Christmas at The Fells 2024

When I approached the wood-paneled room, I started with the most important question: How would a real family use this space today? If this were my home, how would it function for daily life while still honoring its historic charm?

The color palette emerged from this thinking—warm tones that embrace the rich wood while creating that cozy holiday feeling we all crave during the season. But I wanted a statement piece that would anchor the entire design, so I commissioned a custom rug specifically for this space. Something bold and modern that would catch your eye and say, Yes, historic homes can feel current and alive.

Everything else grew from there. The leather sofa nods to the room's heritage as a traditional gentleman's retreat, while the soft, inviting chairs bring in a more contemporary sensibility. It's that beautiful tension between masculine and feminine, historic and modern, formal and livable—the kind of layered design that reflects how families actually gather today.

This room tells multiple stories at once: honoring the past while embracing how we live today.