Does your home speak to you? 
Does it have a story to tell?
A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of re-visiting the Gamble House, a turn-of-the-last century Craftsman style home in Pasadena, California.
This 100 year old gem of a house was designed by the architectural geniuses Greene & Greene.
I have to admit, I admired this home just as much the second time around, both for its turn-of-the-century simplicity and its incredible attention to detail.
I use the word ‘incredible’ – yet, this doesn’t adequately describe what the house has to offer.
Astounding is more like it.
The effect of these rooms bathed in a golden light, is almost magical. It literally takes your breath away.
From the moment one first steps into the darkened entry, you realize you are in for a treat as your eyes gradually become accustomed to the light.
You notice first, the lovely image of an oak tree etched into the leaded glass panes of the front door, its limbs stretching far and wide into the transom and side light windows.
You notice it in the smoothly rounded edges of the polished Burmese teak, framing the grand central stair.
You notice it, too, in the delicate silhouette of a lantern in the shape of a crane, a bird that – in Japan – represents longevity.
You notice the repetition of certain motifs – trailing vines and the ever-present Chinese ‘cloud-lift’ – everywhere you look.
It’s present in the leaded glass light fixtures, the carved mantle and friezes, in the stair rail and even the carved inlays on a bed frame.
Good design relies on repetition. 
Designers and architects alike know this, and rely heavily on such simple tools to create an innate rhythm of beauty and celebration throughout a clients’ home.
