A Home Is A Vision Of A Family’s Future

Call it an editor’s guilty pleasure. Reviewing designs for the Home & Garden Issue of Morris/Essex Health & Life each year gives me a sneak peek into the destinies of the homes we feature. These projects mark the melding of a designer’s talents with a family’s dreams. And home design is ultimately about more than floor plans, materials, color palettes and imaginatively sourced pieces; it’s about the good times that will be enjoyed in these spaces. It’s a bold bet on future happiness, and I get to experience it vicariously—and share it with you, our readers.

For example, I get to enjoy along with the owners of a late-1960s Chatham colonial the recent transformation of their home to meet their three key requirements: that it be kid-friendly, work-from-home-friendly and, of course, friendly to the aesthetic eye. On page 30, you’ll see how triumphantly designer Megan Pisano met this trifecta of challenges. Ceiling lights, a generous desk space and charming French doors for an optional work time barrier help the 9-to-5 day mean business in this home, while pops of color and an ottoman that doubles as a coffee table contribute to fun family time with the couple’s toddler.

Then there’s entertaining—imagine being a proverbial fly on the wall at tomorrow’s possible parties (and here come some more “P” words) on a perfect Pompton Plains patio with an uplit pergola (page 36), where a firepit permits the outdoor socializing to go year-round.

What else rounds out this issue? In Buzz (page 10) you’ll read about where you can celebrate Earth Day, where to be good to the Earth by recycling used electronic products and hazardous waste, and where to go to make Mom happy on Mother’s Day if she’s one of five distinct Mom types. And suppose you’re a connoisseur of Japanese cuisine but your spouse is all about eating Italian. The brilliant chef whose offerings you both can happily settle on, Robbie Felice, is quizzed on page 13, where you’ll read about his passion for Wafu, what’s tattooed on his ankles and why it’s so darned hard to get a reservation at his restaurant.

Whether your home is your project this spring or you’ve vowed to explore the Morris and Essex county attractions you’re always too busy to check out, there’s bound to be something in this issue of Morris/ Essex Health & Life for you. It’s our pleasure (not a guilty one this time) to present pages we hope will entertain you—and offer an idea or two for your own future.

Rita Guarna Editor in Chief editor@wainscotmedia.com

HEALTH & LIFE Editor in Chief RITA GUARNA

Creative Director

STEPHEN M. VITARBO

Senior Associate Editor

DARIUS AMOS

Lifestyle Editor

HALEY LONGMAN

Contributing Editors

RICHARD LALIBERTE PAUL RANCE JR.

Contributing Photographer KEVIN MCGRATH PHOTOGRAPHY

PRODUCTION

Production Manager FERN MESHULAM

Production Artist CHRIS FERRANTE

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