Providing and Preserving Family Memories

A good 25+ years ago, I listened to a speaker, my sister Jeanne Malnati, discuss the importance of being intentional about bringing family memories to the table as you raise children.  At that time, I wasn't married and the thought of a family was in the far distant future.  Jeanne's talk impacted me profoundly as I buried that piece of information back in my mind for future use.  Today, as a mom of a 12 year old, 9 year old and 7 year old, one of my top priorities in raising these kids is to see that thought through...providing and preserving happy family memories for my three children.

When we moved into our 1926 built/totally rehabbed spec home 8 years ago, my first project was to build a window seat in the empty bay window in our family room. My carpenter, Jim Christiansen provided an ideal spot for the family table!  This area in our house is the central nerve of our active being.  Here memories of family meetings had, 10 12 year old boys eating pizza and endless play dates of crafts and birthday cards and giggles have been preserved for when my kids look back at fun family/friend life around this table. Said one friend a few weeks ago, "When I sit here while it's snowing, I feel like I'm inside of a snow globe."

Through our church, Glencoe Union Church, we have had the opportunity on 3 separate occasions to host in our home orphan children of Uganda through the Watoto Children's Choir. These poster sized photographs of our family with these amazing kids hang in our mud room and kitchen hall as a daily reminder of the love we have for these children in need. The photos put a smile on my kids' faces as they pass by them daily. My children will always remember sharing their bikes and balls, kitchen table and prayers with these children when they stayed at our home in 2006 and twice in 2008. (See the upcoming performance of the Watoto Children's Choir at Glencoe Union Church on September 12 @ 7pm)

My childhood memory of playing the piano was not such a positive one. I was determined to change my experience into a happy one for my kids. When we moved to our home, our living room had the perfect spot for a baby grand piano.  I began searching the Pioneer Press Music Ad section weekly.  I found an ad for a one-time owned piano for sale from a family in Kenilworth.  I invited my friend and piano restoring expert Bill Holzinger (847-835-9814) to examine the piano with me.  The piano we saw was purchased in 1941 and was deep walnut in color and had only been played by these owners.  Bill gave it the once over and assured me he could restore it to how I wanted it to be.  All 3 of my children began taking piano lessons at a very early age.  My 2 girls continue to play today.  Our family memory is the hours of practicing, the pretend concerts we have on Saturday mornings, the nervous feeling preparing that last time before the recitals and our family gathered around at Christmas time singing carols and more!

In trying to make a newly restored home your own, it took many years to make each bedroom reflect who slept there every night.  After 5 years of my son sleeping on a small twin bed, piles of his treasures all over the floor and out grown Pokemon posters on the wall, I decided his room would be my summer project in 2007and without him knowing about it.  My 10 year old decided to go to sleep away camp for 4 weeks that summer (www.cheley.com) Not 30 minutes after his flight left for Denver, I had my painters (Ziggy Custom Paint-847.312.3637) in his room and the carpet rep. measuring for wall to wall.  I spent the next 4 weeks creating a Cubs haven for my son.  I missed him so much those 4 weeks but felt really connected to him as I packed away his ratty stuffed animals, conveniently lost his Pokemon cards and created a more age appropriate space.  I had a baseball collection box and trophy shelving made by my carpenter and enlarged photos of my son doing sports framed in poster size.  His new queen size bed was equipped with red and blue bed linens and the Cubs logo carefully painted on the slanted ceiling above his bed.  The afternoon my Cheley Colorado camper arrived home he tiredly walked up the stairs to his bedroom.  It was then a scene out of the TV show "Home Improvement" as I watched my son jump with surprise and excitement and scream joyous sounds at the top of his lungs.  He had a new room and that surprise will be forever lodged in his childhood memory bank.

One of my cherished adult memories and one that impacted my children was me traveling to Paris a year ago by myself to meet up with a friend to search the flea markets and the furniture shows for treasures.  My girls especially were in awe of the word "Paris".  The idea of me leaving them and flying to France was a bit more than they could understand.  All they wanted was a picture of the infamous Eiffel Tower.  The flea marketing in Paris was amazing.  I was lucky enough to purchase and ship back an antique chandelier, two horsehair filled club chairs from the 40's, a fireplace mantel and 2 metal tables I use as night stands by our bed.  My travels were empowering and even this month my daughter brought in the french money, an Eiffel tower picture and other Paris trinkets to "sharing" in her 3rd grade class...still a memory for the both of us.

Two Decembers ago, as the last gift was opened under the Christmas tree and the kids were taking it all in, our front doorbell rang.  As whenever our front doorbell rings, my 3 run to the door to see who is waiting behind it.  On this Christmas morning, the children opened the door to see a small pet crate with an 8 week old Jack Russell Terrier (www.qrkonline.com) peering out at them.  The screams, the laughter and the happiness exclaimed by these three to receive a puppy on Christmas morning was beyond their dreams and their reaction beyond mine.  Penny, our Christmas puppy, will be forever etched into their Christmas morning memories for the rest of their/our lives.

