Strange Closets

Thanks to friends and former Open House stars Don and Jackie for introducing me to Don’s daughter, artist Michele Stone.  Click here for a short piece I wrote about Jackie’s “Henry VIII Commemorative Bedroom” for the Chicago Reader’s annual Nest issue.  And click here for more examples of Jackie’s work. I had no idea what [...]

Thanks to Nalani, a Strange Closets reader, for emailing me about her good friends James and Blue.  From the curb, the couple’s home, with its brick and siding exterior and prominent garage, looks lovely but very traditional, so I was surprised and delighted by the home’s global influences, peaceful energy and most importantly, its fascinating [...]

Home means something different to everybody, of course, but there’s something distinct about that particular word vs. others that describe our dwelling: house, condo, apartment, cottage, pad, etc.   Today’s Open House is about the Durkes’ and their gorgeous Evanston two-story house, but it’s also about the Durkes’ and their lovely, happy home, which is something  [...]

Ah we’re an incestuous bunch we bloggers.  Yesterday I was lucky enough to spend a couple of hours hanging out at former Strange Closets guest poster and Fine Diving in Chicago blogger Diana Durkes’ house.   Ever wonder what to do with that old chair you found in the alley?  Wonder no longer; just read [...]

It would be an understatement to say that Susie was less than impressed when she had her cards read last year.  “I thought she was the worst psychic ever,” says Susie recalling the fortune teller’s prediction that the then single mother would completely redecorate her house, a project that she’d already been working on for [...]

Dave and Laura are a funny, sexy and interesting couple living their dream after gut rehabbing an stately old brick home in Wilmette.  You may recognize top-notch Interior Designer Laura from the piece I wrote about her most excellent garage a few months ago (I used to drive by that garage sometimes, but I quit [...]