Name: Christine and John and Gertie the dog
Professions: Christine is an art teacher and John, also an artist, is studying to be a nurse. They also run an Etsy shop, Poison Iceberg
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Size: 960 square feet, owned
Years lived in: 2 1/2; owned
While flipping through this year's Small, Cool contest entries, I came across Christine's Perfect Location. Intrigued by the thoughtful color palette and playful artwork, I knew this calm and cheerful home deserved more than just a quick overview.
Luckily, Christine and John were gracious enough to open up their home for all of us to have a closer look. The couple has worked tirelessly to rehab the 1950's ranch from near destruction, turning it into the lively home it is today.
Most impressive is Christine and John's use of space. The home is balanced by rooms that serve double (or even triple!) duty with ones that are spacious and airy, staying true to a single role. The bedroom is spare, which drives home the purpose of the room; to be a relaxing, calm space for resting. This is in contrast to the dining room, which is not only a place to enjoy fantastic dinners, it is also an inviting den. I can easily picture spending a fun evening of cooking, eating and watching a movie, all within this cozy and highly organized space. The office/guest room/art studio also serves many purposes, maximizing every square inch of space, cultivating an atmosphere of activity and spirit. The equilibrium of Christine and John's home illustrates the quiet strength of a life well-lived.
Apartment Therapy Survey:
Our Style: Mid-century meets breezy meets weird. We like the design and size of mid-century furnishings. However, we don't want to have our house era-perfect. We like things to feel easy and fun. We balance our "serious" pieces with fun colors and lots of art.
Inspiration: 50's homes, the color wheel, wind and water, John's paintings.
Favorite Element: We love that our home feels homey. While we want our house to have good design, but we also want it to feel like a place you can relax and be comfortable. I believe we have achieved this objective in our design choices.
Biggest Challenge: The way our house is laid out proves difficult in decorating. The heating vents and cold air returns are in the most inconvenient places. Also, it was challenging to lay out our rooms and still maintain an open feeling and delineated areas for walking from room to room.
What Friends Say: Our friends think our house is "airy" and clean (which is always amazing to me). We hear that it is very comfortable and homey and no one comes to our house without commenting on the art!
Biggest Embarrassment: The bathroom. The walls are covered with a vinyl-clad masonite. It is just not in our budget to redo the bathroom right now, so we just put up with it.
Proudest DIY: The kitchen. We removed cupboards, hung shelves, replaced the counter-top and changed the cabinet fronts. We did it all ourselves and on the cheap! We are very proud of it because it was a dingy, filthy, scary room when we moved in and now it is bright, open and cheerful!
Biggest Indulgence: The Danish Modern china cabinet/display case. We bought it right after we bought the house because I thought having a china cabinet was a very grown-up thing to have in my first house.
Best Advice: Put things in your house that you love and you love to look at and you'll always be happy there. While it is fine to collect furniture from specific designers or only to buy things from a certain era, I like to keep my options open. Keep your eyes and your mind open at flea markets and consignment shops and you might be surprised at what speaks to you.
Dream Sources: Pee-Wee's playhouse if it was featured in Atomic Ranch. Keep it weird while keeping it simple and uncluttered.
Resources of Note:
Living Room
- • Paint: Benjamin Moore Icing on the Cake (we had it mixed half-strength, so it is 50% less vivid)
• Couch: Corona Sofa from Macy's
• Rug: Crate and Barrel
• China Cabinet, side tables, Jen's Risom table: Treasure Mart (furniture consignment), Ann Arbor
• Coffee table and side chair: Craig's list
• Arm Chair: ebay
• Cushions on Arm chair: Custom Cushions for cheap at Cushions Xpress
• Loveseat: Hand-me down from John's cousin Amanda (it is part of a sectional that we will reupholster as soon as we can afford it)
• Entry Table: Stockholm table from Ikea
• Curtains: Ikea
• Vases: CB2, Crate and Barrel
• Art: Paintings by John, stencil of John by our friend, Erin, wooden angel from Mexico, wooden face in bookshelf by local artist Tim Pewe.
Dining Room/Den
- • Paint: Benjamin Moore Yellow Haze and White Vanilla
• Couch: Cost Plus World Market
• Rug: Crate and Barrel
• Table: St. Vincent De Paul
• Chairs: Craigslist
• Side Table: St. Vincent DePaul
• Pillows: Ikea
• TV Cupboard: Treasure Mart
• Cement Gnome: Architectural Artifacts, Chicago
• Tiny Masks from the Peaceable Kingdom in Ann Arbor
• Art: Most paintings by John, Grandpa print by me, Heads painting from St. Vincent DePaul, Ice cream prints by Yee-Haw Industries, Squirrel by Ryan Berkley, Poppies print by Jill Bliss
Kitchen
- • Paint: Benjamin Moore Horizon
• Cupboard doors: Naked Kitchen Cabinet Doors
• Free standing counter/cupboard: Udden, Ikea
• Island/shelf: Ikea
• Art: Paintings of Gertie, bread and grapefruit by me, ceramic cat plaque by a 5 year-old John, Hello, Also I Love You, by the big harrumph, bird tray from Ikea
• Lots of colorful Pyrex: the Treasure Mart and various antiques stores
Bedroom
- • Paint: Benjamin Moore Gray Owl
• Bed: Hand me down from John's grandpa
• Quilt: Target
• John's dresser: Malm, Ikea
• My dresser: Antique from John's mom
• John's bedside table: Treasure Mart
• Black Chair: Eames shell chair from my sister, Carrie (!)
