By Nancy D. Lackey Shaffer | Photos by Viktor Budnik
“Make life beautiful” — a concept simple in direction if not always easy to achieve. Unless you are Janie Hewson.
The marketing maven, design consultant and founder of Inside Outside Style hasn’t just built a successful career helping others create the homes and landscapes of their dreams. She walks the walk herself. Her home has the flow and balance of an Architectural Digest spread, eclectic touches one might associate with a globetrotter and the warmth and ease of a vintage but well-maintained sofa.
“Our entire house is art directed,” Hewson said with a laugh, as she showed off the many prized possessions she has collected through the years.
Intentional Design
That might be a bit of an exaggeration, but it’s not untrue: While Hewson’s home is absolutely lived in, it has a curated quality about it.
A beautiful wooden cabinet in the living room, for example, was crafted by hand by a woodworking friend. The dusty blue shade was to Hewson’s exact specifications, while the paintings (applied by the woodworker’s artist wife) featured on the panels were inspired by photos Hewson had from her travels to Italy.
The large buffet in the dining room — which has faithfully followed her through every relocation, including stints in San Francisco and Venice Beach — is topped by a vintage camera (used in various photo shoots and still-life paintings) as well as an antique bird cage with a “blue bird of happiness” inside.
Birds feature prominently on the chandelier, too, where a collection of artsy avians have been draped. They hover above a French dining table originally purchased by Hewson’s husband, a professional photographer, for a job — and he continues to use it for a wide variety of projects. In addition to dining, of course.
“Most of us are kind of a mess, with a lot of treasures around,” Hewson said. “My expertise is in pulling out the treasures of a human’s life, and arranging them in a way that shows who they are.”
Art Smart
Hewson is her own best client, and her house has a lot to say about its occupant. One of the most prominent statements is that Hewson is an art lover.
Every room, and nearly every wall, has at least one work of art on it. Among Hewson’s favorites artists are Liz Brady of Santa Barbara, known for her whimsical paintings of swimming animals and floating furniture. Hewson proudly displays a few “Swimming Pigs” in her living room and a bathroom. She also has a number of works by another Santa Barbara artist, Virginia McCracken, who creates small and intriguing dioramas peopled by well-dressed critters. Many of these artists have become good friends, and Hewson delights in both supporting them and having their unique offerings in her home.
Photographs taken by Hewson’s husband also have pride of place. In addition to pictures of friends, family (including daughter Kimberly, who now lives in Arizona), favorite destinations and beloved pets are photos from professional shoots. One of his specialties is food photography, so there are some gorgeous images of vegetables and bread. One very special photo can be found in the hallway: George Harrison at the Cow Palace in San Francisco in 1974, during The Dark Horse Tour.
Yet another, a serene donkey in profile against a cerulean blue sky, graces the wall above the couch. It is flanked by playful paintings of a cat and a duck — both made by Hewson, who “was a painter for a minute.”
Wit and Whimsy
Some of the most interesting aspects of Hewson’s home, however, are not obvious at first glance.
Hewson loves to entertain, so her coat closet is used as a bar, spirits, mixers and glasses neatly arranged and readily accessible. Unusual? Sure. Perfectly suitable for this homeowner? Absolutely.
In the office, rather than standard-issue metal filing cabinets, she uses attractive magazine bookshelf organizers — convenient, practical and much easier on the eye. The office closet does have areas earmarked for office supplies, but more space is allotted to displaying sculptures, knickknacks and other small treasures. There are even framed paintings and posters.
Books (including a fine collection of cookbooks, a personal passion for an epicure like Hewson) and magazines are, naturally, in abundance and artfully arranged, be they on a shelf, in a bookcase or set out on a tabletop.
A small room in the house’s interior has been converted into a sunny garden atrium. Here lives a handsome black and white cat, who can be seen entering through a pet door. A faux door, mind you…and the cat is made of wood.
Hewson has a fantastic sense of style and proportion, and deploys her possessions accordingly. She’s all about “making life beautiful,” after all, and surrounds herself with that which is lovely and memorable.
Even more so, however, she sees this careful composition as a kind of communication, both self-expression and invitation to converse. Who wouldn’t want to know where she got that lovely painting? Or be intrigued by photos and posters of faraway lands? And what’s up with that fake cat?
“I just thought it would be funny,” she said with a smile and a shrug.
Hewson loves to “tell a story” through her furnishings and interior design. In doing so, she encourages visitors to share theirs, too.
Janie Hewson
Marketing Creatives
janiehewson.com
Inside Outside Style
insideoutsidestyle.com
[…] Story continues […]
Comments are closed.