Out with the Old, In with the New

Glencoe has been home for the past 9 years, since moving here from Lake Forest (8 years), Chicago (5 years), and Boston (4 years). Before that, far away Winnetka is where my mother brought me home from the hospital when I was born.  I am a single mother of 3 children (Phoebe, the youngest, is pictured above, and all three crazies, William, Phoebe and Spencer, are pictured below.)  I have gone through major life changes in the past few years and learned that home is where my children are.  When they are not with me, I do not feel home.  (I know - major bumps in the road when they leave the nest!)   

As an Interior designer, home has always meant a potential project. All the homes I have lived in have gone through major transformations.  I love to take a sow's ear and turn it into a silk purse! My latest residential adventure has afforded a major shift.  I have sold my "married," traditional, 1931 French Normandy home and moved into my "divorced," mid-century modern, Keck + Keck ranch.

out with the OLD

in with the NEW

As I embark on some major updating in the new house, I long for the day I can take all my favorite furnishings and place them in my freshly painted home.  

For the time being, a good portion of my furnishings are sitting in boxes or on end in the basement. 

As a practical/financial matter, I will be utilizing most of my old furnishings - traditional and modern in flavor - in my "new" modern house.  The pictures above and below show some of the furnishings in my old house. 

Can you picture the furnishings above in the rooms below?

Quite a challenge!

If I had to pinpoint a design philosophy I follow in my practice and in my life, I would say, treasures that are old/antique/traditional, juxtaposed with new/modern/contemporary make all pieces seem fresh and surprising.  One really notices and appreciates a modern piece set into a traditional setting. The opposite is also true.  An antique in a modern setting is refreshing.  (At least that is what I hope, as I install my old furnishings in the new house!)

In spite of the work ahead of me, over the past several years, I have learned that home is not necessarily what you "do" (as in, renovate - renovate - decorate).  It is rather where you truly live with loved ones.  

For decades, my family has been vacationing in the Rocky Mountains, at the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado.  

Here is a picture of my grandparents circa 1962 in one of the cabins we stay in.

My sister and I donated the renovation of one of the cabins on the grounds. Now we are able to use it whenever we would like.  Almost every summer, we participate in a HUGE family reunion of sorts.  Approximately 60 extended family members gather together to visit, hike and tell stories for a week in August.  

Our cabin is extremely simple.  We can't change anything, thus there is nothing to "do" to it.  When there, we simply enjoy each other's company. Every time we arrive in the gravel driveway after a 17 hour drive, I feel at "home."

Interior of the cabins - very chic, no?

Here is the view from our cabin porch (after an afternoon sprinkle).

Here is a picture of my children and me on a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Here is an awful picture of me - as my children say - "chill-axing" in the cabin.   The reason I am sharing this unflattering picture is that one would never see me this relaxed at home.  There is always too much to "do" at home.

If this blog is still around when my house is "done," (are they ever done?) I will post the "after" pictures.

Until then, I wish you all "Peace and Love" in your homes!

p.s.  Can't wait to see the House Walk!

Finding Art In All Things

I began to collect art in 1987 when I purchased my first condo which was a loft in a converted piano factory.  The first piece I purchased was a 10'x10' piece that worked wonderfully with the 15' ceilings, but too large to work in any other space I owned so I gave it to a family member.  My first important pieces of furniture that I bought were the Anziano chairs (stacking chairs) from Donghia, unbeknownst to me these chairs had won a few design awards.  I currently have them in the waiting room of my office and I still love them.  The second wonderful piece I got was a dining room table designed by my brother, it is the tory table by 555 design.  About 10 years ago I began to purchase a piece of art every year for my birthday.  I find my art in galleries. I also purchased a number of pieces from invitations for gallery openings.  I literally bought the pieces without seeing them.  Another way I purchased my art is seeing the pieces in design magazines and tracking down the artist.  I purchased a few pieces from an art broker that specializes in European prints and drawing from the mid 1800's - current.  I bought one piece on-line never having seen it is person and it is one of my favorites.

The rope chair is the Astuguevielle "Moiste" Rope Chair, it is a painted cotton rope.  It is from Holly Hunt in the Merchandise Mart. The art above the chair is from a print from an artist's book called "The Three Incestuous Sisters" by Audrey Niffenegger.  Audrey is a Chicago artist and also wrote the book "The Time Traveler's Wife".

