The shingle and stone colonial house at 4 Blind Brook Road South sits along a babbling brook and across the street from Nashs Pond.

The shingle and stone colonial house at 4 Blind Brook Road South sits along a babbling brook and across the street from Nashs Pond.

Photo: SR Photo, LLC All Rights Reserved

The shingle and stone colonial house at 4 Blind Brook Road South sits along a babbling brook and across the street from Nashs Pond.

The shingle and stone colonial house at 4 Blind Brook Road South sits along a babbling brook and across the street from Nashs Pond.

On the Market: A luxury retreat with fishing pond

WESTPORT Since its inception in 1974, the multiple award-winning Pagliaro Bartels architectural firm has gained a stellar reputation particularly for exceptional waterfront architecture throughout the country.

We design buildings that reflect a union between man, earth and the environment, working with natural light to enhance spatial flow and convey a sense of warmth and grandness, the firms website said.

That interaction between structure and surroundings receives the firms excellence in the design and built process, whether the waterfront is the vastness of Long Island Sound or the babbling Blind Brook.

This is evidenced by Roger Bartels masterful re-imagining and renovation of the brown-colored colonial house at 4 Blind Brook Road South on a cul-de-sac in the Old Hill section of Westport. It sits on a 0.68-acre level property along Blind Brook, across the street from Nashs Pond.

Wake up to water views and the sound of your own backyard waterfall, hop on your standup paddle board and hit Nashs pond, the listing agent said, adding residents of this house can also fish for large-mouth bass and boat on the pond.

They can actually fish right from their own property in the brook and enjoy birdwatching. And because Blind Brook is a private road, it is perfect for bike riding and strolling. The house is also within walking distance of Earthplace the Nature Discovery Center, which provides a number of nature programs and has hiking trails.

This property feels like a luxury retreat while still being just a stones throw from Westports well-known amenities including downtown, schools, Compo Beach and commuter trains, the agent said. Residents can walk to downtown, about a mile away, for coffee, dinner and shopping. Post Road (Route 1) is also easily accessible from this location.

The eight-room shingle style house was originally built in 1954 and was loved and maintained by the same family for the last 65 years. The front of the wood and stone house with green shutters features a flagstone patio, and the front facade features a second floor turret over the entrance.

There is a larger flagstone patio with a stone sitting wall in the backyard. The front door opens into a 3,686-square-foot living and entertaining space with generously sized rooms and an ease of flow from one to the next. Greeting visitors is a recessed display case.

Features in the formal living room include a red brick fireplace and coffered ceiling. The living room is open to the formal dining room, the two separated only by a counter space and columns. The dining room has built-in shelving and a recessed area for a buffet or hutch. The recently renovated eat-in kitchen is equipped with quartz countertops, a breakfast bar, beverage refrigerator, Sub-Zero and Bosch appliances, and a door to the patio and yard.

In one wing of the first floor there are three bedrooms. At the opposite end in the family room there is a stone fireplace, a wet bar with a granite counter and glass shelving for stemware storage, and a door to the patio and yard.

STYLE: Colonial

ADDRESS: 4 Blind Brook Road South

PRICE: $1,399,000

ROOMS: 8

FEATURES: 0.68-acre level property, located on a cul-de-sac, stream, water view of stream and Nashs Pond, walk to water, footbridge, flagstone patio, own backyard waterfall, flagpole, walking distance to Earthplace - the Discovery Nature Center; proximity to downtown shops and restaurants, the newly renovated public library, and the Levitt Pavilion; two fireplaces, attached under house two-car garage, central air conditioning, zoned oil heat, basement crawl space, attic, ample storage space, public water and sewer connections, four bedrooms, three full and two half baths

SCHOOLS: Kings Highway Elementary, Bedford Middle, Staples High

ASSESSMENT: $1,026,400

MILL RATE: 16.86 mills

TAXES: $17,305

HOA FEE: $500, paid annually

A floating staircase leads to the private master bedroom suite. French doors open into the spacious room, which has a tall vaulted ceiling, walk-in closet, wall-to-wall carpeting, and water views from the front and rear windows. The luxurious master bath is set in the front turret and has a jetted tub, shower and vanity topped in granite.

There is a massive second-floor bonus room with plenty of space for an office, playroom, gym or an additional family room.

For more information or to make an appointment to see the house contact Judy Michaelis of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage at 203-247-5000 or Judy.Michaelis@coldwellbankermoves.com.

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On the Market: A luxury retreat with fishing pond - Westport News

BAR FLY PALM HARBOR/ FACEBOOK

Safety Harbors Bar Fly, a fly fishing-inspired bar and restaurant, debuted a second location in Palm Harbor at1026 Nebraska Ave.

