8511 Duralee duralee.com, 800-275-3872 Emily Ozier emyoart.com French Country Cottage frenchcountrycottage.net Harman Wilde Interior Design and Finishings harmanwilde.com, 801-433-1057 Henry Sprott Long & Associates 205-323-4564 Ivory Homes ivoryhomes.com, 888-455-5561 Jan Miller janbmiller@gmail.com Jane B. Hodges Interiors, LLC 205-871-0220 John R Bell, LLC 205-531-9830 Maison de France Antiques 205-699-6330 Mallory Smith Interiors 205-978-9770 Mary McCollister and Company marymcco@aol.com, 205-907-6279 Mulberry Heights Antiques mulberryheightsantiques.com, 205-870-1300 Scott Thomson scottthomsonbuilder@gmail.com, 205-369-1800 Schumacher fschumacher.com, 800-523-1200 The Good Life, Pandy Agnew Interiors thegoodlifebirmingham.com, 205-467-0103 Village Firefly thevillagefirefly.com, 205-870-4560 Thompson House Antiques thompsonhouseantiques@gmail.com, 205-305-4300 Vervain vervain.com, 800-611-8686 Welded Wood Specialty Products weldedwood@gmail.com, 205-229-0683 Weldon Welding & Inspection Services, Inc. weldonwelding.com, 205-365-3410 White…

Drawn from the natural beauty of France’s picturesque countryside and rural life, the French Country design aesthetic embodies a rustic yet graceful appeal that exudes warmth and comfort. Known for its predominant use of natural materials both inside and out, the style doesn’t follow strict proportions or rules; rather, it conveys an add-on quality that seems to have grown and evolved over time. Features such as curved windows and dormers, rough-hewn exposed beams, wood and stone floors, and either slate or wood-shake roofs lend a timeless quality to any abode, whether new or well established. Homeowner Betty Ferguson can attest to the timelessness of the French Country aesthetic because her home displays all the hallmarks of this endearing style. Tucked discretely off a busy thoroughfare, it has stood in quiet…

Twenty-four years ago Sandy and John Haley were living in a home they had built, but with a growing family they were ready to move. During the house hunt they came upon this 1926 Tudor home, and to Sandy’s great surprise John fell in love with it. Only three families had resided there. Sadly, the original owners lost the home after the stock market crash of 1929. The second family enjoyed the home for many more years, but after raising her children the homeowner built and lived in a smaller house on the property. The third family did a modern revamp, hiding much of the original charm, but that did not deter the Haleys. With the help of designer Betsy Brown they set out to reclaim the charm and beauty…

Pat Camp has always felt a pull toward the past. As an art history major in college, she’s spent the following decades immersed in the world of antiques and old houses, gradually building a base of expertise through a combination of osmosis, good instincts, and the occasional university course. “I love to tour old homes,” Pat says. “I like cathedrals and museums, and I like to read about them.” It’s no surprise, then, that her home is a testament to her passion. When she and her husband built their house eight years ago, they worked with architect Hank Long and builders Francis A. Bryant & Sons to ensure that Pat’s most treasured antiques would have pride of place. Amassed through the years and from various points across the globe, the…

The homeowner’s inspiration for her family retreat developed from a number of trips to Sweden and a visit to the Larsson house, which is now a museum, in the small Swedish village of Sundborn. She presented her personal aesthetic to the designers as “Carl Larsson modernized and softened.” Utah-based interior designer Jason Wilde says, “The Swedish aesthetic has a softness and a mild formality that is casual, tailored, and not stuffy, while soothing in color and less rustic. It suits her goal as a backdrop for the family when they gather at the home and enjoy the company of one another.” Making the vision become a reality required custom furnishings. “For the dining chairs, we relied upon antique forms and lines, but we scaled them larger and made them more…

Throughout the ages, fine linens have been cherished and valued as much as silver and fine porcelain. To gently run your fingertips over the soft sheen of antique linen fabric is to personally touch the past. To get the trademark luxuriously soft feel European linens are known for, it all begins with a flax plant. Before the exceptionally strong flax fibers can be spun into linen, they first have to be separated from the rest of the stalk in a process known as retting. The highest-quality linen is retted in slow-moving natural water sources. European linens are among the finest in the world, with the French producing some of the whitest and most delicate of textiles. Collecting European linens is now an adored pastime, and one that shop owner Pat…

When interior designer Betty Franklin and her husband bought their townhouse, they didn’t have to second-guess where to find just the right furnishings and other objects to complement it. As owner of Village Firefly, a specialty shop filled with antiques and vintage lighting, Betty was already well versed in helping clients enhance their homes with vestiges from the past. So she instinctively devoted this same knack for detail to her own place. “While my townhouse isn’t what you would classify as ‘Tudor’ in design, it is English with Tudor accents,” she explains. “To expand upon this look, I’ve created a décor that’s composed of an eclectic mix of English and Continental furniture and accessories.” In keeping with her well-appointed rooms, Betty chose a variety of French iron chandeliers to take…

Frances Stanford fell in love with the French language and culture in high school and college. “The first time I was in Paris, I felt like I already knew [the city],” she says. After her children were grown, she and her daughter Jenny opened an antiques store, Maison de France Antiques in Leeds, Alabama. On regular buying trips to Europe, they roamed all over the French countryside, gathering antiques and building friendships. Naturally, once the house project was underway, they shopped for period doors, gates, architectural elements, chandeliers, furniture, and accessories for the new home. French Country style is surprisingly well adapted to the Southern climate, at least the way architect Chris Reebals interpreted it. Steeply pitched ceilings, thick-stucco walls, limestone floors, and well-placed windows and doors encourage natural cooling,…

Nestled into the graceful curve of a winding front drive, Mary Finch’s beautiful mountaintop home bears the facade of a Loire Valley château—a fitting residence for a woman with an abiding affinity for French style. Once inside, the décor affirms the initial impression, with a magnificent assemblage of antiques and art that completely captures the attention of anyone who enters. With an eye for detail and an innate talent for arranging eclectic curios into enchanting vignettes, Mary has spent years refining her sense of style. She lived in a stately Georgian prior to purchasing and renovating this diamond in the rough that lay hidden under years of inattention—and a massive tangle of wisteria. Undaunted, she’s spent the last 11 years polishing the interior spaces to their present shine. The rooms…

The first homeowner lovingly built the Tudor Revival home in the late 1960s with a steeply pitched roof, jettied upper floor, dormers, and an oriel window. He split boulders in half from his farm in Utah for the exterior and sought out salvaged, authentic leaded glass windows while in England. The carefully detailed home passed to second owners who fully appreciated the efforts of the first, but 16 years later a fire destroyed the stairway and portions of the main floor. Subsequent investigations indicated a major overhaul was needed to make it structurally sound and safe against further fire. Designer Michele Dunker recalls her early involvement and developing a vision for the interior redesign and reconstruction. “We discussed that there was a fine line between updating and modernizing, so while…