Fe at ure
Putting Home Style “In Focus”
“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” – William Morris Text by Joanne M. Anderson Mary Kate Gaines’ first bedroom style makeover occurred when she was in first grade. “My bedroom was my happy place,” she recalls, “and even at a young age I had an opinion of what I wanted it to look like. My mother was my greatest champion and agreed to the green and white gingham check fabric with pale yellow walls. Mom sewed curtains and a window seat cushion. I loved it and felt proud of what I created.” From there, she went on to paint furniture and rearrange all the rooms at home. “I grew up in a busy, cluttered home full of love, creativity and unfinished projects. The microwave was a favorite place to stash things 20
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when company arrived.” It may have been this crowded, relatively disorganized home that imprinted Mary Kate with a passion for order and harmony. Around age 14, Mary Kate found a saw and cut a hole in the outside wall of a loft apartment over their garage. “The space simply needed more light,” she explains. “My very sweet and handy grandfather found a little antique window and, with a huge grin on his face and not saying a single word, fixed my mess and completed my vision.” After working a decade and a half as an optician and restyling her own house from a dark lodge 1980s March/Apri l
2022
