Artful Living Magazine | Summer 2010

SUMMER 2010

CELEBRATE

THE GREAT AMERICAN

SUMMER

+

REAL ESTATE

REALITY CHECK

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from the publisher ||

Slow Down for Summer

A

FEW MONTHS AGO, my best friend’s dad died. He was a father figure to me. I was very busy at the time with a number of commitments, so in between all of my meetings and other obligations, I scheduled a time to visit my ill friend. He died a few days before I arrived.

Sometimes it takes the loss of a loved one to knock sense into our busy lives and put things in perspective. I have since vowed to slow down, be more contented with what I have and realize what is really important.

There is a tendency in our short Midwestern summers to “pack it all in.” What we really need to do is simplify, relax, not over-schedule and socialize with our neighbors. We’ve heard it and probably said it a million times: “less is more.” Alecia Stevens captures this idea beautifully in her essay on the last pages of this issue, “What Is Enough?” I recommend you start here and get yourself in the mood for our Great American Summer issue. The image on our cover of two girls jumping off the dock into a frigid lake up north takes me back, and reminds me of how great truly letting go can be.

Our summer issue also features a visit with Lisa Ringer of Two Pony Farms in Long Lake. Lisa provides inspiration for social responsibility and sustainable-gardening practices.

In this issue, we also set out to present facts about the upperbracket real-estate market in the Twin Cities. During the residential real-estate boom, it was a seller’s market with high returns and low inventory, which meant snap decisions and speedy deals. There was little time for hesitation — no backing out and the deal was done. Those days appear to be long gone, at least for the moment. The combination of diminishing property values, a flood of inventory and low-interest rates has created a Chinese menu effect, insomuch that it has paralyzed buyers. The still unanswered question remains: Are home prices going lower? No one really knows for certain, but most experts agree that this is an outstanding time to buy.

Lastly, we round out this issue by sharing with you some joys of summer living: from fashion and beauty to sports cars and boating.

I’d also like to include a special thank you to Debbie Fischer, our Managing Editor, who is leaving Artful Living to take on a new career.

Three years ago, she and I launched this magazine as what was then a real-estate brochure. Debbie named this publication and brand, and has been instrumental in turning Artful Living into a successful magazine.

Thanks also to our readers, contributors and advertisers for bringing us another outstanding issue. It’s now officially summer: Time for three-day weekends, neighborly conversations, alfresco naps and time with friends and family. Relax, slow down and enjoy the season.

Cheers,

Frank Roffers Publisher Artful Living Magazine

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6 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

Photography by Troy Thies.

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features

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JENN CRESS

SUMMER 2010

American Beauty 39

These classic American pieces make getting dressed this summer a breeze.

Earth Bound 44

Venture inside Lisa Ringer’s ecofriendly, socially responsible farm in Long Lake.

Big Bargains, Jumbo Obstacles 51

Today’s real estate market is rife with challenges. Here’s what you need to know to get ahead.

8 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

“There are many options for skin care, but nothing can compare to the quality, care and expertise of an experienced, board certified dermatologist,” said Charles E. Crutchfield III, M.D., medical director of Crutchfield Dermatology.

“We are a true dermatology office offering a wide range of skin care treatments available by physicians only,” he said. “When you come here, the emphasis is on quality and service. That’s what really sets us apart.”

From the fresh flowers, plasma display and Georgia O’Keeffe prints in the reception area to the highly-trained nursing staff, quality is evident in every detail.

Crutchfield Dermatology specializes in Botox, Dysport, Restylane and Juvederm treatments, LipoDissolve Ultra treatments for unwanted fat, AFT light treatments for the redness of Rosacea and the PIXEL laser for unwanted wrinkles and acne scars.

Medically, Dr. Crutchfield specializes in psoriasis, acne, vitiligo, and eczema in children.

A nationally recognized leader in the field of cosmetic dermatology, Dr. Crutchfield has written over 100 skin care articles and co-authored a textbook of dermatology. He has been an annual selection for “Top Doctor” in Mpls.St.Paul Magazine and repeatedly named one of the “Top Dermatologists for Women in Minnesota” by Minnesota Monthly Magazine and was named “One of the Top 10 Dermatologists in the U.S” by Black Enterprise

Magazine. He was also recently selected as one of the “Best Doctors in America,” by his colleagues, a distinction bestowed on only 4 percent of all physicians.

A graduate of the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Dr. Crutchfield is also an Associate Adjunct Professor of Dermatology at the University of Minnesota Medical School and a Professor at Carleton College. Dr. Crutchfield comes from a distinguished medical family: His mother was, at the time, the youngest doctor to graduate from the University of Minnesota Medical School, and his father has delivered nearly 10,000 babies as a well-known Obstetrician/Gynecologist in St. Paul.

The innovative side of his medical practice is demonstrated by being the first dermatology clinic in Minnesota to use electronic medical records, and the first in the U.S. to have WiFi in the reception area for patients. Crutchfield Dermatology has been honored with Business Excellence Awards from the Dakota Chamber of Commerce and the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal.

“I live by the dictum of the Mayo brothers: First and foremost do what’s best for the patient,” he said. “Our whole focus really is based on the simple philosophy that Quality Matters.”

To date that philosophy has earned Dr. Crutchfield and his staff recognitions such as: the “Karis Humanitarian Award” presented by the Mayo Clinic, and the Fairview Physicians’ “Top Overall Customer Satisfaction for Excellence of Overall Care Award”. He was the very first recipient of the “Physician Healthcare Hero Award” by Twin Cities Business, KARE11 and Medica for ‘outstanding contributions to the quality of health care in Minnesota’. Clearly for Dr. Crutchfield, the phrase “Quality Matters” is a way of life.

||

SUMMER 2010

contents spotlight 110 leisure

Take a cruise on Excel Boat Club’s fleet.

114 aviation

ASI Jet Center offers flexibility and ease for frequent flyers.

116 collect

AutoMotorPlex’s Cars and Café showcases high-end rides and collector’s cars from all over the state.

120 wear

Plaids and patterns and pops of color add some personality to his summer wardrobe.

64 live artfully 17 what to

Eat, drink, drive, attend, and read.

Our top picks for picnicking this summer.

28 design

Flower power is back for décor —but modernized for the 21st century.

30 beauty

Felicity Davis, stylist at Kevin Murphy Salon, demonstrates a modern up-do.

32 food

Crave’s sculptural sushi turns eating into an art form.

10 Artful Living

Chef David Fhima makes a comeback with a new restauranteur in Lowertown St. Paul.

36 shop

collage

recurring

34 person

130 wine

Discover the unique wines of South Africa.

132 good

Minnesota-based Haiti Outreach helps others help themselves.

72 landscape

An Eden Prairie garden escape that captures the essence of a French château.

Two lower-level remodels take their inspiration from the hospitality industry.

58 build

Customized townhouses at the Brownstones on France allow homeowner’s to add their personal touch.

81 retreat

Elite Destination Homes offer multiple ways to enjoy a vacation home.

Dan Buettner retools his home to inspire happiness.

85 Property Gallery

| Summer 2010

How Cambria is setting the standard for eco-friendly stone countertops.

Shift your summer into overdrive with a luxury convertible.

77 remodel

home

64 renovate

68 eco-responsibility

124 convertibles

101 Marketplace

28

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Summer 2010

11

publisher+editor Frank Roffers

design Art Director: Mollie Windmiller

managing editor Debbie Fischer

marketing Director: Heidi Libera

distribution Hayley Dulin

fashion editor+photographer Jenn Cress

contributors Writers: Billy Beson | Carolyn Crooke | Hayley Dulin Alyssa Ford | Marni Ginther | Ivy Gracie Alexandra Perron | Todd Shipman Janell Siegfried | Alecia Stevens | Lori Storm Mitchell Wherley Other Photography: Carrie Buell, Kristi Kienholz Photo Coordinator: Krista Armbrust Style+Product Coordinator: Jill Roffers

advertising sales Ketti Histon To advertise in this publication, please call 952.237.1100

customer service

For additional information on any items in this magazine, please call: 952.230.3100 To be removed from the mailing list please e-mail “unsubscribe” in subject line to: hayley.dulin@lakesmn.com Lakes Artful Living is published by Roffers Group, LLC, all rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reprinted without permission.

Roffers Group, LLC cannot be held responsible for any error or omissions.

If your property is listed with a real estate broker, please disregard.

It is not our intention to solicit the offerings of other real estate brokers.

We are happy to work with them and cooperate fully. Each Office is Independently Owned And Operated. ®, TM and SM are licensed trademarks to Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates, Inc. An Equal Opportunity Company.

Equal Housing Opportunity. Sotheby’s International Realty, Inc. is Owned and Operated by NRT Incorporated.

a perfectly balanced level. A stunning architectural design.

A pleasing balance of elements. A meticulous choice of materials. An uncommon commitment to craft. A detailed rendering of space. An experienced team of professionals. An owner who couldn’t be happier. In the house that Streeter built. www.streeter-associates.com

Photo: Peter Bastianelli-Kerze Landscape Architect: Coen + Partners MN LIC #1380

952.449.9448

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Summer 2010

13

Contributors Billy Beson

is a daring, dynamic, and dapper interior designer known for his risk-taking style and extraordinary creativity in both work and life.

Carolyn Crooke

is a freelance writer based in Minneapolis.

Alyssa Ford

has been covering Twin Cities’ architecture and design since ‘04. She has written for Midwest Home, Minnesota Monthly, the Star Tribune, and many other publications.

Marni Ginther

is a marketing, magazine and web writer based in Minneapolis.

Alecia Stevens

is a freelance writer and interior designer, dividing her time between Minneapolis and New York. Her blog is www.aleciastevens. blogspot.com.

Todd Shipman

REALTOR and Real Estate industry strategist.

Lori Storm

INSPIRING DESIGN, INSPIRED BY YOU.

has been covering people, places and hot trends in the Twin Cities for more than a decade. She is the former Editor of Twin Cities Statement, and has a background in television as a producer at KARE 11.

Mitchell Wherley Brandi Hagen, Principal Designer

eminentid.com • 612·767·1242

is the owner, CEO and driving force behind the passion, inspiration and creativity that define Spalon Montage.

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Summer 2010

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Chocolate is the

Photography by Toby De Angelo | Courtesy of Continental Diamond

must-have color for 2010

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16 Artful Living

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Summer 2010

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18 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

All flights are operated by Key Air, LLC, an FAA and DOT authorized Part 135 air carrier, or by FAR Part 135 air carriers that exercise full operational control of their flights at all times, arranged by Key Air, LLC on behalf of the client. Such arranged air carriers will have been approved for use by Key Air, LLC.

What to...

SPRING 2010

20

Drink

22

24 26

live artfully

18Eat

Drive

Attend

PHOTOGRAPH BY JENN CRESS

Read

Artful Living | Spring 2010 19

sample docks at the sample room mile 856.2 on the mississippi tie up, walk up & sample! come inside or enjoy outdoors on our patio

lunch, dinner, cocktails daily • sat & sun brunch • www.the-sample-room.com northeast mpls • on the river • 2124 marshall st • 612-789-0333

WINE FLIGHTS • BOURBON FLIGHTS SCOTCH FLIGHTS • TEQUILA FLIGHTS FLIGHTS PORT FLIGHTS • CELLO AND A SPECIAL BEER WHISKEY FLIGHTS • / CHARCUTERIE FLIGHT

sample in or out

live artfully || eat

HeartHealthy Steak Akaushi beef is revered worldwide for its health and palatability. | BY HAYLEY DULIN

A

kaushi cattle are direct descendants from a protected breed in Japan’s Mount Aso region.

In 1994, due to a loophole in the Trade Act of 1992 between the United States and Japan, a small number of the coveted Akaushi cattle were brought to the United States in a specially equipped Boeing 747. Akaushi is a gourmet beef that contains a high amount of intramuscular fat — commonly known as marbling — and is healthier due to its higher monounsaturated fat composition when compared to other domestic beef. The result is an intensely rich and flavorful cut of meat, with melt-in-yourmouth perfection. After a much-anticipated wait, Akaushi is going retail and is available locally at all Twin Cities Kowalski’s locations.

Residential Design–Build–Renovation

Shane Homes shanehomesinc.com

952. 546.1904 Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Summer 2010

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live artfully || drink

Black Cherry Bomb |

D

on’t be fooled: This isn’t your average mojito. The Black Cherry Mojito, served at Loring Kitchen & Bar, is a twist on the classic Cuban cocktail — and is available just in time for summer. Both tangy and tart, it packs a mean cherry punch thanks to the combination of Cruzan black cherry rum and the Loring’s homemade sweet and sour mix. The taste is fresh and fruity but not overly sweet. “The mojito is one of our specialties,” says Julie Wengler, the bar manager at Loring Kitchen & Bar. “I’ve never met anyone who doesn’t like mojitos, and this one is the perfect parkside summer drink.”

BY ALEXANDRA PERRON

Black Cherry Mojito 1 Brown Sugar Cube 2 Lime Wedges 15 Mint Leaves (approximately) ½ oz. Sweet and Sour Mix 2 oz. Cruzan Black Cherry Rum Splash Cruzan Dark Aged Rum Sprite Club Soda Fresh Cherries (for garnish)

Where to Imbibe Loring Kitchen & Bar, 1359 Willow St. S., Minneapolis, 612-843-0400. Fine Rum available at Surdyk’s.

22 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIC PETERSON

Muddle together brown sugar, 1 lime wedge and mint. Combine muddled ingredients with sweet and sour mix and rum, then shake vigorously with ice. Pour drink into glass and top off with equal parts Sprite and club soda.

Garnish with remaining lime wedge and a fresh cherry.

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live artfully || drive

Scooters with Style Vintage finds from world-traveling motorheads. | BY HAYLEY DULIN PHOTOGRAPH BY JENN CRESS

What’s On Your Grill?

Less than 1% of all beef is graded Prime. Far less is raised to be All Natural. Kowalski’s is the only place you’ll find All Natural Prime Beef.

The best beef you can buy for everyday use. From ground beef to filets, you enjoy great flavor in a moderately-priced all natural product.

Hands down the best beef in the world, known for its tender texture and intense flavor. We’re proud to be the exclusive purveyor of this rare treasure.

all natural no added hormones or antibiotics - ever source verified • Humanely raised

T

he crew at Blue Cat Motors are scooter enthusiasts to say the least. They’ve traveled throughout India, riding from the mountains of Nepal to the deserts of Rajasthan. They’ve trekked thousands of miles on their motorbikes in search of rusted wheels tucked away in garages in quirky remote villages to bring home and refurbish. Back in the States, they share these hard-to-find vintage scooters, parts and plenty of stories from their travels along the way at their St. Paul store. 550 Vandalia St., St. Paul, 651-645-1172

well-worn rides

Blue Cat Motors’ owners collect cycles from around the globe.

