Beauty Soars Here
W United Methodist Retirement Community
HEN IT COMES TO LIVING HER LIFE TO THE FULLEST, the sky is no limit for Gail. “As soon as I jumped from that plane and saw the beautiful earth below me, I felt euphoric and free!� Gail hopes her friends will be inspired to leap into their own joyful and soul-expanding adventures. At Arbor Acres, residents celebrate the endless variations and possibilities of beauty. What is beautiful to you?
www.arboracres.org 1240 Arbor Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27104 336 -724-7921
GREENSBORO 225 South Elm Street • 336-272-5146 WINSTON-SALEM Stratford Village • 137 South Stratford Road • 336-725-1911 www.schiffmans.com
Here, women are moms or daughters first. And patients second.
When the specialists who treat you live in your community, they understand who you are and the many roles you fill. Our local experts have dedicated their lives to providing quality, compassionate care and fast, accurate results. So whether it’s a mammogram, MRI or an ultrasound that your doctor recommends, make the right choice for you. Request The Breast Center of Greensboro Imaging—the premier center for breast health in the Triad. greensboroimaging.com • 336.433.5000
BHHSYostandLittle.com/906504
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2207 Pinecrest Road Greensboro
6808 Polo Farms Drive Summerfield
431 Copperfield Court Kernersville
MELISSA GREER 336 –337–5233
BETH BRANNAN 336 –253–4693
C I N DY S WA I M 336 – 870 –2255
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708 Northern Shores Lane Greensboro
527 Woodland Drive Greensboro
3248 US Hwy 64 East Advance
SHERRI HILL 336 –209 – 8482
M I C H E L L E P O RT E R 336 –207– 0515
BETH BUCHANAN ALPHIN 336 – 661 –5550
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2640 Arbor Place Court Winston-Salem $630,000
B R U C E WA L L E Y 336 –418 – 0913 Adams Farm 336 – 854 –1333 • Elm Street 336 –272– 0151 • Friendly Center 336 –370 – 4000 • Kernersville 336 –996 – 4256 • Winston–Salem 336 –768 –3300 ©2018 BHH Affiliates, LLC. An independently operated subsidiary of HomeServices of America, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate, and a franchisee of BHH Affiliates, LLC. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices symbol are registered service marks of HomeServices of America, Inc.® Equal Housing Opportunity.
Call us today to discuss your dream home. Build to suit lots and house plans that fit your every need are waiting for you... it’s boutique building at its best!
336.215.3499
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w w w.g u n t e r d r e a m h o m e s .C o m
Come spend a day
with us
in Greensboro.
Centrally located, Greensboro is the perfect place to relax and be immersed in entertainment. Choose from more than 500 restaurants and shop till your heart’s content. Explore our 90 miles of trails, walk the Downtown Greenway, cheer on the Greensboro Swarm, plan a trip to the Greensboro Science Center or our downtown parks. Visit the Greensboro History Museum and learn about our rich history.
We can’t wait to share Greensboro with you! W W W. G R E E N S B O R O - N C . G O V
14 13 From the Editor
By Jim Dodson
S TYLEBOOK 14 The Hot List
By Jason Oliver Nixon & John Loecke
17 The Designer Beat
By Robin Sutton Anders
20 Interior Accents
52 40 64
By Cynthia Adams
25 Hidden Gem
By Nancy Oakley
31 Food for Thought
Winter 2019 FEATURES
40 Above it All
By Cynthia Adams
Winter magic abounds at Lee Carter and Greg Bradley’s Blowing Rock aerie, Eagle Crest
52 Universal Oneness
By Nancy Oakley
Sheila Brame’s artful life in Winston-Salem
By Jan Leitschuh
37 Almanac
By Ash Alder
LIFE&HOME 76 House for Sale
By Noah Salt
79 The Language of Home
By Noah Salt
80 HomeWords
By Nancy Oakley
Cover Photograph by Amy Freeman
64 Bringing Saxy Back
By Amy & Peter Freeman
Getting fresh in Saxapahaw
70 Handmade Faith
8 SEASONS •
STYLE
& DESIGN
By Jim Dodson
In Greensboro, Sam Rouse Furniture makes clients’ dreams come true
Winter 2019
Custom Homes on Your Homesite from $250K to over $1 million serving the Triad area
Homesite preparation Modern 3,900 sq ft Design Studio for your selections Home Warranty | Large plan portfolio sheacustom.com/greensboro | 336-706-4512 802 Sugarberry Ln Greensboro, NC 27455
1 & 2 Story Homes near Lake Jeanette From the high $200’s - high $300’s Pool, Cabana & Playground!
1D Decorated dM Model d lO Open: T Tue - Sat: 11 - 6; Sun & Mon: 1 - 6 802 Sugarberry Lane | Greensboro, NC 27455 336.482.0076 | sheahomes.com/greensboro Sales: Shea Group Services, LLC DBA Shea Realty (C21630). Construction: Shea Builders, LLC, 68875 or Shea Custom, LLC, 68244. This is not an offer of real estate for sale, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, to residents of any state or province in which registration and other legal requirements have not been fullled. Pricing does not include options, elevation, or lot premiums, effective date of publication and subject to change without notice. All square footages and measurements are approximate and subject to change without notice. Trademarks are property of their respective owners. Equal Housing Opportunity. Home pictured may not be actual home for sale or actual model home, but rather a representation of a similar model or elevation design.
Vol. 3 No. 4 336.617.0090 1848 Banking Street Greensboro, NC 27408 www.ohenrymag.com Publisher
David Woronoff Jim Dodson, Editor jim@thepilot.com Andie Rose, Art Director andie@thepilot.com Nancy Oakley, Senior Editor nancy@ohenrymag.com Alyssa Rocherolle, Graphic Designer CONTRIBUTORS Cynthia Adams, Ash Alder, Robin Sutton Anders, Harry Blair, Lynn Donovan, Amy Freeman, Peter Freeman, John Gessner, Ross Howell Jr, Billy Ingram, Jane Lear, John Loecke, Jason Oliver Nixon, Noah Salt
with us in the latest beauty and wellness trends. Your look can range from subtle to the dramatic with our array of services such as hair, nails, skincare, and waxing. As the holidays approach, it’s the perfect time to go for an alluring hairstyle, blowout, rich color, keratin treatment, manicure, pedicure, and even a new smile from The Smile Direct Club.* Relax in a warm and luxurious environment as you enjoy a massage, facial, or peel. These incredible experiences are provided by independent salon owners. Each salon is located in a unique and beautiful suite that encompasses the artistic expressions of the stylist. Gift certificates are available. *Not all services are offered at all locations. Please contact the concierge for a complete list.
h ADVERTISING SALES Ginny Trigg, Sales Director Hattie Aderholdt, 336.601.1188 hattie@ohenrymag.com Amy Grove, 336.456.0827 amy@ohenrymag.com Glenn McVicker, 336.804.0131 glenn@ohenrymag.com Brad Beard, Graphic Designer Lisa Bobbitt, Sales Assistant 336.617.0090, ohenryadvertising@gmail.com CIRCULATION Darlene Stark, Circulation Director 910.693.2488 Steve Anderson, Finance Director 910.693.2497 SUBSCRIPTIONS 336.617.0090
Caldwell Court 2709 Battleground Ave. Greensboro, NC (336) 617-6260
10 SEASONS •
STYLE
& DESIGN
Oak Hollow Village 1231 Eastchester Dr. High Point, NC (336) 617-6260
St. George Square 603 – 690 St. George Square Ct. Winston-Salem, NC (336) 893-7978
©Copyright 2018. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Seasons Magazine is published by The Pilot LLC Winter 2019
B AB Y , IT ’ S W A RM INSID E. Designing and Building exceptional Luxury Homes
Timberwolf Designs
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Fine linens and accessories for the discerning customer. ________ 99 Reynolda Village Winston Salem, NC 27103 336-722-8807 ________ bellemaisonlinens.com
Winter 2019
SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 11
Elk Ridge
Owl’s Trail
by D.R. Horton
by D.R. Horton
at Caleb’s Creek
at Caleb’s Creek
28 homes SOLD
3 homes SOLD
in this 35 lot community
Call today and ask about buyer incentives! NOW SELLING!
Tom Baker 336-847-1870
Liza Tice Megan Cooke 336-906-2233 336-362-1664
Visit our model home located off Teague Lane Immediate Occupancy Homes at 6003 Elk Ridge Drive, Kernersville Visit our model home located off Teague Open Mon. - Sat 10-6 • Sunday 1-6 Lane at 6003 Elk Ridge Drive, Kernersville • Diverse offering of plans and 10-6 options • from the upper1-6 200’s Open Mon. - Sat Sunday • • •
• Outdoor living options that include covered and screened Diverse of plans and options from the upper 200’s porches,offering sunrooms & fireplaces •Outdoor Seemingly endless interior options thatcovered include coffered & living options that include and screened trey ceilings, built-ins, main floor master, 2 story foyers, porches, sunrooms & fireplaces granite counter tops, wrought iron railings, large kitchen Seemingly endless interior options that include coffered & island, 9’ ceilings and offices. trey ceilings, built-ins, main floor master, 2 story foyers, • Low maintenance exteriors of either brick, stone or vinyl. tops, wrought iron railings, large kitchen •granite Averagecounter home here offers 4-5 bedrooms, and over 3,000 sf.
island, 9’ ceilings and offices. • Low maintenance exteriors of either brick, stone or vinyl. • Average home here offers 4-5 bedrooms, and over 3,000 sf.
ForFor InfoInfo Contact Contact Greer-Louis, Inc.Inc. Greer-Louis, 2102 N. Elm Street Suite M M 2102 N. Elm Street Suite Greensboro, NCNC 27408 Greensboro, 27408 336-378-1778 336-378-1778
What Whatare areyou yougoing going totodo dotoday? today? Come explore thethe Triad’s largest mixed-use development, featuring Come explore Triad’s largest mixed-use development, featuring quality-built homes, miles of of natural beauty, a community filled with quality-built homes, miles natural beauty, a community filled with high-end amenities, and proximity to to all all thethe region hashas to to offer. high-end amenities, and proximity region offer. GoGo walking in in thethe woods? GoGo fishing in the lake? Have a barbeque walking woods? fishing in the lake? Have a barbeque with your neighbors? Caleb’s Creek’s 927927 acres offer everything with your neighbors? Caleb’s Creek’s acres offer everything you’re looking forfor in a community: miles of of greenway and you’re looking inplanned a planned community: miles greenway and trails, natural freshwater lakes, a Residents’ Club, a Village Center, trails, natural freshwater lakes, a Residents’ Club, a Village Center, and homes to to fit fit every lifestyle. Most importantly, Caleb’s Creek and homes every lifestyle. Most importantly, Caleb’s Creek offers thethe kind of of community you cancan build a life around. offers kind community you build a life around. So,So, what areare you going to to dodo today? what you going today?
Visit our model home
Several scheduled Spec. Homes to openAlmost this fall!Complete Visit ournow model home Lot sales underway. scheduled to open mid December! Lot targeted sales now underway. • This Active Adult community is NOW OPEN • Featuring 1 level, detached homes from the mid 200’s
• Low maintenance community is NOW OPEN • Choose from 4 plans that offer 2-5 bedrooms, 2-3 baths, • Featuring 1 level, homes covered from therear mid 200’sand expandable squaredetached footage upstairs, porch doublefrom garage • Choose 4 plans that offer 2-5 bedrooms, 2-3 baths, • Low maintenance either brick, stone or vinyl. expandable squareexteriors footage of upstairs, covered rear porch and • Lawn garage maintenance included double • Square footage (without the 2nd floor expansion) ranges • Low maintenance exteriors of either brick, stone or vinyl. from approximately 1,588-1,888 sf. • Lawn maintenance included • Square footage (without the 2nd floor expansion) ranges from approximately 1,588-1,888 sf.
GREENWAY AND TRAILS GREENWAY AND TRAILS Think outside the the gymgym withwith 11 miles of of Think outside 11 miles planned trails right outside youryour door. planned trails right outside door. Far Far more thanthan a suburban sidewalk, more a suburban sidewalk, the the Greenway andand trails at Caleb’s Greenway trails at Caleb’s Creek circle the the lakes andand meander Creek circle lakes meander through the the woods—giving youyou access through woods—giving access to the bestbest of the Triad’s natural world. to the of the Triad’s natural world. Whether you’re looking for for a nature Whether you’re looking a nature hikehike withwith the the kids, a long solo bike kids, a long solo bike ride, or an early morning group training ride, or an early morning group training run,run, the the Greenway andand trails at Caleb’s Greenway trails at Caleb’s Creek have it all. Creek have it all. LAKES LAKES It isIthuman nature to be to the is human nature to drawn be drawn to the water. Whether you’re seeking creative water. Whether you’re seeking creative inspiration, serenity from the the hustleinspiration, serenity from hustlebustle of daily life,life, or invigorating bustle of daily or invigorating physical activity, the the Lakes at Caleb’s physical activity, Lakes at Caleb’s Creek provide the the perfect location. Creek provide perfect location. Enjoy a picnic at the water’s edge, taketake Enjoy a picnic at the water’s edge, a canoe or kayak into a quiet inlet, or or a canoe or kayak into a quiet inlet, walkwalk along the the shore, all practically in in along shore, all practically youryour ownown back yard. Many residences back yard. Many residences will will alsoalso feature water views. feature water views.
Whether gifting yourself, a close friend or a relative, nothing says “I care” more than a day at Restoration MedSpa. As our gift to you this season, we’ll take 20% off your gift card pricing.
RESIDENTS’ CLUB AND RESIDENTS’ CLUB AND SWIMMING POOL SWIMMING POOL Greeting residents andand visitors alike Greeting residents visitors alike as they enter the the Village Center, the the as they enter Village Center, Residents’ Club is the central meeting Residents’ Club is the central meeting place for the Caleb’s Creek community. place for the Caleb’s Creek community. Classes, programs, andand community Classes, programs, community events will will all have a place at the events all have a place at the Residents’ Club, along withwith a swimming Residents’ Club, along a swimming pool and rooms available to for for pool and rooms availablerent to rent parties and meetings. parties and meetings.
