It's a Colorful Life (continued)
The original mantels, moldings and windows
were preserved.Untouched since the 1930s, the home was purchased and redone in 2003 by a local contractor, who took care to preserve its original architectural details. Berk and Omedes adored the elegant period moldings, fireplace mantels, bookcases, and eight-panel doors, plus the ample space for entertaining offered by the living room and eat-in kitchen. The library could be a great satellite office for their business; the bedrooms were ideal for visits from their children, grandchildren, friends, and extended family. So the duo bought the house in 2004, but a decor update was needed. "We admired the architecture but didn't want the place to feel too traditional," says Berk. "It needed a sense of fun, and to read a little more modern."
Enter their friend Jamie Drake, a well-known New York designer "who had just completed a beautiful, large loft for us in Manhattan," says Berk. "But we were on a very tight budget for this house, we had to do it quickly, and it needed to be family-friendly." Drake injected the house with color, creating a fresh, easygoing spirit that welcomes all generations. "I wanted to honor the home's simplicity and good bones while not forgetting it's meant to be lived in today," says Drake. A vintage 1950s fabric with a bold Pucci-like print that he found in California was the starting point. From a couple of vibrant pillows he made from this material, he teased out the whole color palette: bright, limeade-hued walls and bold turquoise accents for the living room, mellowing to a more soothing robin's-egg blue in the master bedroom, with accents of safety orange in the kitchen. He ebonized the reddish fir floors for a darker, more sophisticated backdrop, which also helps blend old surfaces with the newer ones that were added in 2003.
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