9 Twin Cities Locations

www.kowalskis.com

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live artfully || attend

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Design Ideas Find décor trends and classic styles at IMS showrooms.

BELLE KITCHEN Visit this award-winning studio for personalized design/ build services, cutting-edge looks, plus fine, handcrafted woodworking.

CAMBRIA NATURAL QUARTZ SURFACES Features elegant, durable, maintenance-free surfaces for the kitchen, bath and more.

CERAMIC TILEWORKS Showcases unique imported tiles from more than 50 global manufacturers and 100 exclusive lines.

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USON DESIGN SOLUTIONS Look here for European and domestic eco-friendly tiles, mosaics, floors and plumbing fixtures, from modern to traditional styles.

VALCUCINE Includes innovative Italian kitchen systems and design, plus RES doors/closets, Emme Bi wardrobes, Tacchini furniture and Miele appliances.

WD DESIGN Premium handselected hardwood flooring — this studio specializes in long-length, wide-plank and hand-scraped wood.

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Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living Images by Jon Huelskamp/LandMark ©2010 Ispíri LLC / MN License #20627402

| Summer 2010

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live artfully || read

Beach Reads

Throw these books in your bag to enjoy during the lazy days of summer. |

BY ALECIA STEVENS

What is more luxurious than reading in the middle of the day? Make that a balmy summer day outdoors. And, of course, with a glass of iced mint tea nearby. Here are a few favorites—some old, some new—in a variety of genres, all with emphasis on the writing itself to fill the hours on the beach, at the cabin or in your own backyard.

Urban Fantasy

Nonfiction

Fiction

Mind Games by Carolyn Crane.

Just released in March, this smart urban fantasy by local author Crane features a psychological hit squad in a Midwestern-noir setting. Expect unique characters — including a hypochondriac heroine and a deeply tortured mastermind — plus plenty of heat (you’ll need sunscreen!).

With its twisty plot and meaty moral dilemmas, you will not want to get up off the towel.

The White Album by Joan Didion. In a series of autobiographical essays published in 1979, Didion reveals the shadowy side of life in Los Angeles in the 1960s, where she lived with her husband and young daughter and worked as a journalist. The veil between her personal and professional life was so thin and her observations so candid that one almost feels like a voyeur when she describes attending a Black Panther meeting, visiting the recording studio of Jim Morrison, and interviewing a Charles Manson follower in her prison cell.

That is the brilliance of Didion.

A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. Published in 1929, this semi-autobiographical novel is set in Italy during World War I. A story of romance and intrigue, it will keep you on the edge of your deck chair.

It is also a stunning reminder of the contribution that Hemingway made to modern literature.

28 Artful Living

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collage || design

Flower Power The 1960s motif gets updated for modern décor. | If you’re a bit shy about being bold, try updating your spaces with small shots of fabulous florals.

BY BILLY BESON

I

n style, what goes around, comes around, and right now, “flower power” of the 1960s is back—big time! But this isn’t mom and dad’s outlined quilted floral chintz. The new florals are big, bold and bright.

Today’s floral fabrics and wall coverings are much more graphic in nature. Often done in two or three colors, the lack of shading, detail and realism is what separates them from the classic traditionals. Look for big, bold patterns done in bright, vibrant tones from red and pink to aqua and yellow.

Basic black and white is also being shown everywhere with a pop of bright color. Think ’60s style with a twist.

Scale is also huge. At the recent Maison & Objet show in Paris, Kim Grimsley, design and marketing director for Circa 1801, says she is seeing a trend toward drama, and designers are achieving that through boldness of scale.

If you’re a bit shy about being bold, try updating your spaces with small shots of these fabulous florals. Transform a traditional French chair by covering it with one of these new prints. Think of small pieces of furniture as accessories or art pieces. These new groovy florals make a big statement as an accent wall, or, if you’re brave enough, use a giant floral wall covering in a tiny powder room. My advice: Interpret this trend to fit your own style and have fun with it!

design in bloom Find these fabrics, all by Osborne and Little, available through your interior designer at the Scherping-Westphal showroom at IMS.

30 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

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collage || beauty

Felicity Davis, senior session stylist at Kevin Murphy Salon, demonstrates a modern up-do. | BY MITCHELL WHERLEY

on the web 32 Artful Living

T

he key to creating a great summer up-do with staying power is to build texture. Building texture is all about using the right styling aids. Here, stylist Felicity Davis’s go-to products are Heated Defense, Anti Gravity and Easy Rider. Styling is all about using heat to work the product in and then letting hair cool. It’s the cooling down process that locks in the look.

Davis describes Katie’s undone look as Carrie Bradshaw meets Donna Summer. She started with her trademark “Zulu Set,” which mimics, in a looser way, the spiral perms of the ‘80s. This look is very versatile and is the perfect foundation for the modern day Marie Antoinette up-do (shown), which was created using the Kevin Murphy “stitch me up” technique.

Davis gave a “rocked-out Screen Siren” look by building texture with Anti Gravity and Damage Manager Rollers and brushing for smoothness and shine. She then stitched this model’s long hair into a classic Hollywood bob and then into a modern French twist.

Davis assures us that we can all learn a few simple techniques to pull off great summer hair that’s kicky, fun and sophisticated. It starts by making friends with your styling products. They are your insurance policy that you won’t be a “hot mess in a hot dress.”

Watch a full video on how to create this up-do for summer at Artful-LivingMag.com.

| Summer 2010

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JENN CRESS MODEL: KATIE FROM IGNITE MODELS INC. STYLIST: FELICITY DAVIS MAKEUP: ANGELINA SENEVISAI WITH MOORE CREATIVE

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collage || food

The Art of Sushi Crave transforms this Japanese specialty into artwork.

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ushi is not only healthy and delicious, it is also aesthetically pleasing to the eye. The artistry of the presentation is just as important as the taste, and sushi chefs across the globe spend years perfecting their craft. Focusing on raw ingredients, texture and composition, creative fusions evolve from dishes like shrimp tempura and spicy tuna to distinctive, modern rolls. Crave restaurants raise the bar on their sushi creations by combining unusual ingredients, such as cilantro and jalapeno, allowing innovative flavors to shine.

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Minnetonka phone: 952-303-7500

394 West of 494

| Summer 2010

35

fax: 952-303-7430 bmwofminnetonka.com

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY JENN CRESS

The Comeback Kid Chef David Fhima launches a new restaurant in Lowertown. |

T

win Cities restaurateur David Fhima likens himself to a boxer who was knocked down twice in the seventh round and got back up to win the fight. “I’m still in the ring,” he says. “I’m still fighting.”

The charismatic chef, who has had his share of success and failure, has returned to downtown St. Paul to stage his latest comeback. In June, Fhima opened FACES Mears Park in the former LoTo location, which he sold to Life Time Fitness in 2006.

The Lowertown spot has been completely transformed into a stunning modern space, which includes a bistro, bar, bottle shop and bakery. Fhima says it’s like an emporium of food and people. “I firmly believe that if you’re going to come to my restaurant to have a sandwich, I’m not going to go somewhere and buy the bread for it. So we make the bread,” he says. “We are doing what we do well and offering it in different formats.”

The restaurant concept is familiar American cuisine utilizing sustainable and organic ingredients. Many of those all-natural ingredients are coming from local farms, including grass-fed beef from Wisconsin. Fhima is very much a part of the sustainable-food movement, but believes

36 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

there is a lot of confusion over what that means. “I don’t believe in health food. I believe in good food,” he says. “I don’t think butter is bad. I don’t think cream is bad. I firmly believe the only bad foods are foods that Mother Nature didn’t create, which are preservatives and additives.” Fhima says it’s his job to provide customers with food they can recognize and ingredients they can trust.

His diverse menu includes everything from Monte Cristo and Croque Monsieur sandwiches to organic roast chicken and Asian tuna. The wine shop sells imported

BY LORI STORM

on the menu. For him, FACES signifies a return to the kitchen and a return to his real passion: cooking. In order to focus on the culinary side of things, Fhima partnered with renowned interior designer Billy Beson to create the aesthetic and Robert Nelson to handle the business. Fhima admits that in the past, he took on too many roles and that got him into trouble. “I got mad at critics who said, ‘David is doing too many things.’

I thought, how dare you?” Fhima says. “You know what? They were right: I am a better chef than a business person.”

“You know what? They were right: I am a better chef than a business person.” —DAVID FHIMA fine wines and a notable selection of organic options. The bakery/deli features more than a dozen types of breads and muffins and around 20 different cakes, with some glutenfree options. “We are not going to use fake or processed sugar. It’s either honey or raw sugar. We are going to use real butter,” he says. “At the end of the day, it’s going to really satisfy you.”

Fhima, who started out as a pastry chef, has developed and tweaked every recipe

Even though he has divided responsibilities, don’t expect Fhima to spend all of his time tied up in the kitchen working on the next dinner special. “Are you kidding? The rush is over and I’m out in the dining room mingling with people,” Fhima says with an infectious smile. “I’m dealing with two things I can do really well, in my opinion.

That is cooking and taking care of people.

I am excited to do that and only that — for the first time in my life.”

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42 Artful Living

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feature || organic farm

Earth Bound Wayzata native, Lisa Ringer, unites an unbridled passion for the land with social responsibility. | BY ALECIA STEVENS

L

no place like home

ABOVE Ringer at home, which was designed by herself and Jim Hillegass, marries a Shaker community house with a loft. RIGHT The garden blooms with more than 100 varieties of dahlias come summer.

46 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JENN CRESS AND JAY ERICKSON

isa Ringer thought “That Beauty is the normal state is shown by always working against time. she would be a proper On the day we met, I pulled into the perpetual effort of Nature to attain it.” — the long, winding gravel driveway landscape architect.

She recalls reading hidden by trees and found her in dirty RALPH WALDO EMERSON Ralph Waldo jeans, a T-shirt, boots and a tool belt Emerson’s essay standing on the clumpy black dirt of “Beauty” in college. She grew up on Lake Minnetonka, forming a deep a vegetable garden. Her mass of silver wavy hair was pulled away from appreciation for the sprawling Midwestern landscape. She fell in love her face with tendrils spilling out, looking much like the vines of her with the gardens she tended for Sally McMillan, which showcased flowers. “I’m having a bad day,” she said to me through the car window. a vast expanse of flowers, including dahlias. Her friend and former “I’m having an argument with a rototiller.” business partner, Kim Knutson, a University of California–Santa It made me laugh. She climbed in my car and we drove to the Cruz graduate, introduced Ringer to Camp Joy Gardens, a small house. (Homestead seems more fitting upon seeing it.) She was clearly organic family farm run as an educational nonprofit organization frazzled and preoccupied, and had probably forgotten I was coming. in the Santa Cruz Mountains, which changed the way she thought Still, she made me tea, served it in her grandmother’s teacups, and set about gardening. She was inspired by the work of the late English out a fresh pastry with cotton napkins in the kitchen while Ethel and master gardener Allen Chadwick, who was a leader of the organicTheo, her two chocolate labs, wove in and out among our legs and the and biodynamic-farming movement in the U.S. She still follows the legs of the table. She began to tell me her story. work of Will Allen, a MacArthur fellow and founder of Growing Power, Ringer and her former husband, Jim Hillegass, met in 1976 when a nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching people to build a he discovered that the historic, crumbling and vacant Wolfsfeld sustainable-food system. homestead, which had been donated to the Nature Conservancy and Needless to say, Lisa Ringer is not short on inspiration. She is also was under DNR management, was for rent on 300 acres in Long Lake. not short on stamina. And, she is not short on passion. But a farmer is He thought she might help him “tame” the landscape. Instead, they

married and had two daughters, Katie Rose and Anna, both now living in New York City.

“After living this charmed life in this little house in the woods with our children, the DNR finally evicted us,” she says. “But we were able to buy 40 acres of the property. So, in 1992, we bought it — 40 acres surrounded on 2½ sides by protected woods, and built our home over two years.”

The home was designed at Lincoln Dell on the back of a paper placemat, and then drafted by a University of Minnesota architecture student. Stylistically, it merges a Shaker community house with a loft. The two-story, glass-walled entry has a concrete

serene spaces

floor with a drain. “It had to be wheelbarrowaccessible,” Ringer says. Above, on the second level, up a symmetrical pair of stairs worthy of Scarlet O’Hara, a wall of precise drawers and cupboards reveals the Spartan, but beautiful, Shaker influence.

While her husband ran his own business in the city, Ringer began to imagine how to maintain her independence and spend her days in the country. She decided to raise dahlias. “They are such happy flowers,” she says. “When I walk into the garden, it is like walking into a wallpapered room.” She began to develop and build a business, selling both the plants and the flowers. “Then, after learning about Camp Joy, I felt like I had a responsibility to grow food. So, I began to grow heirloom tomatoes and lettuces. My friend, Kim [Knutson], and I worked together and sold them to Lucia [Watson] for her restaurant in the ’90s. She was one of the first to support local farming.”

Inquisitive by nature, Ringer’s mind and interests dart around like the bees that pollinate her flowers. She has dabbled in raising goats and still offers a goat-sitting service when her friend and goatherd, Louise, travels. Ringer produces a divinely delicate goat cheese for the pleasure of her family and friends. She struggles with maintaining a hive of bees, but swoons over her homemade lavender-honey ice cream. Although the geese didn’t make it, she added chickens in the spring — in a coyote-proof coop. And worms.

Yes, she raises worms and they are for sale.

A wood-fired bread oven was just finished, which will support her nonprofit organization, Youth Environmental Literacy and Law Project (Y.E.L.L. Project). Through Y.E.L.L., Ringer arranges to bring inner-city children

to the farm, where they work the soil, plant, tend and harvest a season of crops, a foreign experience to kids raised in apartment buildings with concrete parking lots.

An hour passed in conversation. The rototiller was still angry and there was more than a day’s work ahead of her. Her horses needed to be fed. She has help now— sometimes a blessing, sometimes a curse, she says. “I am terrible at delegating. And I love being alone here. But I also love sharing the land.” An assistant, Siri Knutson, digs in as if it was her own and organizes volunteers to come to work the farm on Thursdays.

“I have so much I want to do. I am awed by the CSA farmers who raise vegetables to feed people. I’m awed by so many who are driven to educate people about this work and the earth,” Ringer says. “But farming is really challenging. There’s weather! And I am often just overwhelmed. But,” she pauses and looks around the home, out the window, then smiles, and continues: “This is still pretty good.”

Two Pony Gardens Produce available all summer by appointment only. Please call ahead. Lisa Ringer | Siri Knutson 763.473.0783, leave a message.

