Chesapeake Home

He was asked by a Cockeysville couple to team up with Lutherville, Maryland-based designer Deborah Gavin, of Deborah Gavin Interiors. Gavin, who had also worked with these homeowners on another space, was involved with the new home since its inception, but by the drywall stage, it was apparent the combination of the size of the home and the homeowners’ timetable for completion required additional manpower.

Initially, Fava was to design the first floor of the 14,000 square foot home and Gavin was to take the second. But it didn’t take long before the two partnered up on virtually every decision. “We joined forces and worked on the entire space together,” says Fava. Gavin, too, relished the experience of being paired with another designer. “This was truly a collaborative effort,” she recalls. “I believe that everyone’s thought is valid and it’s always nice to have someone else to offer another idea or a different twist on something you hadn’t thought of. It’s also nice to have someone there to confirm your ideas as well.”

One of the major goals of this project was to create the warmth of an older home with a comfortable feel, rather than the sprawling, palatial look so often ubiquitous in today’s architecture. “We needed the home to be big to accommodate our family,” says the homeowner, “but I didn’t want it to look big from the outside.” So in lieu of a long, expansive front façade, the depth of the home was extended to accommodate the needed square footage. The size of the house is disguised with porches and dormers, which not only creates a beautiful exterior but also makes for interesting interior spaces. Instead of big, open spaces, the architectural design incorporates compartmentalized rooms with lots of charming nooks and crannies, like the cozy window seat in the foyer upholstered in a gold-striped velvet.

But it is the interior design and finishes selected by Fava and Gavin that truly reflect the familiarity of a comfortable space. In the foyer, for example, the pair hired artists from Baltimore-based Twin Diamond Studios to hand-stencil a butter cream damask pattern on the walls, and then finish the large-scale motif with a coat of iridescent pearl paint. “This gives it a mottled, aged feel,” says Fava. “It looks timeless, lived in.” Throughout the home, detailed moldings and trim work and wide-plank cherry floors soften the feel of new construction.

The homeowner, too, participated in accessorizing the home, giving it that inviting, casual feel she hoped for. Familiar objects like a wooden high chair and toy fire truck, given to her children by their grandparents when they were little, now serve as accent pieces around the fireplaces in the basement and library. At architectural salvage dealer Second Chance in Baltimore, she found antique shutters that were fitted and faux painted for the powder room adjacent to the library and an old skeeball game for her kids that’s now in the basement. “I didn’t want everything to be new,” she says. Even much of the framed artwork is stuff her four kids have created throughout the years. “They are all things that are meaningful to our family,” she says.

Indeed, it is her four children, ranging in age from 15 to 22, and her husband who influenced much of the design. In fact, it was family that prompted the move in the first place. “The goal was to have more space for the family,” says Gavin. “And for other family members and friends who came to visit.” The homeowner agrees. “I wanted a home that was elegant yet casual,” she says, “one where anybody could go into any room and put their feet up and feel comfortable.”

She also wanted a quiet place for her husband when he works at home. “He works really hard and doesn’t ask for much, so I really wanted to make it special,” confides the homeowner. The result is a masculine, English-inspired library with burled walnut woodwork on the walls—crafted by Baltimore-based carpenter Kevin Gunning, who also fashioned the bubinga wood bar in the basement—along with a plasma television and plenty of cabinets for organization.

MIX AND MATCH
Certainly the most formal space in the home, the dining room melds traditional wood pieces with whimsical fabric combinations. The designers chose an elegant walnut table with an inlay border from Ebanista and then surrounded it with three different styles of chairs, including armed host and hostess chairs complemented by armless upholstered versions alternating a cranberry floral pattern and a solid hue with decorative trim. “This room is very large, so if you have 12 chairs that are all the same, it would be very repetitious,” explains Fava. “We broke it up with styles and fabrics to make it interesting.” The lighting, too, was selected based on the grandness of the space. Because the table is 12 feet long, the designers opted for two iron and crystal chandeliers from Currey & Company.

Unexpected combinations fill the kitchen as well. “We wanted an eclectic mix for this family area,” says Gavin. So the design team, along with kitchen designers from Keener Kitchen in Red Lion, Pennsylvania, incorporated a variety of surfaces and finishes into the space. The focal point of the room is the black island, chosen for its furniture-like appearance and contrast to the antiqued-white cabinetry. And although many of the countertops in the kitchen are granite, the island is topped with a high-gloss-finished cherry wood. “I think it’s warmer to use different materials,” says Gavin. “It makes it less sterile.”

The design team also relied on its color palette to infuse warmth throughout the home and the pair readily thanks the homeowner for her initial hue selection. “As you work with a client, you begin to see a recurring theme,” says Gavin, “and that is really what helps guide you.” Fortunately for the designers, the homeowner’s “theme” veered in the direction of warm berry colors. “So we have a ribbon of cranberry woven throughout each room,” says Gavin. From the painting by local artist Alice Pritchard in the breakfast room and upholstered ottoman in the loft to the bookshelves in the basement and the traditional chairs in the living room, cranberry is the color of choice, but it is often balanced with accents of sage, gold, and navy.

The master bedroom's crisp palette is comprised of ivories and whites, with just a splash of green and periwinkle embroidered on the silk headboard.

Fava recalls that even though the homeowner was very specific about certain elements of the design, she was also amenable to suggestions. He says that many of his Baltimore clients enjoy working with him because they like the “different aesthetic” he brings to the table, especially with his access to different showrooms in south Florida. And this homeowner was no different. “She was always very open to exploring different furniture and fabric lines,” he says.

The homeowner was even flexible about the scheme in her master bedroom. “Initially I wanted bold colors, but [the design team] talked me out of it,” she laughs. “They’re the experts.” Instead, the room’s crisp palette is comprised of ivories and whites, with just a splash of green and periwinkle embroidered on the silk headboard. “I believe a bedroom should be relaxing and peaceful,” says Fava, “almost spa-like.”

Creative differences aside, the family could not be more pleased with the result. The homeowner says she even looks forward to returning home from summers at the beach. “They totally nailed it,” she says, referring to the entire team’s contribution, from the architect to the designers to the artists and craftsmen. “It is just so cozy, I can sit down anywhere in the house and completely relax.”

But satisfied clients are not this project’s only outcome, as the serendipitous pairing of the design team was a coup as well. “It could’ve been awkward,” admits Fava, “but it turned out to be amazing. We didn’t even know each other before this project, but we got along very well. Now, not only do we have a professional relationship but we have a friendship as well.”

Kelli Rosen is a freelance writer who frequently covers architecture, interior design, and home improvement for ChesapeakeHome.

Contacts:
Deborah Gavin Interiors: 410-375-9581
Fava Design Group: favadesigngroup.com or 954-568-3732
Keener Kitchen: keenerkitchen.com or 717-244-4544
Kevin Gunning: 410-377-2638
Twin Diamond Studios: twindiamonds.com or 410-692-5104