Call today and schedule a complimentary consultation to learn more about the innovative treatments and procedures we offer.
With expansive lakelake views from the the With expansive views from back patio, the the main building serves back patio, main building serves as aaswelcome center andand a community a welcome center a community gathering place. TheThe Residents’ Club gathering place. Residents’ Club will will alsoalso house the the Caleb’s Creek Sales house Caleb’s Creek Sales Center, where the the Realtors of GreerCenter, where Realtors of GreerLouis, Inc.Inc. provide on-site centralized Louis, provide on-site centralized sales andand realreal estate assistance. sales estate assistance.
THETHE VILLAGE CENTER VILLAGE CENTER TheThe heart of the Caleb’s Creek heart of the Caleb’s Creek community, the the Village Center is where community, Village Center is where everything comes together. With access everything comes together. With access to trails andand lakes, the the Residents’ Club to trails lakes, Residents’ Club andand local shops converge to create a a local shops converge to create buzz of activity. buzz of activity.
When only the BEST will do. 1002 N. Church St., Suite 101 Greensboro, NC 27410 250 Executive Park Blvd., Suite 105 Winston-Salem, NC 27103
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12 SEASONS •
STYLE
& DESIGN
Marisa Faircloth PA-C Call for a complimentary consultation
336.999.8295
Winter 2019
FROM THE EDITOR
A Beautiful Holy Mess Nature’s wrath is also Nature’s gift By Jim Dodson
ILLUSTRATION BY HARRY BLAIR
F
olks who know me will tell you that I’m a big fan of winter. Perhaps this is because I was born in the depths of winter – early February – or possibly I am shaped by two decades of residing on a densely forested hill in coastal Maine where I grew to love the solitude and beauty of a cold and quiet winter’s day. As nutty as this may sound, I even loved the look of my gardens in winter, stripped clean of foliage, beds neatly tucked in for a good winter’s sleep. Whatever it is that makes me such a loyal fan of the darkest and coldest season of the year, summers and early autumns like the ones just past that brought record waves of heat, periods of drought topped off by a pair of killer hurricanes, make me grateful to reach a period of cool rest and recovery, time to heal, rebuild and plan anew. As I write, I’m listening to the sound of a work crew clearing the last of the major damage from a century-old white oak that Hurricane Michael toppled onto our neighbor’s lovely house across the street. The tree took out a second-floor dormer and demolished his chimney. A few doors down on our side of the street, other neighbors were in their family room at the height of the storm’s passage when a giant oak in their backyard slammed through the roof of their family room. Up at the opposite end of the block, three more century-old hardwoods toppled over the street, crushing one car and just missing three houses. The street was blocked for four days. As the winds churned and rain fell, I heard something clatter across our roof and stepped out in the gale to see what was happening. It turned out to be a heavy chimney cap that the gods of the winds hurled off its perch. As I picked it up in the yard, the winds stiffened and I heard a loud roar — the kind of noise people who survive hurricanes later recall hearing just before disaster hit. On my way back through the house, just to be on the safe side, I called out to my wife to round up the dogs and step down to the basement. With that, out through the new study and screened porch I went and along the stony path by my Japanese shade garden to the steps leading to the second floor of our garage, which I’ve transformed an apartment into my home office. I’d forgotten to shut the door to my office. Halfway up the steps, though, a fierce blast of the wind stopped me mid-step and a loud crack caused me to look up. The large wooden power-company pole that stood between my back fence and my neighbor’s yard, holding several lines and a pair of transformers, snapped like a twig. As I watched, the pole came flying down through the horse-chestnut trees that frame our rear yard, crashing into the ground, taking out several tree limbs, power lines and communication cables with it — plunging our block into darkness for the next five days. In the storm’s wake, neighbors soon emerged to survey the damage. The belief was that the hurricane had spawned a tornado or microburst that ripped through the neighborhood. Given the Winter 2019
number of massive trees it knocked over, remarkably no one was seriously injured. The cleanup started long before the city crews arrived to begin clearing the street of trees. Chainsaws were offered, coffee distributed, neighbors helped neighbors. People who hadn’t spoken to each other in years stood and chatted as if at a block party. Throughout the ordeal, those fortunate enough to have whole-house generators offered food and shelter, warm showers and flushing toilets to those who didn’t have them. The damage was nothing like the unimaginable images coming out of Mexico Beach and Florida’s Panhandle — to say nothing of the many deaths and souls still unaccounted for. But the sense of relief was palpable, a shared gut feeling that those of us who choose to live in this stately old neighborhood — like dozens of similar ones across the historic Triad — are fully aware that we reside in a mature urban forest of hardwoods that have a lifespan all their own. Trees and humans age in remarkably similar ways, subject to weather, disease and the vicissitudes of time. I’ll never forget our former neighbor who drove up from Southern Pines to see the mid-century house we were restoring in my boyhood neighborhood, took one look at the towering oaks that surround and define us, and grumbled, “If it was me, first thing I’d do is cut down every one of those big trees. Someday they’re gonna fall on your house and make a holy mess.” Maybe so. But a holy mess is evidently a risk we’re collectively willing to take in order to live in a neighborhood where the ancient trees rise overhead with the elegance and grace of a medieval cathedral. Medieval designers, in fact, were in part inspired to create their soaring designs based on native European forests that arched toward the heavens. Chapels in the trees as one famous medieval mystic called them. I’m not sure about my human neighbors but I think of the mammoth living creatures that tower over us — home to nesting birds, sanctuaries for squirrels, producers of noisy rains of acorns this time of year, aging bearers of summer swings, Moravian stars and soulful chimes that catch the wind — as friendly giants of the Earth who remind us of our own brief passage through this world. They look out for us in their way. We look out for them in ours. Down below, meanwhile, the power has been mostly restored and the big cleanup is winding down just as winter — as I said, my favorite season and best planning time — comes calling. My neighbor across the way has already rebuilt his chimney and the dormer will be fully repaired soon. As is Nature’s way, the old gives way to the new in this beautiful mess called life. If my Japanese garden never quite got off the ground the way I hoped over this turbulent summer and autumn, fresh ideas are beginning to stir like green shoots in an early spring garden, and our fireplace woodpile has grown four times in size, ready to warm this old house for many winters to come. h SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 13
THE HOT LIST
Chilly Scenes of Winter
Venture to Arctic-inspired climes this season and chill out in après-ski style. By Jason Oliver Nixon and John Loecke, Madcap Cottage
Touch Wood
Snow Job
Add a bold punctuation mark to a room with the classic, wintry good looks of the Napa White Lamp from Port 68 ($625). Getting lit was never so gorgeous. Available through Furnitureland South, 5635 Riverdale Drive, Jamestown, (336) 822-3000.
A mix of poplar, anise, jasmine, roasted tonka beansand more come together in the intriguing scent Vert des Bois Eau de Parfum ($235, 1.7 ounces), courtesy of our favorite agent provocateur Tom Ford. Spritz, then get ready to sizzle. Available through Sephora, Friendly Center, 803B Friendly Center Rd., (336) 852-8990.
Up a Stump
Perch that cool cocktail — perhaps an Aquavit spritzed with Lillet Blanc — upon this rustic-chic Natural Tree-Stump Side Table crafted of naturally fallen cypress from West Elm ($199–$299), and bliss out. Available through West Elm, 3316 W. Friendly Ave., Greensboro, (336) 323-7901.
Winter White
Curl up on the crisp, cool Etienne Scatter Back Sofa from Highland House ($6,405), with its tailored nailhead trim and scattered pillows, and dream of Nordic nights in winter-white landscapes. Available through Furnitureland South, 5635 Riverdale Drive, Jamestown, (336) 822-3000.
Forest for the Trees
Transform a bare wall into a wintry wonderland that channels the white-hot modern farmhouse trend courtesy of the Woods Wallpaper from Anthropologie ($198). Available through Anthropologie, 3320 W. Friendly Ave., Greensboro, (336) 834-2633.
14 SEASONS •
STYLE
& DESIGN
Winter 2019
STYLEBOOK On a Slippery Slope
We love sourcing artwork from Minted, an online community of crowd-sourced artisans that features everything from stationery to works of art. Here, “Through the Fog,” a limited-edition art print that showcases photographer Max Borelli’s moody, snowy Dolomite scene in the north of Italy with sculptural chairlifts dangling in the mist (from $31, framed). Best of all, you can order the image in various sizes and with numerous frame and matting options. Available through minted.com.
Ice, Ice Baby
Baby, it’s cold outside, but snuggle up in the great indoors with a candycolored confection courtesy of the kicky Cuisinart Snow Cone Maker ($69.95). Inside Tip: We add a splash of vodka to the mix to keep the festivities really revving. Available through Sur La Table, 3334 W. Friendly Ave., Greensboro, (336) 291-9962.
Old Edwards Inn
Aspen is so expected, Gstaad is too grand, and you really have no idea how to get to Cortina. Think global and act local by hightailing it to the Blue Ridge Mountains and Highlands, North Carolina, for a long weekend escape at sybaritic Old Edwards Inn (445 Main St.). A member of the prestigious Relais & Chateaux group, the European-styled Old Edwards will work out the workaday kinks courtesy of the stellar spa (try the 110-minute Luxurious Bath Ritual) followed by knockout dining (think green tea–dusted breast of duck with smoky wild mushrooms). Then retire to your soothing aerie with a glass of malbec and kick back in cosseting style. oldedwardsinn.com.
Head for the Hills
Capture the snow-kissed glamour of the Old Country with the Tyrol Bedside Table from Oly Studio with its textured floralmotif doors and antiqued silver accents (from $2,275). Small and white, clean and bright, you look happy to meet me . . . Available through Furnitureland South, 5635 Riverdale Drive, Jamestown, (336) 822-3000.
Leaf Through
Set a fabulous table this holiday season with the forest-plucked good looks of the Kate Spade New York Birch Way Serving Bowl from Lenox ($160.99). We are smitten with the watercolor-inspired motifs upon the crisp bone china. Available through Bed, Bath & Beyond, 1020 Hanes Mall Blvd., Winston-Salem, (336) 768-4357. h Winter 2019
SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 15
#1 KelleR Williams Team in The TRiad.
R. TyleR WilhoiT
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RANKED TOP 10 IN SALES IN TRIAD MLS
Wishing You the Best in 2019
#1 IN SALES VOLUME IN US #1 IN SOLD UNITS IN US
www.wilhoitgroup.com 336-460-2495 The nexT GeneRaTion
We Service What We Sell & Offer Personal Attention 336-854-9222 • www.HartApplianceCenter.com
16 SEASONS •
STYLE
& DESIGN
2201 Patterson Street, Greensboro, NC (2 Blocks from the Coliseum) Mon. - Fri.: 9:30am - 5:30 pm Sat. 10 am - 2 pm • Closed Sunday
in
Real esTaTe
SHOP LOCAL Winter 2019
STYLEBOOK
THE DESIGNER BEAT
Redd Alert
Laura Redd Interiors’ thoughtful approach to design By Robin Sutton Anders
G
reensboro interior designer Laura Redd loves furniture, but she doesn’t mind if you put your feet on it. In fact, Redd recently walked into a senior living facility she designed and saw a group of seniors hanging out with their feet propped up, drinking coffee and reading newspapers. The whole scene made her giddy. “That is the point of good interior design,” says Redd. “It’s supposed to help people live better. We all work so hard, and this world is so stressful. Everyone wants to come home to a place of sanctuary where you can relax.” In the past two decades, under the banner Laura Redd Interiors, the designer has shaped the aesthetic of almost 1,000 homes across North Carolina. Three years ago, she began adding senior living facilities to her portfolio. “I was helping seniors downsize and relocate to Heritage Greens, a local senior living community,” she says. “At the time, the director was in the midst of a lobby remodel and some of the furniture came in damaged. He was frustrated and asked me if I’d like to take a stab at it.” Redd says she fell in love with the whole process. “In this space, with great design you have the ability to affect 100 lives,
Winter 2019
all at once.” As a 29-year-old with a passion for architecture and, aesthetically pleasing interiors, Redd moved from Atlanta to Garlstedt, Germany. There, studying interior design, she learned an approach she continues to apply today. “International designs are space- conscious,” she says. “Almost every piece of furniture has multiple uses.” This is a trend gaining steam in America. “We’re expecting more out of our furniture,” she says. “When I was at furniture market, I found this adorable oversize chair that flipped out to be a full-size bed. If you do not need a bed all the time, why take up the space? If you have an end table that can easily transition to a nightstand in a guest room, you’ll be able to use it longer.” Not only that, she adds, “it’s more efficient. No matter how big our houses are, we fill them. We never have enough storage.” Especially in senior living communities, where the overarching design and a room’s furnishings must be fluid enough to accommodate multiple uses, from events and performances to intimate meetings with friends. “In a really big room, maybe you have a central conversation area surrounded by smaller groupings, and incorporate swivel chairs that can easily turn to face the large conversation area,” SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 17
STYLEBOOK Redd explains. “The directors come and move things around for a program, and then they can quickly move them back.” In many ways, designing a senior living community feels like designing a residential living room. “It needs to be comfortable,” Redd says. “These are people over 70, they don’t want to live in a hotel; they want to live in a home.” There are unique challenges, however: In addition to looking — and feeling — as if they’d belong in any ordinary living room furniture, the furnishings need to be extraordinarily sturdy. “The frames need to support someone who literally falls into a chair,” Redd says. “They have to be strong enough to support the impact, and the fabrics need to be more than Crypton-durable because of moisture issues.” As with any design project, an effective color scheme is the cornerstone. But in a senior living community, designers need to consider a variety of factors that eclipse trends. “Most older adults have some sort of color blindness or macular degeneration, so yellows don’t work, and the gray trend is an absolute no,” Redd says. “You have to look at the colors they are comfortable with and understand that many seniors are seeing completely different colors from what other people are seeing.” Lighting is another critical consideration. “You want to steer toward clear, bright light. Not blue light,” Redd says. “These days, we have 20 different shades of light bulbs and LED lights. We truly can light a space correctly so a senior can see and read and experience their surroundings in an enjoyable way.” North Carolina designers share a major job perk, Redd says: Easy access to High Point’s furniture market. Twice a year, designers from around the globe flock to the Triad, where the world’s hottest up-and-coming design trends are on display. Redd makes it a point to attend the semiannual furniture markets, and she pores over the new colors, accessories and furniture styles — informa-
Winter 2019
tion that guides but never dictates the advice she gives to her commercial and residential clients. “It’s a 50-50 balance of trends and a client’s personal preferences,” Redd notes. “I’ll ask to see a client’s Instagram or Pinterest pages, to get an idea of what they like. But as a designer, it’s my job to introduce new ideas.” That’s important, she adds, because about five to seven years down the road, today’s market trends become commonplace. “I want my clients to be aware of the trends so their newly designed space will continue to feel fresh for years to come.” To that end, Redd never reuses a fabric. “I think it’s important to reinvent the design elements every time,” she says. In their office, Redd and her assistant designer, Kerstin Leigh, keep a display board covered with snapshots of the manufacturers who inspired them at market. These are the manufacturers they call on for new projects. “We like to use entrepreneurial, local companies who are doing something unique,” Redd says. “For example, I found a guy in Blowing Rock who creates furniture — desks, shelves, a cool tray that holds whiskey glasses — out of wine barrels.” These unique design pieces lend a personalized look to each of Redd’s projects. They add vibrancy and create a sense of home that functions for each individual, she says. “It’s not enough to pair a pretty sofa with matching tables and lamps. What inspires me is the ability to create a space that works for the way people live.” In 20 years, Redd says she’s rarely designed a space in her own personal style — that’s not the point. “I don’t think it’s right to do my style,” she adds. “I want to learn your style and bring it to life.” h Robin Sutton Anders is a Greensboro-based freelance writer and a regular contributer to Seasons magazine.
SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 19
STYLEBOOK
INTERIOR ACCENTS
The Christmas Whisperer
Finding seasonal charms at Larry Richardson’s Plants and Answers in Greensboro By Cynthia Adams Photographs by Amy Freeman
N
o matter how tired Larry Richardson is after weeks of bombing his way across the Triad with yards of garlands and gobs of glittery bits for clients of his two businesses, he dives down into the basement of Seven Oaks, his 1925 historic home in Greensboro’s Sunset Hills, to begin hauling out his collection of custom-made Santas, hand-blown glass balls. Seasonal décor is his thing, Richardson says. He adores the celebration, the decoration and the creativity. “I love it,” he says, smiling widely. He will practically give a tutorial if you happen into his floral shop or nursery, Plants and Answers, or The Little Greenhouse. Inside The Little Greenhouse, Richardson has set up vignettes loaded with ideas, all gussied up for the holidays. He knows what is trending and how to achieve the look for less. And he prides himself on knowing what his clients like, and what will work with their interiors. Call him the Christmas Whisperer. “Clark Goodin, my partner, is really good with the floral end of the business,” Richardson says. “He does everything fresh and a lot of Christmas arrangements; cut tulips, et cetera. And lots of
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roses. For whatever reason, roses are big at Christmas.” Mantels are one of his specialties. Personally, he decks his own halls with collectibles. At home, for example, Richardson decorates with Bactrian camels, a mainstay. But he can help anyone take their style up a notch or two. It is all, he says, about being resourceful, embracing Mother Nature’s freebies and piling on the beauty. Mantels, stairways and tabletops should be unified, he says, for best effect. “You start with the basic on the mantels, what texture or greens you want to use, whether magnolia, pine or spruce, depending upon your interior.” Next, he says to determine the color you want for an accent. With homes that have lots of color, go with neutral tones, like gold, or brushed gold. Or try using, Richardson suggests, “what some call French bronze. That is always good to use, it’s current and goes with anything.” In homes that aren’t already bristling with color, he says, “if you want a pop of color, go with reds, or whatever works with your Christmas décor.” Richardson says take a cue from what you already love Winter 2019
STYLEBOOK
and use in your personal space before you start to decorate. As he reminds, “Christmas comes in after the fact, after you’ve done your home décor.” So how does one proceed? Be observant; train the eye. Notice patterns within your own home choices and play off those. “I take a look at colors in oriental carpets, that kind of thing, and try and bring the color in the floor into the décor, for inspiration,” he says. “I try not to introduce a lot of elements, but enough to tie it all together.” For his own mantel-top creation, he inserted a Christmas quail inside an evergreen wreath that he hangs on a mirror. The quail, he says, is understated and less conspicuous than something more stark, such as that ubiquitous decorative item, the white dove. Sometimes he works a garland of pine cones through a green garland to add a layer of textures. Then, he sprinkles in some magic effect with simple additions: “I try to add texture with berries, cones, and natural elements. Lots of berries are preserved for decorating.” Richardson says you also can add drama and still spare the budget if you are resourceful and hit Mother Nature’s supply house. “I add those elements, then I like to mix in other leaves, like magnolia leaves that last for a while, to add more texture and add some grounding to it.” Heavier foliage, he says, helps ground the design. “I try not to be too much over the top, so it looks like it might naturally be there, lends itself to the interior.” Winter 2019
What is trending now? “To add pizzazz: a good thing is to use silver and gold together now.” Brushed gold and brushed silver are popular and “go well together with different shades of green. It lifts it up,” Richardson says. And, it’s a safe bet for those who are timid about experimenting with brighter hues. A lot of people are afraid of color and rightly so: “If you get too carried away, it confuses the eye,” he says. “Always go with less-is-more when it comes to adding color: Think of the greenery as the base. Add texture with berries and cones.” Then, keep the theme and carry the outdoors inside. “Whatever you do on the mantel, tie it in with your door and stairs,” he says. “Use similar textures and colors. You can carry that further to the dining room centerpiece: Do the door, mantel, and dining room centerpiece and follow that theme, and your house should be done.” It’s too easy to break the budget when holiday swag appears in media and shops and entertaining kicks into high gear. There’s also a paucity of time for working folk who may have to entertain the boss, their book club and host an open house. Richardson has a simple tip: Simply add or subtract a few items. “If you entertain the same people for another function, do a change for the mantel and it will be completely fresh. Use the same base of greenery; replace the color in the balls and berries. Those are the only things you’ve changed — and do the same for your tabletop. In five minutes, it will look completely new.” SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 21
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He says he personally learned to be resourceful from his mother, who was a wizard of improvisation and thrift. “In our yards and landscape, all around us, we have things that can be brought in and used. You can use a permanent type base of greenery and add natural elements from your yard.” It doesn’t have to be bought, he insists. There’s a lot you can do to create color. You can take English walnuts and add those to your base of greenery and consider using spray paint: When he was younger and on a budget, he says he discovered spray painting magnolia leaves as a thrifty way to add sparkle to his home. “At the time, there weren’t a lot of commercial things available. It was an invention of necessity to do something different.” He recalls his mother making him a Christmas tree out of wood, putting it in a clay pot and adding a red bow. Richardson observed how his mother would transform their home with imagination and resourcefulness. “My mother was creative. She would know how to reinvent the wheel if she had to . . . always doing things from a creative standpoint, from arranging flowers to making things at Christmas.” She inspired his own cheerful self-reliance. “It’s like the old saying, you get lemons, you make lemonade. In her case, she made something beautiful. That’s what really counts. How it makes you feel. When you are doing something that makes you happy!” Yet, he also laughs at a few misfires. Richardson remembers when his father had a real holiday flop. “I’ll never forget when my daddy tried to make a wreath with running cedar; he made a coat hanger round. Then, he wrapped and wrapped it . . . it was like a Charlie Brown Christmas! But, I hung it in my room.” Don’t be discouraged by occasional missteps. And don’t let a price tag drag you down either, the holiday lover says. For example, Richardson says magnolias, high in drama and bronze beauty on the leaves’ reverse sides, are quintessentially Southern. But while magnolia garlands and wreaths are pricey elsewhere in the nation, magnolia trees are abundant in the Triad. All you have to buy is the pine roping. Before you know it you’ve got a garland that goes over your mantel.” Fresh greenery, though, does have a limited shelf life: ”Sometimes, when using fresh magnolia you’re better off not doing it more than 10 days out. Winter 2019
For the budget conscious, Richardson encourages creativity as the best of all approaches. “One of the prettiest things that people can do, is natural.” He says he adores simple table tableaus made by a combination of greens and amaryllis. “I love amaryllis. When I was a child I gave my grandmother an amaryllis. She had never seen one, and she could watch it grow. Amaryllis is one of those special things that come back to me.” Subtle contrast, subtle pops of color sing, Richardson says. As for Christmas trees, he has a weakness for them. So what’s new? “The trend that I’m seeing with trees is the mixture of gold and silver. That’s the big thing. It used to be choosing either gold or silver.” The combination is new, he says. “It works. And it’s very pretty.” In his own home, he places multiple trees, festooned with antique, hand-blown glass balls, oodles of baubles and yards of garlands. If one tree is good, surely multiples are better — some rooms feature several, both tabletop and full-sized. Each tree is different — some are fresh. Some are bottlebrush trees. Some are metallic. Richardson has amassed antique Christmas collectibles for years, and so the devoted collector and designer spills them across fireplace mantels, hearths, stair rails, doorways and glass beauties twinkle from tabletops and buffets. It’s kind of magical,” he reflects. Sure, he loves gold--and red and green and pink. He follows trends but at home, he cannot resist the tug of things he has gathered and discovered. One of his favorite Christmas trees of all time? He scored it for $5 at a yard sale. And he places it in his third floor study where he and Goodin can relax, after the last Christmas Day’s guest departs, and watch the color wheels turn. h Plants and Answers, 700 W. Market St., Greensboro. Open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (336) 274-8909 or plantsandanswersflorist.net. Larry Richardson loves it when customers share photos of their holiday decorations. SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 23
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Hidden Gem
Art for Living
At Winston-Salem’s Visual Index, affordability and fun are key By Nancy Oakley Photographs by John Gessner
F
or Toni Tronu, there’s very little in life and art that isn’t “amazing” or “awesome.” Frequently peppering her speech with seemingly her two favorite words, Tronu loves nothing more than for customers to come in and spend time in her shop and gallery, Visual Index, situated in the heart of Winston-Salem’s Downtown Arts District. And who wouldn’t be mesmerized by her colorful assortment of wares in a variety of media — paintings, pottery, glassware, tea towels, cutting boards, not to mention jewelry, scarves and clever greeting cards — all of them arranged in fetching, but uncluttered displays? So fetching, in fact, that you find yourself picking up, touching and feeling the art . . . exactly as Tronu intends. “When I was first figuring out what I wanted this place to be, I was visiting a lot of galleries, and there was this feeling that Winter 2019
people don’t understand it or they don’t think it’s for them,” she says. She found people shied away from such places. “I knew, whatever I did, I wanted it to be approachable,” Tronu says. “So when people come in, I always tell them: ‘Please, feel free to pick things up and enjoy them.’” Not like other galleries with such an exclusive vibe that you’re afraid to breathe. “You’re like ‘Oh God! My purse ran up against that!’ So I want to break that ice.” Among the ways she makes art seem less daunting is to hang paintings at the standard Smithsonian height of 60 to 64 inches from the floor. “The point of that is to be accessible to all people,” Tronu explains, including clientele who might be wheelchair bound, or children. “It’s not way up there, so they can’t see it.” Nor does she clutter her shop-as-gallery, eschewing what she calls the “salon-style” method of hanging things all the way to the ceiling or cramming the shelves and displays SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 25
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with goods. “In here, if something sells, it’s like a game of ‘Art Tetrus’ to get it back to looking good. And I think you can’t celebrate every artist if you’re overwhelmed,” she explains. “Supporting living makers,” she says, is the name of the game, and each one is distinct from the next: A series of soulful portraits by Bernardsville artist Melanie Norris — photographs overlaid with swaths of paint — hangs next to a hand-dyed, knitted piece in wool and acrylic by an ArtsGreensboro’s 2015 Regional Projects Grant recipient Ann Tilly. Just adjacent is a small end table with clean lines, fashioned from exotic woods by another Greensboro artist, Bob Wagner. Tronu points to smaller pieces of his: squares of wood with colorful geometric shapes attached to them by magnets. “You can change the artwork every day if you want. ‘Maybe I’m feeling some red on green today,’” Tronu muses, as she playfully rearranges a colorful circle and triangle on one of the magnetic squares. “And the nice thing is, these are his leftovers and there’s no waste,” she adds. Her meticulous curation of goods is a skill Tronu learned at Greensboro’s GreenHill gallery, where for three years, she worked as shop manager, registrar and photographer, with an eye toward owning her own establishment. Having grown up in Pensacola, Florida, with both parents as shopkeepers, Tronu saw first-hand how to run a retail business (her mother, Dinah’s bookstore, Winter 2019
Hawsey’s Book Index, was the inspiration for her own shop’s name). She always had an interest in art, pursuing a degree in photography from Pensacola Junior College (now Pensacola State College), and finishing up her studies at UNCG. Also a musician, Tronu had become aware of the Gate City from one of the members of the rock band she fronts, Elemeno. “We were all living in Florida, and we were like, North Carolina is awesome! Super supportive of the arts, so we were like, ‘Now’s the time to get out of our hometown. If we don’t do it now, we’re never gonna do it,’” Tronu recalls, citing Pensacola’s high cost of living as another motivation for the entire band — her husband and bass player Robert Pennington, guitar player R.J. McKee and Ben Minor —to leave. She approached GreenHill as a “test-drive” for learning how to run a gallery. “What better way than working in nonprofit, where you have to do the job of 1,000 people and have all the pressure on you?” she posits. “I was like, ‘If I can handle that, I can run a store by myself. And I love everyone there! They’re so amazing,” Tronu enthuses. But a visit to Winston-Salem while she was assessing various galleries led her to Tamara and Ron Propst. Longtime pioneers of the Arts District, the Propsts in early 2017 were ready to close their gallery, the Other Half, in the Trade Street building, which they also own. (They have since downsized the operation to a smaller studio a couple of doors down below street level.) But SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 27