These two pieces in the hallway are both by a Milwaukee artist names Greg Jacobson.  What is great about Greg is that he is literally a "starving artist". He paints for himself and not for a gallery, therefore, his work has such a broad range and he cannot be pegged with a specific "style" which is more in keeping with what type of artist a gallery is looking to represent.  I love doing the framing, it sounds corny but when I purchase a piece of art that I really love I am so excited to have it framed.  When the right frame is selected I am just ecstatic and can't wait to see the finished product.  I been going to The Art Store Gallery in Glencoe for 10 years and Jerry, the owner, knows my taste by now and he makes it so easy.  FYI - I always use museum quality glass.

The large piece with the backwards writing is by Gary Weidner, also a Chicago artist.  I have a smaller piece which is the same style in my office over the sofa that my clients sit on.  I put it there on purpose so I look at it all day.  My favorite piece is the one that sits in the corner of my living room, the lady in profile in the turban.

Ruby is sitting on a Missoni rug.  It is from Missoni's first line of rugs.  Ruby is what they call a "designer mutt" or "teddy bear dog" so she works well with the space.

In my dining room I have the Sirmos Petalum chandelier, it is an authentic reproduction designed by the Swiss artist Alberto Giacometti.  Giacometti is famous for his sculpture and paintings. The Chinese urns are 19th century.

The 4 paintings in the dining room are by another Chicago artist named Li Lin Lee.  I choose the pieces a few days before giving birth to my oldest daughter.  I selected them in lieu of jewelry to commemorate her birth.  When deciding on how many pieces to purchase, when a grouping is offered, is initially driven by budget, but most importantly by my instinct of what works together.  Something "looking right" is something I can't explain, it is just how it is supposed to be.

The chairs are the Opium Chairs by Christian Liaigre at Holly Hunt. The pillows are made from Kuba's which are African textiles from the Congo.  I believe they are made with raffia.  What I love about them is that the men weave the plain-weave ground fabric, but the women ornament them with geometric patterns and create the beauty of the textile.  The rug is a Chinese needlepoint that I had for 15 years and as a rule, the needlepoints last beyond a lifetime.


I am very lucky to have furniture and art that I love so much.  The upside of having a small house is that I walk-by and see everything many, many times everyday and it makes me happy.  I have always torn out pages from design magazines and when I look back to things I selected in the '80's I realize that my style has not really changed over time.

Heart Homes: Help Others through Furniture Donations

I have been an interior designer for more than a dozen years on Chicago's north shore.  After working on so many beautiful homes over the years, I began to feel a very strong pull to help give back to those in need of housing and furnishings. I imagined how beneficial it would be to have gently used furnishings go directly to the economically disadvantaged.  

So, in 2008, I established a program called Heart Homes and set to work finding a partner to help execute my goals and realize my vision. I thankfully found that partnership with Designs for Dignity, a not-for-profit that provides pro bono interior design services to other area nonprofits to create interiors that reflect dignity, respect and comfort for the individuals they serve.

Heart Homes Initiative of Designs for Dignity - our not-for-profit initiative provides a way to help homeowners donate gently used furnishings - they no longer need in their own homes - to individuals in great need in the Chicago area. 

We are taking on several ambitious and important residential projects for the coming year that will directly benefit underprivileged and at-risk individuals by furnishing the homes where they live.  However, to fully execute these projects we are in need of furniture donations. 

These projects include:
Boys Hope/Girls Hope of Illinois (BHGH) 
Sarah's Circle Chicago
Family Matters Chicago

Before

After

The above pictures are examples of how Heart Homes helped Gilda's Club. Gilda’s Club provides counseling services for men, women and children and their families who have been touched by cancer. 

If you would like to donate any used furniture, please email Diane Falanga at spacedefined@yahoo.com or Jennifer Sobecki at jsobecki@designsfordignity.org or call 773-293-3259. 

If you would like to learn more about Designs for Dignity and the Heart Homes Initiative, please visit http://www.designsfordignity.org/ and click on the Heart Homes Initiative tab.

Diane Falanga is the owner of Space Defined Interior Design and is the founder of the Heart Homes Initative of Designs for Dignity. She is also the author of P.S. I Hate It Here Kids' Letters from Camp, publication date May 1, 2010. 

Building a Collection

Looking to spice up your space or get your kids started on a healthy hobby?  Whatever your motivation, building a collection can be exciting and rewarding.  I was always something of a collector – trading cards, rabbit figurines, bunny patches that were sewn on to a favorite jacket.  Now I’ve narrowed my focus and had decades of hits and misses.  I’m drawn to early American pieces with a healthy patina, great color or graphics, everyday objects that have something quirky about them. 

When people catch a glimpse of my laundry/mudroom, they stop in their tracks to take in the walls that are covered with antique metal and wooden hangers.  We see and use hangers every day, but we rarely stop to look at them.  Simultaneously sculptural and utilitarian, these old clothes hangers add an affordable big bang to an otherwise mundane room.  