E-mail: twoponygardens@gmail.com Link for driving directions: http:// twoponygardens.com/directions-to-thefarm. Check Website for Harvest Dinners, Pizza from the Oven, update on Y.E.L.L. Project and other activities. twoponygardens.com

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT Anna Hillegass prepares a picnic table for lunch; Lisa Ringer, the beekeeper, checks for honey; the teepee—pays homage to the original landowners; Ethel, Ringer’s loyal chocolate lab.

OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE Ringere’s rows of plants for sale—waiting for a trip to the city; Ringer with buckets of fresh spring tulips; the simple welcome sign, made of twigs; two of the new baby chickens.

48 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

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feature || real estate

Big Bargains, Jumbo Obstacles Today’s real estate market is rife with challenges. |

T

here are some signs the real estate market is turning a corner in the Twin Cities. The first quarter of 2010 showed an increase in median home prices and a more balanced supply of homes on the market. At the same time, foreclosures rose at an alarming rate in Minnesota in January, February and March. And one area that isn’t showing progress is the luxury market. Unloading high-end homes continues to be a struggle and local experts believe recovery is a long ways off.

“It’s still a difficult market for us, anything over half a million,” says Brad Fisher, president of the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors (MAAR). [SEE TABLE, RIGHT] According to research compiled by MAAR in early May, there were only 300 closed sales of homes between $500,000 and $1 million in January, February and March of 2010. For homes over $1 million, the numbers were even lower. Reports show only 52 homes in that price range sold during the first quarter of this year. These luxury market sales reflect less than 4 percent of the entire 13-county market.

Lagging sales have led to a glut of expensive homes on the market. “I know that business above $1 million has been soft, continues to be soft, and it’s a function of the inventory. I know that that inventory is much, much higher and the number of days on market is much, much longer in the over $1-million category than any other category we have,” says Fisher.

Obviously, higher-bracket homes have less demand because fewer people can afford them. Thomas Musil, PhD, an assistant professor of real estate at the University of St. Thomas, says the lack of consumer confidence in the market also plays a role. “Until optimism returns to the economy and we see some employment growth, business growth and productivity, and increased profits, it will probably be a stagnant market,” Musil believes.

One of the biggest obstacles for buyers who want to purchase high-end properties is financing. Experts say the markets for jumbo mortgages, which refer to non-conforming loans generally exceeding $417,000 that cannot be purchased

by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, have largely collapsed.

“There have been a lot of problems with loans that size given the general economy and economic sort of collapse of our business,” says Kristin Wilson, senior loan officer at Fairway Independent Mortgage. Wilson points out that, in the past, the spread between conforming and jumbo loans was typically 1/4 percent to 3/8 percent. A search in May showed it’s now closer to 3/4 percent or higher. [CONTINUED]

BY LORI STORM AND TODD SHIPMAN

High-End Properties Pending/Sold January through mid-May 2010 DATA SOURCE: NORTHSTARMLS

AREA ACTIVE PENDING/ PERCENT SOLD SOLD

White Bear / Stillwater:

$500K—$1 MILLION 132 25 18% $1—2 MILLION 22 3 13% $2 MILLION + 10 0 0%

Downtown Minneapolis / NE:

$500K—$1 MILLION 56 26 46% $1—2 MILLION 8 2 25% $2 MILLION + 7 0 0%

Edina:

$500K—$1 MILLION

118 45 38% $1—2 MILLION 67 10 15% $2 MILLION + 20 1 5%

Calhoun / Lake of the Isles:

$500K—$1 MILLION

$1—2 MILLION $2 MILLION +

77 15 20% 46 1 4% 18 0 0%

Lake Minnetonka:

$500K—$1 MILLION

249 47 18% $1—2 MILLION 136 14 10% $2 MILLION + 87 6 7%

St. Paul / Crocus Hill:

$500K—$1 MILLION

43 10 23% $1—2 MILLION 10 4 40% $2 MILLION + 2 0 0%

North Oaks:

$500K—$1 MILLION 51 $1—2 MILLION 10 $2 MILLION + 5

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

9 4 0

| Summer 2010

17% 40% 0%

53

feature || real estate

A Snapshot of Recent High-End Transactions

3905 COUNTY ROAD 44 MINNETRISTA

5720 BROOK DRIVE EDINA

2019 KENWOOD PARKWAY MINNEAPOLIS

Total Combined Days on Market: 760 Original List Price: $3,695,000 Sold Price: $2,200,000 Listing Agent/Broker: Marc Grieger, Coldwell Banker Burnet

Total Combined Days on Market: 306 Original List Price: $1,399,000 Sold Price: $1,085,000 Listing Agent/Broker: Rachel Rahn, Edina Realty

Total Combined Days on Market: 358 Original List Price: $790,000 Sold Price: $610,000 Listing Agent/Broker: Marc Owen-Kurtz, Edina Realty

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100 3RD AVENUE S. UNIT 360 MINNEAPOLIS

1009 SUMMIT AVENUE ST. PAUL

26 CRESCENT LANE NORTH OAKS

Total Combined Days on Market: 140 Original List Price: $825,000 Sold Price: $775,000 Listing Agent/Broker: George Stickney, Coldwell Banker Burnet

Total Combined Days on Market: 415 Original List Price: $2,150,000 Sold Price: $1,625,000 Listing Agent/Broker: Bob Reidell, RE/MAX Results

Total Combined Days on Market: 627 Original List Price: $1,349,000 Sold Price: $1,029,000 Listing Agent/Broker: Audrey Friedman, Coldwell Banker Burnet

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

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55

feature || real estate

Percentage Change in Median Sales Price, Year Over Year SOURCE: 10K RESEARCH MARKETING

AREA

2005—2006

2006—2007

2007—2008

2008—2009

Minneapolis: Calhoun / Isles

1.3%

-2.8%

-5.9%

-4.5%

Minneapolis: Central

8.5%

3.3%

-1%

-10.6%

11.1%

-15.6%

-4%

-11.8%

9.1%

-3%

2.5%

-16.1%

0%

-4.1%

-6.4%

-18.2%

Stillwater / Bayport

3.8%

-1.7%

-3.4%

-21.1%

St. PauL: Crocus Hill

9.6%

-5.3%

-12.8%

-9.2%

-2.1%

-2.7%

2.2%

-25.4%

Lake Minnetonka Edina White Bear Area

North Oaks

Part of the battle in securing jumbo mortgages is getting an appraisal that meets the investor’s standards. Investors typically want three comparable sales within 90 days and they must be within a reasonable distance of the property. “When you’re dealing with upper-bracket homes, that’s really hard,” Wilson says. “It’s difficult to get a lot of “comps” because there’s not a lot of sales. So it’s kind of like which comes first, the chicken or the egg?”

If you can secure the financing, which typically requires a substantial down payment, there are some real bargains in the Twin Cities. Yes, bargains. These are luxury homes that previously had been out of reach for most buyers. “There are some tremendous opportunities right now in the upper end. It’s pretty affordable,” Fisher says, but clarifies, “if you can say affordable when referring to that price range.”

Musil agrees, advising that now is a great time to negotiate a beautiful deal.

The professor is in the process of shopping around for another home in the metro and has noticed a number of discounted properties. “We’ve seen incredible buys for a half-million dollars. In a few years those houses will be back up to a million. There’s no doubt in my mind,” says Musil.

With so many bargains, the natural question is: Will prices drop even lower?

Musil says it’s hard to say, but he doesn’t expect prices for higher-end properties to go down significantly. “I think we’re nearing stabilization,” he says. “There are going to be aberrations to that, and events that might force a family to sell or

56 Artful Living

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discount, but we’ve worked through a lot of the “spec” homes by homebuilders, so this process is winding down.”

It’s also important to consider that many of these homeowners are not being forced to sell, which also impacts pricing. “People — if they are not forced to sell — are going to wait this out, which is the smart play,” Musil attests.

Keep in the mind that certain high-end neighborhoods are seeing a bigger drop in median home prices than other areas of the metro. [SEE PERCENTAGE-CHANGE TABLE] There are a number of variables that can contribute to value. One of the factors is referred to as the dynamic attribute. Some areas have an ability to convey status, places like Edina or Lake of the Isles. Within our social circles, they carry a certain cachet.

Other variables include: infrastructure, growth, employment opportunities, school systems and proximity to the Twin Cities.

The list goes on.

Musil says this just proves his point that real estate is local in nature. He warns that making broad generalizations about the market or a specific area is a mistake. Buyers and sellers really need to look at trends, influences, prices and activity within a specific property type and within a specific geographic area. “It gets back to the house, the neighborhood, the street, the neighbors, the condition of the house—all of these factors define the market and the competitors who would want to buy that house,” explains Musil. “You have to be willing to invest some time and some ‘shoe leather’ to really know the market.”

The Big Task of Securing a Jumbo Mortgage Lenders have very stringent requirements for borrowers applying for a jumbo loan.

Fairway Independent Mortgage senior loan officer Kristin Wilson offers some advice on applying for a jumbo loan.

To Qualify For A Jumbo Mortgage, You Should Expect: To make a down payment of at least 20 percent for a purchase (or have at least 20 percent equity in a refinance). ­— To have a credit score that exceeds 700.

— To document your income.

— To consider an adjustable-rate loan, because fixed-rate jumbos are relatively expensive.

— For all of your monthly payments (including new mortgage, taxes and insurance) to be less than 45 percent of your gross income. Some investors may require even lower debt ratios.

Other Insider Tips: — Be patient with the timeline and the process. Be prepared for the process to take at least 60 days. ­— Give your loan officer direct access to your accountant and/or financial planner. It will help the process run more smoothly.

— Tell your loan officer any additional information about the property or the area that might not be available to the appraiser.

— Don’t move money around to different accounts. If you do, keep good records.

— Work with a good real estate agent who has experience working with jumbo mortgages.

A N Y T H I N G

PHOTOGRAPHY BY KRISTI KIENHOLZ

P O S S I B L E .

REMODELING SEMINAR

Move It WIth two growing boys and a baby girl on the verge of walking, Greg and Jill Brown knew they needed more living space. The time had come to either renovate their existing home on 44th Street in Edina or move to a bigger place.

“It was really important to us that the kids stay in the same school,” says Jill Brown.

Last fall, real estate agent Anne Shaeffer of Lakes Sotheby’s International Realty recommended that the couple wade into the housing market and check out a few homes. She was confident that the Browns could get a better house in a better location for the same price as remodeling.

“There are such deals to be had in this market,” Shaeffer insists. “Buyers should be out there because there are great opportunities.”

One of those “opportunities”—a charming four-bedroom, Tudor-style home on Arden Avenue in Edina—presented itself in February for $750,000. The sellers wanted to move it quickly so they priced it to sell. Real estate agents stress that pricing is key when it comes to moving property in this economic climate. “The only way a buyer will buy in this market is if they are getting a perceived deal,” Shaeffer says.

The Browns looked at several homes in the $750,000 range and nothing compared to the home on Arden in terms of size and amenities. “You get four bedrooms up, a master suite and it’s in the best neighborhood in Edina,” Shaeffer says. “Everybody that walked in said, I get all this for $750,000. Are you kidding me?’”

With other offers quickly pouring in, the Browns did something that is practically unheard of in this depressed market: They offered more than the asking price. “We knew there were other interested parties and we didn’t want to lose out and go through the process all over again,” says Brown, admitting it was an aggressive move.

Aggressive, but effective. Within days, the Browns had secured the beautiful home and the Arden property was off the market. Fast-forward to June. The moving truck is gone, and the family is still unpacking boxes and settling into their new digs.

“It shows just how smart the Browns were to take advantage of this opportunity,” Shaeffer says. The longtime real estate agent believes it also illustrates another point: “Sellers have to be realistic when it comes to pricing their homes and buyers need to be willing to take action.”

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P E RG OL AS | N AT UR A L S TON E P AT IO 58 Artful Living | Summer 2010

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home || build

Custom-Made Life

The owners at Brownstones on France represent a rainbow of styles, tastes and peccadilloes. | BY ALYSSA FORD

T

The Brownstones on France are for sale.

Visit Artful-LivingMag.com for a Video Tour.

he Brownstones on France is one of those classic buildings with crisp gables, copper downspouts, stately porticos and roofing that looks strikingly like slate. It’s neatly quantified and properly proportioned, like a freshly pressed banker on his way to work.

Look inside though, and the Brownstones on France is not at all the prescribed place you might expect. The exterior might be orderly and buttoned up, but the interior is passionate, personal, even offbeat.

For instance, one family asked to have a replica of a famous Irish pub in their unit. Another wanted their main level to evoke a 12th century Italian village house. Yet another wanted a dining room large enough to fit a 17-foot-long table. One unit is contemporary, with Mies van der Rohe, Arne Jacobsen, and Georg Jensen all represented in the furnishings. Yet another is so traditional that no less than 30 different wallpapers and paint patterns were employed in its creation.

“Our goal was to create a place where people could completely be themselves,” says Ed Noonan, principal of Noonan Construction, who came up with the original concept for the Brownstones on France when his aging mother requested a place with all the amenities of association living, like heated underground parking, but with her own design and front door.

To make that happen, Noonan designed a building that could remain structurally sound without any interior walls. With the exception of the elevator shaft and the stairwell, each unit comes as a blank box for the homeowners to do with as they will. Noonan even arranged the Brownstones

grand entrance The Brownstones on France are classically designed from the exterior, each offering separate entries, but the interior designs and floor plans can be modified to fit each owner’s needs and tastes.

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“Our goal was to create a place where people could completely be themselves” —ED NOONAN, PRINCIPAL OF NOONAN CONSTRUCTION

structure so that the mechanicals room could be added to any of the three floors, no problem.

“We have no suggested layouts, no preordained ideas about what could or should be,” says Noonan, a custom builder for more than 34 years.

With that kind of liberty, the Brownstones owners have been free to indulge their special interests in new ways. Jim Matson, an avid flyfisherman, asked Wolfgang Sixl, Noonan’s master cabinetmaker, to design a special shelving unit to display his favorite rods, including a bamboo one his adoring wife, Becky, had commissioned for him as a gift. The same top-level room holds Matson’s gun cabinet and a temperaturecontrolled, 1,000-bottle wine cellar and lighted cigar humidor. “He has everything he loves in here except me—most of the time,” says Becky, with a smile.

Where the Matsons built a manly lair for the husband to call his own, neighbors Dave and Robin Larkin designed an Irish-style pub modeled after Dick Mack’s, their favorite tavern in Dingle, Ireland. With elaborately carved mahogany corbels and cabinet fronts, the Larkins’ bar allows them to tip back pints of inky Guinness and soak in the memories of the motherland. (Robin’s great-grandparents emigrated from County Clair, Ireland; Dave’s from County Kilkenny.)