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they didn’t want to lease the space to just anyone. “The arts district needs to remain the arts district,” Tamara Propst told the Winston-Salem Journal back in February. “We want something in the space that will make people say, ‘Oh, my gosh, this is wonderful!’” By August, Visual Index was up and running. “Everyone is so nice to me!” Tronu says. “It’s not really competition,” she adds, pointing to the neighboring galleries such as Piedmont Craftsmen and Fiber Company, “but community.” Community that she extends to artists, not just from the Triad or North Carolina, but across the United States, as well. Determined to represent visual creatives from all 50 states, Tronu is now halfway to her goal: Among the 73 artists whose works fill the gallery’s shelves and walls, 23 are from outside of N.C. And this intent, too, grew out of Tronu’s experience at GreenHill, which celebrates artists only if they have an affiliation with the Old North State. “I just started making this Excel file while researching North Carolina artists, just going through that rabbit hole of websites,” Tronu says. “You’re like, ‘Oh! What is this?!’ And you’re like, ‘Are they affiliated with N.C.? Probably not. Put ’em over here for later.’” By the time she was ready to set up Visual Index, she had “quite a substantial list” of candidates whose work she considered — yes, “amazing” — but who had few if any invitations from galleries. Among the standouts: Philadelphia potter Brian Giniewski, whose colorful “drippy” mugs and pots look as though an ice cream cone has melted on top of them. “He’s a big deal right now, because he can control the glaze,” Tronu explains, fingering a perfectly proportioned purple drip. “It’s inspiring, you want to use it! You want to wake up in the morning and go, ‘Oh! I love this mug! It’s so weird!’ What a great way to start the day!” By contrast, Noelle Hoover of Indiana, draws delicate linear patterns on her stoneware mugs — by hand. “It’s a therapeutic process for her but it would drive me over the edge,” Tronu says of the images that are unglazed, providing a contrasting matte texture to the vessels’ smooth surfaces. “I love texture!” Tronu affirms, as she moves over to another shelf of perfectly round glassware blown by Pittsburgh artist, Margaret Spacapan. More colorful glassware by Pensacola’s Joe Hobbs sits next to a series Winter 2019
of painted, ceramic hearts by another Pensacola maker (formerly of N.C.), Lou Mitchell Courtney. “They’re rattles!” Tronu says, shaking one of them. She moves about the store, pointing out flour sack tea towels by an Oregon outfit, Oh, Little Rabbit, and others printed from ethereal watercolors by Greensboro-based HighBrow Hippie. Though she continues to fulfill her quest to include artists from across America, Tronu says the majority of works are crafted by Tarheel hands: a line of tableware from Silo Knoll Pottery, and wooden cutting boards and bottle stoppers by Larry Daniel, both based in Winston-Salem; sleek wooden fish sculptures by Greensboro’s Paul Sumner and from the Raleigh area, graceful graphite drawings on clay board by Raleigh artist Kiki Farish, and fabric collages by Caitlin Cary. All of the artists whose works fill the shop have a variety of backgrounds: Some have had formal training, others create things as a sideline, some are seasoned, others are just starting out. Tronu doesn’t discriminate, “As long as it’s quality, affordable and fun — let’s do it!,” she says with gusto. She is adamant about keeping price ranges from about $4 to $1,500. “I can’t afford a $1,500 painting, but there are definitely people out there who are more established who can, who maybe would buy a $10,000 painting,” she says. Keeping things within reach also allows Tronu to educate her clientele, and “teach people, slowly, that you can buy these two cups instead of 30 plastic ones for the same price.” And those cups, by the way, are dishwasher- and microwave-safe, like all the tableware in the store. “So you don’t have to be a huge responsible person,” Tronu says. “It’s like art for living.” That’s why she encourages customers to handle the goods in her store, to experience them, draw inspiration from them and see what might be a good fit for their homes. She often gets inquiries from online shoppers, and if pressed to ship merchandise, Tronu will oblige. “But,” she says, “I really would prefer you come in and touch it . . . and hang out.” h Visual Index, 562 Trade St., NW, Winston-Salem; (336) 875-3674; visualindex.co. Open Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m. SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 29
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FOOD FOR THOUGHT
That Old Chestnut Making a comeback in the skillet By Jan Leitschuh
H
ot, roasted chestnuts have probably not been part of your holiday treat repertoire, despite the ubiquitous Christmas reminder in song. I would have been the same, except I first tasted chestnuts in Wisconsin, as my mother, a nostalgic World War II bride, roasted some for us kids in our living room fireplace. This was a time (cough) before gas logs. The nuts were tasty, sweet and surprisingly soft, like a baked potato, very good with salt and the heat of the fire warming our faces. But chestnuts are neither a common nor everyday produce item, so the cold-weather treat drifted to the back burner. The idea of chestnuts resurfaced again when my local Sandhills Farm to Table Co-op attended the international Slow Food Festival “Terre Madre” in Torino, Italy, in the fall of 2010. There we saw pushcart vendors roasting chestnuts Winter 2019
on the streets, dumping the hot nuts into paper funnels for munching on the go or on the nearest park bench. Chestnut flour-based pastries and candied marron glacés graced bakery shop windows. Cafés featured a hot bowl of zuppa di castagne, sometimes with a grappa kicker. Late October was the season of the chestnut harvest. As our bus drove us through the Italian countryside to our lodgings an hour south, neat farms began to sport tidy little groves of trees. Over 90 percent of Italy’s chestnuts are produced in Tuscany, and this little northern countryside had some lovely examples. Edible chestnuts grow worldwide, including in North Carolina’s Piedmont and Sandhills regions. My first exposure to Tar Heel chestnuts came when the late environmentally active couple, Joyce and Len Tufts, gifted a generous bounty of homeSEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 31
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STYLEBOOK grown Chinese chestnuts for Sandhills Farm to Table box subscribers. The nuts were as good as I remembered. I used them in a chestnut-sage stuffing. This fall, local resident Ellen Marcus brought chestnuts back onto my radar. She and her family recently moved onto a property with four well-established chestnut trees bordering their front yard. It was a love-hate relationship from the start. “The trees are perfectly climbable, picnic-worthy on a nice carpet of lush centipede grass, rich green foliage giving way to gold in autumn,” she says. “The tree’s beauty is mesmerizing and inviting.” Sounds heavenly, except for one factor Marcus hadn’t counted on: the spiny husks of the nuts that tumble each fall. “The sharp chestnut spines can pierce soft-soled shoes,” she said. “ I can’t imagine why anyone would plant a chestnut in the front yard. The husks are mean and unforgiving, making the work of getting at the sweet meat all the more rewarding.” And it is work. “The nuts have to be collected before the worms drill in,” she says. “They have to be refrigerated for storage. The nuts have to be scored and roasted to get them to peel easily. It almost gets to the point where you want to say, ‘Forget it, get an ax!’” But then she relents. “The tree is reminiscent of the native chinquapin I grew up with as a kid. Chestnuts are so versatile, and make delicious cream soups, great flour, crispy toppings, and meaty stuffings.” Chestnuts were much loved in ancient times. In fact, the Greeks and Romans used to transport an incredible amount of chestnuts in the stowage areas of ships to sell later. Before the chestnut blight in the early 20th century, the stunning American chestnut tree dominated forests of the eastern United States, blanketing the Appalachian mountains with their blossoms in the spring.
Known as the “Redwood of the East,” the American tree often reached towering heights of 150 feet. Experts estimate that at one time, one in every four hardwood trees in the East was an American chestnut. An important food source for natives, pioneers and wildlife, the American chestnut is making a small but determined comeback thanks to backcrossing efforts to introduce blight resistance. According to the website “The Art of Manliness,” (cough, cough), one roasts chestnuts over an open fire, just as the song suggests. “Yes, you can roast chestnuts in the oven. But what would be the fun in that? A man never misses a chance to build a fire and cook over it,” the website suggests. Instructions as follows: To roast your chestnuts, you’ll need a pan that you can put into the fire. Long-handled popcorn or chestnut roasters make the ideal vessels for open fire chestnut roasting, as they allow you to roast the nuts without burning your face off. And their lids let you shake the chestnuts around for even roasting, instead of having to turn them over yourself or losing a few when flipping them in a lid-less pan. If you don’t have a long-handled roaster, you can get by with a 12-inch castiron skillet or some other pan. Just be careful not to burn yourself. If you have an old beat-up skillet, you can turn it into a bona fide chestnut roaster by drilling 30 or so holes in the bottom. If you don’t have a chestnut roaster or a skillet, you can also use a fireplace shovel. And I suppose you could even try sticking them individually on skewers . . . if you’re the patient type. You can buy chestnuts at some grocery stores, but you may want to call ahead to make sure they have them. While dozens of chestnut varieties exist, most people roast Castagne and Marroni chestnuts at the holidays.
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SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 33 10/5/18 10:06 AM
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Kim Taylor & Company Designing Throughout The South
Beautify your winter landscape Since 1963 QUALITY | SELECTION | EXPERTISE
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GUILFORD GARDEN CENTER Where gardening is fun!
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Winter 2019
STYLEBOOK Castagne are more common, while the Marroni are a more expensive specialty. The nut of the Marroni is sweeter and plumper, and it peels away from the skin more easily. When choosing your chestnuts, look for those that are plump, smooth, shiny, and blemish-free. Moldy chestnuts are a common problem, so squeeze and shake the chestnut to see if the nut has shriveled up and pulled away from the shell. Keep in mind that the larger the chestnut, the longer it will take to roast. Pick chestnuts that are fairly uniform in size and will thus be done at the same time. Chestnuts are traditionally scored, their brown skin sliced to allow steam to escape when roasted. Simply take a sharp knife and cut an “X” into the flat side of each chestnut. Once your chestnuts are clean, dry and scored, roast over a nice bed of hot embers, shaking the pan to prevent burning. The brown exterior is peeled off after roasting and the hot nuts dipped in salt. Chestnut trees prefer good drainage — avoid standing water and low-lying areas. To produce fruit, trees will also need lots of sunlight and plenty of regular watering to become established. Fall and winter are great times to add a couple of chestnut trees to your property, for wildlife and personal consumption. Revival, Carolina and Willamette are three suggested varieties that do well in North Carolina. All require pollination from another variety. Plant at least two cultivars of the same type to ensure optimal size and production, and probably best away from where children and dogs might play, given the spiny husks. Most Chinese and hybrid chestnuts are highly resistant to the chestnut blight fungus. Many people prefer the hybrid chestnut cultivars, citing superior quality over the straight Chinese cultivars. Management is low.
If you are lucky enough to have your own chestnut tree, sort nuts for mold. Either use fresh nuts immediately or store unpeeled chestnuts in the refrigerator. To keep your chestnuts in good shape for a little longer, place them in a plastic bag and stick a few holes in the bag for airflow. Chestnuts should then keep for two or three weeks. Place them in the fridge’s crisper or vegetable storage bin. Store freshly purchased or picked, unpeeled chestnuts at room temperature for up to one week only. Keep them in a well-ventilated and dry place. In case you want to go beyond roasted chestnuts this holiday season, just add chocolate:
Chestnut-Chocolate Pudding
1 1/4 pound chestnuts 5 ounces dark chocolate, chopped 4 ounces butter 4 ounces sugar Salt Cook the chestnuts in salted water, peel and then process or sieve them. Melt the chocolate and add to the still warm chestnuts together with the sugar and butter. Stir for some time. Line a rectangular mold with greaseproof paper and grease with butter, lay in the mixture, level off and cover with more greaseproof paper. Leave in the fridge for at least 4 hours. Serve with cream on the side. h Jan Leitschuh is a gardener, avid eater of fresh produce and co-founder of the Sandhills Farm to Table Cooperative in Moore County. North Carolina’s Premier Interior Design Firm
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Winter 2019
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GIFT CERTIFICATES AVAILABLE 1500 Mill Street, Suite 105 • Greensboro, NC 27408 (336) 379-9808 • fredastaire.com/greensboro
Winter 2019
Winter Almanac By Ash Alder
Winter is here.
Deadhead the rose bush. Prune the wild muscadine. Move the front porch pumpkins to the compost pile. Outside, a pair of cardinals flits between the naked branches of the dogwood and the rim of the pedestal birdbath. You think of the piebald gypsy cat who used to visit, how he would balance on the ledge to take a drink. Months have passed since you have seen him, but you’re sure he’s napping in some cozy sunroom, waiting for the catkins and crocus, dreaming of the cheerily, cheer-up, cheer-up, cheerily return of the robin. In the kitchen, the coffee is freshly ground, and you hold in your hands the first grapefruit from the bushel. The warmth of your own smile stretches across your face, and in this moment, all is well.
Year of the Pig
I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure of the landscape — the loneliness of it, the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it, the whole story doesn’t show. –Andrew Wyeth
Twelfth Night (January 5), the eve of Epiphany, marks the end of the Christmas season. But the merriment continues. Tuesday, February 5, marks the celebration of the Chinese New Year. Cue the paper lanterns for the Year of the Earth Pig, a year of wealth and good fortune. What is it that your heart desires? Now’s a good time to clean house and create space for your abundance to arrive. National Cherry Pie Day is celebrated on Wednesday, February 20. Although the old chestnut about George Washington and the cherry tree is a myth, it’s true that cherries were one of the president’s favorite foods. Chill some to sweeten a romantic evening — or if you feel inspired to bake pie, make a date of it. Calling in your soul mate this New Year? A Japanese love spell suggests tying a single strand of hair to a blossoming cherry tree. No lie.
