Written by Kathryn O’Shea-Evans | Photography by Emily Kennedy Photography | www.emilykennedyphotography.com
When you buy a house “off market,” it may come with some quirks.
For the clients of Casey Keasler, founder of interior design studio Casework, quirks of their newly purchased four-bedroom home—a Dutch Colonial that was originally built in 1915—were only the beginning. “It hadn’t seen renovations maybe since . . . some wallpaper in the eighties or nineties, but the kitchen was from the fifties and it needed a lot of work overall,” says Keasler. “We ended up taking it down to the studs everywhere.”
But the fresh start worked in this family’s favor, as Casework adorned the interiors in woodwork that suited the era the home was originally born in—but still felt of this moment, such as the cerused oak cabinetry in the cookspace. “Some of the windows remained, but otherwise everything was pretty much literally down to the studs, so everything had to be redone and built and replaced,” says Keasler. The result balances heritage with contemporary clarity and ease.
Textural additions brought a lot of coziness and depth, including stone, woods, draperies, and wallcoverings. “In the living room, we have some rattan or wicker side table lamps, a velvet sofa, a bouclé lounge chair . . . a velvet throw pillow . . . a canvas throw pillow . . . a linen drapery with a floral print on it; and that’s just one little vignette.” The layering was designed for moments of tactility that invite lingering and a sense of lived-in comfort.
The eclectic color palette is also warm—much needed in a location that gets a lot of gray days. “I always say there’s a muddiness to some of the colors that we use in certain homes that soften it and make it this color that’s like ‘ish,’” says Keasler. “So it’s like green-ish or blue-ish or yellow-ish, and you can’t really identify what the color is because it could be a couple of different colors depending on the light.”
These hues have tones within them that may shape-shift as the weather and seasons change, or throughout the day. “And there is a warmth to them, even the cool colors,” says Keasler. “The greens even have some yellows in them to warm up.” Now, the new interiors feel like they have been here for generations. “We did source a number of vintage pieces in the house to create that sort of personality and balance,” says Keasler. In the end, Casework didn’t just revive this 1915 Dutch Colonial—they restored its heartbeat, one warm, wonderfully “-ish” hue at a time.
Stand-up Selections
In this home, “A lot of the materials that we selected and a lot of the things that we selected were intended for a family, and a family with pets,” says designer Casey Keasler. Here, some sturdy advice for homes with kids and pets.
- Use performance fabrics with depth. Take wipeable, washable fabrics a step further by choosing options with “multiple color threads in it.” Unless it’s a velvet, avoid flat solid colors because you see stains pretty readily.
- Pick rugs with intricate patterns. Many of the rugs Casework selected are Persian style, “with smaller print that helps with dog hair and little stains as well.”
- Turn to natural stone. Materials like marble can stain, but that can be part of their beauty long-term, much like a leather saddle. “The countertops, they’re all a natural stone. They’re just meant to wear.”
- Mix textures and items with patina for a storied effect—stone, metallics, wood, leather, and ceramics all play a role.