There are many similarities between the Safety Harbor and Palm Harbor Bar Fly locations, like their casual seafood oriented menu, a gift shop where Bar Fly swag is sold and a laid back atmosphere. Unlike its Safety Harbor sister, the Palm Harbor location features a large outdoor patio and a stage for bands. The outdoor lounge area is fully decked out in tiki decor and hand-painted Sweetwater Brewing Company logos. Owners Jeff and Celeste Harrell been putting the new Palm Harbor stage to use, with reggae and jam bands playing almost every weekend.

Theres also indoor seating for patrons whod like to enjoy their tuna nachos and fish hooked-shaped pretzels in the air-conditioned peace.

The Palm Harbor location is open 11:30 a.m-11 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 11:30 a.m.-midnight Friday and Saturday, 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday, and is closed Monday.

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Safety Harbor's Bar Fly opens second location in Palm Harbor - Creative Loafing Tampa

In the formal dining room there is paneling on the lower walls, sliding doors to the deck and backyard, and a serving counter.

In the formal dining room there is paneling on the lower walls, sliding doors to the deck and backyard, and a serving counter.

In the formal dining room there is paneling on the lower walls, sliding doors to the deck and backyard, and a serving counter.

In the formal dining room there is paneling on the lower walls, sliding doors to the deck and backyard, and a serving counter.

On the Market: Updated ranch in Easton boasts many new features

By Meg Barone

EASTON The sage green-colored ranch house with black shutters at 36 Northwood Drive wears its age very well. With all its recent renovations this house is actually closer to new, even though it was originally built in 1962.

A brand new roof was literally just installed so the next owners wont have to think about that expense for decades to come. The whole house has been updated with a new high efficiency heating system, new lighting, a new well filtration system, fresh paint in modern colors, updated bathrooms, and a remodeled eat-in kitchen. Two of the homes three full baths were recently updated with new vanities and marble countertops. Those improvements combined with the growing interest in one-level living makes this house quite desirable.

The nine-room, 3,242-square-foot house is set on a level property of 3.59 acres on a cul-de-sac in the Easton Center section of town. This location makes it convenient to several local farms, the center of town, and Routes 59 and 136 for easy travel into the towns of Fairfield, Westport, and Monroe. Its just a short drive to the Merritt Parkway.

A long driveway, lined in Belgium block, leads to the property which offers ultimate privacy because the house is set very well back from the roadway and it is also cloaked by a border of trees. A large front lawn is the perfect place for games and sporting activities. In the front garden, also lined with Belgium block, there is a flagpole.

Inside, the formal living room features a large picture window flanked by double-hung windows and a quarried stone fireplace with a raised hearth and a wood-burning stove insert. The fireplace is not up against a wall but stands in the middle of the floor between the living and dining rooms. In the formal dining room there is paneling on the lower walls, sliding doors to the deck and backyard, and in one section there is a peninsular counter topped with quartzite that separates this room and the kitchen. This feature is especially helpful when entertaining or serving buffet-style meals. A second such counter was built between the preparation section of the kitchen and the breakfast nook, which is set in a bay/bow window area. The kitchen also has new stainless steel appliances, new cabinets, and a white ceramic tile backsplash in a diagonal pattern rather than the more typical subway tile arrangement.

On the main living level there are three of the homes four bedrooms, including the master suite. The fourth bedroom is found on the finished walkout lower level, which offers more than 1,000 square feet of living space and could make for the perfect in-law or au pair setup, according to the listing agent. This lower level also has a spacious family or a media room with wall-to-wall carpeting, a fireplace this one also has a stove insert, a full bath, and an exercise or recreation room. The laundry room is on the main level and it has a utility sink and a door to the attached two-car garage.

TYPE: Ranch

ADDRESS: 36 Northwood Drive, Easton

PRICE: $514,900

NUMBER OF ROOMS: 9

FEATURES: 3.59-acre level and partially fenced property, located on a cul-de-sac, paving stone patio, large deck, exterior lighting, fully fenced backyard, professionally landscaped, brand new roof (just installed), new high efficiency heating system, new lighting, freshly painted, renovated kitchen with new appliances and cabinets, propane added for gas range, programmable thermostat, one fireplace, wood-burning stove, pre-wired for cable, close to the center of Easton and town amenities, just about five miles from the Merritt Parkway, full finished walkout lower level (possible in-law suite), attic, renovated laundry room, stone wall, attached two-car garage, central air conditioning, zoned oil heat, tank-less hot water, private well, four bedrooms, three baths

SCHOOLS: Samuel Staples Elementary, Helen Keller Middle, Joel Barlow High

ASSESSMENT: $332,890

TAX RATE: 31.33 mills

TAXES: $10,429

Outside, the fully fenced backyard is perfect for keeping children and dogs safe, although this cul-de-sac is rather quiet and not well traveled. In addition to the deck there is a paving stone patio. Under the raised deck there is storage space for lawn equipment.

