design et al are delighted to announce that Lonni Paul Design have been shortlisted for Interior Design Scheme – Americas Award within The International Design and Architecture Awards 2018.
Academy and Emmy winning actors Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy rebuild her childhood home in Colorado. The colonial home, featured in Architectural Digest, is where the couple were married as were each of her 6 sisters. Her parents’ ashes are buried under the rose bushes in the garden. The immense sentimentality and nostalgia in the home and property made it of the utmost importance to keep the feeling and “zeitgeist” of the original home.
The challenge in the design of the project was to keep the feeling and character of the original colonial home Felicity grew up in, while creating a larger more modern version of the original. The inspiration for Lonni Paul ‘s design of the home came from the many paintings and photographs found in the original house. These antique family and equestrian portraits as well as old family photos set the creative tone for the design. Lonni Paul also took into account the way the Huffman/Macy family lives. This family loves to read and that inspired the library that can convert to a large dining room. The antique work bench complete with vise most often used as a desk can be centered in the room as a dining table.
Another family pass time is writing and playing music. The conversational sofa allows for a music area and cozy fireplace seating in one room. Because of their occupations, movies are an important form of entertainment and research. Lonni Paul Design enlarged the architects’ original TV room to accommodate more people. The entry, besides being a beautiful introduction to the home with its floor to ceiling panelling was the perfect location for the family’s antique bench. The lighting was an area of great discussion. While William was adamant about keeping the authentic colonial style details, down to the push button light switches, they did allow flexibility with the lighting fixtures. Lonni Paul used that opportunity to add some glamour to the house.
Each of their two daughters has her own room but there is a large guest suite above the garage with a built-in reading nook and a breakfast bar. The bunk room is great for teen friends or small children. The kitchen nook is where the family gathers for most of their meals and faces the mountains for amazing views. Actually, there are amazing views out of every window in this home and viewing the 100’s of elk that gather every morning in the valley behind the home is a regular ritual. Stables and a barn for the family’s many horses also houses Bills’ wood shop and a bunk room.
Lonni Paul Design’s favourite aspect of the project was working on a home with so much history and emotion involved. It required great care in the design choices and the outcome was completely gratifying.