In seed time learn, in harvest teach, in winter enjoy. –William Blake
Cures for the Winter Blues: Slide in your socks across the cold kitchen floor to the warm crackle of vinyl. Stop and smell the flowering camellia. Peppermint tea and homemade cherry pie. Winter 2019
STYLEBOOK Sweet Garden Magic
While the soil is cool, plant spring bulbs and fruit trees, harvest edible weeds and winter greens, and when the work is done, create sacred space to enjoy this winter season. And beaucoup peppermint. First cultivated in 1750 near London, as an experimental hybrid between water mint and spearmint, this perennial herb has long been used for its magical and medicinal qualities. According to The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets, however, the candy cane preceded its flavor. Sometime around 1670, a choirmaster in Cologne, Germany, asked a local confectioner to come up with a special candy stick to help pacify the young folks during the live Nativity on Christmas Eve. Shaped like a shepherd’s staff, this sugary creation surely kept them quiet (and buzzing) until the Magi arrived. Want to grow your own? If you’re going for potency (read: high oil content), go with black peppermint, named for its dark purple-green leaves and stems. White peppermint has a milder flavor, but crush the leaves between your fingers and feel an instant calm throughout your entire being. Because this aromatic herb can quickly take over an entire garden, and because it craves rich soil and good drainage, container gardening is recommended. Full sun increases its medicinal qualities (and makes for stronger, spicier tea).
Peppermint Tea for Two 2 cups water 14 peppermint leaves 2 teaspoons honey
Bring water to boil Place leaves in teacups; cover mint with hot water Steep for 5 minutes Remove leaves (or not) Add honey *Steep with fresh tarragon leaves and a quarterinch section slice of vanilla bean to enter a new realm. Add lemon wedge to continue the journey.
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Leah Blackburn Agency Manager 7025 Albert Pick Rd. | Greensboro, NC 27407 336-496-3016 direct | 800-727-9744 toll-free 336-202-5516 cell WSLife.com/agent/lblackbu
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Winter 2019
Winter
Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home.”
Winter 2019
— Edith Sitwell
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Above it All
Winter magic abounds at Lee Carter and Greg Bradley’s Blowing Rock aerie, Eagle Crest By Cynthia Adams • Photographs by Amy Freeman
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S
tanding on the southeastern ridge of Grandfather Mountain above Blowing Rock, with an organic façade of wood and stone, is the home of Lee Carter and Greg Bradley. The house is happily married to its environment, seemingly as much of the mountains as on one. The owners have joined Blowing Rock’s 1,500 permanent residents — a huge uptick in the twee town’s population since pre–Civil War days when the population was only 300. Now Blowing Rock is the couple’s year-round address, satisfying the long-held dream of Bradley, who especially admires the solitary beauty of the Blue Ridge. Now they are living the high life in very high style, at nearly 4,000 feet altitude. Whereas some would be daunted by creating a dream home where 35 inches of snow falls annually, the owners seemed undeterred and welcome the snow. Building a house “is one of the great things in life,” declares Carter, who formerly lived in Summerfield. His grandfather, Wilbur Lee Carter Sr., founded the Southern Life Insurance Company in 1929, and his father, Wilbur Lee Carter Jr., or “Bo,” served as president and chief executive officer until Southern Life was sold in 1986. Lee Carter, the grandson of the founder, worked as vice president until the company’s sale. Bradley is from Illinois. He came to North Carolina to attend graduate school at Duke University. The custom-made gate embellished with the name Eagle Crest is the SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 41
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first clue to what lies beyond: custom details and artisanship matter. There is also the home’s siting, which is quite a statement in itself, in a town where privacy is afforded by the sheer geography of place. As the gate swings open on a frosty morning, there is the final ascent to what lies above: a dramatic drive past the original home, now a guest house, before the first glimpse of the 10,000-square-foot main house. The curving, vertiginous drive ends at a porte cochère. Here, one pauses, for below that vantage point sits the world; now glittering and diaphanous with a dusting of snow and ice from the prior night. Carter, a 6-foot tall man with the enviable posture of an equestrian, emerges from the front entrance, smiling and welcoming. His breath is a puffy cloud as he exhales. Labrador retrievers Travis and Cody grin in greeting, too, while eating the frigid air. Carter pats them affectionately and briskly rubs his hands. He has just cleared the long driveway of snow. It is difficult to know which to admire first: house or landscape. The owners smile knowingly. Carter and Bradley lived on a farm in Summerfield before taking a look-see for a second home. “We spent a year deciding where to live having sold Southern C’s Farm in 2012,” says Carter. A foray into Blowing Rock real estate wound up changing their lives. Bradley, who grew up in Illinois and worked for a time in Chicago, was accustomed to winters in the North, and missed snow. When first shown the house and acreage high on a ridge, Carter thought it was too much for them — beautiful, yet he and Bradley shared reservations. The existing house wasn’t quite their style — basically it was a dated ranch. Their reservations changed when the couple returned for another look and grasped what an exquisite setting it offered. “We came up in September, seeing the house in peak Winter 2019
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leaf season,” says Carter. The leafy show sold them. “The original 10-plus acres property was, at one time, part of the Julian Price Park (named for longtime president and chairman of the board of Greensboro’s Jefferson Standard Life Insurance Company) which is now a part of the U.S. National Parks System.” Julian Price, who died before Lee’s birth, was well known by the Carters. “The fact that we bought land that was part of Julian Price Park was not a factor in purchasing our land but a happy surprise when walking the property and finding concrete ‘JPP’ (Julian Price Park) corner markers,” he emails later, adding an historic note. “According to our property history, which I haven’t verified, our land was part of a land swap with Hugh Morton and the National Park Service for Mr. Morton to allow the Park Service to build the Linn Cove Viaduct across the south side of Grandfather Mountain.” It seemed not only a happy surprise but was a good omen. Once they closed on the property, the couple lived in the existing house until building the present one. The main house is carefully, snugly sited; it is ruggedly, solidly handsome. Yet the house, as splendid as it is, must take second place to Mother Nature. Visitors to the now 17-acre property are afforded a rare spectacle, more what you expect from the seat of a small plane than automobile. The views, as Carter
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explains, can be 60–90 miles in range “depending upon the weather.” The Blue Ridge lies at their feet. The mountains above Boone — Snake and Elk mountains — and the Tennessee Watauga Mountains rise to the north; the Pisgah Forest, Lenoir, Morganton and Hickory are to the south, and the Julian Price and Moses Cone parklands are to the east. (The parklands are thanks to “great Greensboro businessmen,” Carter emails later, “and philanthropists who left their gift to us all by donating thousands of acres to N.C. and the U.S. Park systems.”) Over time, the couple bought additional parcels. Now they have undisturbed privacy and complete sanctuary. They abut land “owned by the Broyhill family now known as Sweetgrass,” Carter mentions. It takes a lot to compete inside with panoramic views of Blue Ridge beauty, but the owners did their best when they were making plans to build. The home, in Blowing Rock vernacular, “leans towards Arts and Crafts” as the owners say. They hired architect David Patrick Moses, and Enterline and Russell builders. Both were known for functional homes built in the High Country style. “Everything was locally sourced,” they say with pride. Working with a team Winter 2019
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including an architect, contractor and interior designer, Carter says, “we developed a very tight bond with all these folks and we couldn’t have completed our dream home without them.” The project began in 2014 and was completed two years later; the owners moved in on Christmas Eve 2016. Now the home possesses an air of Black Forest magic, with multiple fireplaces, even one outdoors. Yet with native stone and wood and beams, the massive two-storied home with vaulted ceilings evokes environmentally friendly comparisons to local historic structures. “There are 16,000 feet of 200-year-old hand-hewn beams throughout the house,” Carter says, “and in the porte cochère that were purchased and trailered to the house from Pennsylvania and Delaware.” “Almost every room is beamed,” he adds. The exterior wood is poplar, in the style specific to Linville and Blowing Rock. Formerly, the owners explain, local architecture employed chestnut in the days when it was abundant. Like chestnut, poplar is also hardy. The winds at such high altitude are fierce and can be ruthless; only the hardiest, timetested materials are suitable at this elevation. “Otherwise, the weather tears anything off.” Featuring six fireplaces, the builders employed the dry stacked stone method traditional to older structures in the area. None of the stone is mortared. “The pattern is Blowing Rock Rubble,” says Carter, who points out that this work was done by craftsmen in the same style as the Episcopal Church nearby. Indicating the high stone foundation, Carter says, “We did the house in stone to chest level,” he smiles, indicating with his hand.
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The result is a casual chic, Blowing Rock–style residence befitting the mountainous environs. Even the garage adhered to the style. “The RV shed, as we call it, has exterior 12x12 timbers hewn by a nephew of Doc Watson, who used an adze to hand hew the timbers to complete the exterior,” says Carter. Notably, there are three staircases and even a beautifully appointed, paneled elevator. The elevator, in keeping with the home’s high style, features a couple of Black Forest panels from Carter’s parents’ house at Southern C’s, which was designed by Virginia Zenke. As for the furnishings, which merit more than a nod, there is a unified mix of collected and inherited objects. The result is gathered. Meaningful. Horse-inspired objects and equestrian touches are found throughout. Carter and Bradley, along with the family, owned the Southern C’s Farm. Here, says Carter, they kept “eight horses, had up to 60 head of beef cattle, and a 200-acre loblolly pine plantation.” There, Carter and Bradley harvested Orchard grass hay. “We baled and stored approximately 20,000 bales of hay per year, which was marketed and sold to the Brood Mare industry.” At Eagle Crest horses still reign. (The family members ride, jump and hunt and are generally horse-mad.) So, the interiors have a Ralph Laurenesque, hunt/country vibe manifested by Tiffany lights, stained glass designed specifically for the owners and richly stained wood. But why limit yourself to Tiffany? A keeping room with a massive fireplace is devoted to a staggering collection of Murano glass, which is displayed on custom-shelving. The room also features a massive Christmas tree — one of Winter 2019
three that Carter and Bradley decorate for the holidays. The largest is in the upstairs entrance. There is even a small Christmas tree in the house bar, where crystals twinkle on a mirrored tray. The ornamentation is symbolic of the pair’s junkets around the world over their years together. They celebrated their anniversary this year. “We buy ornaments wherever we travel,” says Bradley. “We have 1,000 ornaments on the main tree, and we remember where each came from.” Favorites include ones bought in London. There are beloved ornaments brought to Blowing Rock from a trip to Vienna. The pair love the Lipizzaner ornament most of all. “The perfect horse,” observes Carter, ever the equestrian. Another favorite, says Bradley, was brought back from Ecuador, “the center of the Earth,” he says. He is especially fond of a collection of snowmen, including ones by Blenko, Vitrix, Gibson, H. J. Yarrito, and Thames Glass, which he has displayed in his study and also in the keeping room. “There was lots of collecting of stuff,” says Carter. “We kept as much family memorabilia as possible.” For example, a 25-foot-long rug only works in the spacious, open layout that a large floor plan offers. The dining room table, also massive, was his grandmother’s and has pride of place. “I grew up playing under the dining room table,” he remembers. Carter has appointed his study with his grandfather’s 1920s office furniture, Winter 2019
even the original bill of sale. He also framed original shares of Southern Life stock given to him and his parents by his grandfather. There are myriad collections from their families and also from their own pursuits: duck decoys, Blenko and Murano glassware, and Majolica. Carter jokes, “we have quite a few collections of collections.” There are displays of family china. “We got all of the china the girls didn’t take,” says Carter. For as the avid collectors quip, excess is best, because the vaulted views surrounding them insist that more is more. Especially during the holidays. From its lofty perch, with dramatic elevations and vistas, Eagle Crest is the ideal home to decorate top-to-bottom at Christmastime. “Greg is the Christmas decorator-in-chief,” says Carter. “We have literally ‘rooms’ of decorations that have to be put out. The Christmas tree takes almost seven days alone to put together with its host of ornaments and lighting.” In addition to the multiple trees, Carter and Bradley add plenty of twinkle, sparkle and glass, including aforementioned rare glass and long-collected ornaments. Then the parties begin. Overflow guests are installed in the guest house and parties with friends punctuate the couple’s calendar straight through the New Year. The house and properties are a labor of love, a culmination of everything the couple has ever cared about — most especially the land and environs. And SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 49
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the vistas from the interiors invite awe from any vantage point or floor. While Blowing Rock has one of the largest refuges of ravens found anywhere, according to the owners, here is a proper roost for a more majestic bird. It is their home’s namesake, the eagle. And as for human roosts, Bradley’s favorite space for relaxation is the living room and the porch, which afford southern views of the Globe Valley and the Pisgah National Forest. He mentions more than once that he had “missed the snow.” On a wintry day, snow caps the ridges and ices the winding drive below with magical effect. As the couple’s long-time friend Larry Richardson says, “It’s a showstopper.” The downstairs area is devoted to the laundry room, utility and storage areas, and the Labradors, with dog door access to a bear-proof fenced area. In the laundry room, there are more collected touches. Tile the couple brought home from Capri is incorporated into a custom table. There are also details that make the house very much modern, although invisible to the eye. It is an energy efficient “smart” home with LED lighting throughout. The walls are approximately 12 inches thick. “We have been in 100 mile-per-hour winds and nothing moves but the water in the toilet!” says Carter, as it was constructed to 150-mile wind specifications due to their location atop a ridge. The house is also 100 percent solar powered from a connection to the Blue Ridge Electric solar farms. “We built this house to die in,” he adds, pointing to the necessity of an elevator that was installed in anticipation of their senior years. Winter 2019
Both Carter and Bradley were caregivers to elderly parents. They planned their mountain-top home accordingly. Although they first met in Durham in 1988, they married in 2012 in New York once the Marriage Equality Act was passed in the state of New York. They have been married for six years. As for any homebuilding do-overs, Bradley says, no. He likes “everything about the house.” Except, perhaps, he would have rounded the kitchen cabinets, he says. Carter critically surveys the front foyer. “I wish the front entrance and balcony were widened.” But mostly, they are content. Eagle Crest is a sprawling, meaningful and home no matter what the season. But Christmas, of course, is sheer magic. At Christmastime, the owners are moved by the play of colored lights from their enormous main tree reflecting off the crystalline snow. It’s worthy of more than a few trips outside, just to admire a little Christmas glow from within. Richardson, a frequent houseguest, has stood on the front lawn and watched the twinkling beauty of it as night falls and the trees are lit and fires are laid inside. He says one is never too old to appreciate the seasonal wonder. Particularly when it becomes a snow-dusted wonderland, twinkling in moonlight on Christmas Eve, or in clear morning light on Christmas day, sprawled fetchingly at Carter and Bradley’s feet. h Cynthia Adams is a Triad-based writer and contributing editor to Seasons’ flagship, O. Henry magazine. SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 51