Joe and Phyllis Kohler, just a few doors down, requested that their entire main level feel like their 12th century Italian villa that sits just two kilometers from the Mediterranean Sea. The walls here are rounded and custom-finished to resemble Venetian plasterwork. Overhead are scraped walnut beams that look hundreds of years old. “When I’m here, I feel like I’m back in

eye for detail Homeowners at Brownstones on France can choose their design or create their own plane to fit their

lifestyle and hobbies, such as a European modern kitchen with coffee alcove, or a storage wall for fly-fishing poles ABOVE.

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home || build

“When I’m here, I feel like I’m back in Italy.” —JOE KOHLER, OWNER OF A CUSTOM BROWNSTONE ON FRANCE

Italy,” says Joe. It’s a story that emerges over and over at Brownstones on France, of homeowners looking at their lives and seeing the custom possibilities—re-creating cherished places, putting old things in a fresh light or simply making life simpler.

At Stig and Marie Jacobsen’s ultra-modern unit, for instance, the couple requested a special alcove for their coffee habit. Just off the pantry is a little nook with a multitude of coffee contraptions and presses. Filtered water pours from a nearby spout. “We love our coffee, but we don’t love having clutter on our kitchen counters,” explains Marie.

At the Larkins’, the couple had a room specially designed to house their made-inCanada Heitzman & Company baby grand piano. It was a special thing they bought when they lived in Toronto in the 1990s. “It was a very special time for me, and for Dave, and for our kids,” remembers Robin, wistfully.

At the Matsons’, just a few doors down, Jim

and Becky have their own casual music room where Becky can play piano and Jim can strum along on his guitar, while seated next to a roaring fire.

What true customization offers is a chance to make life just a little easier on its inhabitants. When Dave Larkin purchased the unit with his wife, Robin, he asked for just two things: a bathroom of his very own and a refrigerator that dispenses ice and water from the door. He got both, but he also got something else that became apparent after long discussions with Noonan’s team and Diane Rice, principal at Diane Rice Interiors: a small sitting room off the master suite where Dave can do crossword puzzles and read when he feels restless in the middle of the night.

“That sitting room is indicative of our life here,” says Robin Larkin. “It’s like this wonderful little detail that we didn’t even know we needed.”

italian influence Joe and Phyllis Kohler wanted their entire main floor to reflect their Mediterranean vacation home.

The kitchen ABOVE features walnut beams on the ceiling and treated plasterwork walls to mimic old-world Venetian construction.

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home || renovate

His Happy Home Can you retool a home to improve your quality of life? |

S

ome remodels are done to increase space; others are done to enhance energy efficiency or appearance. But can a remodeling project — or an entire home-building project — help you live a longer, happier life? Take a stroll through author Dan Buettner’s Minneapolis home and you might come away thinking it can.

The Lake of the Isles home remodel is the result of a collaboration between Vujovich Design Build, architect Lars Peterssen of Peterssen/Keller Architecture, scores of ASID designers and the author himself.

“Part of the idea here is that I wrote this book on longevity, and I just finished one on happiness,” says Buettner, “so as much as we could, we worked in ‘nudges’ that favor longevity or happiness.”

For example, according to Buettner’s findings, your overall happiness relates directly to the number of pleasant memories

picture perfect

BY CAROLYN CROOKE

you have over the course of the day. To that end, a “pride shrine” full of treasures from travels and family members was built into a well-trafficked area.

Another nudge: the “destination room,” a fun, funky space where everyone wants to spend time. One catch: it’s all the way up on the third floor. Getting there involves burning several hundred calories a day, without even thinking about it. It’s worth every step though, for its gorgeous views, inventive layout and front-side nook reminiscent of a ship’s cabin.

“I have such respect for Dan’s insight into creating a vital life and a special place to live it,” notes Peter Vujovich, whose own Green Star–certified home embraces similar values of vitality and sustainability. “I deeply appreciate the contribution he’s given us with his Blue Zones principles.”

More such principles are in action on the second floor, where the most substantial structural transformation took place. A sweeping master suite, master bath and open closet

The front of author, Dan Buettner’s Lake of the Isles home in Minneapolis. The recent remodel was a joint project of the author’s studies, Vujovich Design Build, and Peterssen/Keller Architecture.

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“People are looking for things that really make them happy, instead of just living the dreams they were handed.” —PETER VUJOVICH area now run the length of the front, which was once broken up by smaller rooms. Every detail is period perfect, matching seamlessly to the style of the home and surrounding neighborhood.

Peterssen and the Vujovich team increased lake views by changing single windows into double windows, putting in French doors and constructing a porch overlooking the lake. These moves were about more than lovely views: Buettner cites the Gallup Healthways WellBeing Index, which surveyed thousands of people, and revealed that the happiest people live near water. This work maximizes the “lake effect.”

For making such a big difference, the Vujovich team kept things surprisingly low-impact.

This is all the more impressive considering the inevitable surprises along the way, including an unexpected and problematic configuration of structural beams. The easy solution would have involved disturbing the dining room below, but that was a dealbreaker: Buettner wanted to save the stencil work there, which was created by a local artist who’s since passed away. So the Vujovich team collaborated with structural engineers to find a low-impact,

room and renew

A handsome closet area sweeps gracefully into the master bathroom BELOW. The upper level opens to a rooftop deck, overlooking Lake of the Isles, incorporating studies on happiness and proximity to water ABOVE.

cost-effective alternative.

Vujovich co-owner Ed Roskowinski points out that this low-impact philosophy extends to the neighborhood. “We’ve been working in this neighborhood for years,” he says. “It’s our neighborhood too, so we make a real effort to take care of neighbors.

When we’re doing a three- or four-month project like this, we don’t want to disturb people’s lifestyles. We try to be cognizant about blocking sidewalks and access.”

“And we send out mailings,” adds Vujovich manager Beth Malmberg, “so if we’re driving somebody crazy, they can call us.”

Of course, this was slated as an ASID Showcase home, too.

Translation: The Vujovich team worked with more than a dozen designers, installing finishings and lighting, and carrying out modifications in every room. A nightmare? Quite the opposite. “It was easy, it was great,” says Roskowinski. “These ASID designers are confident, and they’re accomplished. They know what will work.”

Buettner was impressed with the designers’ skill, too, though he confesses to being nervous along the way about various aesthetic choices. “But when you see the end product, you understand that they knew exactly what they were doing,” he says.

During the bulk of the work, Buettner lived up on the third floor. “I’d come down every day for coffee and we’d chat a little bit.

His [Vujovich’s] workers were wonderful.

There were so many places where I noticed they went above and beyond — and there are probably dozens of other instances that I don’t even know about. It’s one of those partnerships where you say, ‘Yeah, somebody is on your team here. Somebody is really thinking about how a home works here.’ This is quality work. It’s quality everything.”

Lately, Peter Vujovich finds that a growing number of clients are asking for work that supports happiness, well-being and sustainability. “A lot of us are baby boomers, and we’re questioning some of the values we were handed. Like some of the big homes built on golf courses — people are abandoning those types of homes in favor of quality homes that are smaller and fit more with the lifestyle they want,” he says. “People are looking for things that really make them happy, instead of just living the dreams they were handed.”

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

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Circle of Connections

Hallmarks of this unique project include the connections between the people involved: architect Lars Peterssen lived in the house before author Dan Buettner, and the author, the architect and the builder, Peter Vujovich, are all friends.

BUETTNER: Peter has been a great friend for a decade, and Lars has been a great friend since I bought this house, so this three-way collaboration has been really satisfying to me.

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VUJOVICH: Renovating for Dan and his tribe has been a special privilege. They’re good friends, and a lot of Dan’s principles have factored into my life.

BUETTNER: And I knew Lars had lived here for 17 years. I feel like we unleashed 17 years of subconscious design.

PETERSSEN: But when I lived here, we were just two people. Dan has a family, and that changed how the house was used.

VUJOVICH: You could see everywhere it wasn’t working for the family, and that’s what was changed.

PETERSSEN: I know every square inch of the house, so it was kind of fun thinking, What can we do with this to make it better? And luckily, the way we figured it out didn’t change the architecture.

You can’t tell the difference and that was really nice. Vujovich figured it all out with us.

VUJOVICH: I like to think of Dan’s work on health and happiness as taking care of my health and my vitality, and the work of Vujovich Design Build as creating places where people can experience such lifestyles.

BUETTNER: When you’re living in a place you want to inhabit for a long time, you want it to feel special. You want it to work.

Buettner’s books include the best-selling Blue Zones, and the upcoming Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way, out November 2010 from National Geographic. Lars Peterssen co-owns Peterssen/Keller Architecture, www.pkarch.com.

Vujovich co-owns Vujovich Design Build, www. vujovich.com.

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home || eco-responsibility

The Greenest Granite Cambria sets the standard for eco-friendly stone countertops. |

C

ambria CEO Marty Davis knew that his company’s quartz countertops were “green” in the respect that they were made in Minnesota at an ecofriendly plant.

But he really had no idea the extent of it until he went on a helicopter ride through the Canadian quarries where much of the translucent quartz used to make the Cambria product is harvested.

“I looked out the window, and all I could see were these gentle hills that were covered in young pine trees,” remembers Davis. The quarry manager yelled into his headset that the pine-dotted hills below had been open quartz mines just three years before, but had been carefully backfilled with soil so new plant life could crop up. “I was amazed,” recalls Davis.

The experience was particularly eye

BY ALYSSA FORD

opening because Davis had just spent most of the previous year touring mines and stone-processing centers around the world on an educational quest to learn more about his industry. He toured granite mines in South America and marble-processing centers in China. He took a trip to Cold Spring, Minn., and to South Africa. He asked questions. He got his hands dirty.

What he saw firsthand was that most natural stone mining is not like what he saw in Canada. Most, he’s sad to say, involves tearing open a hillside — sometimes covered in rainforest — and pulling out giant blocks of granite. What can’t be extracted in perfect form — usually about half of the mountain — is left lying on the ground around the open pit, a crumbled wasteland. The perfect forms of granite are then shipped to processing centers where another 30 percent of the granite is shaved off to make custom shapes and edge profiles.

the hills are alive Canada’s lush forests include this new growth, ABOVE, on a former quartz mine where Cambria gets

its supply. The translucent quartz, RIGHT, is carefully extracted from the mines. OPPOSITE, Cambria’s eco-friendly modes of transportation.

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“It bums me out that a whole mountain has to come down and only 20 percent actually becomes a countertop,” says Davis.

Quartz, on the other hand, is not extracted in huge blocks, but crushed out in mostly nugget-sized chunks.

That means that nearly 70 percent of what’s inside a quartz mine actually makes its way into someone’s home after the shaping and edging is complete.

“I didn’t know all this, but I was very happy to find out our product was so sustainable,” says Davis.

W

hat was very intentional on Cambria’s part was the design and operation of its plant in Le Sueur, Minn., that includes all kinds of nifty green features including a massive waterrecycling system, a rainwater irrigation system, a high-tech furnace for turning noxious chemicals into harmless water vapor, and a fleet of 12 zippy (and cute) bicycles for the employees to motor around the plant.

Recycling is a major point of pride here. The rubber molds that are used to shape the quartz and resin are used and reused until they’re all used up. Then they are ground up and donated to a playground group to use as

bedding beneath the slides and merry-go-rounds. The 2,500-pound canvas bags that carry fresh shipments of crystalline quartz rocks are folded and shipped back to the quarry for another round. Fragments and chunks of quartz countertop are dumped into a bin and donated to Gaylord Sanitation along with quartz-rich sludge from the plant. This mix is used to make durable roadbed for highway construction projects.

One of the more impressive features is a “regenerative thermal oxidizer” that looks like one of those room-sized Univac computers from the 1950s. The Volatile Organic

Nearly 70 percent of what’s inside a quartz mine actually makes its way into someone’s home after the shaping and edging is complete.

Compounds that are released in the process of making Cambria counters are vacuumed at a high speed through an airtight tube system. The chemicals are then shuttled through an efficient 1,500-degree combustion chamber where they are converted instantaneously to harmless CO2 and water vapor. “VOCs are inherent in the stone, so this process actually makes the countertop safer than if you had a cut slab of granite,” says John, a systems engineer for Cambria.

The other major system is a water recycler that continuously circulates, purifies and re-circulates 60,000 gallons of water in a series of massive tanks shaped like funnels. The mud that settles at the bottom is trapped and then moved to a large holding bin. This, too, will be donated to make roadbed. “Anything we can recycle, we do,” says plant manager Butch Brey, who often drives an electric cart around the plant.

Like the other 300 or so Cambria employees, Brey doesn’t have to wear a face mask to go about his work because Cambria bought a oversized, heavy-duty dust collector that constantly vacuums the air of dust particulates.

“I said I wanted the air on the plant floor to be as clean as it is in my office,” says Davis. “I got my way.”

Outside the plant — which is dotted with skylights and wide windows on its south-facing wall — the 17-acre site is watered by a rainwater irrigation system that flows into a large retention pond. It’s as lush as a golf course. Which just goes to show: Green can come in many surprising packages. Even a high-end quartz countertop.

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home || landscape

Elegant landscaping around an Eden Prairie home captures the essence of a French château. | BY IVY GRACIE

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW KRUGER

Le Jardin Français

T

he grand entrance along an extended keyhole driveway feels more like the approach to an estate in the French countryside than an Eden Prairie home.

That’s thanks to the architectural detail, not only in the home, but in the landscaping as well. And according to Andrew Kruger, owner of Gray Gardens in Excelsior, architecture is both the inspiration and the application that makes this home’s homage to fine French living so convincing.

“The French are strong with their architecture,” Kruger says. “And they use a lot of sculptured plants that reflect that architecture.”

With abundant arches in the French Mediterranean–style home’s grand portico and loggias, and strong columns throughout the façade, inspiration for the landscaping was readily available. “If you start taking a study of the architecture, what kind of plants will mimic those shapes?”

Round and sculpted shapes in the form of topiary lilacs and upright junipers were chosen to complement the arches in the front of the home.

Then lavender was added for fragrance and an explosion of color, authenticity and additional benefits. “On a warm, sunny day you’re going to get that lavender, all its oils and fragrances, filling the air in the sitting areas and across the front door,” Kruger explains. “And the great thing is that deer aren’t attracted to it because they don’t like the pungent oils.”

Kruger admits that finding plants that emulate those in a French Mediterranean garden while withstanding Minnesota’s extreme climate was a challenge. “Conical cypress trees are a staple,” he says.

“They’re very tall, they’re very narrow and they give an exclamation

point in the design.” However, they would wither against a Minnesota winter. Thankfully, Gray Gardens uses a select grower that carries an exclusive strain of upright juniper that’s hearty enough to endure the toughest weather. “It’s a very unique plant that’s not readily available on the market,” Kruger explains. “And it mimics the effect of the French cypress.”