For more information or to make an appointment to see the house contact Bette Gigliotti-Green of The Gigliotti Group and William Raveis Real Estate at 203-451-0040 or Bettegig1@gmail.com .

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On the Market: Updated ranch in Easton boasts many new features - CTPost

You love to see it. Fortunatos used to be a go-to spot for me, and many others I Imagine, while wandering Central Avenue on any given weekend night (but especially First Friday). I came to love it as an Eckerd student, so I was never too surprised to see a line out the door for a thick Fortunats slice.

In early November, the pizza joint reemerged in Gulfport, an area with a burgeoning food scene. Seriously, if you havent had Smokin Js, go to Smokin Js. The pickles, the pulled pork, THE RIBS. One Thanksgiving I got a smoked turkey from this BBQ joint and I still think about it to this day.

But I digress, were here to talk pizza. Fortunatos is now open at 3038 Beach Boulevard South. Its been open for a little over a month at this point.

Guests can enjoy quaint outdoor and patio seating as the work to form the perfect pizza fold.

Fortunatos Gulfport menu has featured specials such as a bacon jalapeo flatbread, a salmon cake appetizer, and prosciutto wrapped pork loin.

The restaurants current hours are:

Lunch 11:30am-2:30pm Tuesday, Saturday & SundayDinner 4pm-10pm Tuesday-Sunday

Fortunatos menu is loaded with hand tossed and Sicilians pizzas. All diners should try the Chicken Milanese Signature Sandwich at least once. The hearty lunch option features arugula, fresh mozzarella, red onion, pesto and mayo.

This opening follows similar resurgences in the Gulfport culinary community. A Friend Who Bakes is delivering something tasty to residents who have a serious sweet tooth.

Stellas, a popular breakfast spot, recently opened in a new expanded space, too.

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Fortunato's officially open in Gulfport - I Love the Burg

ExperiencedReliableOriginal

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Since starting in 2011, our designers and engineers have completed over 3500 projects across Australia in just a few short years.Were likely the largestteam of architects and designers operating in Australia today, with a commitment to environmental sustainability and eco-friendly practices. Look throughour portfolioto see key features from our wide range of completed projects. Youll also be treated to a peek into the future of Superdraft through our works in progress.

We are committed to ensuring our projects run as smoothly as possible, and we value performance feedback. When you partner with Superdraft for a commercial project our support team will be by your side every step of the way. Be confident in your choice of architectural service and enjoy watching your vision build before your eyes.

Want to find out more? Want to begin your journey with Superdraft?Get in touchwith the team today.

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A partial architectural rendering of Castlepoint Numas 3C from New Yorks SHoP Architects. The connecting skybridge is a semi-industrial echo of the nearby Cherry St. bascule bridge, spanning a shipping channel on the citys Inner Harbour.

Castlepoint Numa

If theres one thing that Alfredo Romano is proud of when it comes to his 3C Waterfront development, it might be the way it debunks an old real estate adage the one that says you cant have dissimilar income and demographic brackets co-existing on the same piece of high-priced real estate.

I dont want to create exclusive neighbourhoods, says Mr. Romano, president of Toronto-based Castlepoint Numa. Its not what were about and its not what the city should be about. Toronto is so tightly woven that unless you integrate housing types across the city you end up creating ghettos. Urbanistically, its better to have mixed neighbourhoods.

3C Waterfront will be exactly that on a grand scale. A 2.5-million-square-foot community of commercial, residential and public buildings on a 13.5-acre strip of prime real estate abutting the Keating Channel, the 1,000-metre long waterway in Toronto that connects the Don River to inner Toronto Harbour on Lake Ontario. Thats an area roughly the size of Nathan Phillips Square, and 1.5 times the square footage of the Britains second tallest building, One Canada Square located at Londons Canary Wharf.

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The defining structures at 3C Waterfront will be a 50,000-square-foot arts complex with multimedia programming and three towers, each a maximum height of 50 storeys. In a bid to attain Gold Certification under the globally recognized Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, exteriors of the buildings will be made from precast, energy efficient materials instead of traditional glazing. These precast exteriors will retain heat in winter and stay cooler in summer, making the building complex more efficient throughout the year.

Also slated for the development are mid-rise, residential finger buildings, including some 225 affordable homes (10 per cent of the total) for lower income families and professionals.

A aerial view of the Keating and Quayside precincts, abutting the Keating Channel on Torontos eastern waterfront.

Castlepoint Numa

Typically, developers build separate entrances, lobbies and even structures to accommodate whats known in the industry as inclusionary zoning, but 3C Waterfront is making a point of avoiding this poor door syndrome.

Trying to make affordability and creating a sense of community ought to be the top priority in any development, says Mitch Kosny, a long-time professor and associate director of Ryerson Universitys School of Urban and Regional Planning. Having a sociodemographic mix is normal and appropriate. Its the definition of a healthy community and its pretty much what most Canadians grew up with. Homogeneity is not what we should be building.

