Home&Design Luxury Homes - Fine Interior Design & Furnishings
Written by Marta Richards - 2001
Working with the Millers in their new home in Northern Virginia, June Shea, IDS of Shea Studio Interiors, appreciated the opportunity she had to "push the envelope." Almost every room had a show stopping feature, an innovative design element exclusive to this home. Ms. Shea called this the "Wow factor."
The Foyer has several: opposite the front door across the honed marble floor is a fireplace, the surrounded cast in Texas. Then there is the staircase with rhythmical scrollwork filled with stylized plants and vines.
The dinning room is open to the foyer, a feature that Ms. Shea uses to her clients' advantage. "We have such a nice grand space and they have a large family, so when they have family affairs they are seating twelve to seventeen people," explains Ms. Shea. She designed the room around two sixty-six inch round, glass topped tables with stone pedestals-"light and fresh with old world feel," the designer notes.
"They liked the idea of the two tables, but with Passover they wanted to be able to have one table for everyone to sit together. So I had a cabinetmaker make a fold-out leaf platform-an overlay-that sits on top of these tables, and everyone can sit at one table. I also designed another leaf that comes out into the foyer, so they can seat thirty." A third base, in the corner of the room, has a mere thirty-two inch glass top. On a day-to-day basis, it's an occasional table, but it serves a greater function, as it becomes the base for the extension. "I was able to give them something fun and interesting, but it still achieves their goal of one table." She designs custom linens to fit this configuration.
The study also pushes the envelope with a hidden door leading to the wine cellar. Cabinetry and paneling behind the semi-circular desk Ms. Shea designed for Mr. Miller is traditional with symmetrical balance. But on one side, the paneling is really a door that opens to deep blue walls, a torch-style lighting fixture and a staircase, like a passageway in a mystical, medieval castle.
But in the French Country kitchen, function reigns. This is a house for dogs, children and two busy adults. Upkeep must be simple and easy-no rugs. So Ms. Shea designed a tile rug for the large room. She uses the same tile she used in the countertops with the listello echoing the one in the backsplash.
With owners who love pasta, she incorporated the Kohler Cook Sink into the island. The sunken cooker fills with water; the cook turns on the burner, and, when the pasta is finished, a push of a button drains the pots and the basket of pasta is easily lifted out.
In the master bedroom is another surprise. This comfortable room has a seating area at one end that overlooks their five wooded acres. Across from the bed is a fireplace and above the mantel is a painting. Ms. Shea touches the painting. The corner of a building in the painting is actually the opening between two cabinet doors. It opens to reveal a television. Close the door and the homeowners have a painting.
The adjoining bathroom is Mr. Miller's. His wife's is a flight up, private, with no access from other areas of the house. Torch lights lead the way. "There was a small shower up there, and we decided to bump out the roof and create a luxurious bath for her," explains Ms. Shea as she continues on. "She said, 'I just want a pink bathroom, no boys allowed.' The floor is pink marble with a gold border. She just about died and went to heaven when she saw that."
Ms. Shea was involved with the house from the outset. "I was here every day to make sure we had electrical switches where they show be. We had the house wired for computer networks, fiber optic cable. We planned for many years down the road."
June Shea lives interior design. With young children of her own and as president of the Commonwealth Chapter of the Interior Design Society, she understands the pressure on today's families. But, she says, she lives by her motto, "You can have it all."
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