Give an interior decorator the blank canvas of a suburban, two-story townhouse and anything is bound to happen. In Mary Yeager's case, the opportunities for creativity in her home of 18 years have been boundless.
"It is not a dream home because it is spacious, luxurious or Architectural Digest material," she said. "It is my dream home because it is filled with colors, furnishings and artwork that make me happy."
Mary Yeager's artistic mark on the little house is evident immediately inside the foyer, where a sitting Buddha statue welcomes guests to the tranquillity of the spaces she has created.
Her kitchen in the front of the house, for example, exudes summer coolness as easily as it speaks to winter warmth by the use of deep, hunter-green paint on the walls, wooden blinds at the window and a cherry wood table and chairs.
Further down the front hall, it is the dining room and sunken living room that draw the eye into the very heart and soul of Mary Yeager's world of comfort and grace. Here, dozens of oil paintings, mostly portraits, hang on walls painted burgundy. Hundreds of eyes look out of their frames; soft smiles seem to indicate approval of their space.
The furniture is traditional, antiques mixed with new pieces. A stained-glass panel in shades of green and rose hangs at the home's rear window.
"My favorite room is not even in the house," Yeager says, walking through the back door, past the covered porch and out into her garden.
It is here that she feels the most tranquil and at peace, among 2,000 square feet of landscaping that includes large evergreens, maples, blooming crape myrtle and wildflowers.
At the far end of the yard that banks upward, a wrought-iron swing for two sits among the ground cover.
"I have lived and loved my home for 18 years [and] it has evolved and been improved along the way as budget and time permitted," she said.
Seven years ago, Yeager married Darby Bowman, who happily shares her love of art, landscaping and cozy, intimate spaces.
"One of his most endearing traits is that he is happy to live in my home and encourages me to continue to make it whatever I want it to be," she said.
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Making a dream home
