DRESSED IN HOLIDAY STYLE

There’s a feeling of Christmas in this airy home, where elegant holiday decor harmonizes with a recent refresh that brings comfort and joy all year round.

There’s a feeling of Christmas in this airy home, where elegant holiday decor harmonizes with a recent refresh that brings comfort and joy all year round.

Airy, tone-on-tone interiors have an innate simplicity. They exude serenity and flow, rarely challenging the eye with a stark shift in colour or a moody corner. That said, the best ones are never simple. And the best designers carefully consider every detail and finish. That was certainly the approach when designer Rashell Gouwenberg redid her charming Langley, B.C., home last year with her business partner Gregory Funk (the pair owns Peridot Shoppe + Interiors). “You have to consider all of the layers to make a neutral space truly cozy,” she says. Something as mundane as the drapes can make a world of difference. “Gregory always says to our clients: ‘Once you have beautiful drapes, it feels like your house is hugging you.’ And it’s true: you don’t realize how much you need them until you have

them.” Indeed, the floor-length, oatmeal-toned linen drapes that dress all the windows in the 3,600-square-foot four-bedroom home that Rashell shares with her husband and their two pooches are a soft contrast to the crisp white walls and furnishings.

Injecting a softness and quiet elegance was what this “refresh,” as Rashell calls it, was all about. The couple completed a larger renovation when they moved in nine years ago. “Initially, we did a cooler palette, with greys and laminate flooring,” Rashell says. “This time around, we wanted to warm up the space – add more character and more layers.”

To elevate the look, Rashell and Gregory swapped in luxe materials, like Calacatta Gold marble and pale natural oak floors, and introduced sophisticated detail with new panelling and doors, unlacquered brass hardware, textural wallpaper and those cozy drapes. The designers took inspiration from homes they’ve visited in the Southern U.S. “Gregory and I always go to High Point Market in North Carolina to find furniture for clients, and then we’ll do South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee or Georgia. You can definitely see the Southern states in our designs; we love the warmth of the houses, with their beautiful windows, and all their layers.”

The home’s serenity is evident as soon as you step into the foyer where a picture window frames views of a nearby nature preserve and white walls are a clean, quiet backdrop for furniture and rugs in soft cream and greige tones. “We love the warmth of this palette,” Rashell says. “It’s bright and airy, and allows the textures and layers to show through.” Magnolia leaves studding the simple evergreen wreath allude to Rashell’s passion for the Carolinas. “It reminds me of winter in the South!” The Flowerfall chandelier by Oly Studio is equally enchanting. DAYBED, Peridot. RUG, vintage. CHANDELIER, Oly Studio. DRAPES, Concord. WREATH, Floralista.

Champagne coupes etched with polkadot details introduce a touch of history and decoration to the clean-lined room. GLASSES, Williams Sonoma.

“We made sure to incorporate champagne buckets, glass storage and a tray,” Rashell says, of the elements she used to press the hutch into service as a bar.