I’m often asked: “Why hangers?”  Even though pawing around flea markets and antique shops is second nature, it was actually a hanger that found me first.  On the dingy basement concrete floor of my “new” eighty-year old Glencoe home, I discovered a glove stretcher abandoned by the previous owners.  I was instantly hooked.  I had never seen a glove stretcher - a hand shaped hanger used to keep the form of a freshly washed glove - but at one time they were plentiful and most unmemorable.  That glove stretcher hanging proudly on my wall today reminds me of my welcome home over twelve years ago.

When Maleesa came by to photograph the hangers, we walked around talking about some of my other collections.  She took a few shots of my pincushion balls, iron candlesticks, gameboards and framed family photos.  Some of these are pretty static displays.  In fact, I had worked so hard to arrange the family photos at my house in the city that I took a photo of the layout to repeat exactly when I moved.   Others, like the balls, move from room to room and basket to basket.  Wire baskets plentiful around here, too! 

My passion for treasure hunting is quite possibly genetic.  My mother has an incredible sense of style and is a bigger junkie than me.  Luckily we don’t compete when we pal around.  In fact, many of “my” finds are really thanks to her. 

Anyway, the point is, you don’t have to go far or spend bundles to find something to get started.  Much of what I have comes from local sources like Harvey Art and Antique (www.harveyantiques.com) in Evanston or the Gurnee Antique Center.  The Winnetka Community House and the Chicago Botanic Garden put on fantastic shows.  Even if you just go to train your eye, it will help you uncover something special at a local garage sale.  Possibly you’ve got a collection right under your nose just waiting to be put on display.  Take a fresh look at that stack of playbills from your years of theatre-going, or perhaps your kids build masterpieces in legos.  Find an empty wall or vertical surface.  Think about something you love to look at and there’s a good chance other people want to see it, too.  Displaying a collection is a great way to decorate and to personalize your space.

Family Life

I'm Liz Rogatz and my family and I have lived in Glencoe for 12 years. We actually closed on our house 7 days before our daughter Brie was born. Our son Eli, now 16, finished preschool here and our daughters Nina (10) and Jillian (6) have only known Glencoe as their home. I grew up in New England and that definitely shapes my aesthetic when it comes to houses. I am an old house person. I love their character, charm and history.  There is a lot to be said for new houses - their logical lay-outs, in floor heat, 9 foot basement ceilings; but I'm taken in by laundry chutes, imperfect windows and thick plaster walls.

Before I became a full-time Mom, I was a practicing interior designer. I did primarily commercial design, but I do have some tips if you are stumped designing your own space.

-The least expensive way to change your space is with paint. To choose the right shade of a color put paint chips on the wall of the room with the most windows. This is the darkest wall in the room. Then make sure to look at the chips in natural light at all times of the day. Don't choose until you've seen the colors on a sunny day, cloudy day and at night. Then paint the walls with an eggshell finish and the trim a contrasting (I always do white) semi-gloss.

-When picking a carpet put it on the floor, not the counter or bed, then follow the paint direction, above.

-Don't cover windows with window treatments unless you need privacy. Natural light can never be underrated. I never turn on lights in my home when there is daylight to work by.

-Keep family photos in family spaces - bedrooms or family rooms, not living rooms or dining rooms, where you entertain.

-If possible, make your bedroom your oasis. Do it in a different palate than the rest of the house and continue that into the master bath.

We have renovated our home three times since we purchased it in 1998. We have taken it from its 1926 interior to 2010. The house has grown as our family did. Some of the things that makes this house our home are the following:

A backyard space that we live in all summer. It is casual and functional. The pergola provides shade and houses an outdoor fan, which cools us off. We have an outdoor fridge and sink as well as a grill.

We have a sport court that allows the kids to play basketball, ride skateboard and hit tennis ball against the netting.

We stayed true to the architecture of the time and carefully matched all the materials when renovating.

In decorating our house, I tried to find unique things and create collections. I found these prints in an antique store in Wisconsin. Each one was a page in a botanical book. They were $4 each, so I bought them and framed them.

They make a statement when in a grouping.

I collect hour glasses. They are not easy to find, so I'm always on the lookout.

I group and display my children's art in a gallery in our basement. I shrink wrap frame them at the Custom Framer in Highland Park. (http://www.thecustomframer.com/)  It is very reasonable and the kids love that I display their creations.

I found that little kids love little spaces. We created this "dollhouse" off of our daughter's bedroom. It is about the size of a walk in closet, so it makes a great reading nook.

I've always wanted red cabinets, but knew they wouldn't work in our open kitchen, so I opted for them in the laundry room and I just love them, although I still hate doing laundry.

I couldn't resist buying this and hanging it in our mudroom, it makes me think of summer.

Original to the house, I just love this cabinet. Even though the drawers no longer close all the way, it reminds me of the era the house was built.