Arts & Crafts Homes Winter 2018

THIS ISSUE STRIKES ME as particularly art-filled, which has me thinking about what makes an artful home. Perhaps it’s not only what we add, but also what we don’t remove. Comfort is important, too: the art of living weighs into our perception. My favorite interiors are those lived in and handed down. Rooms allowed to show signs of age bear witness to lives that went before. Stories are embedded in floorboards more worn than the rest, in fabrics grown threadbare where they were most often touched. One advantage of a timeworn room is how it can hold a wide-ranging mix of furniture and objects. The antiquated and the modern may be composed into an artful and soulful whole that continues to evolve. No need for total redecorating every decade. But…

Between the Lines Adding a chevron overlay to the Japanese-style Hikaru hookarm fixture gives a touch of Prairie School influence. The light comes in small and medium sizes. Pricing starts at $693. Mention ACH Win18 for an extra 5% discount. From Old California Lighting, (800) 577-6679, oldcalifornia.com Fluted Light Part of a full lighting series, the Lantern table lamp is graced by a slipcast porcelain shade with finely incised fluting, floating along a rigid brass structure. The lamp measures 25." high x 9" tall. It retails for $3,900. From Apparatus, (646) 527-9732, apparatusstudio.com Table Ready The new Providence 18/10 stainless flatware from Liberty Tabletop has a dimpled pattern on the teardrop-shaped handles, reminiscent of hand-hammered copper finishes. A fivepiece place setting is $19.95. A 65-piece set is $175.95. From Fair…

Renovation at Craftsman Farms A 14-MONTH PROJECT to rehabilitate the administration building at the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms is now underway, thanks to an Open Space grant from the Township of Parsippany–Troy Hills, N.J., which owns the museum site. The first building seen by arriving visitors, the administration building dates to the Stickley era, but was devastated by fire in the 1950s. When it was rebuilt, only one storey was completed. The project will convert the original ground-level garage to program space and re-create the building’s two upper levels for much needed office space and collections storage. Developed by Gustav Stickley as a farm, school, community, and family home in the early 20th century, Craftsman Farms was rescued from development in 1989. The 30-acre campus includes nine original buildings…

THROUGH FEB. 26, 2018 Favrile Masterworks A new exhibition will showcase 32 exquisite glass vases designed by Louis Comfort Tiff any. “Tiff any Favrile Glass: Masterworks from the Collection of Stanley and Dolores Sirott” includes works ranging from experimental pieces made in the 1890s to the widely-admired peacock vases produced in the early years of the 20th century. While Tiff any is famous for many types of glass work, the Sirott collection focuses exclusively on Tiff any’s Favrile vases. These lustrous vessels, known for their innovative forms and colors, are among the most extraordinary examples of Art Nouveau decorative art ever created in this country. On loan from a private collection of more than 300 pieces, many of the vases in the show are true rarities and afford fresh perspectives…

RESTORATION work on our house progressed over many years. For the inside, we’d committed our wishes to a drawing, prepared by a local architect, in 1990. But we weren’t ready to go to work at the time. In 2014, when we both felt “we’re too old to still be using this 1960s kitchen,” we used those dream-house drawings to set the path for renovations. Our program: Replace the kitchen and laundry room; add a bump-out for banquette seating; repair the garage foundation; create a bridge between house and garage; do custom woodwork for the built-in seats, table, and trim. This set of renovations took five and a half months. It grew to include a deck, stonework, lighting, and landscaping. The land the house stands on was part of the William…

The photos show a fixture I bought four years before we got around to the kitchen renovation. Once we began on the design, it became clear just where we would use the double pendant. I took it to a lighting refurbisher, a company called Robin’s Rarities, where a magician named Patrick rebuilt the light. Everything was there, all the pieces; but he rewired it and polished it and installed appropriate shades That vintage fixture inspired three new single pendants hanging over the cooktop and sink. Patrick made them up from parts old and new.…