The New Old House

To keep things interesting without overwhelming the historic house’s small rooms, designer Patti Watson played with texture. A silk and wool rug from Landry & Arcari Rugs and Carpeting provides a touch of luxe and luminosity, while velvet-covered chairs in front of the bay window catch the light.

A painting by Boston artist Beth Dacey hangs above the living room’s custom bar cabinet by Tiverton, Rhode Island, craftsman Scott James.

Chairs in a hue Watson calls “fresh sage” enliven the family room. For the drapes, she says, “Linen gives us texture, and the floral gives a bit of a casual feel.” The end table lamp is from Hwang Bishop.

Homeowners Karen and Richard Calo envision hosting parties that flow from the living room out to the welcoming front porch.

Much of the home’s furniture is custom made, like the console table crafted by Scott James in the foyer; above it hangs a painting by Olivier Suire Verley that the couple found on a visit to Cape Cod.

A stone hearth and mantel is a sophisticated replacement for the dining room fireplace’s old tile surround. Further ramping up the elegance factor are the Hickory Chair upholstered chairs around a gleaming Keith Fritz dining table.

The lower level’s new powder room packs a dramatic punch with its azure tiles in a herringbone pattern and a vintage-style sink with exposed plumbing. “We were going for a Downton Abbey look here,” Karen Calo says.

Richard, share the partners desk. Pale blue grasscloth walls make the space feel cozy, while the fresh white woodwork and the Riloh light fixture impart an airy vibe.

An upholstered headboard, silky bedding, a bench outfitted in lustrous silk velvet, and grasscloth wallcovering give the primary bedroom its cocoon-like ambience.

The remodeled primary bath sports a shower enclosure with an accent wall of Ann Sacks tile and a spa-like freestanding cast-iron tub with a metallic finish from Waterworks. An area rug from Landry & Arcari makes a soft landing for stepping out of the bath.

Downsizing often means moving from a house to a condominium, and in fact, that’s just what Karen and Richard Calo did. It just so happens that their condo is a 4,200-square-foot house built in 1760 and
situated in the very heart of Ridgefield’s town center.

From 1799 to well into this century, the house operated as tavern or restaurant in some form. A decade ago, the property’s owners converted the site’s several buildings into a condominium community, with the original old dwelling—now restored to a single-family home—as its centerpiece.

“When we talked about a condo, we knew we didn’t want something cookie-cutter,” Karen Calo says. “We wanted something unique. When this came on the market, it just felt right.”

The house had been respectfully and beautifully restored, so making it the couple’s own meant just modifying a few things in the layout and introducing furniture, colors, and materials that suited them. For the former, the two enlisted Chris Shea of Domus Constructors. For the latter they called on a longtime collaborator and friend, interior designer Patti Watson of Taste Design.

Shea reworked the basement level to turn storage spaces into usable living space, including adding a powder room. Elsewhere he collaborated with Watson on tweaks like additional cabinetry, new fireplace surrounds, and the couple’s luxurious new bathroom. “It was great to work with the Calos and Patti to bring this beautiful project together,” he says.

In a historic house, where ceilings are low and rooms are small, scale can be a challenge. Watson worked with the petite scale by employing a subtle palette of neutrals and soft blues and greens that flow easily across the first-floor living spaces. Furniture keeps a low profile. In the living room, for instance, the sofa has a low back and the chairs flanking the fireplace have a longer leg for an airier feel. To generate interest, the designer says,
“We leaned on texture to create the varied compositions.”

Watson says the house suits the Calos perfectly. “It puts them right in the center of the town they love,” she says. “They can walk to shops, host friends on the front porch. It’s a perfect place to start retired life, and we got to create a house that supports this chapter. It was such a joy.”

Project Team 
Interior design: Taste Design
Builder: Domus Constructors