Many folks believe that old houses retain an imprint — a memory, if you will — of the people who have lived within their walls. If that is true, the Hendersonville farmhouse known as “White Oaks” will remember Don and Jean Greeson fondly. They’re the couple that came upon her in hard times, picked her up, dusted her off and then tickled her ‘til she giggled.
“I grew up in Kansas City and had a wonderful cool old house there,” Jean recalls. “To me this felt like an old Missouri farmhouse in North Carolina.”
“It was built in 1898 and it’s had updates through the years,” says Don. White Oaks had passed through many incarnations, including a stint as a teahouse. But by the time the Greesons purchased it five years ago, things had reached critical mass: crumpled plaster walls and ceilings, outdated wiring and a crazy quilt of coverings on the heart pine floors. An intimidating prospect.
Fortunately, Don and Jean are a one-two punch when it comes to creating terrific living spaces; a resourceful, can-do team. A graphic artist by training and currently a real estate professional with Beverly-Hanks, Don was Director of Advertising and Marketing for Lexington Furniture before launching his own line of outdoor furniture. Jean, who once owned a lighting company, is now the Greeson in the highly respected interior design firm of Greeson & Fast, known for their imaginative, elegant-eclectic environments.
Before the couple could work their magic on the decor, they had to make the house livable. That meant bivouacking in two downstairs rooms while the renovations were underway. “We did a lot of the preparation and finish work ourselves,” Don explains. “I just swallowed hard and started ripping up carpet and tiles.” They knew when to bring in the specialists, however. N2 Floors handled the refinishing once the boards were bare. Master carpenter Chad Vanne addressed some structural issues; contractor Aaron Burdette of Solstice Construction followed with others.
That still left plenty for the Greesons to tackle. “The foyer was the most intimidating room,” recalls Jean. “We had to sand the entire staircase.” Don handled much of the architectural detail: designing custom tile work, installing crown moldings, refinishing window and door frames, painting a trompe l’oeil skyscape on the ceiling in the den and encasing the dining room in meticulous woodwork inspired by one of the “cottages” in Newport, RI.
And then there are the chandeliers. “I owned a lighting company,” notes Jean, “so I’m obsessive about it. Every room has a chandelier, even if it wasn’t the most practical choice.”
“Jean’s favorite color is ‘sparkly,’” Don quips. The collection ranges from shimmering, diminutive gems in the bedrooms to an enameled wrought iron Italian floral fantasia in the foyer to an over-the-top black crystal masterpiece in the parlor. To Jean’s great delight, Don has ingeniously retrofitted each one with a dimmer. “I come up with some really weird ideas,” she says with a laugh, “and Don can almost always figure out how to make it happen.”
With the framework in place, Jean began to work her magic. “There are a lot of different flavors throughout the house,” she observes. “It’s a farmhouse, but it’s Victorian era so we did do a Victorian feel in some of the rooms. Still, each room evolved on its own, although part of it was incorporating pieces that I already had that I really loved and wanted to live with again.”
Jean pulled out all the stops and let her imagination soar: “One thing that was fun about doing our own house is that I could try fun and outrageous things that clients might not be open to.” It makes for an exuberant mélange. “It’s certainly colorful, with lots of animal prints and florals,” says Jean. Applying a discerning eye, the designer playfully layers color and pattern in unexpected juxtapositions that are none-the-less harmonious.
Consider the downstairs parlor, a New Orleans-Gothic fantasy draped in pink and black and anchored by a zebra print rug or its counter-point — the wicker-chair sunroom, awash in chintz, festooned with ferns and softened by vintage chenille bedspreads that Jean has cleverly converted to curtains.
Part of her signature style is, indeed, the “sparkly” aspect. Jean’s deft use of reflective surfaces artfully moves light throughout the rooms — mirrored finishes, metallic elements and glass accents add the bling. Everything is embellished, yet the rooms retain an integral sense of order and grace, stopping short going of over-the-top.
The cumulative effect is one of elegance and ease, a flight of fancy that is grounded by down-home charm. “Every single inch of this house has been redone,” notes Jean. Still, the Greesons cherish the history of the structure, even adorning the facade with new shutters featuring a “W.O.” monogram that Don designed.
If White Oaks could speak, it would surely say “Thanks.”
Local Resources: Greeson & Fast Design – interior design; Susan Toumey – wallpaper hanging; Honeysuckle Hollow – tabletop accessories; N2 Floors – floor refinishing; Solstice Construction Co., Inc. – heavy remodeling