Universal Oneness Sheila Brame’s artful life in Winston-Salem By Nancy Oakley • Photographs by Amy Freeman
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F
or Sheila Brame, moving to Winston-Salem was a leap of faith. “When I came here, I didn’t know anything about anything,” says the youthful-looking, soft-spoken blonde, who lived in Wilkesboro 40 years before relocating. She had planned to stick around a while longer, until one day in 2012, her daughter, Katy, who lives in High Point, called. “She said, ‘I’m in downtown Winston and there are a few places I’d love for you to see. I know you’re not ready to move.’” Shelia remembers, “And I said, ‘OK. I’ll have lunch.’” So she came to the Twin City, looked at Piedmont Leaf Lofts in Wake Forest Innovation Quarter, then another place in Tar Branch Towers in the Brookstown area. But when she visited a third location, a condominium in the center of of Winston’s Downtown Arts District, something clicked. “When I walked in, it had all this energy,” Sheila recalls. “It just felt right. The open, loft-like space, with its hardwood floors and walls of windows that open onto to a balcony overlooking Trade Street, is part of a mixed-use condominium complex known as Trader’s Row, so named for the plethora of small shoe shops and clothing stores that once lined Trade Street in the 20th century. “It’s a typical example of what you would see around the country in urban infill to add density to make a more sustainable community,” says Rence Callahan, senior partner at Walter Robbs, the architectural firm that designed the building and occupies its entire third floor (the first LEED-certified project in Forsyth County). In a circuitous path involving the city’s decision to sell a smaller deteriorating building that once occupied the space, Walter Robbs, Samet Corporation in Greensboro and Winston-Salem developer Chris Chapman, Trader’s Row was completed in 2007, giving a boost to the fledgling Arts District. It consists of an underground parking area, the sports marketing outfit IMG, which occupies the ground and second floor, Blue Rock Wealth Management, Walter Robbs, and on the top two floors, 18 residential condominiums, each one custom-designed. “When we put them on the market in 2006–07, they sold like that,” says Callahan, snapping his fingers. Many of the home buyers were prominent Twin City residents who invested in the project,
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some of whom have stayed, while others have moved on, including the former occupant of the unit that so entranced Sheila Brame. Sheila had to make a decision quickly, because the sought-after location had attracted another prospective buyer. Additionally, a family interested in purchasing her 5,000-square-foot house in Wilkesboro was waiting in the wings. She rolled the dice and made an offer. Now she had a life’s worth of possessions to move into a smaller space. There was only one thing to do: Call Leslie. Leslie Moore, designer and owner of L. Moore Designs in High Point, had been a longtime friend of Sheila’s daughter, Katy, having helped her with interiors of various houses. During one of the renovations, Sheila was often present to lend a hand and became acquainted with Moore. “We really did connect,” Sheila says. “It was one of those friendships that was meant to be.” She had also seen Moore’s own home and, “loved everything about it.” So, in 2007, when construction on the house in Wilkesboro began, she turned to Moore. “It was Katy who said, ‘My parents are building a house and my mom wants to hire you.’” Moore chuckles. “This is the kind of stuff they do to me,” she quips. “‘We just bought a house and have to move in three weeks; can you pick all the paint colors, blah blah blah?’” She laughs again, but recalls the trips to Wilkesboro with fondness. “I started going to Wilkes on a regular basis, and we would go to different places for lunch.” Talia Espresso became her favorite. “It was always fun whenever I’d go to Wilkes. Just a fun day with Sheila,” the designer says. Fun choosing neutral fabrics for upholstery, a backdrop for the pops of color from Sheila’s art collection and accents, such as window treatments in an orange silk taffeta. “Orange became a neutral to me,” says Sheila, who, with Moore’s guidance, was sharpening her own eye. “I have all this confidence in her,” she continues. “Everything I would ask Leslie to do, she would just pull it off.” Unbeknownst to the two women at the time, the Wilkes house would serve as a blueprint for the interior of the Trader’s Row condominium in Winston. “He called it my house,” Sheila says of her husband, Rick. “He was just letting her basically do what she wanted to do,” Moore affirms. Winter 2019
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“The house was halfway constructed. We’d been working a few months, and I’d never even met him.” And then one day as they drove up to the house, “Sheila was like, ‘Oh, there’s Rick.’” She pauses, “We always talk about Rick when we’re together.” It’s virtually impossible not to, given such a larger-than-life personality as Rick Brame, always ready with a good joke, or “even a bad one,” Sheila comments. A native of Wilkes County, Rick, whose family owned several pharmacies in the area, attended Pfeiffer College. There he met pretty, demure Sheila Bondurant of Lincolnton. “My parents just thought I needed a small Methodist college, Sheila explains. “I met my husband. He was the wildest person I ever dated. They were like, ‘Whew! Maybe we made a mistake!’” she says, her eyes lighting up at the distant memory. Both Sheila and Rick graduated in the 1960s, “an age of innocence,” she recalls, interrupted by Rick’s military service in Vietnam. As an Army lieutenant, he was head of a platoon that fell under attack at close-range in northern Qang Ngai Province. He was awarded two medals for leading the platoon to safety and attempting to rescue a fallen comrade in arms. “He was a war hero in Vietnam,” says Sheila, proudly pointing to the two Silver Stars, framed and hanging alongside various paintings and photographs in the den/ guest room of her sunny Winston-Salem condominium. A portrait of her husband painted by a friend is temporarily propped against one wall until Sheila finds an appropriate spot to hang it. Across from it is a postmaster’s desk the couple bought together on one of their many trips, and hanging above the desk is another painting depicting a bright yellow artist’s cottage in Taos, New Mexico, a favorite travel and golf destination of Rick’s. After Vietnam, he returned to North Carolina to attend pharmacy school at UNC-Chapel Hill. Again, Sheila smiles. “We were in Chapel Hill for three years. I taught at Storybook Farm, a working farm that had a kindergarten and preschool,” she says, the faraway look returning to her eyes. “Those were the best years,” she says, recalling the Flower Ladies, a group of African-American women who used to sell bouquets along Franklin Street. “He would bring me flowers sometimes,” Sheila remembers. “Chapel Hill was just magical and wonderful.” But his family encouraged him to work in its pharmacy business, so Rick and Sheila packed up and moved to Wilkesboro. There, they lived the good life, raising children, Katy and a son, Rick Jr., and pursuing their independent interests, the “beauty” of their marriage, says Sheila. For Rick, golf, tending to his yard and his dogs, serving with various civic groups filled the off-hours away from the pharmacy. Sheila’s passion? The arts. That began with art and piano lessons from childhood through high school in Lincolnton, and continued with art history, music appreciation and English Lit classes at Pfeiffer. Playing the piano, she says, brings solace and has been a source of “wonderful spiritual therapy,” during life’s challenging times. “Visiting art galleries and going to the theater are always top of my list when traveling,” she adds. Gazing at the Trade Street establishments from her balcony she reflects, “It’s interesting, because there were times when we would travel and I would say, ‘I think it would be fun to live in a downtown area.’” She became involved with Wilkesboro’s downtown partnership, in fact, and served on the board of its Arts Council and the Northwest Artists League, developing friendships with several Foothills artists whose works fill her condominium: striking, urban landscape of lines and shadows by Realist painter Ward Nichols Winter 2019
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hangs in the kitchen and dining area, (dominated by a long table, a gift from Rick in the early years of the couple’s marriage). Another Nichols painting complements the white marble and tile in the master bath: a small landscape of woods on a snowy evening. “It was one of his first paintings,” Sheila says. “He was in his studio in a barn in his house. He decided to see what he could paint in one hour in a snowstorm.” The anecdote, she says, amused art lovers when she entered the painting in a retrospective of Nichols’ work. There are several colorful pieces crafted by Foothills potters and paintings by another area artist, Ron Carruthers, such as Native Girl, a soft portrait that hangs over the bar, and a large still life of birds’ eggs adorning the kitchen. In the master bedroom is a stylized landscape of trees in various shades of green by Wilkesboro’s Tonya Bottomley. “It’s my son’s favorite painting,” Sheila notes. “It’s kind of like you’re looking out of a window . . . but you’re not.” Practically every piece of art has a story to go with it. Next to one of the kitchen windows is a small landscape with a church as its focal point, a gift from daughter Katy. “From my house in Wilkesboro you could see at a distance, a church on a hill.” Sheila explains. “My daughter decided to get that so I could remember what it looked like.”
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After all, Sheila only lived in the house for four years. Rick, even less. Shortly after moving into it in 2007, “he wanted to do a Christmas party,” Leslie Moore recalls. “I was like, ‘Oh my God! Can’t y’all just wait until next year?’” The Brames had called on the designer to help them with holiday directions. “I do not decorate my clients’ houses at Christmas,” Moore says emphatically. “But guess whose house I’ve decorated twice,” she says, casting a sly grin at Sheila. Her tone grows more serious as she recalls capitulating to Rick’s request. “It was a godsend that he kept pushing and insisted, ‘We have to do this party,’” she remembers. For in March of 2008, Rick received a terminal diagnosis of Stage IV lung cancer, a result of his exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam. “It was really rough,” Sheila concedes. In the four years that she remained in the Wilkes house after Rick’s death in the summer of 2008, her children encouraged her to move. With Katy in High Point, they argued, Sheila could be closer to her grandchildren and to her son, Rick Jr., and his wife, Betsy, who had relocated from New York to Durham. And the Triad, particularly Winston-Salem, offered a wealth of arts that Sheila so loves. Which is how she wound up at Trader’s Row. “Living in Wilkesboro, my husband and I always lived in neighborhoods. Winter 2019
Our homes were just traditional homes and I’d never lived in anyplace industrial,” Sheila says. “Most people see industrial as this,” says Callahan, indicating the exposed pipes and ductwork of a common area of Walter Robbs’ 26,000-square-foot space. The fact is, all of the 18 units in Trader’s Row vary slightly from one another, though Sheila’s is perhaps more contemporary than others, with its open areas. Some of its spaces, such as the den/guestroom, can be cordoned off with pocket doors. Portions of the floors are raised on platforms, requiring one to take a step up to reach the kitchen level, or the master bedroom, or take a step down to approach the living room area, a clever way to “minimize the number of drainpipes that are coming through the floor, into the ceiling of somebody else’s space,” Callahan explains. “Raised little platforms, particularly for kitchens, are kind of a nice little thing, anyway.” If potentially hazardous: “I’ve had a couple of friends take a few trips down,” Sheila notes. And, as Leslie Moore was quick to observe: “The space was devoid of any interior walls.” This feature would affect how she would help Sheila decorate. By stroke of luck, the prospective owners of the Wilkes house wanted to include the new furnishings of the kitchen and family room area with the sale. “It gave Winter 2019
us the opportunity to do the sectional,” Moore notes, which, with the addition of two armchairs and two “martini chairs” by the doorway to the balcony, accommodates several people in the living area, but doesn’t feel too big when Sheila is by herself. “And she wasn’t going to have a kitchen area, kitchen table or anything. So poof! That furniture wasn’t going to come, because the other people wanted it,” Moore continues. Sheila insisted on bringing an armoire, all of her chandeliers (including a crystal one that hangs, rather puckishly, in, of all places, the powder room, which is covered in a bold, graphic wallpaper) and of course, the cherished postmaster’s desk and the dining room table. The two friends also borrowed the color palette from the Wilkes house, using yellows and pops of orange, some in a warm terra cotta tone, the draperies in the den/guestroom, being one example, and one of only a couple of window treatments that Sheila agreed to. But as Moore observes, “there are no trim or moldings on the windows.” They needed a little structure. To avoid blocking light from the living room, she opted for reed shades and loose-weave curtains, which also add a textured look. “I’m real big on textures and how they play off each other,” she says, “woods and metals — when mixed with the right proportions.” Complementing the warm hues, or to balance hot with cool, as Moore says, SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 59
are shades of blue: a blue/gray in the armchair upholstery, a turquoise blue print for the martini chairs and a soft blue — with orange trim around the bottom in the upholstered dining room chairs, from Verellen, in High Point. “We did the new chairs here that I’d always wanted to do in Wilkes,” says Moore. And they are practical, as Sheila notes: “They’re on coasters, so when I entertain, I can move them around. Even on the balcony.” The balcony, is her favorite “room,” where she often hosts friends for a glass of wine on the comfy sofas during warmer weather. She literally has the arts at her feet, listening to the strains of the Summer on Liberty music series (which she enjoyed even more when it was just down the street on Trade and Sixth streets), and the rattle and hum of diners, barflies and gallery hoppers. To the east, she has Innovation, with the bright red “@” symbol hovering over the heart of Innovation Quarter, and the Reynolds Building, illuminated at night in different colors at various times of the year — blue, for Autism Month in April, red and green during the holidays, and so forth. Wrapping around the northeast corner, the rest of the balcony offers a leafy vista extending to the barely visible contours of Wake Forest’s Wait Chapel. On clear days, says Sheila, “I can see Pilot Mountain and the [Sauratown] Mountains. I can watch the weather patterns. That was one of the first things I noticed the first night I was here.” That first night was a bit scary for Sheila, having moved to a new town where she knew no one. “I felt like I had been married most of my life, and I had been in Wilkesboro. It was so much safer to stay there than to move. More comfortable, I was in my own element. Coming here, it was like jumping off a roof: I’ll either crash or land safely. I just wasn’t sure,” she reflects. Though she still kept a foot firmly planted in Wilkes, continuing to serve on its board for Habitat for Humanity and playing bridge with friends there, Sheila began to explore her new environs. She joined Centenary United Methodist Church, and within a year was invited to join its Music & the Arts Ministry committee, becoming its leader the following year. Adhering to the philosophy that arts and the spiritual life are entwined, the ministry hosts a variety of programs for the public, such as music concerts in its vast sanctuary on Fifth Street, or a film series, like the upcoming one in January featuring the films of local playwright and filmmaker Angus MacLachlan. Particularly rewarding for Sheila has been the ministry’s work with another local nonprofit, City With Dwellings, which helps the homeless. “Last year, we started Art for the Homeless Community,” she says, explaining that the church members provide art supplies for the clients seeking help and services from City of Dwellings. The point is to address the homeless citizens’ isolation from the community. “When they get to sit down and have sketchpads or paints or clay, they’re in the moment. It’s been amazing. Just an example for humanity. It’s universal, art and music.” Sheila has further integrated into the city’s arts scene, enjoying the company of Sue Poovey, owner of downtown’s Gallery VI, from whom Sheila has purchased several paintings, including a stunning still life of flowers that lights up her living room, not to mention a few pieces by New York painter Noma Bliss. She likes that she can walk to some of her newfound favorite haunts — the Mast Store, a/perture cinema, Mission Pizza, Jeffrey Adams for a quick bite before some theater at Hanesbrands Theater or the Stevens Center. “I can drink wine and I can walk!” Sheila says impishly, citing the bar at the Katharine in the Kimpton as another favorite place to gather with friends. She has also started volunteering at UNCSchool of the Arts, through another pal, Kathy Hoyt. “She really just