• Art: Paintings by John, wooden angel from Mexico
Office/Guest Room
- • Paint: Benjamin Moore Horizon
• Book shelves: Ikea
• Pillows: Ikea and CB2
• Mirrors: Target
• Chairs and Magnet Board: Ikea
• Beatles Poster: John's dad
• Skulls from Mexico via the Peaceable Kingdom in Ann Arbor
• Vintage fan and globe
• Masks in computer closet from Mexico
• Art: Our wedding painting by John, prints by me, Alf kissing guy by Johnny Ryan
Thanks, Christine and John!
Images: Smith Schwartz
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I love this house! Also, I have the same print that is in the kitchen in my hall way, which is cool.
so fun and inviting.
you can tell there's lots of love and laughter in your home.
A2 represent!!!! What a fun place, it's a nice mix of modern and retro and I really like the pops of color with the art and accessories. Unbelievably jealous of your furniture finds. Really cool place! The color of your front door makes me curious to see an outside pic.
Love the representation of A2, and that china cabinet is a great piece. I work work in Ann Arbor and am also an etsian!
I think I need to know where those cat curtains in the kitchen came from! They're awesome.
love the cat curtains too, and the smiling loaf of bread print.
love it! the pictures on the wall are something to look at! lol bizarre but funny
Yay, Michigan! Great house! Some amazing furniture, and I love the touches of aqua everywhere.
Aww, now I miss Treasure Mart... I miss A2.
Nice house. Not exactly my style, but it has really nice personality!
Adorable!
Love your house! We also renovated a 1950's rancher and ran into about every problem imaginable. I just laughed because I saw those three little white ceramic ikea bud vases on your china cabinet - I also have them - and I've seen them in countless house tours! They are so cute :)
Brings back memories. I bet some of your Danish modern pieces originated at my parents' store way back when; they operated a group of Scandinavian furniture stores in Michigan for over 40 years.
I miss Ann Arbor! But it is great to see some classic A2 on apartment therapy. You have a lovely and unique home.
Also, ditto everythingistaken - I miss Treasure Mart!!!
That first pic just lures you in, don't it?! Love a home that has a playful feel.
Yeah!!! Treasure Mart! I immediately went to see what items would be from that wonderful place.
Very colorful and playful... love it :)
Another Ann Arborite voicing her approval. :)
love the cat curtains and bread loaf painting too! what a cheery home!
What a delightful home. I love the art. So fun. So crazy and happy.
I love the red lamps and the art!
love the kitchen!
I love all those blasts of orange!
Love the kitchen, you did a great job!
Ooh, where're the orange cat curtains in the kitchen from? And the kitchen is very nice, indeed.
Love it!! Looks a real cozy, livable home. Great job!
adore the cat curtains.
and unless it's stanky, why recover the loveseat/sectional piece in the living room? It looks great with your color scheme there.
Hi, all.
Thanks for the nice comments. The cat curtains were from my friend, Jo. Her friend has a shop- I'll get the link for you. They are actually towels that I clipped to rings.
The loaf of bread was painted by me, and I will be selling original food guys and prints at our etsy shop later this month.
The loveseat/sectional is destroyed! The cushions are disintegrating- they leave yellow dust all over. It is so dusty I can't sit on it. My dog loves it- it is her couch. I love the look of it (colors and all), so it is in the living room, but someday it must be reupholstered!
To the poster that wants to see the outside, I it is gray and white and aqua outside, too. I'll see if I can link a photo.
Thanks again- it is so fun to read the comments!
I'm so happy to see so many Michigan people on Apartment Therapy! Yay, Michigan!
Christine, I love everything about your home. The colors, the artwork and accessories are just perfect and it looks so clean, happy and homey. Definitely don't forget to put a link to you and your friend's shops. I am in love with the kitty-cat curtains too! Nice job!
Your kitchen is adorable! Love the white with pops of colors.
I love this home. You certainly got my "thumbs up" for the Small is Cool contest. Love the artwork - esp. ALF's intimate moment. The colours, the simplicity, all of it. Wonderful space.
Love, love, love! So colorful and fun!
The hubs and I are about to buy a house and we have similar furnishings and colors already. I was thinking a light aqua/tiffany blueish color for some rooms and this home definitely gave me some inspiration! Great tour!
Makes me happy. Great colors and kitchen. You did make 960 sqft look very 'breezy'.
How in the world do they afford such a lovely house in Ann Arbor as an artist and art teacher? Color me super envious!
What a wonderful home you have! Please tell me more about these cupboard doors! Were they easy to install? We are moving into a rental home next week with the most hideous cupboards. This looks like a viable option. How did you paint them?
I like the paint colors :)