At the heart of 3C Waterfront will be a pedestrian zone featuring a Barcelona-style plaza, which will serve as a kind of urban mixing bowl. Alternately fed by boulevards and compact laneways what the Dutch called woonerfs or living streets because they prioritize human movement over other forms of traffic it will be flanked by Shibuya-style shops and Les Halles-reminiscent caf terraces. Also planned is a red brick tunnel linking 3C with the historic Distillery District to the immediate north, creating a supersized pedestrian zone that will connect to the lakeshore promenade.

A huge amount of brainpower was sourced locally and internationally to realize 3C, says Mr. Romano, who also developed Torontos 58-storey L Tower condos on the Esplanade and the new Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in the Lower Junction. Its European in intent with high design values, which is why the first firm we hired for the master plan was Foster + Partners.

London-based Foster + Partners is a kind of Georges Braque or Giorgio de Chirico of the design world, whose cubist-influenced designs include the Kuwait International Airport and The One skyscraper at Yonge and Bloor Canadas tallest building at 85-storeys. In total, six leading architectural firms collaborated on 3C, including Torontos KPMB Architects, Montreals Claude Cormier + Associates and New Yorks SHoP Architects.

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A pedestrian area will be at the heart of 3C Waterfront.

Castlepoint Numa

But for all its progressive thinking and innovative design, 3C Waterfront which is being developed by Castlepoint Numa in partnership with Cityzen Development Group and Continental Ventures has been somewhat lost in the shadows of its attention-hogging new neighbour, Google affiliate Sidewalk Labs. Sidewalks controversial proposal for an experimental smart hub on a 12-acre parcel at Quayside slightly smaller than 3C Waterfront with an assessed value of $590-million has almost entirely dominated the conversation and media coverage surrounding the future of the eastern waterfront.

What will be transformative for the area is incremental, high quality development from a variety of players, Mr. Romano says. Sidewalk Labs could become a part of that constellation.

In fact, 3C and Quayside have much in common, with some industry watchers describing 3C as Quayside minus the surveillance and data collection. For example, both are working on a large canvas not only in terms of scale, but also coherence and vision. As the biggest private sector development on Torontos private waterfront land, terms like community building, livability and affordability were front and centre in 3C planning conversations, right from the start.

Both projects have major roles to play in the extension of Queens Quay East as the public spine of the eastern waterfront, says Bruce Kuwabara, founding partner at Torontos KPMB Architects who helped articulate 3Cs master plan. They should complement one another by creating centres of gathering that serve both precincts.

A rendering of how the area will look once Castlepoint Numas 3C Waterfront, lower right, and Sidewalk Labs Quayside, behind, are completed.

Castlepoint Numa

Waterfront Toronto, a powerful not-for-profit mandated by three levels of government (including the City of Toronto) to deliver a revitalized waterfront, is spearheading a push for housing affordability. It stipulates that at minimum, 20 per cent of residential units built on the waterfront must be made available to market at a 20 per cent discount, as defined by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). For example, data shows that a one-bedroom apartment in Toronto today rents for an average of $1,270 a month whereas, according to Waterfront Torontos definition of affordable rent, the same unit would be available for $1,016 a month.

According to this formula, Sidewalk Labs proposes to make 20 per cent of all residential units affordable, with at least a quarter of those going to people with pronounced affordability needs. Another 20 per cent of residential units will be set aside for middle-income households. The missing middle is an area of need that has been repeatedly highlighted by government and leading thinkers on housing, but is often left out of development plans, says Keerthana Rang, associate director of communications at Sidewalk Labs.

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Im a big advocate for affordable housing so I like that 3C is putting together all the ingredients for a complete community, says Meg Davis, chief development officer at Waterfront Toronto, noting that 3C and Quayside together are expected to deliver about 725 affordable homes.

By some estimates, if even 10 per cent of the kind of city-wide inclusionary zoning mandated by Waterfront Toronto had been enacted 25 years ago, an additional stock of 50,000 affordable homes would now be available in Toronto a figure that could have significantly diminished the ongoing sting of this citys worst ever housing crisis.

But with Toronto developers cancelling numerous condo projects in recent years (Castlepoint Numas Museum FLTS among them), creating affordability has become even more difficult.

The industry used to count on certain cost increases and timelines that are no longer reliable, Mr. Romano says. I will never again launch a project unless Im sure the regulatory framework is completely solved.

That does not, however, change Mr. Romanos commitment to what he calls values-based development. Not everything comes down to a simple numerical value and the bottom line, says Mr. Romano, noting that Castlepoint Numa plans to build about 500 affordable homes in the next 10 years, all independently of government assistance. A majority will be erected on the eastern waterfront, where Castlepoint also owns a five-acre property on nearby Cherry Street.

