Remodeling House

Ever enter a room that spoke to you, instantly? That was my reaction in Mary's library.

Crazy for the color blends!
Let's go down to Mary's daughters bedroom
Formerly an office and quasi wine cellar which was gutted and transformed. What remains is the original flooring
More photography from Jeffrey Jones. A design idea I have borrowed from Mary is to put art on a long thin bench, it elevates the art in importance. I also tried this out on top of a long console against the wall, very cool........
200 year old barn doors were added, these are visually gorgeous while saving space
This full bath was created by adding a free standing tub, a floor to ceiling mirror behind it, framed in old wood (how on earth did this get through that door opening?!)

Painting the ceiling black disguises the mechanics while adding that industrial edge
Fossilized coral top on top of Mary's custom designed iron work
Master........
The French limestone fireplace surround was a replacement
The "oh so chic" European shower; the half door, never a shower curtain


Thank you again Mary for sharing! To read Part one, click here 
Photography by Lauren Bavaro

Enjoy this early Spring! Next many posts will be garden focused; design lessons and inspiration
xo
Debra

I have to say I'm a proponent of the more practical aspects of gardening: You know, eat what you grow; stick with plant varieties that are somewhat self-sustaining for your area like native species that don't need coddling; and nurture plants and herbs in your landscape like ginger, mint and sage that can be used lots of ways (think home remedies, pest control, cooking and crafting). You get

Come with me as I share a sumptuous home that is European styled and delightfully quirky in Buckhead, Atlanta. The home of a treasured friend, Mary Bairstow, Interior Designer and "up-cycler" extraordinaire.

                                                                           foyer looking into the grand salon
 The floor to ceiling windows lead onto an intimate courtyard. All the way back you can see a fireplace that was stripped and surrounded in limestone. Also the banister railing to the second floor is capped in limestone. And how about that door panel?!

Looking left, towards the dining room

Looking right, into the kitchen. Contemporary and graphic photography by Jeff Jones.

Mary loves black and white photography in a kitchen. You will notice thru-out her home she has "up-cycled" elements adding charm and patina.
5th;  Tell us about the details in your kitchen

Mary:  The cabinets were made from packaging for fiber optics that was shipped from Germany. We found the wood online, purchased it and then an artist friend finished the cabinets in the same patina as found on the arch surround in the foyer
Mary;  The pantry doors were originally shutters from the Old Edwards Inn in Highlands, NC. We mirrored them and as luck would have it, they fit perfectly. What's not to like about an off shade of pink with mirrors, in a kitchen!?
                               Kitchen looking onto foyer, into the dining room and opening into the grand salon
Personally I was intrigued with the picnic styled table as a cook top. Naturally I just had to peek underneath wondering where the lines were. Mary has them running inside a leg and into the floor. You have to really look to notice it.


A 14th c shutter on the kitchen window had been in storage for years. In this home it too fit perfectly.
                                                                                dining room
5th;  What are your inspirations? Where are they found?
Mary:  The original source was a trip to the south of France. I also love and absorb French publications like Cote Sud, Cote Paris, and their Elle Decor. I am inspired by world wide bloggers who bring forth beautiful design concepts. Additionally by contemporary art and travel; Mexico City, Venice for the 'Venice Bienneale' and Miami for 'Art Basel'.
5th;  I know you are off to Cuba soon. Cannot wait to see how that influences your work
5th:  What to you constitutes good design?
Mary;  The primary elements are scale, texture, balance and the concept of Wabi-Sabi - seeing the hand of the maker
 The living area looking back

Loved this floor lamp, guessing it was 6' tall. Here is another example of her up-cycling; an architectural fragment originally perched atop a building in Belgium, wire, add a massive drum shade and viola!

Now onto my favorite outdoor space, the courtyard. The genuine ambiance is indeed the south of France. I could not wait to share this!

The dripping vines, the pea gravel, the decorative elements. Notice that even the French doors added are vintage
The long views are borrowed; woods and ravines. In the evening imagine the lit candles, fragrance, great conversation, southern hospitality and French wine.........ahhhhhh. Who would second a design blogger meet up here?
Mary???!



Thank you Mary!

What do you think so far? I would love to hear your thoughts. But we are not finished. Part two includes my favorite room, the library and then the imaginative transformation in the bedrooms.

Care to reach Mary?  Go to Mary Bairstow Design on Facebook, her Atelier studio or Scotts Antique Market in Atlanta, monthly.

Fondly,
Debra

 I know, *Jed Clampett thinks crude oil is "black gold," but he's wrong. Compost is the real black gold -- especially when it comes to residential gardening. You may think making your own compost is a nasty, hard and smelly proposition, but that's just not true. *Yard trimmings and food make up about 27 percent of municipal waste in the U.S. With a foolproof recipe and a few facts, composting

The weather in the Midwest is so perplexing I even checked one of my favorite poems, Robert Frost's Good-bye, and Keep Cold  out of concern for this hot-cold-up-down weather. Frost was a genius -- and a farmer -- and this poem says it all about nature's annual balancing act. If you're a poetry lover, follow the link to the poem. It's worth printing and keeping on your refrigerator -- till

When it comes to gardening there are two types of plants - hybrids and heirloom.  In order to understand the difference, you need to know a bit of basic genetics.  An heirloom plant is one that has not been modified other than by nature.  It breeds true  meaning if you collect seeds from the plant, the resulting plants from the seeds will be the same as the parent plant (P).  An hybrid is the

Some plants come in peat pots and the home gardener can start plants in peat pots or use the Jiffy peat pellets.  The premise is peat pots are biodegradable and it is as well as being a nice soil amendment.  They are biodegradable but my experience like many home gardeners is peat pots do not break down over the course of a year.  They definitely do not break down in the turn over time when using

Many, many problems are caused for houseplants and garden plants by common watering mistakes.  These include under watering, over watering, watering at the wrong time, improper watering and watering on a schedule.  All of these can lead to plant diseases especially those caused by fungus.  They can aid in the spread of plant disease and the leaching of nutrients in container plants. I can't tell

As mentioned space is very limited, inclusion is on a first come, first serve basis
                                                   BUT............
Two other tours are on the calendar and those itinerary's are to follow;

ENGLAND 'The Decorative Arts of Britain'  September 12th through September 19th

FRANCE 'Antiquing, Gardens, Culture'   September 26th through October 3rd
           (Paris and Dordogne in south west France)

Cheers!
Debra

This is the time of year where I have multiple trays and pots of started seeds in various stages from just planted to just emerging to seedling and young plants.  There is nothing more frustrating than to see damping off go through a carefully cared for seed tray.  Damping off is a fungal infection that affects seeds before germination or young seedlings.  The very conditions of warm and wet that