A similar adaptive strategy was incorporated to create the meticulously sculpted hedges that appear first in a circular planter in the center of the driveway, and again framing a circular seating area behind the home. “The French use a lot of broderie parterre — embroidery on the ground,” Kruger notes. “They do a lot with interesting pattern design.” And by choosing a boxwood variety that can thrive in Midwestern environs, Kruger created the desired effect.

In the backyard, the boxwoods channel a classic 0 — a formal, symmetrical garden on a level surface that showcases edged planting beds or fastidiously manicured hedges. The effect is a genuinely French feel, not only at ground level, but from above as well. “From the second level you look down and see these wonderful patterns or ribbons of boxwood plants on the ground. So you get this great effect in summer and winter.”

And while certain notable parterres—like those at Versailles—add floral color to their boxwood sculptures, Kruger and his clients opted to keep the look simple. “It’s low maintenance and it’s a sculptured point. We do a lot of color on their verandas, terraces and loggia areas where we used Mediterranean-style containers.” The green palette also allows the eye to shift easily to the home’s panoramic view of the Minnesota River Valley. “You look down into that space and your eye tends to drift off,” says Kruger. “The next thing you know, you’re off in the valley or the skyline, or the landscape that surrounds you about 20 miles out. You don’t really need to put a lot of color down there.”

Not to be overlooked, the home’s “hardscapes” were given as much consideration as the plantings. “For maintenance areas where you’d shovel snow, we used brick,” Kruger says, “but when you get past the front of the arches on each side of the home, you exit on a gravel path.

So you get the crunch — the sound of the gravel. Americans tend to walk quickly but this slows the body’s tempo down.”

Re-creating a French Mediterranean landscape for this Eden Prairie home was surely a challenge, but thanks to careful planning, attention to architectural integrity and the desire for authenticity, it’s a fait accompli!

french by design

The sculptural spaces and moving plan for this garden takes its inspiration from the French Mediterranean style of this Eden Prairie home.

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home || remodel

Home and Away

Two lower-level remodels take their inspiration from the hospitality industry. |

F

or decades, the hotels and restaurants we patronize have influenced our tastes in interior design. Whether it’s industrial appliances, humidors, wine cellars or exponential thread counts, we take cues from our surroundings outside the home and incorporate what we like in our own interiors. And in the case of two lower-level remodels in the Twin Cities, the owners captured the essence of their favorite hot spots in the places they call home.

Graceful Gaming When it came time for one couple to finish the lower level of their home in a golf course community, they turned to Sin City for their inspiration. “This particular client loves Vegas and they wanted the Bellagio,” recalls Colleen Eastman, an interior designer with M|A|Peterson Designbuild, Inc., in Edina. But Eastman says replicating the hotel’s ornate décor proved to be more difficult than a typical lower level could support. So she drew from the high-end hotel’s essence and left the fussiness behind. “I took the colors, the movement and the idea of Vegas.”

But in Vegas, the game can change with one roll of the dice or one turn of the card, and it was no different with the home. “The client came to us looking to add a theater, and we ended up doing everything

BY IVY GRACIE

but,” Eastman laughs. “They decided they wanted a fun game room and entertaining space, and that they’d do the theater later.”

Thanks to the change in plans, they ended up with a space that echoes the elegant ease of the Bellagio’s Baccarat bar and complements the rest of the home. “This [space] is in a very traditional home,” Eastman says. “So I tried to keep the traditional elements but give it a kick.” In that vein, Eastman kept the bar simple and clean-lined.

“I left out any corbels,” she says. “It’s not highly articulated.” But she incorporated woven leather fronts to the cabinetry for a fresh perspective. “I was trying to blend it with more of a contemporary, metropolitan feel instead of just straight-up traditional.”

Eastman added an undulating wall to guide guests through the space, play up the space’s modernity and add a feminine spark.

“This was the mister’s bar,” she explains. “He wanted to have it be a man’s bar. But we had a space that was very long, so we added a little whimsy, a little way-finding to it. That’s where we’re bringing in the Vegas feel. When you come downstairs, the undulation begins and leads toward a game room stocked with slots and arcade games.”

Just like the Bellagio, the finished space offers a stylish and sophisticated invitation to escape the ordinary. “This couple works hard, they entertain a lot and they like to enjoy their home,” Eastman says. “So this space is for grown-up fun.”

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home || remodel

touches in design.

Both remodeling projects looked to the hotel industry RIGHT and restaurants THIS PAGE for inspired

High-Energy Hangout Innovative backlighting caught the eyes of the owners of an Edina home when they first dined at Uptown’s Chino Latino. So they decided to mimic the effect in the lower level of their home. “It shows you how important out-of-our-home environments are to us and how perceptive we are to them,” says Lynn Woodruff, ASID Allied Member and interior designer for M|A|Peterson Designbuild, Inc., in Edina.

Woodruff says the lower-level remodel was the final phase of a whole-home project. “This was a tired, dated, unattended [space] that the homeowners were leaving for last,” she recalls. Having opted for a traditional décor above ground, the family wanted a more relaxed environment on the lower level. “They have two boys, about 12 and 14,” Woodruff says. “They wanted something more family and kidfriendly, maybe a little more upbeat in the sense of its youthfulness — a place where the kids would feel comfortable and where they could extend their entertaining.”

Woodruff says creating the backlit effect of Chino Latino’s bar was central to the project. “Our project manager talked to the manager to learn how they did it,” she says. And it was less of a challenge than they expected. “It looks very sophisticated and hard to do, but it’s not.”

The bar’s warm orange backlighting illuminates an array of colorful glassware that peppers suspended shelves, and staggered

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“It shows you how important out-of-our-home environments are to us and how percetive we are to them.”

—LYNN WOODRUFF, ASIS ALLIED MEMBER AND INTERIOR DESIGNER FOR M|A| PETERSON

hand-blown Murano glass pendant lights add a sense of stylish whimsy over the ample island. Throughout the space, clean lines and defined edges serve aesthetic as well as practical purposes. “It’s very simple, with rectangular edges,” Woodruff explains. “The flat-panel doors on the cabinetry are significant to creating the sleek visual. And we kept it pretty bulletproof. The carpet is a commercial grade, and the slate — well, you can’t really wreck that.”

From the warm color palette to the sleek lines, from the durable materials to the whimsical vibe, this space is as stylish as it is sensible. “You don’t realize you’re in a lower level,” Woodruff says.

“This is a cool vibe to come down to—it’s a place where guests can come and hang.”

PHOTOGRAPHY BY M|A|PETERSON

accomodating living

© SOTHEBY’S, INC. 2010 TOBIAS MEYER, PRINCIPAL AUCTIONEER, #9588677

OK_103285 AMP Ad for Artful Living_FINAL_Layout 2 6/2/10 5:07 PM Page 1

AN INVITATION TO CONSIGN AMERICAN PAINTINGS, DRAWINGS & SCULPTURE George Hitchcock Tulip Culture Sold for $1,762,500 in New York May 2010

Next auctioN iN New york 2 December 2010 | eNquiries Laura macLeNNaN +1 612 308 2550 | sothebys.com

Where are you on your life’s journey?

You remember the satisfaction of going from apartment rental to owning your first home. Now is the time to move from vacation rental to vacation home owner. Fractional ownership makes it possible. The resort lifestyle with maintenance-free living makes it fun.

Lakeview Great Room at Trapper’s Landing Lodge on Leech Lake

Odyssey Resorts and Development is the leader of MN Resort Vacation Homes and has many purchase options available, all are premier locations offering outdoor beauty and indoor luxury: LEECH LAKE’S NEWEST RESORT: Trapper’s Landing Lodge NORTH SHORE OF LAKE SUPERIOR: Grand Superior Lodge, Larsmont Cottages, Stoney Point with 8 new shoreline lots now available 15 minutes north of Duluth, Caribou Highlands Lodge on Lutsen Mountain.

And now representing sales for Beacon Pointe Resort on the water’s edge, in Duluth, MN. Call today for first sales of the season incentives.

1-800-595-3385

A Collection of Minnesota’s Finest Resorts

www.odysseydev.com

home || retreat

Right at Home Elite Destination Homes offer multiple ways to enjoy a vacation home.

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ife is short, so when it comes to spending quality vacation time with our friends and family, it’s so important to “get it right,” affirms Bill Bisanz, CEO of Elite Destination Homes (www.EliteDestinationHomes.com), a Twin Cities–based firm that specializes in forming small ownership groups that share highend vacation homes. “Getting it right” means something different to each family. For some, the right way may be to stay at a luxurious hotel; for others, it may mean owning a private family retreat where your extended family and friends gather several times a year. But for most, the choice depends on how they travel, their philosophy about ownership and the amount of time they spend on vacation each year.

Here are some options to consider:

Sole Ownership The most traditional form of vacation-home ownership, where one family owns their own vacation home, makes the most sense for families who plan on using the home more than two or three months a year. Summer cabins or winter homes for snowbirds are classic examples for Minnesotans. These destinations have relatively short peak seasons, so sharing just may not make sense. Of course, with full ownership comes the full financial and management responsibilities,

cozy corners

but for some, this is the only way to go. “Our lake cottage is our family camp, but we love owning our Paris apartment with Elite,” says Ottawa-based real-estate developer, John D. (See the section below, Vacation Home Management, for some interesting options if you own your own vacation home.)

Private Co-Ownership As its name suggests, private co-ownership is a simple yet private way for a select group of families to equitably share the ownership, use and benefits of a single-family vacation home in a loved destination. It is an elite form of fractional ownership as it is limited to no more than six families, and sometimes to as few as two families, sharing a multimillion-dollar vacation home.

While your ownership is limited to the home and destination you love the most, your travel options are not. The World of Elite Exchange provides Elite owners with reciprocal access to a collection of 32 handpicked vacation residences in more than 13 destinations, including Paris; New York City; Turks and Caicos Islands; Los Cabos, Mexico; Naples, Fla.; Colorado; and even a hunting estate in Alexandria, Minn.

Paulina G. and her family, natives of Los Cabos, Mexico, and owners in Elite’s New York City apartment on

Members of Elite Destination Homes can own, rent, sell, co-own, or manage their vacation properties

with ease.

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THE

BEST OUTDOOR PARTY OF SUMMER!

easy ownership

Elite’s properties include a multimillion-dollar vacation home in Wyoming.

Central Park, rave about their recent exchange in Steamboat, Colo., over spring break. “It couldn’t have been better. We had never seen so much snow! [Elite ownership] has been a great answer for our family!”

Private co-ownership works very well for families who travel to a destination that is dear to them two to four times per year, for one to two weeks per visit. It allows a family to have 100 percent of the personal and emotional benefits of owning in a destination they love with only 20 percent of the financial outlay and zero percent of the management commitment. It is a form of ownership that has been going on for years (i.e., when a group of friends go in on a house together — this has evolved into a professionally developed ownership opportunity). Note that this is not a “timeshare,” which sometimes market themselves as “fractional ownership” properties. There is a big difference.

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Vacation-Home Rentals

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For those whose travel style and ownership preference is better suited to renting fantastic vacation homes, there are a variety of sources to choose from. Elite Destination Homes makes most of its co-owned homes available to short-term renters. Other excellent sources for high-end vacation home and villa rentals include: LuxuryRetreats.com, VillasofDistinction.com and LaCure.com.

For groups of friends and families, renting a vacation home offers significant benefits. Most notably, a home is more conducive to spending quality time with the people with which you are traveling. Hotels are nice, but they lack private common spaces and there are other guests, making for a less personal vacation experience for groups of family and friends. Also, vacation-home rentals are an exceptional deal when compared to the cost and quality of comparable hotel accommodations.

Of course, for those of you who love the 2 a.m. chocolate sundae delivered from room service, luxury hotels are the way to go.

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Vacation-Home Management If you already own a vacation home, Elite can help you, too. For homes that meet strict selection criteria, Elite has offered their services to owners who wish to find partners to co-own their home, generate significant rental income, as well as access the World of Elite Exchange program. Becoming a guest in your own home is a wonderful answer for those who don’t want to spend time worrying about their vacation home and its care and upkeep.

Becoming part of somewhere you love is an experience like few others. “Getting it right” is key to making the most of your next getaway with family and friends. Elite Destination Homes is part of a family that has been developing, owning and managing investment real estate in the Twin Cities for more than 40 years. Helping vacationers “get it right” when considering options for owning or renting a vacation home.

fresh, local and green Tasty, fresh cuisine from more than 20 restaurants including Corner Table, Dakota, Rainbow Chinese Restaurant, Spoonriver, Terra Waconia.

Great local wines from Minnesota and regional wineries including Alexis Bailly Vineyard and St. Croix Vineyards. Plus more in the spectacular gardens!

New this year! Toast and Taste coupon book.

PATRON LEVEL: $100 (6 to 9 p.m.)

GENERAL ADMISSION: $75 (7 to 9 p.m.)

Reserve at arboretum.umn.edu/toastandtaste.aspx 3675 Arboretum Drive Chaska, MN 55318-9613 Proceeds benefit the MN Landscape Arboretum. Questions? celebarb@umn.edu or 952-443-1400 x 7046

Elite Destination Homes Bill@elitedestinationhomes.com Telephone: 651-208-6914

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Not Your ‘Garden-Variety Superheroes’

................“When exactly did you

tell the babysitter we’d be home?”

“Sometime before dawn.” ................

PERFECT EVENTS! Stir things up for large parties.

For groups from 10 to 200, The Melting Pot is a memorable venue for your next social or business occasion.

Reservations recommended • 612-338-9900 • meltingpot.com Fondue coast to coast • Locally owned and operated Parking is available in the attached ramp off 9th Street.

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The Property Gallery presented by LAKES Sotheby’s International Realty includes a

selection of properties within the Twin Cities area, Greater Minnesota, and Western Wisconsin. The Sotheby’s International Realty® global network includes nearly 500 offices in 39 countries. Enjoy.

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1. David Abele

11. Pam Gerberding

21. Ben Kolkman

31. Robin Roberts

2. Dewey Bakken

12. Jim Grandbois

22. Jill Lepine

32. Frank Roffers

3. Sandra Burt

13. Garry Haas

23. Kent Marsh

33. Jill Roffers

4. Mike Buenting

14. Jack Halverson

24. Brandon Mayfield

34. Anne Shaeffer

5. Matt Carlson

15. Denise Hertz

25. Molly McCrea

35. Todd Shipman

6. Belle Davenport

16. Joanne Hitch

26. Debbie McNally

36. Jacob Smith

7. Rebecca Davenport

17. Mark Hoiseth

27. Craig Mische

37. Darren Spencer

8. Shelly Erving

18. Jeff Hornig

28. Jenny Nelson

38. Christa Thompson

9. Kimberly Falker

19. Jim Hornig

29. Seth Nelson

39. David Tonneson

10. Bryan Flanagan

20. Olivia Hornig

30. Julie Regan

49. Joe Wahl

Main Office: 952. 230. 3100 www.lakessothebysrealty.com Edina: 4388 France Ave South Wayzata: 155 East Lake Street, Suite 200

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twin cities gallery

Parkwood Knolls

|| edina

Large, Parkwood Knolls home perched on a hill with sweeping views, a walkout lower level and three-car garage. When you walk through the front door you have an immediate view into the large great room with a wall of west facing windows. The laundry room and master bedroom are on the main floor as well. There are also two bedrooms up, and another two bedrooms on the lower level.

