[morning everyone! aaron and i are on our "mini-moon" in charleston today so i'm going to posting katie runnels' guest blog posts over here today. they're also on the guest blog, but i thought you guys might enjoy the interiors over here, too. so, welcome katie!]
I consider Amy, my fellow co-creator and current director of ShopSCAD to be my oldest and dearest friend. We met when she was living in my hometown of Fayetteville, Arkansas and worked at Hi Lines-Pam Pemberton’s (coming up on my list of mentors!) former boutique. I consider my lucky break to have been the handful of Satudays spent shadowing Amy as I learned the ins-and-outs of retail and the magic of display. That was approximately 15 years ago! After Hi-Lines, I worked for Amy as she managed a similar boutique. There she encouraged my art career by commissioning my drawings for advertisements and then selling my work in the shop. We parted ways when I went off to graduate school in Savannah and she left to work in San Francisco, but happily we reunited two years later to create shopSCAD in Savannah…the rest, as they say…is history.
You may remember Amy’s fantastic dining room from a post Grace spotted a few months back. Here are some better quality photos for you to actually see! Amy reinvigorated the vintage mirror and generic gold chandelier with white paint. That goes for the table, and the cabinet you can see peeking out the mirror…and those chairs…and that cabinet in the living room…you get the idea. Whenever I hastily decide to sell a piece at a yard sale or give it to Amy, without fail I go to her house, see it in its glorious new light and wonder why I ever gave it away. (I suppose this is why she’s such a super entrepreneur!)
The living room is grounded on one side by brick built-in shelves and fireplace where Amy displays her collection of vintage milk glass. A collection that started and finished the same day as she and husband, Randy collected them from his grandparent’s long abandoned homestead in Oklahoma. The two inherited many vintage treasures that day, pieces that no other family members had deemed worthwhile.
Windows enclosing three of the four walls make the living room a favorite on a sunny day. The room is spacious and child friendly to the daily play operations of Amy’s adorable three year old son. The crewelwork upholstered couch was purchased from a Salvation Army in Boca Raton, Fl for $99. One of Amy’s favorite found objects is the vintage chalkware St. Theresa statue (found at an estate sale) that she feels keeps protective watch over her young family.
Amy’s spin on a classic sunny kitchen is painted in a split-pea green; a shade of paint that she and I have painted in every apartment, home, studio or business we’ve come in contact with over the past 15 years! An oversized rag rug from Pier One in friendly green stripes make this kitchen super cozy. The yarn wreath over the sink area is one of mine! Have I mentioned that Amy is the most prolific collector of my artwork? She even holds on to the wacky pieces I made in college, what she refers to as “vintage katie”.
(Photo: amyKitchen1)
The opposite side of the kitchen houses a great Hoosier cabinet (a gift from her parents-Hoosier residents!) which is roomy enough to accommodate bowls, canisters, snacks and the large salt-and-pepper collection bequeathed to Amy by her grandmother. Encaustic “Sour” painting by Woodie Webber.
The vintage cake plate reads, “If I knew you were coming, I’d have baked a cake!”
Amy’s bedroom is my favorite spot in the house; a sanctuary of birds, butterflies, and leaves abound in the matching bedclothes and curtains from Pottery Barn. A collection of found furniture-again, resurrected in white- anchor more treasures of family heirlooms and the artwork of friends. Both mixed media shadow boxes assembled by yours truly.
Charlie’s Nursery is ready and waiting for his arrival that could occur at any minute now! The classic Jenny Lind crib was a gift from Amy’s much-admired boss, Kari Herrin. Amy added the modern Dwell for Target baby bedding that complements the guest bedding and brown and white rocker from Baby’s-R-Us. The rug is by Flor, the painting over the crib is by Tim Wirth, and homespun yarn mobile by me.
This bright and sunny room was one of the main reasons Amy wanted to purchase this house. Painted his favorite color, young Billy Zurcher is always eager to show off his fun orange room with guests. He is delighted by his vintage Mickey Mouse sheet set purchased from Ebay. Amy painted the vintage lockers in a red inspired by the Flor tiles and then hand-numbered each cubbie for Billy to practice his numbers. The large vinyl giraffe is from Romp.
I asked Amy what was important to her to have in her home environment…
“It is important to me to have reminders of who I am and this means the photos and letters of loved ones, and the things they have made or given to me. My space is so personal…that it is almost painful to have anyone who is not a dear friend come over. People tend to walk around our home picking up things and questioning their origin or importance, and why I still have them in whatever predicament they might be in”
I believe she is one of the few who absolutely treasures her heirlooms, and those heirlooms aren’t the kind you can purchase at any store!
My thanks to Amy and the Zurcher family for sharing their home! xo
Special note* Amy has been busily orchestrating the launch of an entirely new and innovative shopSCAD website! It debuts tomorrow, April 21 at www.shopscad.com!
CLICK HERE for full-sized versions of these photos after the jump…
