Boston Common - Niche Media - A side of Boston that's anything but common.
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/460267
trying to keep the home as intact as possible while still modernizing it." Ma int a ining t he dig nit y a nd ref inement of a residence while making it so congenial that every- one feels rela xed i n ever y room is no sma l l challenge. How do you take a proud historic house and turn it into a home—a place where you'd want to kick back and hang out? T he f irst a nswer ca me f rom w it hin t he house it self. One of it s most impressive pieces is some- thing Updike left behind: a huge mirror, almost 10 feet tall, framed in wood with gold leaf. It shared space in the living room with the original fireplace, both of which were left untouched while the room was renovated. "Our objective was to create light to the other side of the room," Eliastam explains. The living room's two expansive new windows don't just offer stupendous views of the ocean; they also pro- vide a f lood of sunlight, which the space had lacked. The mir ror now ref lect s bot h t he v iews a nd t he light , which br ightens t he fur nishings, such as a large round table in front of the mirror, f lanked by two club chairs reupholstered in a cut chenille. "We were aiming for gravitas, but also to lighten t hings up," says Joseph Gordon Clevela nd, who pa r t nered w it h E lia st a m on t he home's inter ior redesig n. To t hat end, out went t he da rk, heav y r ugs a nd in ca me a gold a nd pa le -blue Or ient a l ca r pet . It wa s t he per fect complement to t he recent ly ref inished honeyed f loor. As t he home - owners and design consultants dove deeper into the spirit of the home, they allowed themselves to t a ke l iber t ies t hat dovet a i led w it h it s or ig i na l design aesthetic. Exhibit A: a rare, massive stone horse sculpture from China's Tang Dynasty, added by Eliastam. She had noticed that it was coming up for auction (Eliastam is widely known as a wiz at finding treasures at Sotheby's, Skinner, and other auction houses) and snapped it up for a song. "They were so delighted to see it in person, in the house," she says. "You could see t hat t heir react ion wa s immediate." Clevela nd ag rees. "It was v iscera l," he says, "and once we knew they loved it and they were comfortable living with it ever y day, it was a done dea l." To both the desig n team and the homeowners, combining that kind of fearless st yle choice with comfor t was a lways t he point. "I like to t hink of how people move in the space first and foremost," says Eliastam, who herself lives in a townhouse, perched at t he top of Beacon H ill, t hat ma nages to be bot h st unning a nd coz y. "I a lways a im for every room to be elegant but very real-life. Every single corner has to be a place you want to live in, not just a show room." That philosophy melded perfectly with the goal of the homeowners, who were searching for a way to g racef u l ly nudge h istor y i nto t he present , to honor bot h t he home's for ma l cha racter a nd it s highly personal contemporar y details. The beau- t i f u l mold i ng s a nd h igh cei l i ng s, for exa mple, were punctuated w it h st a rk ly cont rast ing t r ims, wh i le a nt iqu it ies were m i xed w it h bold objet s d'art and sleek furniture—both modern items and striking period pieces. "I love to g ive the mundane its beautiful due," says Eliastam. "That's actually a quote from John Updike," she adds with a chuckle. "I read it while working on the house and immediately identified with it and knew it was unexpected but real inspi- rat ion. A nd I just t hought , Cou ld a ny t h i ng be more perfect?" BC "Orangerie" is the new Black Turning a sunroom into a sanctuary. The challenge: transform a sunroom into an indoor/ outdoor dining space. The solution: create a North Shore version of the Musée de l'Orangerie, an art gallery in Paris's Tuileries Gardens. "Usually a garden is a separate building from the house," says interior designer Suzanne Eliastam, "but this one was attached with two spectacular French glass doors. I knew the owners wanted to eat out there in the summer, and so I thought, Why on earth not make it something very different?" So she did. Having spotted a faded sofa in the attic, she reuphol- stered it with apple-green velvet. Then she scouted for antiques (bookshelves, birdcages, and such), painted some in high-gloss black, and flled the space with palm trees and hibiscus fowers. "I look at a room," Eliastam says, "and see it as a painting." Upholstery: Zimman's, 80 Market St., Lynn, 781-598-9432; zimmans.com AntiqUes: Mohr & McPherson, 460 Harrison Ave., 617-210-7900; mohr-mcpherson.com plAnts: Home Depot; homedepot.com "I LOvE TO GIvE THE MUNDANE ITS bEAUTIFUL DUE. THAT'S A qUOTE FrOM JOHN UPDIkE. I rEAD IT WHILE WOrkING ON THE HOUSE AND IMMEDIATELy IDENTIFIED WITH IT." —suzanne eliastam The living room is filled with light, which brightens the sumptuous furnishings, both antique and modern. An indoor/outdoor dining space, inspired by the Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris. 106 bostoncommon-magazine.com haute property