sneak peek: betsy maddox

interior designer betsy maddox has taken a page from the scandinavian style book, when designing her chicago home – and rightly so. nothing quite warms up a space like white walls, light colored floors, and pale colors. (and after spending 3 winters in chicago, i can say with some authority, that warming up is definitely in order!)  i for one, wouldn’t mind spending the winter, in this cozy oak park bungalow! {thanks, betsy! and thanks to kim postma for the lovely photographs!} amy a.

[My husband and I were charmed by the big, expansive living room in the front of the house, and all of the character that is typical in Oak Park bungalows – like the stained glass, the built-ins, the hardwood floors, etc. It also had a brand-new 2-1/2 car garage which charmed my husband!  This dining room set we bought at a resale shop in Oak Park that, sadly, is no longer around. It has the original nubby cream fabric on the chairs. The wallcovering in this dining area is a new treat that cheers me up whenever I lay my eyes on it (from Ferm Living). The circular mirror I got for a steal at a silent auction several years ago. The shade is from West Elm and was intended for a floor lamp, but we had it retrofitted to use above the table.]

The sofa met all of my criteria when we got it: deep enough to be able to sit cross-legged, low arms, modern style. We got a good deal on it at a Design Within Reach warehouse sale. The patterned pillows are from Urban Outfitters and the green ones from a commercial fabric house called Luna Textiles.

The bird’s nest is really a sweet story. We watched the mama bird build her nest in our hanging plant on the front porch last spring. We kept tabs on the nest as all of the eggs were laid, followed by all of the eggs hatching, and finally the chicks growing big enough to leave the nest. One day the nest blew down to the ground and my husband retrieved it, only to find one lonely egg still in it that never hatched. I kept it and put it in a hurricane that I got from Jayson Home and Garden in Chicago.

CLICK HERE for the rest of Betsy’s peek after the jump!

This play area is forever a work in progress. We picked up the two blue kiddie chairs and the cowhide rug at the Kane County Flea Market and the table is from Z Gallerie.

This is our beloved dog, Casey, in the chair that he has commandeered for himself. He’s a lab/corgi mix that we picked up at our local shelter, and he is so incredibly gentle with our son. And licks a lot. Yuck.

The leaf is from when our leaves first started to turn this past fall. Behind the leaf is our guest book from our wedding, and to the right is our son Tim’s baby book – for some reason the running theme when he was born was “sock monkey fever!” The ceramic corn kernel I picked up for my husband at Lill Street Art Center. He has a thing for all things farming related!

This chair was a great find at the Lincoln Antique Mall.  The lovely branch I picked up at one of my favorite stores near my home, Moss in Forest Park. The owner has such an eye for collecting and showcasing natural things from around the world. She also does some of the most unique floral arrangements I’ve ever seen.

Our kitchen is very efficient and very small, so our pots hang in full view, which is good because we use them a lot! The two plates are Sarah Cihat, and the radio is just a little something that I turn on to get us moving in the morning.

This porch off the back of the house was just a means for entering the kitchen when we first moved in. We really wanted to make it usable, so we replaced the screens, painted the floor in the diamond pattern, painted it a bright yellow and put in some white trim. We use this area all the time in the warmer months. Red metal cabinet? Ikea!