South Salem NY
Location: South Salem, NY. A log home with abundant rustic character, exposed timber, and warm natural woodwork throughout.
Client Type: A couple creating a special space for their grandchildren.
Design Goal: The clients wanted an enchanting, imaginative retreat where their grandchildren could play, explore, and rest whenever they came to visit. Because the home is a rustic log structure rich with character, a key goal was cohesiveness, carrying the property’s existing warmth, timber, and craftsmanship into the space so the children’s rooms felt like a natural extension of the home rather than a departure from it. Drawn to storybook whimsy grounded in natural materials, they sought interiors that felt like stepping into a woodland fairytale while remaining cozy, characterful, and built for real childhood adventure.
The suite is whimsical woodland storybook with a rustic sensibility, pairing handcrafted charm with immersive, imaginative detail that echoes the home’s log construction. The palette is built on soft, earthy neutrals: warm greige and mushroom, sage green, and weathered wood, layered with gentle woodland accents and touches of tapestry color.
Materials are natural and tactile, chosen to harmonize with the existing timber, from reclaimed wood and rattan to plush wool, felted textiles, and grasscloth. Signature details give the space its magical, collected character: hand illustrated forest murals, a sculpted tree with a hidden reading nook, built in curtained bunk beds in reclaimed wood, a climbing wall and monkey bars, a cream and brass play kitchen, felted flora and fauna, and cloud and globe lighting. Tonally the work is whimsical, warm, enchanting, and rustic.
Our scope spanned space planning, custom millwork and built-ins, finish and material selection, lighting design, and furnishing and styling. We approached the suite as an immersive woodland world that grew naturally out of the home’s rustic character, drawing its existing timber, texture, and warmth into every custom mural, architectural feature, and furnishing so the spaces felt cohesive with the property as a whole.
Reclaimed wood built-ins and a sculpted tree hollow echo the surrounding log construction, while a consistent forest narrative ties the rooms together into a living storybook. Play and rest were balanced with intention, pairing active zones like the climbing wall, rope, and sensory pegboard with cozy retreats like the curtained bunks and reading nook. Custom pieces were tailored to the scale and imagination of children, blending durability with craft.
Lighting was layered for softness and wonder, weaving together cloud and globe fixtures with gentle ambient sources. The result is an enchanting, richly detailed retreat for the couple’s grandchildren that feels entirely at home within the rustic setting, a magical woodland world made just for them.
“Julie is full of great resources and a pleasure to work with. But for me her best quality is her great taste, and ability to pull off the WOW factor in every space she has done.”
—M.P.
