Room By Room
With daily life here at Bella Terra, I tend to just take some things for granted. After having house guests the last few days, it is fun to see our home through other peoples’ eyes. Since we are immersed in our homes daily, we tend to overlook the details. I thought I would start a new series, Room by Room, where I can share each room of my home in detail with you.
Someone once told me that the photos of our house don’t do it justice. I agree. It is difficult to capture the essence of a room in a one dimensional picture. But I hope to do a better job of explaining why each room in our home is special to us.
I would like to start with our living room, because this past weekend we experienced a flood. One of our guests was showering in the room above the living room. While I was heading to the front door to welcome more guests, I heard what sounded like rain…..inside the house. Loud, torrential rain. Yep~the water was pouring down from the living room ceiling onto my linen sofa, end tables with my cherished books and the Oriental rug. A lot of water.
Here is how the living room currently looks. With towels and fans, the rug is finally dry. The sofa is stained and the plumber will arrive on Wednesday. My fear is the leak is from a broken pipe in the ceiling (or under the bathroom floor).
In spite of the current state of disarray, here is what I love about this 15′ x 28′ room. The photos in this post are collected over time.
The Light
Facing east, this room gets the morning sun. Gently bathed in sunlight, the shadows are long and soft. Each morning when I walk down the stairs, I pause to peek into the living room, grateful for another day.
The Coffered Ceiling
Original to the house, the ceiling is coffered. A coffer in architecture is a series of sunken panels in the shape of a square, rectangle, or octagon in a ceiling, soffit or vault. With our 9 feet tall ceilings there are 9 coffers.
The Fireplace
Due to its grandeur, the fireplace is the focal point of the room. Spanning nearly 10 feet long, the mantel is nice and deep (17″) which is perfect for decorating for the holidays. To see more about this beautiful mantel, click here.
When we first bought the house, the tiles around the fireplace were painted black. After stripping them, we discovered they are Batchelder tiles, which are highly desirable tiles from the early 1900s Arts and Crafts movement.
On either side of the fireplace opening are two brass hooks known as jamb hooks. Originally I thought the hooks were to secure a screen, but after some research, they are just a place to hang your fireplace tools.
The Windows and Doors
Eight panes over one make up the double-hung windows located in the south-east corner of the room. French doors to the library and family room are in the photo above. What results is a room with air flow, light and a terrific traffic pattern.
Multi-Uses
The living room’s function is divided into four areas: Main gathering, music (piano), board games and desk. The game table also makes a lovely setting for a romantic dinner. In the opposite corner, sits a black baby Grand Yamaha piano.
The inlaid Hepplewhite secretary is from Philadelphia between 1790 and 1800. The doors have 13 glass panels for the original 13 colonies.
Between the game table and the secretary sits my husband’s grandfather’s clock, from his days working at Talley Industries (who owned General Time Corporation at the time). The gentle ticking with the swinging pendulum and the Westminster chimes are soothing sounds.
The Paintings
When the children were approximately 2 1/2 to 3 years old, we commissioned Virginia Cook, a local artist, to paint them. She is such a talented person and truly captured their nature…and their favorite things.
The three paintings hang over the fireplace and are cherished items.
The Flooring
This room has the original Canadian beechwood floors. Solid wood, 3/4″ thick with planks spanning nearly 12 feet~such materials and workmanship just doesn’t exist today. But these floors have lasted for the last 110 years and will continue to do so. They are so well built that we have no floor squeaks.
Many happy holiday memories are in the walls of this room. Choosing soft blues and cream adds to its serenity.
I hope you enjoy Room by Room. Please let me know if you do and I’ll share another room soon. And also keep your fingers crossed that my plumbing problem is a minor one!
Happy Tuesday!
This post shared with Between Naps on the Porch Metamorphosis Monday #646
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I am loving this series, and will enjoy the detailed tour of your home, having been so fortunate to visit in person. How has the sofa faired? Will it have to be reupholstered?
OH THE PERSON IN THE SHOWER MUST HAVE FELT TERRIBLE!
I HOPE ALL THE GUESTS JUMPED INTO ACTION!
Yes, it was a massive effort to turn the water off and wipe up the mess. All while visitors were at my front door! We will get a new tile floor out of this…which I suppose is a good thing.
What a fun series! I’m excited. I don’t know why but I’m not getting your emails any more. I stopped by to see what you’ve been up to when I read about the flood. That’s terrible! Your living room is so lovely. I love the wing chairs and the coffered ceilings. I didn’t even realize you had a table in there. That’s nice to have for romantic evenings, no need for that in my house.