5012 Kelsey Terrace Edina, MN Offered at $949,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 5 Roffers Group/Jacob Smith TEL: 612.867.5667

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twin cities gallery

Country Club

|| edina

Large, classic family home on coveted street in Country Club. Loads of original detail and charm including gracious entertaining spaces, hardwoods, arched doorways, four fireplaces, stately main staircase and 2 second staircase to 2nd level. An updated kitchen with original butlerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pantry opens to main-floor family room with screen porch. There is a classic Americana log family room on lower level with fireplace and bar and an incredible third floor guest suite.

4506 Moorland Avenue Edina, MN Offered at $1,149,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 4 Roffers Group/Jacob Smith TEL: 612.867.5667

SALE PENDING

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Brownstones on France

|| edina

Custom built in the heart of Edina, blending classic elegance with timeless luxury and architecture, plus all the conveniences of todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lifestyle. These spacious residences showcase craftsmanship, exclusivity, security, quality and an unsurpassed attention to detail.

Each home within the 20-unit development offers a homeowner their own opportunity to customize the interior living spaces to suit individual needs and wants.

Visit Artful-Livingmag.com for a video tour of this home.

5200 France Avenue S. Edina, MN Starting at $1,050,000 (Shell Only) Total FSF from 3,215 to 4,465 Roffers Group/Jacob Smith TEL: 612.867.5667 Open House: Sundays, from 1 to 3pm

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twin cities gallery

South Harriet Park

|| edina

Fabulous South Harriet Park colonial with newer addition, open kitchen and main-floor family room, all beautifully updated. Master suite, second-floor laundry, 4 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms and a 2.5-car garage with an office/teenage room above. A home that boasts character and charm yet offers all the amenities of today.

5228 Kellogg Avenue Edina, MN Offered at $849,900 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 5 Roffers Group/Jacob Smith TEL: 612.867.5667

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twin cities gallery

Walkout to Beach

|| stillwater

Quality construction sitting on 208 feet of prime Big Carnelian Lake shoreline. A unique and classically designed open layout loaded w/modern conveniences and amenities. 5500 sq. ft. of living space, 2-story great room w/stone fireplace and awesome lake view from wall of windows. Gourmet kitchen, formal dining room, mud room, 2 laundry areas, lower-level wet bar, game room and wine cellar. Plus a six stall, second level heated garage, a massive deck and walkout patio leading to the beach and fully recreational lake.

Visit Artful-Livingmag.com for a video tour of this home.

13020 Panorama Avenue North Stillwater, MN Offered at $1,095,000 Bedrooms: 6 Bathrooms: 6 Roffers Group/Jacob Smith TEL: 612.867.5667

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twin cities gallery

Luxury Lakefront Living

|| alexandria

Once in a lifetime a masterpiece of this quality and style presents itself. This is the essence of luxury lakefront living. Carefully crafted with attention to detail, the home pays tribute to cottage style living in modern terms. Set slightly above the 156 feet of level lakeshore of Lake Carlos, you will enjoy the panoramic views and summer sunrise on this spring-fed chain of lakes. The privileged opportunity to own this legacy property will be enjoyed for many lifetimes by family and friends.

6587 Stardust Lane NE Alexandria, MN Offered at $2,750,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 6 Todd Shipman TEL: 952.230.3117

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Howards Point

|| shorewood

Howards Point, one of Lake Minnetonka’s seven points, remains a rare slice of solitude from days gone by. This historic property, named after Silas Howard, a lumber and coal trader from Rhode Island, includes the remodeled original house in a cozy, Northwoods aesthetic. Every room in the house affords a view of the lake. The property includes nearly 2 wooded acres and boasts @ 1000’ of lakeshore. Wildlife and indigenous flora abound. There is a boathouse/guest house at the water’s edge, screened gazebo, two docks, plus hard sand beach with amazing East and West views.

5170 Howards Point Shorewood, MN Offered at $2,895,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 3 Roffers Group/Jacob Smith TEL: 612.867.5667

SOLD

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twin cities gallery

|| tonka bay + detroit lakes

315 Lakeview Tonka Bay, MN

Offered at $2,495,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 4 Visit Artful-Livingmag.com for a video tour of this home. Roffers Group/Jacob Smith TEL: 612.867.5667

51493 225th Avenue Big Pelican Lake / Detroit Lakes, MN

Offered at $2,849,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 5 Gated 14-plus-acres estate with guest house and caretakers house on 460 feet of lakeshore.

Hertz & Gerberding TEL: 952.230.3173 Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

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Offered at $549,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 2

|| edina + eden prairie + orono

Roffers Group/Jacob Smith TEL: 612.867.5667

16900 Stratus Court Eden Prairie, MN Offered at $1,695,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 5 The Haas Team Robin Roberts & Garry Haas TEL: 952.270.5370

519 Ferndale Road N. Orono, MN Offered at $2,145,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Belle & Rebecca Davenport TEL: 952.230.3113

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twin cities gallery

4648 Lake Harriet Pkwy West Minneapolis, MN Offered at $1,150,000

||

Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 3 The Haas Team TEL: 612.968.4227

4804 Chicago Bay Road Hovland, MN Offered at $995,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 2 Roffers Group TEL: 952.237.1100

40 Surfside Drive Tofte, MN Offered at $235,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 3 Roffers Group TEL: 952.237.1100

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33 Cooper Circle Edina, MN

4615 Arden Avenue Edina, MN

4150 West 44th Street Edina, MN

65 Woodland Circle Edina, MN

4915 Bywood West Edina, MN

2100 West Lake of Isles Pkwy Minneapolis, MN

2006 Queen Avenue S Minneapolis, MN

2437 Humboldt Avenue S Minneapolis, MN

4815 Chantrey Place Minnetonka, MN

1801 Mount Curve Minneapolis, MN

|| edina + minneapolis

Offered at $1,285,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 4 Anne Shaeffer TEL: 952.230.3121

Offered at $879,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Anne Shaeffer TEL: 952.230.3121

COMING SOON Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Hornig & Associates TEL: 952.230.3165

Offered at $1,295,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 4 Hornig & Associates TEL: 952.230.3165

Offered at $799,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 4 The Haas Team TEL: 612.968.4227

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Offered at $1,074,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 4 Anne Shaeffer TEL: 952.230.3121

Offered at $650,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Anne Shaeffer TEL: 952.230.3121

Offered at $3,495,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 5 Debbie McNally Group TEL: 612.388.1790

Offered at $1,175,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Debbie McNally Group TEL: 612.388.1790

Offered at 999,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 5 Anne Shaeffer TEL: 952.230.3121

537 10th Street South Minneapolis, MN

800 Thornton Street SE Minneapolis MN

1600 Linner Road Minnetonka, MN

1270 French Creek Drive Orono, MN

1250 Lyman Avenue Orono, MN

2900 Deer Run Trail Orono, MN

1290 Lyman Avenue Orono, MN

1990 Shadywood Orono, MN

Offered at $924,900 Bedrooms:4 Bathrooms: 4 Jim Grandbois TEL: 952.230.3137

Offered at $500,000 Bedrooms: 2 Bathrooms: 2 Darren Spencer/Matt Carlson TEL: 612.743.7384

Offered at $725,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 3 Belle & Rebecca Davenport TEL: 952.230.3113

Offered at $1,725,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 6 Debbie McNally Group TEL: 612.388.1790

Offered at $975,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Hornig & Associates TEL: 952.230.3165

|| minneapolis + minnetonka + orono

Offered at $699,900 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 2 Jim Grandbois TEL: 952.230.3137

twin cities gallery

4949 Newton Avenue Minneapolis, MN

Offered at $464,900 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 3 Hornig & Associates TEL: 952.230.3165

Offered at $2,895,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 8 Debbie McNally Group TEL: 612.388.1790

Offered at $1,200,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Belle & Rebecca Davenport TEL: 952.230.3113

Offered at $546,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 2 Debbie McNally Group TEL: 612.388.1790

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18320 Breezy Point Woodland, MN

1415 Yellowstone Lane N Plymouth, MN

7335 Fountain Lane Maple Grove, MN

8743 Lake Riley Drive Chanhassen, MN

3643 Le Rive Way Chaska, MN

15341 Red Oaks Road Prior Lake, MN

875A Highlander Trail Hudson, WI

22598 Hayward Ave N Forest Lake, MN

509 South Le Homme Dieu Drive Alexandria, MN

11655 Gehrkes Point NW Alexandria, MN

|| twin cities and beyond

Offered at $1,995,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 3 Hornig & Associates TEL: 952.230.3165

Offered at $649,900 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Hertz & Gerberding TEL: 952.230.3173

Lot price $1,595,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 4 The Haas Team/Robin Roberts TEL: 952.270.5370

Offered at $2,995,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 9 Todd Shipman TEL: 952.230.3117

Offered at $665,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Craig Mische TEL: 320.760.0198

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Offered at $649,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 4 Belle & Rebecca Davenport TEL: 952.230.3113

Offered at $849,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 3 Hornig & Associates TEL: 952.230.3165

Offered at $1,400,000 Bedrooms: 4 Bathrooms: 4 Hornig & Associates TEL: 952.230.3165

Offered at $4,995,000 Bedrooms: 3 Bathrooms: 4 Hornig & Associates TEL: 952.230.3165

Offered at 649,000 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 3 Craig Mische TEL: 320.760.0198

Lakeside

Carefree resorT

L u x u r y To w n h o m e s Living on Lake riLey nexT

To

BearpaTh CC

A Beautiful Commmuntiy with 1400 feet of shoreline on Lake Riley Including Boat, Docks, and Club House with Fitness Center - Homes from the $500’s Directions to Model Home: Highway 312 West to 101 south 1/4 mile to Lyman Blvd. east 1/2 mile

ARCHITECTS & BUILDERS

Bridgewater

Luxury singLe famiLy homes e x C e p T i o n a L n e i g h B o r h o o d - wa y z a T a s C h o o L s

Community Pool, Playground, Trails, and 11 Acre Nature Preserve - Homes from the $700’s Directions: Highway 55 West to Arrowhead Drive; north 1/2 mile to Bridgewater Rd.

For Information - Rick Denman 612-889-6980 www.charlescudd.com

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Welcome to the world of Elite.

Mention Artful Living and receive a friends & family discount. *some restrictions may apply. Call for details.

Villa La Percha Turks & Caicos, British West Indies

FINALLY, THE RIGHT WAY TO OWN OR VACATION

Private co-ownership and exclusive rentals of Elite Destination Homes worldwide.

Contact Jeanne at 866.650.4334 or stay@elitedestinationhomes.com To see all of ELITE’s offerings please visit www.elitedestinationhomes.com/artful | Summer 2010 PARIS • NEW YORK • TURKS & CAICOS • COLORADO • CABO SAN LUCAS • WYOMING • COSTA RICA • FLORIDA 102 Artful Living

marketplace

|| aircraft

Artful Living Marketplace From planes to properties, and art to cars, Lakes Sothebyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s International Realty presents luxury products for sale in Minnesota.

2003 Cessna Citation CJI

2003 Cessna 208 Amphibian

3593 Total time

290 Total Time

T: 952.941.6255 Email: info@ASIJet.com

T: 952.941.6255 Email: info@ASIJet.com

2007 Cessna Citation CJ3

2008 Cessna Grand Caravan

2010 Cesna Caravan

549 Total Time

60 Hours Total Time

675 Hours Total Time

T: 952.941.6255

T: 952.941.6255

T: 952.941.6255

Email: info@ASIJet.com

Email: info@ASIJet.com

Email: info@ASIJet.com

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marketplace

|| art + leasing + northshore properties

Jeffrey Terreson

Leroy Neiman

Peter Max

“Sage” 40x40” mbellished Canvas Edition $2,400 Unframed

1977 Original Gouache on Paper “Augusta” 14x10.5” Framed 29x25” Asking $29,500

“Zero in Love” Original Acrylic on Canvas 24x30” Please Call for Price

To receive more information about these works of art, please contact Griffin Gallery at 952.844.9884

Professional Leasing and Management Services for the Twin Cities Area

Let me show you the best-kept secrets in today’s loft and condo markets.

Let me show you the best-kept secrets Thinking about making a move or relocating?

Not sure about the market, in today’s loft and condo markets. or if it’s the right time to sell? Do you own investment properties? I am here to help. I specialize in the leasing and management of residential investment and rental properties. My experience as a Realtor, property manager and longtime Twin Cities resident helps me know the market and allows me to provide alternative solutions to selling.

Larsmont Cottages Two Harbors, MN Cottage for sale (fractional interest share $175,000) or nightly rental.

No one knows the Twin Cities’ lofts, condos, townhomes and neighborhoods

Bedrooms: 3 No one knows the Twin Cities’ lofts, Bathrooms: 4condos, townhomes and neighborhoods cuisine and nightlife within walking distance, you’re ready to move downtown.

better than I do. Most importantly, I have the knowledge and experience to find the place that is right for you. If your idea of the perfect neighborhood is culture, shopping,

612.281.2002

|

david@davidabele.com

better than I do. Most importantly, I have the knowledge and experience to find the

that is right for you. If your idea of the neighborhood is culture, shopping, | david @perfect Fine Living Expert place – 612.281.2022 davidabele.com

Lavonne Christensen North Shore Land & Cabins TEL: 218.834.2495

cuisine and nightlife within walking distance, you’re ready to move downtown.

Graduate REALTOR Institute

If your property is already listed with another agent, this is not a solicitation of that listing.

104 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

Fine Living Expert – 612.281.2022 | david@davidabele.com

marketplace

1754 Silver Cliff Lane Two Harbors, MN

2450 Cliff View Circle Two Harbors, MN

Offered at $775,000.

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Available for nightly rental Home for sale $649,000

Lavonne Christensen North Shore Land & Cabins TEL: 218.834.2495

Lavonne Christensen North Shore Land & Cabins TEL: 218.834.2495

Lavonne Christensen North Shore Land & Cabins TEL: 218.834.2495

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Spring 2010

|| northshore properties + euro cars

139 Howard Gnesen Road Dululth, MN

105

marketplace

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showcase || excelsior

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294 East Grove Lane, Wayzata, MN 55391 (952)475-4960

We Have Fun at the Run

952-471-8513 952-471-8513 952-471-8513 952-471-8513

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I VM E U MSUI C SIC $15 LIVE MAINE LIVE MAINE LOBSTER L I VLAugust E LIVE MAINE May through $$ Every$Monday 11 a.m.MAINE - 9 p.m.

