New Library of Reclaimed Pine

The new pine panelled Library by John Tackett Design.
Photo by Peter Estersohn for Southern Accents magazine.

This new Library is another room in the Volk Estates, University Park, Dallas, Texas, residence that has been featured in previous posts of The Devoted Classicist.  The Entrance Stairhall can be seen here, the Living Room here, a downstairs Sitting Room here, the Luncheon Room here, and the Garden Room here;  all these rooms are in the renovated house.  One of the additions contained the Master Bedroom seen here, which is over this panelled Library.  As previously mentioned, this project was executed by John Tackett Design in conjunction with Dallas architect Wilson Fuqua and interior designer Josie McCarthy.

A corner of the new pine panelled Library by John Tackett Design.
Photo by Peter Estersohn for Southern Accents magazine.

As the grain and knots were of importance, builder Kevin Smith was able to source the wood from an old warehouse in Louisiana that was being demolished.  It was remilled to conform to the desired panels and custom moulding profiles of my specifications, and then washed with grey stain to relieve the redness of Southern Pine and waxed by Barry Martin, whose company was responsible for most of the painting on the project.

Snapshots of the new Library before the foil tea paper was applied to the ceiling.
Image:  John Tackett Design.

Although some of the furnishings were purchased especially for these rooms, almost all of the furniture from the owner's previous home, which was also decorated by Josie McCarthy, was reused, albeit in a different way, and usually reupholstered or slightly altered.

The Luncheon Room was previously a Breakfast Room.  The new Breakfast Room and the Dining Room will be featured in up-coming posts.

The great set of prints in the Luncheon Room were previously displayed on the staircase of the Strait Lane home.  Some years ago, that house was featured in a holiday issue of Southern Accents magazine, so it is included in this post as seasonal inspiration.

The owners' previous home on Strait Lane, in Dallas, Texas, as decorated by Josie McCarthy.

Garden Room Revealed

The Garden Room of a house in the Volk Estates section of University Park, Dallas, Texas, renovated by John Tackett Design.
Photo by Pieter Estersohn.

A number of blogs, including two of my favorites, The Peak of Chic and Me & Mrs. Jones, have featured the latest book by Florence de Dampierre, Walls:  The Best of Decorative Treatments which was published by Rizzoli this past March.

 

I was delighted to learn that a room from one of my projects, an extensive renovation of a 1920s house in the Volk Estates area of University Park, Dallas, Texas was featured.  The book is a little "lite" in text, however, and no identification is given for the room, a peeve that has now moved to the top of my list of Issues With Authors of Design Books.  But The Devoted Classicist is happy to be able to provide more information on the room.

The wallpaper panels as installed in the Dining Room of the owners' previous home, with interior design by Josie McCarthy.
Photo by Peter Woloszynski.

The eighteenth century handpainted wallpaper panels were bought by my clients some years before, and installed in the previous home's Dining Room which was arranged with mouldings in a boiserie effect of black lacquer walls.  But the owners wanted to use them differently in their new residence.

The trio of custom made stools resulted from a 1996 series of velvet covered furniture developed by John Tackett Design.
Photo by Pieter Estersohn.

The space was previously a Florida Room with jalousie windows of glass louvers and a shag carpet over the concrete floor.  With the addition of a new panelled Library on the ground floor, this room became a passage from the adjacent Living Room on one side and a cozy Sitting Room on another, making it essential to create a distinctive space as well as a link to the remarkable garden beyond.

Drawing by John J. Tackett  from construction documents by John Tackett Design.

The six panels were the same length, but of different widths.  The layout of both the room and the panels allowed them to be joined as a large panel on the north and south walls but kept separate to flank a doorway on the east wall.  A design module was devised to allow a fretwork frame that would fit the four resulting widths yet still allow for corners to be resolved.

Views of the Garden Room showing the south and west elevations showing the treillage added to the ceiling and the antique tole chandelier from Marvin Alexander, Inc.  The slipcovered loveseat was relocated for the previous images.
Photos by John J. Tackett, John Tackett Design.

To reinforce the garden theme, a traditional lattice motif was introduced but restricted to the ceiling.  Roofing slates were used for the new flooring and custom French doors open to a new porch.

A scap of the wallpaper from the previous installation was used to develop the paint scheme for the Garden Room.
Photo by John J. Tackett.

The paint scheme for the room was developed on site with the owner and the painter, Barry Martin, who used pigments to mix the colors for review and approval.  The furnishings were a collaboration with Josie McCarthy, who had designed the interiors of the clients' former home.  An admirable job was done by the building contractor Kevin Smith, and Wilson Fuqua provided the documentation for Code Compliance.  The 1999 Pieter Estersohn photos originally appeared in a fourteen page article in "Southern Accents" magazine in 2001.  Some photos of the house also appeared in the 2003 book Southern Accents on Color edited by Frances McDougall.  My clients have since sold the house, now spending more time at another project I designed for them in Pebble Beach, California.  But additional aspects of this Vassar Avenue house will be featured in future posts of The Devoted Classicist.

The 2011 book WALLS: THE BEST OF DECORATIVE TREATMENTS can be ordered at a discount of 30% off the published price with the option of free shipping by clicking here to visit The Devoted Classicist Library.