The Porter Project: Quiet Luxury in Chagrin Falls

What happens when the interior designer becomes her own client? We think something magical as seen throughout this incredible home remodel and redesign! This is a uniquely special post for us in that this is Ingrid’s own home that we’re opening up for you to see. And we truly hope you enjoy the tour! 

There’s nothing more important than family to us, and Ingrid’s large family is growing again with the addition of grandchildren! With this in mind, we put our collective creative minds to task to create an open first floor concept within a home that had those traditional separated rooms one would find in a Colonial.

Open floor concepts are wonderful in theory, but can prove to be challenging if working within a more traditional set of bones like Ingrid was doing. Ingrid’s Colonial home featured symmetrical architectural floor plans, so we placed careful emphasis upon striking that balance within the space to make it open while also maintaining the integrity of the traditional structure where possible and desirable.  

While having that openness within the first floor was key, we also knew that with a big family came a need for intimate seating situations so that folks could peel off in smaller groups to have conversation. We felt that this would create that warm sense of feeling her family appreciates and loves. 

Selections were an important part of striking the balance between modern and traditional as well. We carefully blended very modern pieces like the kitchen hood, full-height backsplash, and floating lighting with traditional touches like the painted beams and the panel molding in the arches of the structure.

Throughout the first floor, we selected a combination of shaker cabinets that gave both a nod to traditional – such as all the flat front cabinets and drawers in the kitchen – and modern as seen in the micro shaker cabinets with a high gloss lacquer finish in her power room. 

As we do with all of our projects, we pulled in our favorite local vendors to create whimsy and charm throughout, like Windy O’Conner for her wallpaper selections, Bradley Stone for the countertops throughout, Edelman’s for all the appliances, Marshall Flooring for the provenza flooring, and Lane 17 Co. for the custom cabinetry. 

This renovation has brought both us and Ingrid’s family so much joy. As we do with all of her clients, we knew how her family could enjoy the space and always kept that top of mind while we were designing. 

Interested in talking about an open concept for your home? Reach out to talk!