So much of Torontos future as a livable megacity hinges on successful, thoughtful expansion. But how will the area look in 10 years? Well have neighbourhoods that are diverse, walkable, compact and affordable, says KPMB Architects Mr. Kuwabara. There will be increased bicycle usage and a demand for social services including daycare and schools.

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Adds Mr. Romano: When I first started building here 25 years ago there was almost nothing east of Yonge St. except derelict buildings. Seeing everything come together like this is enormously satisfying.

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Affordable housing is possible, even in Torontos downtown core - The Globe and Mail

After multiple reviews, revisions and hours-long discussions, the Bolton property rezoning request is moving forward.

The Mentor Planning Commission on Dec. 9 approved a preliminary proposal to rezone about 186 acres northeast of routes 615 and 84 from C-1, Conservation District and R-4, Single-Family Residential to Planned Mixed Use Development.

The commissions positive recommendation now goes to City Council, which will review it and conduct a public hearing. Council can accept, reject or modify the proposal, which would also require voter approval.

If it passes, they come back for the final site development process, Law Director Joseph Szeman said. The key is that the final plan has to be in substantial agreement with the preliminary.

Project representative Chris Hermann, principal of Columbus-based MKSK Studios, came to the meeting armed with good news.

He announced that a deal had been reached between the Bolton family and the Western Reserve Land Conservancy to preserve about 69 acres of ancient forest on the property, at 8021 Center St.

Conservancy President Rich Cochran was on hand to explain the significance of protecting such a site.

Ive been president of this organization for 23 years and, to my knowledge, theres only one (other) forest like this in Northeast Ohio, Cochran said. It happens to be in Wayne County; its called Johnson Woods. And I dont think theres another one like it, so were extremely excited to be working to preserve this property.

I can tell you that if this becomes a preserve, tree-lovers from all over the state, and perhaps from beyond the state, will come to visit just to see these trees. Thats how unique and rare and special they are.

About half the preservation area is in Kirtland Hills.

The development proposal also calls for about 55 acres of residential use on the northern end and roughly 32 acres by Interstate 90 as commercial. Forty-two acres in between is designated a town center.

Under the proposed zoning, a maximum of eight units per acre could be built, or nearly 1,500. However, the applicant is requesting permission for up to 650 total units.

The site also could support an upper midscale class, limited-service hotel of 80 to 100 keys by 2020, according to a market study presented previously.

Four residential types are proposed: single-family with medium lots, 50 feet wide with vehicle access and garages in the rear, and porches in the front; single-family with 30-foot-wide lots; townhouses and estates.

Ken Kalynchuk of Project Management Consultants LLC has indicated that the development could generate more than $600,000 per year through income and real estate taxes, and 500-plus jobs.

Build out is projected for 2030.

We think this is going to be a fantastic development both for the people that live and work here as well as all of the residents of Mentor, Hermann said. Were excited to move forward with this. We hope you are too.

While the applicant seeks to retain and repurpose the Bolton mansion, commission member Geoffrey Varga sought a condition guaranteeing that it wouldnt be demolished or allowed to deteriorate.

Project representatives expressed concern about being straitjacketed by any conditions.

The applicant has every intention of making the home a primary feature of the development, but we dont think its reasonable to provide an absolute requirement that they must maintain the residence in perpetuity if they cant find a financially viable means of maintaining it, said the applicants attorney, Thomas Coyne.

He proposed a condition that, if the applicant cannot find an economically viable use to preserve the Bolton house, the owner would agree to provide notice to the city and a 60-day discussion period to allow the city to work with the owner to find a means to preserve the home.

Commission member Joseph Sidoti and others were agreeable to the proposition.

At least that gives the city, the commission, the administration the chance to re-engage with you on some discussions on how to resolve that, Sidoti said.

The project was approved with 17 conditions, including:

The buildings proposed along the Norton Parkway corridor (east of Route 615) within Subarea B shall be ground-floor retail with the allowance for small office. Residential shall only be permitted above retail/office space within this area.

The residential unit count approved for Subarea A is up to 300 units and up to 350 units in Subarea B.

The Bolton family home should be preserved and re-used as a bed and breakfast, a boutique hotel or any of the allowed uses: housing/residential care facilities (single-family, mid-rise multifamily, assisted living, nursing homes) ; retail/services (barber shops/hair and nail salons, dry cleaners, restaurants, financial institutions, hotel); offices, and research and development facilities.

Public access shall be provided to the entire proposed conservation area (69 acres) and a conservation easement put in place over the 34 acres of the conservation zone within Kirtland Hills to guarantee it will not get developed.

Any proposed architectural design of residential and commercial buildings, and site design, shall meet or exceed the Design Criteria set forth in the Planned Development Overlay District regulations during final plan submittal.

A traffic impact study is required as part of the final plan submittal.

