I thought that was it, especially since it was house #12 in my adult life! Quickly I realized suburban living was not for me (that will be another post for another day)  My true happy place is on the water, and Madison could not be a better place to live on the lake.  Oh and I also get bored easily, just ask my hubby.

So without a property yet, and just glimmer of an idea, I started my binder.  Binder you may wonder??  Well as an interior designer by trade I have the luxury of seeing all sorts of new products and attend many trade shows.  This is a positive and a negative when it comes to my personal projects.  You see, I find all these funky and eclectic products and ideas.  And let’s be honest, the average customer isn’t always looking for that.  So I save them or myself.

After 7 long years of looking for the perfect slice of heaven and continuing to pack my family up every summer for the “Northwoods”, we found the one!  Well, most people may not see it as perfect, but I am always looking for that diamond in the rough.

I thought finding the property was going to be the hardest part, but boy was I wrong!  After we closed on the house the first thing I did was call friend and architect Steve Schulfer at Sketchworks Architecture.  I knew we could not do this without the perfect architect and structural engineer. Especially on the water!  The goal was t0 gut the existing 2 story house and build forward  32′.   After 18 months of zoning meetings and thousands of dollars spent on planning, we were told that was not going to happen….  Now I was determined more than ever!

So much for downsizing and building forward….  now we are going up!  Adding another story certainly doesn’t make things easier and adds a whole other level of complication. Oh and that’s the year Madison had the worst flooding in over 100 years.  So we started not once, not twice, but 3 times to get this project off the ground.  Definitely determined more than ever now, and gained a few more wrinkles.

And now for the FUN part!  I am naturally drawn to things that are different and not on trend, and pride myself as being a trendsetter.  So of course I needed  this house to be all black on the outside, something in 2017 NO ONE was doing, at least not in the Midwest.  And not just black, the materials needed to be interesting. I needed a perfect frame for my art piece.  

Its hard to just pick a couple of favorites when you have a binder full of them, but the outdoor space really is special here, and where we spend most of our time.  I was lucky enough to have an “A” frame boat house come with the property.  Around the lakes here you are not allowed to build anything new on the water, or even tweak an existing structure, so this was like winning the lottery as far as I am concerned.  I created over 1500 sq ft of patio space on the house and then continued with the FUN factor out the door of the oversized screened porch leading to Lake Mendota.

But all good things must come to an end, or should I say start a new beginning?  Time to start that new binder!  Let me know what you think in the comments below and please check out our website and facebook page for more before and after pictures of NOIR ON THE NORTHERN SHORE.