The Way We Live: A Haverhill Mansion

While on the East Coast, the children and I had the opportunity to visit a friend whom I met 15 years ago, when Cocoon (the store) first opened in Boston.  Having stayed in touch all these years, it was a real treat to finally see his new home.  Its grandness took us all for surprise.  Filled with a lifetime of memories, this historical house balances New England tradition with a healthy dose of creative flair.  As the kids and I toured the house (almost getting lost a few times) we were not only taken by its size, but with number of family furnishings and objects that have remained so dear to its occupants throughout the years.  Pairing pieces from their individual pasts with items from their present, created an inviting and eclectic atmosphere.  One I just knew had to be a feature in The Way We Live.  

Many thanks, MV, for your friendship and for sharing your beautiful home with us.

The Gropius House

Sometimes it takes becoming a visitor to a familiar place to do and see things you never had the chance to do before.  The Gropius House in Lincoln, Massachusetts, was a place I always wanted to tour while living in New England.  Often times, on my trips to Walden Pond or the deCordova Museum with my children (toddlers at that time) I would slow down to check it out.  On one occasion, I actually stopped only to find it closed, which by the way, didn't stop me from walking its grounds.  Now, years later, I enjoyed an afternoon tour of the home of Walter Gropius:  architect, art educator and founder of the Bauhaus School of Design.

Having founded the Bauhaus School of Design and appointed to Harvard University's Graduate School of Design in 1937, Walter Groupius and his wife Ise were friends to many celebrated artists and craftsmen.  Most of them were frequent guests at their Lincoln, Ma. home.  Besides the amazing architectural features of this house, hearing about the people who visited it was one of my favorite segments of the tour.  I saw the room where Frank Lloyd Wright spent the night, gifts given to the Gropiuses by Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, and museum quality art and textiles created by other notable artists adorning the walls of the historic residence.

Unable to take photos on the inside I managed to snap a few from the outside.  Take a look:

Another favorite part of the tour was the roof deck off the Gropiuses' daughter's bedroom, which is stunning both by its color and its design (which casts the most perfect shadows on the privacy wall).