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See why Golf Digest gave us 4.5 stars: • Impeccably conditioned golf course • Cool, black EZGo carts with GPS • Always fast play • Charming clubhouse with upscale Proshop • Irish pub with a full bar and great food • Two new well-stocked beverage carts • Talented beverage cart staff • Tall cabinet humidor stocked with fresh cigars • Full time rangers and starters – most are not crabby

We love golf and we love having fun.

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Excelsior is an idyllic little town on the south shore of Lake Minnetonka, just off Highway 7. Fletchers A century ago, from Cities Lord Verticle Spec people 3/19/10 10:26 AM the Page Twin 1 would ride the streetcar out for the day to enjoy the fresh, clean air, the beautiful blue lake and the legendary Excelsior Amusement Park. Even though the amusement park is 3746 long gone, to Sunset Dr. people still flock to Excelsior 952-471-8513 relax a salon, browse the boutiques, dine SpringatPark at one of the many fine restaurants, catch a movie or admire the spectacular views from Lord Fletchers Spec Square 3/19/10 10:27 AM Page 1 Lord Fletchers Square 3/19/10 10:27 AM Page Lord Fletchers SpecSpec Square 3/19/10 10:27 AM AM Page 1 1 1 Lordlakeside Fletchers Spec Square 3/19/10 10:27 Page its park, the Commons.

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spotlight || leisure

Boating Made Easy Excel Boat Club does all the work while you have fun. | “Mike will call from work on a beautiful afternoon and ask me how fast I can pack up the kids to go boating.”

—JENNIFER FORTNER EXCEL BOAT CLUB MEMBER FOR 7 YEARS

H

BY JANELL SIEGFRIED

ow often do you hear “I love Mondays”?

For the Fortner family who live in Deephaven, a Monday evening boating excursion provides an escape from e-mails, phone calls and the daily demands of a busy family with young children. And that makes any Monday special.

“A trip around Lake Minnetonka on a beautiful boat is very relaxing for our whole family,” says Jennifer Fortner, a seven-year member of the Excel Boat Club. “Our kids love the water, and we found boating is our magic bullet to get everyone

calm and happy. It’s time we carve out in our day where nobody can find us.”

As members of the Excel Boat Club, they can be spontaneous. “Mike will call from work on a beautiful afternoon and ask me how fast I can pack up the kids,” says Jennifer. “The kids and I jump at the opportunity.” Mike and Jennifer Fortner aren’t sure who enjoys it more—the two of them or their three kids. But the one thing Jennifer is sure of: “It’s a mini-vacation every time we go to the Excel Boat Club. We just show up, and they haul all our stuff to the boat and valet us out of the slip. We’re on our way in five minutes.”

smooth sailing ABOVE Tom Jacob, owner of Excel Boat Club, relaxes on a classic wood Skiff Craft, one of the boats in

the membership fleet. RIGHT The Fortners enjoy an afternoon on a club pontoon boat. Mike, Jennifer, Isabelle, Jack and Adam live in Deephaven.

112 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

Lady ady of the Lake

Lake Minnetonka’s Historic Paddlewheel Boat

Narrated Cruises Public Cruises Every Tuesday, Thursday, & Sunday 1—2:30 p.m.

Reservations Recommended $12 Adult Begin Boarding at 12:30 p.m. $9 Senior Now through Labor Day $6 Child Full beverage service on board, bring your own snacks For the Fortners, they probably wouldn’t boat if they had to do it on their own. “It would be a nightmare to get the family packed up and have the hassles of owning a boat at this stage in our lives,” she says. “The boat club allows us all the benefits with none of the headaches.”

And the price of membership is right. “My husband is pretty practical,” says Jennifer. “When Mike priced the cost of buying a boat, paying for insurance and renting a slip, it didn’t make any sense for us based on how much we’d use a boat. And we’d have to do all the work involved in ownership. Tom Jacob, who owns the boat club, buys much nicer boats than we’d consider buying. The club is a great value.”

The Fortners also find they use a variety of the boat options in the fleet. “If it’s just our family, we typically take the deckboat and do a little fishing, cruising or tubing,” says Jennifer. “When we bring along grandparents, aunts and uncles or other families, we pick the giant mobile living room.” Jennifer is referring to the 30-foot deluxe pontoons that offer many extras including onboard barbecue grills. With seating for up to 14 passengers, they are a great venue to entertain clients and celebrate special events like birthdays, graduations, pre-wedding parties and anniversaries.

“When we’re ready to come off the lake, we simply call the marina and tell them we’re headed in,” explains Jennifer. “A staff member gets onboard and drives us into the slip as we gather up tired children and hop off. All our bags are delivered back to the car, and we don’t have to worry about boat clean up. It’s so easy.”

This summer, Jennifer and Mike are looking forward to trying out a new boating experience on the St. Croix River, where Excel Boat Club has opened a second location and offers reciprocity for members.

The Excel Boat Club has marinas in Bayport and G PROOF Excelsior with a million-dollar fleet. The club is designed

CLIENT AUTHORIZATION for people who enjoy luxury boating without the hassles of

❐ YES ❐ NO ❐ YES ❐ NO ❐ YES ❐ NO

RLY S REP

5

_____

Yourownership. ad will go to pressare as no shown boat There boat slip fees or waiting to unless changes or corrections are received by 10:00AM on Monday.

launch on a busy day. And there’s no work involved. Annual memberships are a fraction of the cost of ownership at less than $4,000 a year. Daily rental options are also popular. To

Ad OK w/changes _______

learn more, visit excelboatclub.com or call 952-401-3880 for Excelsior 651-430-3118 Ad OK asor shown _______ for Bayport.

DATE: ___________________________________________

Available for Private Parties up to 100 passengers Complete Food and Beverage Service Available Do-It-Yourself Catering Allowed Please call for more info!

952.929.1209

Docked in Downtown Excelsior www.ladyofthelakecruise.com

114 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

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spotlight || aviation

Come Fly With Me

ASI Jet Center offers flexibility and ease for frequent flyers. | BY LORI STORM

F

or many, the idea of whisking off to Naples in a private jet is just a distant dream —something for the mega-rich and famous.

It conjures up images of high rollers and business tycoons.

The reality is that private charter is becoming much more mainstream and, when all costs are considered, it can be competitive with commercial air travel.

“Given the right mission and the right circumstances, we can always be competitive,” says Paul Ashenfelter, who heads up charter sales for ASI Jet Center at Flying Cloud Airport in Eden Prairie. “We can do a lot of things that airline services can’t do. In that way, charter service can be a great value.”

There’s no doubt about it: charter service is more flexible and time efficient than commercial travel. Think about how many hours it takes to drive to the airport, check-in, stand in those frustrating security lines and

then wait to board your plane.

Domine also says scheduling trips on “When you arrive at ASI Jet Center at short notice is a cinch and so are lastFlying Cloud Airport, the plane is already minute changes because of weather or other sitting out. You can drive right up to it. All you circumstances. “That’s just the beauty of have to do is hand your luggage to the pilot charter: The scheduling and flexibility are and jump on. You can be in the air in five to huge. We’ve had to make last-minute changes 10 minutes,” says William Hale, director of many, many times,” explains Domine. marketing for ASI Jet Center.

There’s also something to be said about Travelers plan out their own itineraries, the experience of flying charter. ASI Jet Center allowing them to fly to multiple destinations “We can do a lot of things that airline services in one day. A trip that can’t do.” —PAUL ASHENFELTER, ASI JET CENTER would typically take several days can be reduced to several hours. And in many cases, offers a variety of turbo prop and light jet you can get closer to your final destination. aircraft. Planes have comfortable leather Ashenfelter says ASI Jet Center can fly to and seats and ample space to conduct business from some 5,000 airports across the country or simply relax onboard. Passengers are and Canada, compared to the 250 or so also treated to snacks and refreshments. In available for commercial airlines. Efficient, addition to the first-class accommodations, shorter itineraries can help minimize “on-theDomine says the pilots and staff are attentive, road costs” like hotels, meals, rental cars and friendly and courteous. There’s even a valet parking. service that cleans and details your car while For businesses like Tastefully Simple, you’re out of town. based in Alexandria, Minn., charter is Safety is a top priority for ASI Jet Center. invaluable. The direct sales company relies on The company has been around since 1967 ASI Jet Center to jockey its CEO to conferences and has a perfect safety record. “We are very in five different cities over a two-day period. particular about aircraft maintenance and “Sometimes she makes a stop that’s only an safety,” Hale insists. “We take a lot of pride hour or two hours and — boom! — she’s back in the fact that we haven’t had an incident in on the plane going to the next location,” says more than 40 years of business.” travel coordinator Shanna Domine. “It does Depending on the type of plane you not work commercially. It just does not work wish to charter, the number of passengers at all.” and the distance you’re traveling, you can

first class flying ASI Jet Center’s Cessna and inside the Pilauts planes bring charter service to another level, ABOVE. 116 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

Timing Is Everything Total travel time from Minneapolis to various destinations.* COMMERCIAL

CHARTER

Winnipeg, Manitoba (Canada)

4 hr, 15 m

1 hr, 35 m

Sturgis, South Dakota

5 hr, 45 m

2 hr

Vail, Colorado

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3 hr

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4 hr, 15 m

1 hr, 35 m

Hilton Head, South Carolina

8 hr, 45 m

3 hr, 20 m

Plymouth

Wayzata

*Includes approximate boarding time, flight time with connecting flights, deplaning and subsequent drive time to final destination. SOURCE: ASI JET CENTER

expect to pay anywhere from $1,000 to $2,000 per flight hour. This cost does not include the pilot, overnight layovers or certain airport fees. ASI Jet Center also offers discount incentives and a program that enables customers to buy blocks of flying hours.

Ashenfelter has done price comparisons for countless customers and says charter service is not cheap, but it can be especially cost-effective for groups. “When you maximize the available seats on the aircraft, utilize as many as possible, we can be really valuable and competitive with traditional business travel,” he says. “It all depends on whether you are able to maximize your value.”

For companies like Tastefully Simple, who have worked with ASI Jet Center for five years, the math is easy. “It’s definitely an investment for us, but the return on investment for us is getting our CEO out to our consultants and letting her get her message across,” Domine stresses. “The value is much greater than the value spent — or we wouldn’t put in that type of money. It’s an investment, but for us it’s a great investment.”

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Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Summer 2010

117

spotlight || collect PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALEX BELLUS

Car Lovers Unite Cars and Café at Chanhassen’s AutoMotorPlex showcases high-end rides and collector’s cars from all over the state. | BY MARNI GINTHER

T

o say Luis Fraguada and Tyler Christopherson are just two friends who enjoy automobiles is a serious understatement. It would be like saying the matching BMW M3s they drive are kind of neat little cars. (For the record, Christopherson’s is white and Fraguada’s is gray.

And if you ask Fraguada, they only match because Christopherson copied him. “We’re always trying to one-up each other,” he says.)

The two met in college at the University of Minnesota and immediately bonded over their love of cars. “I have pictures of me going home in a Porsche from the hospital when I was born,” Fraguada says. And Christopherson has loved cars since he was a kid playing with Matchbox Porsches—one of which he still has sitting in his office.

In 2008 they started Cars and Café, which began as a gathering of auto enthusiasts in the parking lot of a Caribou Coffee in Minnetonka.

It has grown to a 400-car affair that fills the lot of Chanhassen’s AutoMotorPlex well before the event’s scheduled start time at 8 a.m. on the first Saturday of every month. The cars are organized by marque, and include everything: Porsches, Audis, BMWs, Japanese cars, muscle cars and regular visitors, like the white Lamborghini

start your engines ABOVE Vintage Ferrari 250 GT SWB.

aerial view of Cars and Café at Chanhassen’s AutoMotorPlex. NEXT PAGE, TOP IMAGE A garage at the AutoMotorPlex owned by Chris Penn. Left to right: Silver Corvette Z06, White BMW X5M, Blue Camaro Yenko, and the body of a Cobra that Penn is building at the garage.

LOWER IMAGE A pair of Porsche 356s.

118 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

LOWER IMAGE: An

“Our motto is that this is a place to enjoy your passion” —BRUNO SILIKOWSKI

New! Albini Linen Custom Shirts for $149!

J. Hilburn brings luxurious, high quality, personalized men’s apparel to the market at affordable prices. By sourcing fabric directly from Italy, selling direct to consumers, and using the latest technology to compress the traditional supply chain, J. Hilburn is able to offer a tailored fit with customized options at half the price of premium brands found in stores.

whose owner drives down from Duluth for every show.

Attendees might see a $5,000 Mustang in one section and a multimillion-dollar Ferrari in the next. And that’s how Fraguada and Christopherson want it. The show isn’t about exclusivity — it’s about a wide variety of really sweet cars.

“You might walk through certain sections and think, ‘Why is this guy showing this car?’ But that guy might have put $10,000 into that engine, which you can’t see,” Christopherson says.

Bruno Silikowski, the developer behind AutoMotorPlex, feels that Cars and Café is a good fit for his venue, which hosts all kinds of motorsports-related events all year long. “Our motto is that this is a place to enjoy your passion,” he says.

“And the Cars and Café crowd, boy, is this their passion.”

What: Cars and Café Where: AutoMotorPlex Minneapolis 8200 Audubon Rd., Chanhassen, 612-850-8398 automotorplex.com

Your J.Hilburn Style Advisor will schedule an appointment that fits with your schedule, and help you create your personalized style.

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Private & Corporate Charter IT'S ALL ABOUT THE VALUE OF TIME...

ASI Jet Charter Card The ASI Jet Charter Card offers an all inclusive, simple option for 25 and 50 hour blocks of time in any of our aircraft. You now have a great, cost effective way for everything related to your next business destination, hunting and fishing trips up north, even in to Canada or that getaway with the family you've been promising. With over 40 years of experience and an impeccable safety record you will fly with comfort and ease.

www.asijetcenter.com 120 Artful Living | Summer 2010

Contact Us ASI Jet Center Flying Cloud Airport Eden Prairie, MN 55347 P) 952.941.6255 F) 952.941.0791 E) paul@asijet.com

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spotlight || wear

Suited for Summer From plaids and patterns to pops of color, add some personality to your summer wardrobe with these pieces.

Dress up your look with a twist on the classic blazer.

But donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t sweat itâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;opt for light-weight fabrics and cool colors to help beat the heat. | PHOTOGRAPHY BY CARRIE BUELL

122 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

WHERE TO FIND

Opposite: Isaia sport coat, $2,295, Neiman Marcus; Isaia shirt, $325, Neiman Marcus; Zegna pant, $375, Neiman Marcus; Grenson shoe, $290, Elsworth.