A tree preservation plan for trees outside the conservation area.

Any issues that may arise concerning the shortage of the required parking, due to the parking-sharing concept, shall be resolved with the introduction of structured parking.

Commission Chairman William Snow voted no.

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Bolton rezoning proposal clears first hurdle, preservation deal reached with Western Reserve Land Conservancy - News-Herald.com

The fireplace must be the focus of every rational scheme of arrangement, Edith Wharton and Ogden Codman Jr. wrote in their 1897 design classic, The Decoration of Houses.

Not much has changed since then. Fireplaces are usually the dominant element in rooms lucky enough to have them, and the anchor around which furnishings are organized. In fact, most fireplaces refuse to be ignored, whether theyre beautiful or ugly. And therein lies the problem: What if your fireplace is clad in dated tile or discolored brick, or your mantel looks out of proportion or out of place?

Giving a fireplace a new look may seem daunting, but its not as hard as it sounds.

Its an architectural ornament thats changeable, said Thomas Jayne, an interior designer in New York and the author of Classical Principles for Modern Design, a book on applying Wharton and Codmans ideas to contemporary interiors.

Transforming the appearance of a fireplace is usually well worth the time and expense, he said, because if you like your fireplace, youll like your whole room a lot better.

We asked Mr. Jayne and other designers for advice on how to deal with a problematic fireplace.

Its easy to write off old mantels and surrounds as unappealing when theyre damaged from years of abuse or covered in layers of soot, grime or caked paint.

But dont automatically assume that you need to rip out or cover up what youve got. Instead, try to imagine what your fireplace would look like if it were restored.

In a lot of projects, we start with ugly-looking fireplaces that are actually beautiful underneath, said Andrea Fisk, who founded the Brooklyn-based architecture firm Shapeless Studio with Jess Thomas Hinshaw.

A lot of them have just been painted over and over and over, Ms. Thomas Hinshaw said, so that theyve lost a lot of the detailing and character.

When Ms. Fisk and her life partner bought a rundown townhouse of their own in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn, it had a dreary-looking living room fireplace covered in dirty cream-colored paint. But rather than immediately removing the mantel, Ms. Fisk performed a careful investigation.

We really had no idea what was under there, she said. They couldnt even tell whether the mantel was stone or wood. With a chemical paint remover, she stripped away layers of paint and was astonished by what she found: a stunning mantel of green and gray slate with hints of pink and carved floral details.

That was a wonderful surprise, she said.

Not only did she keep it after removing every trace of the old paint, of course she also based the color palette of the room on it.

Theres a reason old mantels are often thick with layers of paint: Its one of the easiest and least expensive ways to change the look of a fireplace. When done well, with an appropriate amount of paint not gobs, which can clump, drip and look unsightly painting can be surprisingly effective.

Susana Simonpietri, owner and creative director of the Brooklyn-based design firm Chango & Co., occasionally paints brick fireplaces white for a crisp, fresh look. Recently, she did so while renovating a 1970s house in East Hampton, N.Y., which had a two-sided fireplace between the living and dining rooms made from orangy brick that neither she nor her clients liked.

We painted the outside white and the inside of the fireplace black, for a lot of contrast, she said.

It was as simple as covering the brick with a sealing primer, she said, and then applying several coats of Decorators White paint from Benjamin Moore. The priming is very important, she said. If you dont prime, the color from the bricks will bleed through.

Almost any type of paint can be used on the outside of a fireplace, Ms. Simonpietri said, though she prefers an exterior-grade paint for durability. But inside the firebox, its important to use a special high-temperature paint that can withstand the heat.

A painted brick fireplace is easy to maintain, she said, even when its white: All you have to do is hit it with another coat of paint when it gets dirty, over time, from the smoke.

Replacing an existing mantel or chimney piece, or adding one where there was previously none, can immediately change the character of a fireplace.

A traditional fireplace can be made to look modern with the addition of a mantel composed of simple marble slabs, and a contemporary fireplace can be given a sense of age with a traditional wood mantel that has classical details.

Changing the mantel itself is not that big a deal, Ms. Simonpietri said, noting that they can usually be pried off the wall like trim. Essentially, you are left with walls that need to be healed. If youre a handy person, its a do-it-yourself project.

Replacement mantels are widely available at a range of prices, from home improvement stores like the Home Depot to specialty manufacturers like Chesneys. And reclaimed mantels can be found at architectural salvage stores like Big Reuse, Olde Good Things and Demolition Depot and Irreplaceable Artifacts.

You can also build a custom mantel, like Vincent DiSalvo, a principal of DiSalvo Contracting in New York, frequently does for his clients.

Installing a new mantel is fairly straightforward, Mr. DiSalvo said, as long as you work within the parameters of code requirements, and size it properly to fit the existing opening. Combustible materials like a wood mantel must be at least six inches back from the sides of a wood-burning firebox, he said, and the horizontal piece that runs across the top of the firebox should be around 12 inches above the opening, depending on how far the mantel projects off the wall.