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took me under her wing and introduced me to different people at School of the Arts and invited me to different concerts and performances,” says Sheila. Not to mention organizing a transformative experience: a monthlong trip to India last February. Sheila was taken with the beauty of Kochi, in southern India, where she and her companions stayed on houseboats, accompanied by Hindu, Muslim and Buddhist guides. “We got to really learn about the cultures, and spend time with them,” she remarks. She waxes poetic about the colorful saris Indian women wear, even while working in the fields, the holy city of Varanasi, where on a guided rowboat tour on the Ganges, she witnessed the Hindu funeral rites of scattering the ashes of the dead, believed to be carried to the afterlife on the sacred river. “I felt this oneness when I came back, this universal oneness,” Sheila muses. “They all have the same devotion to their god.” She also felt a connection to Indian art, and purchased several works to add to her collection — a piece of woven silk, a rug with an orange diamond pattern that she bought directly from the fellow in Jaipur who handwove it, a vase of marble inlay that she bought at the Taj Mahal, displayed on a shelf above the bar alongside her grandmother’s crystal goblets. “It was made by the descendants of the original artisans of the Taj Mahal,” she says. “That’s why I bought it,” she explains. Sheila has collected paintings from other far away places — a Harlequin from Haiti, whose “mysterious” expression appealed to her; a seascape from Santorini, Greece, a watercolor from France. And in the foyer, perhaps as a nod to her new hometown, one of Winston-Salem native Stephen White’s distinctive, stylized “ladies” — reminiscent of the one he painted for the commemorative poster for the Stevens Center’s opening in 1983. For Moore, original art enriches the design process. “My background is art history,” she says, “So I am just passionate about original artwork. When I go into a space, I’ll say to someone, ‘Here’s the sofa you need. Here’s these pieces that you need to work with the way you live.’ But for them to bring in their artwork or flavor, accessories that they find in places and stuff? I think that’s really important.” And there was an additional benefit for the designer who has typically worked in High Point and Greensboro. “Coming here was like another country. I love the restaurants,” she adds, mentioning a particular fondness for Mozelle’s. Plus, “it’s easy to get here from High Point.” And a good thing, too, because Sheila is nudging a reluctant Moore to help with a Christmas party for her Arts & Ministry group, as she did last year. With an unseasonal stretch of warm weather, Sheila was able to host her friends on the balcony last December. “I had a big tree out here.” Moore had enlisted Lisa Wheatley of High Point’s REAL Kitchen & Market to cater the affair. “They brought a special drink — a martini drink,” Sheila recalls. It proved so popular that some of the guests got locked in the stairwell. “It was fun,” she laughs. She kept the tree up on the balcony through January, when it snowed. “I had my own woodsy area.” And for the entire year, the universe, just outside her windows. “I’ve got the moon at night and the sun in the morning,” Sheila says. Those heavenly orbs will continue to light her way, as she continues to navigate life’s ripples and currents on her solo journey, until like those souls carried along the holy waters of the Ganges, she crosses the great divide. And there, on the other side Rick Brame will be waiting with a joke . . . and a bouquet of flowers. h Nancy Oakley is the senior editor of Seasons magazine. Winter 2019
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HUNT & GATHER
Bringing Saxy Back Getting fresh in Saxapahaw By Amy and Peter Freeman
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sunny brisk North Carolina afternoon does wonders to get the juices flowing and what better way to get fresh than with a short jaunt to Saxapahaw? A short and scenic drive kicked off our frisky excursion to the reawakened historic cotton mill community in Alamance County overlooking the Haw River. Our first taste of fresh: a welcoming hot pick-me-up at the Cup 22 coffee] shop. The silky concoction was brewed with hand-roasted beans from Joe Van Gogh, a specialty coffee roaster in Hillsborough, and in true hipster fashion, topped off with latte art using Homeland Dairy cream from Julian, just down the road. With a little kick in our step, we set out for short hike along the Haw River Trail and the Saxapahaw Island Park, a newly opened green space that includes a playground boasting a gargantuan wooden sculpted fish slide and river access nearby. This frisky mill town is full of surprises, many of them in the Saxapahaw General Store. Its shelves are filled with local delights — mugs fashioned at HAAND porcelain production studio, T-shirts trumpeting the store’s street cred as “your local five-star Gas Station,” gift baskets brimming with energy bars, soy candles and — ranking 10 on the frisk-o-meter — Videri chocolate bars, and then some. Carnivores — or perhaps we should say, “locavores” — can sink
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their teeth into selections from the village’s Left Bank Butchery, Taking the farm-to-table concept to a new level, the butchery wastes nothing in carving and curing meats, many sourced from Cane Creek Farms. Think mouth-watering free-range, hormone-free pork, beef and poultry. . . along with useful knickknacks (koozies, or rosemary sage soap, anyone?) and great advice. The sexy spot next door, The Eddy Pub, takes community-sourced seriously. A meticulously crafted charcuterie and cheese plate pairs artisanal cheeses and cured meats from the village butchery and local creameries within a moment’s drive. A luscious blueberry shrub, a vinegar-based soft drink, filled us with sufficient vim before our next stop. A rosy sunset over the river drew us to the deck of Haw River Farmhouse Ales where a sample flight
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including the Saxy Machismo (Belgium styled quadrupel), Bodhi Loves Chachi (barrel-aged sour blond), and a Pound of Flesh (oak-aged golden sour) provided a lasting memory of our loving day together. With an air of content, we moseyed hand-in-hand toward our homebound carriage, while other moonstruck folks followed the strains of the siren songs emanating from the Haw River Ballroom, an eclectic three-level music venue housed in the original Dye House. Exchanging knowing smiles, we resisted the temptation to extend our afternoon delight to an evening frolic. And if we hadn’t, we’d keep mum about it, because after all: What happens in Saxapahaw stays in Saxapahaw. h Amy and Peter Freeman include among their pastimes, mindless wandering. Amy, a photographer and Peter, an architect, are perpetually in search of new gigs, fresh digs and fun swigs.
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Handmade Faith In Greensboro, Sam Rouse Furniture makes clients’ dreams come true By Jim Dodson Photograph by John Gessner
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ncient wisdom holds that someone who follows their passion may travel a lonely and challenging road but will find deeper meaning down that road, a tale as old as a guy named Noah. “In my case, that really seems to be the case,” allows Sam Rouse, 26, a custom furniture maker who specializes in crafting handmade, heirloom quality, oneof-a-kind tables and other pieces for home and office. “My career has really been a blessing and a challenge — one I regard as both a mission and a calling to create beautiful things with my hands.” It helps that Rouse, 26, was born into a family of highly accomplished commercial builders that stretches back to his greatgrandfather’s days, a clan of craftsmen that built everything from office buildings to hospitals around eastern North Carolina and their hometown of Goldsboro. As a kid, he loved to make things in his father’s garage woodshop, including his own Pinewood Derby car. “I loved to use my grandfather’s hand tools, which made it all the more special,” he explains one afternoon at his workshop in the rented space of a cavernous warehouse just off I-40 at Greensboro’s South Elm Street. “I never knew where this passion might lead me or what form it might take, but I had faith that it would lead somewhere.” First place it led to was to Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, where Sam met his future wife, Kayla, at an off-campus church gathering during his junior year. Kayla was a nursing student, one year ahead of him, and he was studying business marketing. They dated for a year before getting engaged, and over Christmas break of 2013, Sam went home to make his fiancée a beautiful foyer mirror for her graduation that approaching spring. Kayla found a job working in the neonatal unit at Duke Hospital while Sam finished his degree at Liberty the following year. “Making that mirror, which was designed with small wooden drawers for an entry hall, was really the spark for me. I fell in love with woodworking and making furniture, and began thinking of ways to make it my business.” During his senior year, Sam developed a business plan for what he called a “YMCA for craftsmen and woodworkers” — a fully outfitted workspace where craftsmen like himself could rent space and use professional quality machines and tools to work with metal and wood and grow their businesses. “I thought it was an original idea,” he says with a laugh, “and then I learned about a guy up in Philadelphia who had created exactly what I was thinking about. I went up and actually shadowed him, seeing how he put it all together. That was the good news. The bad news was that I would need about half a million dollars in startup funding, which I didn’t have.” Instead, after he and Kayla were married at Duke Chapel in June of 2014, Sam found a job leasing apartments in Raleigh and started imagining his own one-man furniture shop. “I knew that I needed to
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PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESEY OF SAM ROUSE
have a much deeper understanding and training, so we began looking around at the top woodworking schools.” The one that grabbed his interest was the prestigious International Chippendale School of Furniture, a one-year advanced program, located in the village of Gifford, East Lothian, Scotland. “The way we looked at it,” Sam recalls, “that would give us a chance to live abroad before children came along, the opportunity for me to learn detailed draftsmanship, and for Kayla and me to experience a different culture from our own, a real adventure.” Not long before they shoved off for Scotland, however, the couple discovered that Kayla was pregnant. “That sort of changed the situation for us,” Sam recalls. “We weren’t sure how to make it work financially, but sometimes you just proceed on faith. Through our church connections we found people over there that we’d never met who opened their homes to us. It was an incredible experience. We were able to live rent-free right up to the point of when our daughter, Lillianna, was born. Kayla found a job at a Bible college and we were able to finish our time living in student housing.” Their Scottish year, he says, was a life changer and a career maker. “The country is so beautiful, incredibly soulful — and the families we stayed with through the church couldn’t have been more helpful and generous. We made friendships that we’ll keep for life.” Maybe more important, the skilled artisan training he received at the renowned school — which accepts fewer than 25 students per year — was intensive and thorough, an Old-World full immersion in the timeless art of making beautiful furniture. “The instructors were fantastic and demanding, some of the best woodworkers in the world,” he recalls. And the ratio of students to tutors was four-to-one. “Everything a student learned to make on
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machinery, for instance, was first also made by hand. It was called ‘bench time,’ cutting dovetails and mortise and tenon joints by hand. That gives you a real understanding of what goes into creating something that began as a simple piece of wood.” During three 10-week semesters, each student was required to make a project for the conclusion of each semester. Sam’s first project turned out to be his most ambitious creation — a spectacular wooden cradle for daughter Lillianna, who was born in Scotland in April of 2016. He insulated the cradle with real Scottish sheep’s wool from nearby farms. Next, he built an elaborate veneered game table with curved edges, and gained an unwelcome perspective in the process. “One morning early, I managed to put a quarter-inch drill bit though the end of my finger,” he recalls with a chuckle. “I wound up getting a close look at the British medical system.” The care both he and Kayla received upon the birth of their daughter has stayed with them in a very positive way. His third project prior to graduation from the school was a gorgeous lectern engraved with the words “Speak The Truth In Love” made for the local church that housed them for much of their time in country. “It was tough to say goodbye to the people there. It was a wonderful family experience that ended with a pair of great showcases” — one in the stone barn at the school and another at an exhibit hall in Edinburgh. The couple’s game plan was to return to the States, where Sam would work for a high-end furniture maker for a few years in order to deepen his craft and save money for starting his own firm. “One thing I’ve always known since those days making things in my father’s workshop,” he says, “was that I wanted my own business — one that would let me make unique pieces for customers Winter 2019
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PHOTOGRAPH COURTESEY OF SAM ROUSE
based on their desires. That’s the fun part of being a woodworker — creating something a customer has envisioned and hired you to bring to life.” A job with a large Tampa firm awaited, but when a Raleigh interior designer invited him to make a dozen or more custom pieces for a client’s “milliondollar” house in the Triangle, Sam revised his thinking and decided to start his own custom shop. When another friend called wondering if he could make a showroom display for General Electric in Mebane, he decided this was a confirming sign to go it on his own. “I had no shop or startup money — our savings were basically gone — and oh, we had a 3-month-old baby. That’s what brought us to Greensboro.” He’d heard about a place called The Forge in the rapidly redeveloping downtown section of South Elm Street in Greensboro, an innovative, nonprofit “Makers Space” that provided industrial machinery and tools for budding craftsmen just like Sam. “For $54 a month they provided a space where I could keep my woodworking tools and everything I needed to get started. It’s essentially the woodworking gym I envisioned creating myself when I was back in Scotland.” Through The Forge, he adds, the network of like-minded crafts people proved to be invaluable. Small projects began coming his way — a custom conference table here, a French country-style trestle table there. He got to work just in time to discover that his “million-dollar” client from Raleigh was a mirage. “The guy wasn’t serious — he even strung along the interior decorator. I learned the hard way about getting a signed contract for a project.” The next few months were a test of faith. Kayla found work in a local hospital, and Sam got to work making beautiful display units for General Electric. When a friend invited him to participate in a panel discussion on the future of the North Carolina furniture business prior to the spring High Point Market, he jumped at the chance. That was March of 2017. On the panel was a man named Tom Van Dessel of BuzziSpace, a leading High Point–based manufacturing firm that specializes in high-end workspace and acoustic furniture. Van Dessel invited young Sam Rouse to occupy a display space at the 2017 Spring Market, free of charge. With the help of his sister, Sally Rouse, a Raleigh-based interior designer, Sam put together a boutique showroom featuring a credenza and tables he’d made for friends and early clients, a headboard and baby Lilliana’s Scottish cradle. “I think there were six pieces in all. Sally made the showcase beautiful, and we met lots of great people who have been helpful to us since. That was a godsend in ways.”
