from the outset of sitting down with our builder and drafting plans, I wanted to infuse our new build with meaning as much as we could on our budget. textures, tones, pattern, palettes, and materials: natural, new, and reclaimed are all ways i’ve tried to make this build an intentional home, to make it personal.

the color stirabout from farrow & ball sent me on a spiral down memory lane of my teenage adventure to dublin, remembering + embracing my paternal lineage, a warm bowl of porridge. and made me realize meaning is made from memory and heart, the choice to use stirabout here in the heart of the home, in our kitchen, meant this too could be a place to reflect light, comfort, hold memories + nourishment.

“Stirabout. This is the name that the Irish give to their porridge, a dish which has been eaten in Ireland since the fifth century A.D. at least. Over the ensuing years porridge has been made with a variety of grains, including barley, cornmeal and wheatberries, but today in modern times is usually made with oats” - the English kitchen

design elements | place, name + woven memory

i was sixteen when my parents scraped together what money they could to send me along with my french class for my first journey away from home. i had a horrific car accident the year before and i really felt a burgeoning need to take opportunities that came my way after that harrowing and life altering experience. I had to get step foot in a place i’d never been before because I could still walk.

dublin, york, london, and paris was our itnenary. i didn’t know how at home I would feel in these places I had never been before. the streets of dublin felt familiar like i’d walked their paths before. it wouldn’t be until years later I would learn my father’s lineage has roots in ireland and england.

my sixteen year old self was enamored and i remember porridge or stirabout breakfasts in our hotel in dublin, filled my belly + soul before our days of exploration. i came home + attempted to recreate the magic and warmth of that bowl. i think back often with a sense of nostalgia to this place that opened me up to a world outside of myself + was a place i felt deeply connected to, and that island was the ground, sky, landscape, home in which some of my own paternal ancestors inhabited.

intentional + well worn

i’ve woven in other design elements to give the space a lived in + well worn feeling: unlacquered brass hardware, reclaimed barn beams, an antique door + paired with a warm quartz counter selection Statuario Nuvo from Caesarstone + walnut island to be built by our contractor. cream city brick veneer wall reclaimed by a regional small business Brick Salvage, a nod to milwaukee, it’s old buildings feature cream city brick, the place aj + i lived in our first years of marriage and bringing babies into the world. more on this later…

fast forward twenty years after my first international adventure and i’m selecting paint colors for our kitchen cabinetry and stirabout was the color i’d been dreaming about. a color between white and mushroom. i’ve always dreamt about a light and airy white kitchen, but the realities of having two small children and two dogs, is that its not user friendly. stirabout provided that warm, bright, comforting feeling, like that porridge i’d experienced in dublin. if i’ve learned anything from this process, it is to sit with a color for a while. choose colors that make you feel how you want your space to feel instead of trying to follow trends. a choice made from the heart will feel timeless to you. I loved using farrow & ball’s color consultancy. it was so helpful to work with someone to assist in narrowing down a color scheme and tones that work together and how light plays in different spaces in your home. how to using shades and colors of the same palette throughout the home for a consistent look. I cannot wait to show you more…

keeping our homes well

farrow and ball paint itself is an investment. it’s worth it for a myriad of reasons, it’s water based paints packaged in recyclable metal tins are made from ethically sourced materials + it’s minimal or low voc, volatile organic compounds. volatile compounds cause fumes which are behind the strong odor found in many paints. vocs are released as the paint dries, is a pollutant released into the air and can be toxic. low voc paints lead to better indoor air quality. chemicals in our homes + environment can lead to respiratory and neurological health conditions. it’s vital we begin to think about our own health and that of our shared earth, especially in interior design.

we brought the paint to our amish cabinet maker. he was hesitant to use something new + different, but was surprised, even amazed at its low fumes during applications in comparison to other products he uses.

the four main environmental toxins are air, water, soil, and chemical pollution. when building, renovating, bringing in furniture, textiles, mattresses we need to think more seriously about the chemicals we are allowing ourselves to coexist with and how that may be affecting our health, the health of our loved ones, and the wellbeing of the planet.

i’m beyond excited to see how farrow & ball’s paint looks with our cabinetry coming next week. while stirabout is a color i’m comfortable with, I took some risks and stepped outside of my comfort zone. stay tuned to see where I used splashes of color…

this journal entry is the first in a series about our home build. i want to share my inspiration, materials used, thought process, brands we’ve collaborated with, and the little ins and outs behind the design and the build itself. i’d love for your questions and feedback in the comments.

**this post contains affiliate links.