The resulting gap between the firebox and mantel creates another design opportunity, he noted, and can be finished with distinctive ceramic tile or stone.

Of course, not every fireplace needs to be finished with a conventional mantel. There are countless creative alternatives.

When Mr. Jayne renovated a house for clients in Oyster Bay, N.Y., he designed a tall box clad in Delft tiles to surround the fireplace.

Rather than just having a fireplace with a row of Delft tiles and a pretty 19th-century wood molding around it, we tried to modernize it and make it more contemporary, he said.

Sometimes, Mr. Jayne eliminates a ledge or shelf above the fireplace altogether, as he did in the library of an apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. There, he removed the existing pseudo Georgian Revival mantel and clad the wall around the fireplace in colorful mosaic tile a design loosely inspired by a fireplace in a dining room designed by Stanford White at Kingscote, a 19th-century house in Newport, R.I.

For a more monolithic appearance, a fireplace can be resurfaced in concrete or natural stone in the same way. If you use natural stone, though, choose a dark one, like slate, rather than a light one, like white marble, Mr. DiSalvo advised: You want to select a stone that isnt easily stained by soot. A darker-colored stone holds up better over time.

Attacking the mantel or the area immediately around the fireplace sometimes isnt enough. In that case, the whole wall that houses the fireplace may need attention.

When Shapeless Studio renovated a Brooklyn apartment that had an especially unappealing brick wall with a fireplace, they built a new wall with drywall in front of it, floor to ceiling, to conceal the entire expanse.

That slightly reduced the footprint of the living room, but it created a cleaner look and the opportunity to add a beefy custom limestone mantel. The architects also used the thickness of the new wall to create recessed storage nooks on either side of the fireplace.

Linc Thelen, a Chicago-based designer, used a similar strategy to conceal a dated-looking rubble-stone feature wall with a fireplace when he renovated a house in rural Indiana.

We had to reframe it, he said, because there was no other reasonable way to remove or conceal the stone. After adding cement board to the framing for a smooth surface, he installed a linear arrangement of buff-colored manufactured stone veneer from Eldorado Stone on top.

I wanted something that was minimal, but also warm and modern, he said.

Building a second wall may seem somewhat extreme, but transforming the appearance of an unloved fireplace can pay big dividends. The fireplace can help tie the whole house together, Mr. Thelen said. And it can say a lot about the personality of the person.

There are also family traditions to consider, he added: You can have Santa Claus coming down a stylish chimney.

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That Ugly Fireplace Isnt as Bad as You Think - The New York Times

Return Trips is a typical exercise in perambulating free association, opening with the narrators tryst (in Yugoslavia yet) with a sweet-natured youth named Paul who will shortly die of a congenital heart defect; for the rest of the long story were reminded of Paul, here and there, as a kind of idealized alternative to the other men in the narrators life before and after circling back to the ur-trauma, long ago in Hilton, when she was walking home with a boy and spotted her father kissing a strange woman in their wood-paneled Chrysler: I hate him is what I thought.

The perspective of the Fitzgeraldian hero simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life is most resonantly expressed in the pursuit of love, but one of the men with whom Adams pursued it, Saul Bellow, considered this a limitation of her first novel, Careless Love: Women like your heroine do seem to live completely in relationships and think of very little apart from their own feminine happiness, he wrote her. Such a formulation applied less and less to Adamss mature work, whose heroines are certainly concerned with their own happiness, romantic and otherwise, but tend to be unhappy each in her own lonely way. Ardis Bascombe, in Beautiful Girl, is a North Carolina tobacco heiress and former beauty queen who spends her days, in San Francisco, getting drunk in her kitchen and mooning about the past. Lest one think this a simple matter of lost youth and looks, we learn via a passing thought of Ardiss daughter (Adams has a nice touch with narrative point of view) that her mother used to be so much fun in a way that might explain why Ardis moved to San Francisco: I sincerely hope that both my daughters marry them, she once remarked to a Winston-Salem real-estate woman who wanted to keep blacks out of the neighborhood. I understand those guys are really great. Not, unfortunately, from personal experience.

