Give the heater a break—upgrade your insulation

They say the human body loses most of its heat through the head. So when it’s cold out, you put a hat on. Before winter approaches (or even autumn!), invest in a hat for your house. According to Austin Craig, sales consultant for Davenport Insulation, attic insulation is critical to maintaining a constant temperature in […]

August ABODE: On stands now!

In this issue, you’ll find a an artist-architect, a symmetrical Fluvanna pool, Vinegar Hill’s second act and more. Here’s what’s inside: Jessie Chapman‘s visual approach. Vinegar Hill’s second life in film. Why your home might benefit from a portico. Michelle Adams‘ design influences. A pool we love! A city home in need of reconfiguration.   […]

Time travel: A country landscape spans the centuries

The weekend home of a Washington, D.C., couple sits not quite in the middle of their 76-acre property north of Charlottesville. They didn’t choose the most lofty site for their cottage, but instead gravitated toward a spot that snuggles into a treeline and offers a broad, rolling view of fields and woods. “This was our […]

Jessie Chapman connects sketch and structure

In a way, one might say Jessie Chapman is getting back to basics. While many architects have gotten out of the practice of sketching their designs as the use of computers becomes more prevalent (and more time-effective), she prefers to put pen to paper. She says it helps her see more carefully. “When you draw […]

Early inspiration: At home with designer Michelle Adams

A second-generation interior designer, Michelle Willis Adams grew up “assisting” her mother, who had a design business in New York and Rappahannock, Virginia. She can remember sitting at her mother’s clients’ kitchen tables, “listening to them discuss fabrics and furniture arrangements,” she says. “I also remember browsing many antiques shops and going to auctions with […]

The water’s fine (and we have pool envy!)

Designer Ann Nicholson admits she borrows inspiration from unlikely places—Edgemont, a historic Albemarle residence possibly designed by Thomas Jefferson; a pool house in the Hamptons belonging to designer Tory Burch. But the pool at Lowfields Farm in Fluvanna, where she resides with her husband? That was all her. Installed by Charlottesville Aquatics, the double lap […]