Andrea, Sometimes Mailchimp drops subscribers from my list. Not sure why. I’ll check!Thanks for liking the Room by Room series…Hopefully I’ll be better at taking interior photos.
Your home is so beautiful and shows off your talents well…I look forward to more tours.
Always enjoy all your posts.
Hope the plumber gets everything taken care of soon.
Blessings,
Va in NC
Va, thank you for your comment. Plumbing leak is fixed and now I have to figure out how to fix the floor. It’s always something.
Mary,
Your living room is absolutely stunning! I love it. The details are amazing.
Blessings to you.
So lovely, The warmth you have given the room shines thru.
Yes more rooms with your interesting explanation of items.
Hope plumbing problem can be easily fixed..
Mary Eileen, Thank you. The plumber comes tomorrow. I’m holding my breath!
You are truly blessed to have found such a beautiful house. You have given it much love and it shows Hope your water problems are easily solved. Looking forward to more room tours.
Claudia, you are so right. I feel like we are caretakers of this place vs. owners. It is such a gem and unfortunately the developers are plowing historical homes under to get the large parcels of land. Our City has little to no regulation on historic homes. It’s really a shame. But we will keep this one for as long as we can…
Thanks for sharing all of the information about your room Mary. It was amazing to get the personal tour from you and see it in person.
Chas, Yes, I am so happy I was able to share it with you and the girls last fall. We would love to host everyone again.
UGH!! A FLOOD….just a total bummer!!!! We’ve had it, too, bathroom above foyer…what a mess…GOOD WISHES!! franki
Franki, oh, no! I’m sorry you have had plumbing problems too. I am almost sure ours is a pipe under the floor (or over the ceiling) which will require some demolition…Trying to think positively as the plumber is coming tomorrow.
Your descriptions are interesting–size, the type of wood floors, coffered ceilings, and the essence of how it feels (morning sun). There seems nothing today like the old living rooms. This one works, which is what allow memories to happen. Thank you for sharing your rooms with us. So lovely.
Jane, it was informative for me to write this post, because I had never really thought about why I love this room so much. I get so busy that I don’t take enough time to STOP and really think/look at the details. Glad to hear you enjoyed it as well.
What a beautiful, elegant home you have and at the same time, it exuberants such warmth. Feel blessed to have the opportunity to take the “tour” and look forward to more “room-by-room” viewings. Hopefully, the leak will be taking care of the problem and the damage done can be repaired. Thank you.
Muriel, thank you for your kind comments. Yes, I agree that the rooms have a warmth. Maybe it’s all the memories that have been absorbed into the walls and floor. I just don’t get that sense when I walk into a new house. The plumber comes tomorrow. Keeping my fingers crossed that it’s something minor…
Yes, Love it. Such a beautiful room with wonderful character and family warmth.
Corinne, thank you so much for your sweet comment!
LOVE Room to Room! Genius idea. And fingers crossed for your plumbing issues! It’s always something with these old diva houses.
Barbara, it is always something with these old houses. You can appreciate that as you live in such a gem! Plumber comes tomorrow. I will need to keep my fingers and toes crossed…
Mary, your living room is so pretty. I’ve learned new things! I love that room and feel honored to be allowed to enter it as your friend. Congratulations on a great blog! Janie
Janie, thank you so much for your sweet comment. Yes, I look forward to the days where we can get our drinks group together again!
Would love to see your home. I hope your books weren’t ruined. Please let us know how things are going with the leak.
Marilyn, the books are the big ones from Carolyn Roehm….hoping the pages don’t stick together. Plumber comes tomorrow. I’m hoping we don’t have to take down a portion of the ceiling or the floor from the room above. Will keep you posted.
I love your home & hearing about it’s historical details. Your blog is wonderful Castle Hot Springs is on my list of places to go!! Hope your plumbing problem isn’t too costly to fix
Carol
Carol, thank you for your comment! Castle Hot Springs is a bit pricey but all food is included as well as your room and activities like yoga, meditation, etc. I’d love to make it an annual trip as it was very relaxing and physically beautiful.
Have never been on a house tour before. Maybe after this tour and we get Pat out of the hospital we will have to bring some lunch and come for a visit?
Sorry to hear about the leak.
K&P
Ken, well then you need a tour. Hope Pat does well in the hospital. I think our houseguests leave on Sunday or Monday. Wednesday I fly to Florida so maybe when I get back we can get together.
Thank you for sharing your exquisite home. I enjoy your writings, photos and experiences. I look forward to following your room to room postings. Smiles to you! Nannette
Nannette, thank you for your lovely comments!