Carol Sklenicka is a lucid, scrupulous writer, as readers of her acclaimed biography of Raymond Carver will attest. Her description of, say, a late-life surgical procedure that Adams endured the ghastly degloving of her face to remove a tumor from her nasal cavity would pass muster in a neurosurgeons how-to guide. Such a conscientious and (it must be said) rather humorless sensibility works well with inherently dramatic material, and so is perhaps better suited for a redemptive fable about the colossal alcoholic Carver, who somehow kicked both booze and the worst predations of his machete-wielding editor, Gordon Lish. By comparison, most of Adamss life had a fairly decorous surface (Never a harsh word) whose fraught subtext needs teasing out by a subtle fiction artist. Consider: At Myrtle Wilsons party in The Great Gatsby, Tom Buchanan breaks Myrtles nose, while, in Sklenickas first biography, a drunken Carver (Bad Ray) smashes a bottle upside the head of his long-suffering first wife, Maryann. Both are powerful scenes and yet: In the first case what we remember most (among a mlange of other nuances) is Myrtles story about the way her drab husband had to borrow the suit he married her in. In Alice Adams, however, the prosaic remains decidedly prosaic. The evidence of Adamss letters, fiction and later notebooks suggests that Alice probably did not go all the way with any of those Madison boys, writes the meticulous Sklenicka, who sometimes injects gravitas into these early pages the disturbing news from Europe, and so on in ways that seem tangential, at best, to the immediate concerns of her teenage subject. Such historical digressions go on for a page or a paragraph, or else are woven into a single sentence like a discolored skin graft: Back in Cambridge in the spring of 1945, as the Russians and Western Allies conquered Germany and revealed Nazi concentration camps to the world, Alice joined another short-story class with less satisfactory results.

Once Adamss professional career takes off, references to the wider world are largely obviated by discussions of her work, her book tours (and other travels) and her impressive royalty advances. Of her 11 novels, her most successful was Superior Women (1984), an all but explicit homage to Mary McCarthys The Group, which gives a portrait of the authors generation via the stories of a few friends from Vassar; in Adamss novel, the friends are from Radcliffe. Fawcett Crest bought the paperback rights for a whopping $635,000 perhaps the most noteworthy moment from that particular era in Adamss life, as Sklenicka readily concedes: As a result of her successful move into full-time authorship, the fiction she produced almost overshadows the biographical facts of her life in the early 1980s. Almost. Another piquant aspect of the story is the way Adamss life came to mirror that of her parents: Her oldest friend pointed out how Alice was beginning to look like Agatha her homely, unhappy mother at a time when she lived with a handsome interior decorator, Bob McNie, who drank and was probably bipolar like Adamss father. After the relationship ended, belatedly, Adams cast doubt on the mans reputation as the only heterosexual decorator in San Francisco with a novel, Almost Perfect (1993), that shed provisionally titled her Book of Bob. (We can be fairly certain that Alice did not invent the bisexual theme, Sklenicka certifies, pointing out that McNies children found a large cache of gay pornography after his death.)

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The Decorous Surfaces and Fraught Subtexts of Alice Adamss Life and Work - The New York Times

David Netto has always balanced a love of tradition with a pinch of iconoclasm. He grew up on the Upper East Side and went to the venerable boys private school Buckleybut hated it (they wanted him to be a jock, he wasnt). Later he went to Harvard for a masters in architecturethen dropped out. Now hes a respected interior designer working out of Los Angelesbut he spends half his time writing (books, and a column for Town & Country).

In this weeks episode of the Business of Home podcast (sponsored by Chairish and Google), Netto speaks with host Dennis Scullyanother Buckley graduatein front of a live audience at the New York School of Interior Design. They cover a wide range of topics, from the effect of the AIDS on the design community to the wit of Dorothy Draper.

Below, listen to the episode and check out a few takeaways. If you like what you hear, subscribe to the podcast (free of charge!) and a new episode will be delivered to you every week.

Go BoldSurprise: Media is in trouble. But there are silver linings, according to Netto. For one, the rise of digital media has made certain print mediumsbooks, specificallymore desirable. Magazines occupy a dangerous middle ground, and Netto says its time for something new. The time when youre on your ass, and theres no end in sight, no backstop to the adversitythats not the time to try and be a people-pleaser; I think thats the time to lead, because you actually have nothing to lose, he says. I think terrible mistakes are being made at certain magazines that I love, because the leadership is not really invested in anything but trying to keep it alive. Its the time for bold new points of view. Maybe none of it will work, but if you dont stand for quality, I really dont see that youre doing anything but looking at your watch and trying to pay your kids college tuition before it all goes away in a couple of years.

Watch for happy accidentsWhat does a 1936 Bugatti coupe have to do with great design? Everything, says Netto. When they made the prototype of the car, they were using a lightweight aluminum that couldnt be welded ... so they riveted the prototype together in two pieces. When they used the actual car, they didnt need to use the riveted spine, but by then everyone had realized that this detail was the whole soul of the car. Its a lesson in keeping your eyes open and embracing mistakes, he says.

Tell a StoryIn addition to his design projects all over the U.S., Netto writes a regular column for Town & Country, and has written for The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal in addition to authoring several books. He finds that theres a lot in common between both halves of his career: A good decorator is a storyteller. Ive met great decorators that couldnt write or draw anything, but they tell a story.

Homepage photo by Marc Hom

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David Netto on a life in design - Business of Home