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A client from Sedona, Arizona, got in touch to see if Sam could make seven custom hardwood pieces for her living room. “After she described what she wanted, I hand-drew the designs and emailed them to her. She phoned back with her further ideas and I got to work with walnut and ash, creating tables and side tables.” Since then, several firms across the Triad have hired Sam to make their conference tables. And Smith & Edge, a bar across the street from the Grasshoppers ballpark, hired him to create a spectacular 50-foot bar. In addition, he’s been in discussions recently with his friends at BuzziSpace to possibly begin making workspace tables for their clients worldwide. “Their products are so precise and high-end,” he notes. “That’s exactly the kind of work that I love doing.” On the recent afternoon Seasons magazine caught up to him, Sam and a pair of newly hired assistants were busy cutting stays for a commercial furniture manufacturing firm in Virginia. At the rear of their spacious work area were large automated saws that could cut hundreds of stays in a short amount of time, permitting Sam to finish work on several custom conference and work tables soon heading out the door to a customer near the Greensboro airport. “It’s rewarding to have these kinds of big jobs to pay the rent and allow me to hire a couple of skilled workers,” he says as he’s showing his visitor a storeroom with gorgeous rough-cut hardwoods. Alongside them are old pine beams that came out of a restored historic building in downtown Greensboro; Sam believes they were hewn before Andrew Jackson was president and likes to imagine what stunning handmade pieces will come from them. “I envision someday maybe having three or four workers to do the commercial pieces, freeing me up to design and make beautiful high-end furniture for customers by hand.” His new website — Samrousefurniture.com — and growing word of mouth from those who’ve seen his work have begun attracting notice. “If I’ve learned anything in this journey,” he adds, “it’s the importance of keeping the family feeling like my grandfather and father had with his business. I love making people’s dreams come true with my hands and their imaginations.” He also has a baby son named Luke, who along with his toddler daughter Lillianna, occupy his complete attention, while wife Kayla works. “We’re a partnership and a family following in the rich tradition of making furniture by hand in North Carolina. That feels as much a mission as a job to me.” Jim Dodson is the editor of Seasons and its sister publications, O.Henry, PineStraw and Salt. Winter 2019
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LIFE&HOME
HOUSE FOR SALE
The House That Old Joe Built A dream house speaks of Winston-Salem’s illustrious past By Noah Salt
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ack in our happy-go-lucky college days — i.e. just after the invention of the wheel — we took up smoking cigarettes during final exam week. Our smoke of choice was Camel, favored by our broadcast hero Edward R. Murrow, the famous cigarette some attribute to James “Jack” Glenn with developing in 1913. Glenn went on to become the sixth president of the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. Credited with introducing the concept of modern cigarettes packaging to the world, featuring an Egyptian camel dubbed “Old Joe” on the package cover, within a year Reynolds had sold 425 million packs of Camel, eventually lending the nickname Camel City” to the town where Jack Glenn built his dream house in 1926. Designed by the same Luther Lashmit, who architected Graylyn Estate — and constructed from identical hand-laid, locally-quarried stone in a bygone era when craftsmanship took its own sweet time — this spectacular English manor house took almost 10 years to complete before it was finally occupied by the Glenn family in 1935. Though several families have inhabited it since, the immaculate charm remains fully intact, highlighted by extraordinary details like museum-worthy, hand-painted chinoiserie wallpaper, gorgeous upholstered wall coverings by Osborne & Little, and a burlwood library where you half expect to find Noel Coward hard at work, Camel in hand.
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The 1.6-acre property — the house is fitted dramatically over a stream on a hillside — includes an equally gracious carriage house with two apartments, bringing the total heated square footage to 9,184 square feet. Despite its size, the main house flows with a warmth and intimate feel reminiscent of the great estates of Edwardian Britain. It boasts five bedrooms, five baths, three working fireplaces, original leaded windows, original slate roof and copper gutters, along with a private three-floor Krupp elevator. “It’s such an easy house to love and live in,” says current owner Ben Shwab, whose late parents owned the property since 1998. Shwab’s mother, Carolyn, a well-respected interior decorator, performed many of the refined updates throughout. “For someone who appreciates the kind of Old World craftsmanship that went into its creation, this really is a dream house.” Old Joe, we suspect, couldn’t have put it any better. Vital Details: 2617 Club Park Road, Winston-Salem Priced at $1,995,000 Contact Carolyn Strickland for more information Leonard Ryden Burr Real Estate (336) 577-9009 Carolyn.Strickland.LRBrealestate.com h Winter 2019
Winter 2019
SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 77
BUY L It’s
CAL
S E A S O N
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Winter 2019
LIFE&HOME
THE LANGUAGE OF HOME
The Front Door
Connecting the divide between the worlds outside and within By Noah Salt
The main entrance to a dwelling or apartment having more than one entrance: a doorway fronting on or giving direct access to a street or road. — Merriam-Webster
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s anyone who owns one knows, a front door is so much more than a way to enter or exit a dwelling. It’s a statement on hinges, a portal to the life within, keeper of the doorbell and the mail slot, the face of a home. The front door is the primary way many of us enter home sweet home and exit each day to fight the good fight in a wild and wooly world. It can be both metaphorical and metaphysical, a barrier against the cold wind or an entry through which one passes to find deeper meaning and perhaps salvation or sanctuary. In simplest terms, a functional front door appeals to our innate sense of arrival or speaks of inevitable departure. In ancient Egypt, where the first doors are believed to have developed and first appeared on the exterior of buildings, the front door of a tomb was believed to be nothing short of an entry to eternity. During Europe’s Middle Ages, conversely, front doors of churches, public halls and taverns became the backdrops and gathering spots for village news, public declarations, even weddings, auctions and commerce. Building upon this idea, the soaring cathedrals and churches of the early Renaissance in particular turned ornate front doors into an art form, fashioning living canvases for craftsmen while creating working symbols of external power and interior faith. The arched doorway pointed the way to heaven, or so the theory went, while heavy front doors studded with heavy pig-iron hinges and protective hardware were meant to offer comfort to those in search of sanctuary. Notable among such spiritual front doors is Rome’s Holy Door or “Porta Sancta,” that opens only during a Holy Year Jubilee, which occurs every 25 years (the last one was in 2000). Also known as the Door of Pardon, Catholicism’s most mythic front door is animated with detailed scenes of man’s sin and redemption, and bricked up on the inside of the church — opened when the Pope, on the first day of a designated holy year, strikes the wall with a hammer to allow pilgrims to enter the church and receive a special indulgence. For the rest of us, front doors serve the useful purpose of identifying our place of habitation and maybe something about the personality of the home. During the 18th century, for example, the townhouses of Dublin, Ireland’s famous Georgian squares, became known for colorful symbols of Ireland’s emergence from restrictive religious practices and a sign of the country’s growing merchant class, social independence and cultural awareness. As one architectural historian notes, “In order to set themselves apart, the former residents of Georgian Dublin painted their front doors whatever color they fancied, added ornate knockers, elegant fanlights above the door, and wroughtiron boot scrapers, near the entrance.” Variations of this tradition show up all over the world. Blue front doors are commonplace across Greece and rural Scandinavia, regarded as a symbol of the dweller’s hospitality, whereas certain small towns in Spain and Portugal prefer bright yellow front doors to convey a sense of welcome. Of more recent Winter 2019
vintage, a study by Zillow concluded that modern American houses with front doors painted black fetch — if one can believe it — on average $6,000 more than comparable houses with conventionally painted or natural wood doors. The 70-year-old front door on our house, as it happens, is painted a deep earthen brown, probably to cover up the nicks and scars of its relatively long use in a busy family that included the comings and goings of four lively children. Over the past couple of years we’ve discussed the possibility of painting it a deep sage green that reflects our own passion for the Earth and a sense of nature’s renewal. Whatever else may be true, in the meantime while our conversation goes on, it’s a dandy door for displaying a wreath in any season. Over the years, we’ve had everything from traditional fir wreaths with simple red bows to lavish wreaths with magnolia leaves and sprigs of holly. The custom of hanging evergreen wreaths on front doors dates from the early Middle Ages and bears all sorts of highly personal significance — viewed by pagans as a symbol of nature’s seasonal circularity and by Christians as a symbol of eternal life and the suffering of Christ on the cross. In ancient Rome, wreaths were considered symbols of victory and celebration, exchanged as gifts during the winter Saturnalia, hung on front doors to announce the wealth and happiness of the home. The front door traditions we practice today pretty much hail directly from the homemakers of Colonial America, where rustic front doors were decorated with dried fruit, vegetables, wildflowers, evergreen swags or wreaths ornamented with the likes of pomegranates, pine cones and seashells, a tradition that carries over to this day, and just as in generations past, conveys a natural sign of warmth . . . and welcome. h SEASONS • STYLE & DESIGN 79
LIFE&HOME HOMEWORDS
Making Chaos out of Order Is anyone ever really organized? By Nancy Oakley
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t least once a week — OK, make that once a day — I’ll have a conversation with myself that goes something like this: Where’d I put it? I just had it in my hand a minute ago. Did I throw it away? Did I ever have it in hand at all or am I just dreaming? I must be losing my mind? All the while, I’m scurrying from room to room in search of whatever “it” happens to be at the moment — cell phone, keys, sunglasses, dry cleaning slip — wondering why it is that as soon as I establish a place for objects, they seem to disappear. Or accumulate. Like that stack of papers on the dining room table consisting of retirement statements, pleas for money from my college alumni association, explanation of health benefits. You know, the stuff that seems vitally important when you get it in the mail, so you set it aside, if not on the dining room table, then in one of those free canvas tote bags you got as a swag bag at a charity auction or in one of the Amazon boxes that you keep handy, because who knows when you might need to mail a package to somebody? (For the record, there are about three of them in my utility closet.) Not that I’m pathologically messy, such as those poor souls you’d see on Hoarders, but I do live with what my mother would call a “happy mess.” (So does she, for that matter.) And I’ve always envied those smoothly efficient people who have a place for everything. One friend, for example, has a lovely chest of drawers that she uses for storing wrapping paper, bags of all sizes, ribbon tape, scissors and gift cards. I, on the other hand, jam remnants of paper and ribbon into a shopping bag into said utility closet with said Amazon boxes. And inevitably, whenever I need to wrap a gift for any of the guys in my life, all I can find is a roll of pastel pinks and blues left over from a coworker’s baby shower gift. I’ve simply got to get more organized. I comb Houzz or Pinterest or Ikea’s website. For some reason, I get a kick out of looking at all the inventive, design-y ways of storing things: in cute little baskets or crates, or pegboards or floating shelves. I wander the isles of box stores, looking at what are called “home office solutions,” color-coordinated file folders and fabric-covered containers in various shapes and sizes for holding pencils, bills, Post-Its, and dream of a similar setup where all my office accouterments would be arranged neatly in little divided trays. Except that would mean having to get rid of a chipped, ceramic mug with my old high school crest where I keep broken pencils, inkless souvenir pens from places I’ve traveled to, a pair of dull
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scissors and an American flag that someone gave me when I chanced upon a Veteran’s Day parade. And I couldn’t part with the funky wire basket that I picked up in a market in South Africa, now could I? It’s so handy for pesky paper clips, and rubber bands that multiply with every take-out meal from the grocery store. The truth is, if I’m to be more organized, I have no choice but to start by tackling those stacks of paper, and relegating some to the recycling bin and others to my only filing system, a set of bulging notebooks that, now that I look at them, could really use a good dusting. I’ll be ruthless and toss as much as I can, just like I did a few years ago, in advance of a move. I’ll pick a miserable, rainy Sunday afternoon and dump all the papers, including Christmas cards, in a pile and start sorting. I’ve got it all figured out: I’ll separate the business-y stuff — those statements and insurance policies and the like — from the Christmas cards I’ve received. Those are so much fun to reread, by the way: the pretty one with holly and a cardinal from my best friend since third grade, the one with the angel and a trumpet from one sister, the one with the snowman from my other sister, the cute little forest animals gathered around the tree from another set of friends, the photo of my young cousins whose mom distinguished among the “sinners” and “saints” in her brood, the messages of peace on Earth, goodwill toward men — and many more of holiday conviviality. So many of them are keepers — along with the Valentines and birthday cards that have somehow made their way into the mix. I mean, you can’t part with things that make you feel loved, right? And honestly, they don’t take up that much room on a bookshelf; besides, I can always shuffle some books around and start a double row of them on another shelf. As for the business-y stuff, well, I can toss it into one of those fat notebooks for now. And boy, that layer of dust on those is thicker than I realized! Yes, that’s what I’ll do to get organized. As soon as Christmas is over. Maybe on January 1st. Then again, they say how you start the year is how you’ll spend the rest of it, and I do have an invitation to hang out with some friends that afternoon, and I’d like to think that’s how the rest of 2019 will go. For the time being, I might as well stick with my happy mess. And a happy — if somewhat disorganized — New Year. h Nancy Oakley is the senior editor of Seasons and its flagship, O.Henry. Winter 2019
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