This Page: Sand sport coat, $485, Hubert White; Sand shirt, $189, Hubert White; D&G jean, $295, Neiman Marcus; Torino belt, $55, MartinPatrick3.

Model: Kevin with Vision Model Management.

Fashion Stylist and Grooming: Christopher Jensen Photographer: Carrie Buell Creative Direction: Tod Foley and Danielle Biers Produced by: Lori Storm Assisted By: Abigail Hexum and Julia McMahon Special thanks to the James J. Hill Library in St. Paul.

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Summer 2010

123

Minneapolisâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Finest Tailors Since 1976 Call for Appointment Visit Us on the Web

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spotlight || convertibles

Joy Ride Shift your summer into overdrive with a luxury convertible. Style, sophistication, performance—all this, and the wind in your hair.

Jaguar XKR Convertible The new XK combines Jaguar’s legendary performance with advanced technologies and sporting luxury to create a grand tourer with the heart and soul of a sports car.

Fast Fact Jaguar’s racing heart beats fastest

in the supercharged XKR. Powered by Jaguar’s new 5.0L supercharged V8 engine, it is the finest expression of XK power and performance. Starting at $88,150

Jaguar Land Rover of Minneapolis T: 763-222-2200 DowntownJaguar.com

126 Artful Living

| Summer 2010

Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet

Engineered from the winding road to the blue sky as a true 4-seat convertible, the new E350 Cabriolet makes any season sunnier.

Fast Fact With an insulated cloth soft top, breathtaking style and groundbreaking innovations in safety and comfort, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the most compelling chapter yet in the rich Mercedes-Benz history of open-air motoring. Starting at $56,850.

Feldmann Mercedes T: 888-378-2520 FeldmannImports.com

Artful-LivingMag.com Artful Living

| Summer 2010

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spotlight || convertibles

650i BMW Convertible

Euphoria with a view. Enjoy the open-air freedom of a convertible merged with the refinement of the 6 Series.

Fast Fact A choice of manual or automatic 6-speed

transmissions and Active Roll Stabilization ensure dynamic performance and level cornering on even the tightest curves. Starting at $86,125.

BMW of Minnetonka

T: 952-303-7500 BMWofMinnetonka.com

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Infiniti G37 Convertible

The new Infiniti G37 features an Adaptive Climate Control System that maintains a comfortable, consistent temperature even when the top is down, the Adaptive Climate Control System automatically adjusts to outside temperature and your speed.

Fast Fact The breathtaking power of the V6 engine is crafted to feel like a peaking wave rather than a short-lived burst, creating the sensation of limitless power as you accelerate. Starting at $44,350 Infiniti of Bloomington T: 952-888-5555 LutherInfiniti.com

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spotlight || convertibles

Maserati GranTurismo Convertible The new Maserati GranTurismo Convertible is the latest interpretation on the driving pleasure, exclusivity and versatility that has always characterized Maserati vehicles.

Fast Fact The Maserati GranTurismo Convertible features a six-speed, ZF automatic

transmission with a hydraulic torque converter yielding extremely quick and fluid gear shifts while maintaining the characteristics of the sporty V-8 engine. Starting at $144,655.

Maserati of Minneapolis

T: 952-797-1777 TwinCitiesLuxuryAuto.com

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spotlight || wine

Wine Safari Discovering the unique wines of South Africa. |

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ou don’t have to go far to explore the distinctive and complex wines of South Africa. Since the fall of apartheid, the region’s wines have experienced a renaissance of sorts and there has been a surge in international popularity and sales. Still, many wine aficionados have limited experience and knowledge of these award-winning wines.

“South Africa makes some incredibly good wine.... The quality is high and we have ideal growing conditions,” says Roy Goslin, coowner of Z Wines USA. “But we don’t see a lot of it here and it’s not well-represented because people don’t know about the wine.”

Goslin and his wife, Dianne Ferrandi, are trying to change that.

The pair grew up in South Africa, have been importing wines from the region since 2006. Ferrandi’s parents owned vineyards in the western Cape and Goslin spent 10 years working for the area’s largest wine producer. “We are the people in this market creating the buzz about South African wine. No one else has the background that we have,” Goslin says. “A lot of retailers are telling us we have brought respectability and credibility to the South African category.”

South Africa has a long history of producing fine wines. The humble beginnings of the region’s wine industry date all the way back to 1654 when the Dutch planted grapes at the Cape of Good Hope. The arrival of French Huguenots a few decades later had a major influence on wine production. It wasn’t long before South African wine was considered a favorite among European nobility. However, in modern times, political sanctions prevented much of the world from enjoying the wines of the Cape. The end of apartheid opened up the export market, but unfortunately a lot of poor-quality wine made its way into the U.S. and soured the consumer.

“In the last three or four years, you’re seeing a very different style of wine from South Africa. You’re seeing a very different quality of wine because importers like ourselves are going to the sources of really high-quality wines and bringing them into the country,” Goslin attests.

The wine is also incredibly affordable. All of the South African products in Z Wines USA’s portfolio retail for under $20. “At that value, we’ve got some of the best wines in the world, without a doubt,” Goslin says.

Z Wines USA distributes wine from South Africa, Argentina, Australia and France, as well as domestic wines from Washington, Oregon and California. You can find Z Wines USA products at South Lyndale Liquors, France 44, Sinful Wines, Haskell’s, Sorella Wine & Spirits, Northgate Liquors and Top Ten Wine & Spirits.

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BY LORI STORM

Wine Tasting Some of South Africa’s most prized wine and their producers.

1Landskroon

The majestic vineyards of Landskroon are located on the southwestern slopes of Paarl Mountain. The winemaking tradition dates back to the 17th century when the French arrived at the Cape. Paul de Villiers is the ninth generation to carry on the family operation. Landskroon is renowned for making great valued wines with particular expertise in red wine and port.

Try the Landskroon Paul de Villiers Shiraz. The full-bodied wine has dark-berry fruit flavors with a hint of pepper. It also has a smoky aroma, which is typical for South African shiraz. Pair this wine with rich red-meat dishes, robust stews and pastas.

2 Tygerberg Wines

Altydgedacht is one of the historic farms that lies on the fertile slopes of the Tygerberg Hills; it has been in the Parker family since 1852. Altydgedacht has a versatile selection, but it’s known for its Ollo Estate Wine. With apple and tropical fruit flavors, this medium-bodied white wine is a blend of Viognier, chardonnay, Semillon and Chenin Blanc. The nose is dominated by aromatics of fruit, honeysuckle and Turkish delight.

Pair with rich chicken or fish dishes and heavy white pastas.

3 Bristle Wines

Stonehill Vineyard in picturesque Devon Valley, Stellenbosch, is another standout. Lorna Hughes has owned the property since 1998 and is behind the popular Bristle Red. The well-balanced dry red is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz.

It has flavors and aromas of olive, anise and eucalyptus. There is also a smoky-earthiness to the wine. Pair it with roast beef, stews, pasta dishes or just about anything off the grill.

The fields of South Africa offer perfect conditions for producing wine grapes.

| Summer 2010

There’s

a new

FACE in (lower) town.

Introducing FACES Mears Park, a bar, bistro, bakery and bottle shop featuring comfortable modern American cuisine utilizing sustainable, local and organic ingredients.

Partnering with David Fhima is Billy Beson of Beson Kading Interior Design Group. Beson has masterfully created an “exceptionally inviting environment, complimenting the dining experience that only David Fhima can capture.”

UNVEILING SUMMER 2010.

380 Jackson Street Lowertown St. Paul 651.209.7776 facesmearspark.com follow us facesmearspark

spotlight || good

Aid with Ownership Minnesota-based Haiti Outreach serves the poor—but only when the poor are ready for it. | BY ALYSSA FORD

A

few years ago, a other way around,” says Kevin Keenan, a candidate for mayor in Minnetonka landscape architect who has La Victoire, Haiti, was been involved with Haiti Outreach since tromping around trying the nonprofit’s founding in 1997. to drum up votes and Haiti Outreach supplies the technical support. He peacocked expertise and the cost of many base his way over to a subscription-only materials, but the Haitians who will use water well and smashed the lock on the it must supply most of the labor. The door. “This water is free for everyone,” townspeople have to develop a kind of he declared, waving his gun around. local water or school commission where The townspeople who had worked to people pay a small amount — perhaps have the well dug and had saved money 50 cents a month — to use the new well each month to maintain it were outraged. or school. That money is set aside to pay They had the police issue a warrant for for future repairs or expansions. “What the candidate’s arrest, and managed to we have discovered is that 100 percent get a local trial set up against him.

Haiti Outreach doesn’t just raise money to The mayoral dig wells and build schools — it works to candidate came to his senses and realized build group ownership. how politically unsavvy his proclamation was after all. He apologized profusely of wells built with this model are in fine and purchased a new lock. For the working order after one year of use,” says people of La Victoire, it was a minor Van Dine. “But wells that were just dug disturbance. But for Neil Van Dine and and given to Haiti, purely as relief, half the other organizers of Haiti Outreach, of them were no longer functioning after headquartered in Pignon, Haiti, and one year.” Van Dine equates it to driving Minnetonka, Minn., the story of the La over potholes in a rental car. “If it’s not Victoire candidate became this huge your car, you just don’t care as much,” source of pride. “All of us really took he says. a mental victory lap on that one,” Van The model has been so successful that Dine says.

Haiti’s government has expressed interest It was significant because Haiti in having the Minnesota-based nonprofit Outreach doesn’t just raise money to train other groups, and eventually it will dig wells and build schools — it works mandate that all well projects have to to build group ownership. Instead of follow the Haiti Outreach formula. If that parachuting into one of the poorest happens, it could revolutionize the way countries in the world and declaring to aid is dispensed in Haiti, where literally the people that they need more clean hundreds of charity groups attempt to do water, or more schools, Haiti Outreach good, with varying degrees of success. accepts requests from communities.

“It’s intimidating, but very exciting,” “They tell us what they need, not the says Van Dine.

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Artfully Done Leadership in landscape architecture

952 475 1229 www.kslandarch.com

T he art of living begins at home.

RO F F E R S G RO u p

t : 9 5 2 .2 3 7 .1 1 0 0 www.sothebysminnesota.com

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Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated.

What Is Enough?

Like a gardener, we need to prune and weed our tangled lives. |

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ne of the things that an interior designer and a writer have in common is this: they need to be very good at editing. An editor is a gardener, one who “brings something forth.” As both a designer and a writer, I spend my days with my hands deep in this dirt, planting ideas, digging for just the right word or fabric, watering and tending the concept, revisiting the floor plan or story line for a second and, often, third time to weed. Inevitably, something must go. I find the appropriate tool, sometimes a scythe, sometimes pruning shears, and whack away.

Really, do we need seven pillows when three would do? In an essay, who needs the details of the habits of a surly boyfriend from 20 years ago? Out they go — the extraneous gewgaw and the superfluous sentiments. But, how do I know when it is right?

My breath tells me. A certain spontaneous sigh lets me know when it is just enough.

As summer approaches, I begin to think about how life also needs editing, pruning, and weeding. We are easily over-scheduled, over-stimulated and over-consume. If this much is good, isn’t more better? Although in nature, a certain amount of nitrogen is essential for a plant to thrive, too much will burn it. But how do we know what is too much when we are some marketer’s next best hope? There’s always newer gadgets, faster food, longer hours climbing someone else’s beanstalk, a smarter kid, a snappier lifestyle, and a prettier you. I have fallen prey, too. But, in my early forties, I began to notice the difference between stimulation and satisfaction. I saw that more than enough does not satisfy — in a home, in a meal, in the written word, nor in a life.

In August 1995, my husband, Lee, and I spent two nights at the Aveda Spa Retreat in Osceola, Wisconsin, an historic Prairiestyle manor house on the banks of the

sparkling St. Croix River. Aveda founder Horst Rechelbacher owned it then, and in his inimitable style, created a place of welcoming, nurturing beauty. Upon entering, we removed our shoes and were offered Chinese black cotton slippers. Fresh cucumber and mint floated in carafes of water on tables in the parlor. Each room, filled with antiques, had its own mood, different from the others. The beds had a feather top — covered with a crisp, white cotton sheet — placed on each mattress. A down comforter with a white cotton duvet added another layer of feathers.

At the bottom of the bed, a white cotton blanket was folded. Two cotton robes were hanging in an armoire. A bowl of lavender on the bedside table lulled us to sleep.

BY ALECIA STEVENS

over-driven life. A summer where the water feature in our backyard is a hose for the kids, where they have the freedom and time to imagine, to build forts and castles of sticks and blankets, to create clubs and clubhouses. Where we find time to read during the day, not just the last 10 minutes before sleep. Where we recover the value of nature as a healer. Or, where we pack a picnic and take a spontaneous day trip.

Where we invite friends for dinner at the last minute and ask them to pitch in.

So, I have cancelled my cable connection in Minneapolis. I can read the New York Times each morning and know what I need to know. Instead of the evening news, I can walk the lake with my friend, Carrie. Lee

In my early forties, I began to notice the difference between stimulation and satisfaction. I saw that more than enough does not satisfy — in a home, in a meal, in the written word, nor in a life.

There was neither a television nor a phone in our room. We had no cell phones then.

The food was organic and local, a precursor to what we take for granted now. We didn’t use the spa — our budget permitted only the cost of the accommodations. Our activities included reading, talking, walking the wooded property and loving. It was most exquisite in its “enough-ness.” I recall the feeling: how deeply satisfied I was to have enough and no more, to be in the midst of two days that were so delicately edited. This is where Lee asked me to marry him.

So when I think of our harried summers, I wonder what is enough. In Minnesota, summer is compressed. It can create a frantic anxiety to pack it all in, to not miss a beat. But I suggest the way to a satisfying summer is to drop all the “shoulds” — the over-scheduled, the over-organized, the

and I have postponed a trip to Italy for the summer so that we can just hang out with our grown children, all of whom we see too infrequently now that they are scattered around the globe. We will cook together in our tiny kitchen, making extravagant messes with Isabelle, my daughter and head chef, then sit around the table with the sun setting late in the western sky. The chimes in the garden will ring, the tinkling sound arriving on the warm summer air. Glasses will toast to just being together again. The six of us will find places to sleep on two beds, two sofas, and one blow-up mattress in our 1,200-square-foot apartment in Minneapolis. The television will not be on in the background. I will sigh and know that it is enough.

And Rome will wait. But summer and the gardens of lives won’t. They need our tender care.

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“I suggest the way to a satisfying summer is to drop all the “shoulds” ... A summer where the water feature in our backyard is a hose for the kids, where they have the freedom and time to imagine...”

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Who knew life’s little messes would be so sweet.

HARMONIZING BEAUTIFULLY WITH LIFE The Beauty of Stone h The Durability of Quartz

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