Design shapes our homes and the way we live. The layout of a living room transforms the way a family interacts; quality materials help us breathe better, and an artful detail anchors us in the present moment and reminds us to appreciate beauty, wherever we can find it. Our homes represent our lives in the private sphere, what is purely ours, and who we think we are. We want them designed well, the way we have designed our lives. And we want the same for our communities, for our schools, offices, stores, and restaurants. But what drives good design? In MH+D Inside Out, Maine Home+Design interviews builders, architects, interior designers, and makers from our community and gets inside some of the top minds in design. Read on for their stories, tips, and sources of inspiration.
Jeanne Rapone grew up as a New Yorker; Kate Kyle, as a Mainer. In New York, Rapone designed kitchens and bath for multiple showrooms on the North Shore of Long Island, and after moving to southern Maine, she started her … Continue reading
Windows and doors can accent a house, drawing attention to its lines and form, and create a transition between the home and the outside world. It’s also important, however, that they conserve energy and provide security. As the architectural representative … Continue reading
“If you only want to make pretty little pictures, you’re not going to be happy,” says Lita Anne Semrau, a principal at Port City Architecture. The work of an architect is not a silo; it demands knowledge about how other … Continue reading
Architecture can help us “connect to something that feels more real.” At least, that’s Brewster Buttfield’s perspective. As the owner of Prospect Design, a design firm that specializes in exhibition, commercial, and residential projects, Buttfield has directed his passion for design into … Continue reading
Ben Hemberger has always been drawn to the romance of timber framing. “It really spoke to me,” Hemberger tells Maine Home+Design. By following his passion, Hemberger ended up in timber framing and then carpentry, and he now owns Benjamin and … Continue reading
At Park Row Interiors, the interior design business Kathy Harding owns in Brunswick, the designer preaches the transformative effects of color and pattern. In her interview with Maine Home+Design, Harding dives into her past as a color puller and explains … Continue reading
Though different on the surface (one is an extrovert; the other, an introvert), architects Nancy Barba and Cynthia Wheelock share a passion for history and design theory. Barba and Wheelock share with Maine Home+Design their vision for architecture that enriches … Continue reading
“A lot of people get hung up on the definition of what we do,” Brett Hellstedt says. “But basically we build with timber.” Hellstedt’s company, Maine Post and Beam, builds everything from structural to ornamental timber beams and frames in … Continue reading
In another life outside Maine, Michele Hayes Zajkowski worked in advertising. After several years as a stay-at-home mom and remodeling two homes of her own, she began to pursue a field that she felt passionate about: interior design. She attended … Continue reading
As a graduate student in the Yale School of Architecture, Steve Blatt admired the design of the structures on campus, including Paul Rudolph’s brutalist Yale Art and Architecture Building, and learned first-hand that design can influence an educational experience. Blatt … Continue reading
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