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CANTON -- When Natick designer Laurie Gorelick took her first look at Prowse Farm, she decided not to go for the most prominent room, or the showiest setting.
Gorelick wanted a small space with big impact, and she found it at Prowse in, of all places, the butler's pantry.
"It's kind of a vintage room -- most homes aren't built with them anymore," said Gorelick, one of 21 designers featured in this year's Junior League of Boston's Decorators' Show House, set at the historic former horse farm. "I was drawn to the pedigree of the butler's pantry, drawn to the fabric. This was a room that was almost like designing a kitchen, in a way, but without all the fixtures."
Gorelick made liberal use of greens, highlighting the glassed-in shelving with funky polka-dotted china to bring a whimsical touch to the small area.
"A lot of the upfront cost of doing the design is bourne by the designer," Gorelick explained. "It's less expensive if you don't have to purchase the furniture, because you don't know if you're going to recoup your costs.
"But it's worth it," she added. "It's an interesting experience."
This marks the 33rd year of the Junior League of Boston's annual Decorators' Show House, one of the organization's primary fund-raisers featuring over 25 decorated interiors and exteriors. This year's choice of Prowse Farm highlights a home with roots in Colonial and equestrian history.
Prowse Farm was the site of the Doty Tavern, where the Suffolk Resolves were drawn up by colonists to be taken by Paul Revere to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, where they became the basis for the Declaration of Independence. Over 100 years later, the land was purchased by millionaire J. Malcolm Forbes, who used it to breed and train Standardbred horses.
The house decorated by the Junior League was built by General Francis Peabody, a member of the prominent family after which the city of Peabody was named and a horse lover in his own right. The property dwindled in size over the years, with parts taken by eminent domain for the construction of Rte. 128 and the Ponkapoag Golf Course, and is now owned by Meditech, which has office buildings on the property, and managed by the Friends of Prowse Farm.
"A lot of the designers were inspired by the farm's equestrian history as well as the setting itself," said Ann Benning, president of the Junior League of Boston.
CANTON -- When Natick designer Laurie Gorelick took her first look at Prowse Farm, she decided not to go for the most prominent room, or the showiest setting.
Gorelick wanted a small space with big impact, and she found it at Prowse in, of all places, the butler's pantry.
"It's kind of a vintage room -- most homes aren't built with them anymore," said Gorelick, one of 21 designers featured in this year's Junior League of Boston's Decorators' Show House, set at the historic former horse farm. "I was drawn to the pedigree of the butler's pantry, drawn to the fabric. This was a room that was almost like designing a kitchen, in a way, but without all the fixtures."
Gorelick made liberal use of greens, highlighting the glassed-in shelving with funky polka-dotted china to bring a whimsical touch to the small area.
"A lot of the upfront cost of doing the design is bourne by the designer," Gorelick explained. "It's less expensive if you don't have to purchase the furniture, because you don't know if you're going to recoup your costs.
"But it's worth it," she added. "It's an interesting experience."
This marks the 33rd year of the Junior League of Boston's annual Decorators' Show House, one of the organization's primary fund-raisers featuring over 25 decorated interiors and exteriors. This year's choice of Prowse Farm highlights a home with roots in Colonial and equestrian history.
Prowse Farm was the site of the Doty Tavern, where the Suffolk Resolves were drawn up by colonists to be taken by Paul Revere to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, where they became the basis for the Declaration of Independence. Over 100 years later, the land was purchased by millionaire J. Malcolm Forbes, who used it to breed and train Standardbred horses.
The house decorated by the Junior League was built by General Francis Peabody, a member of the prominent family after which the city of Peabody was named and a horse lover in his own right. The property dwindled in size over the years, with parts taken by eminent domain for the construction of Rte. 128 and the Ponkapoag Golf Course, and is now owned by Meditech, which has office buildings on the property, and managed by the Friends of Prowse Farm.
"A lot of the designers were inspired by the farm's equestrian history as well as the setting itself," said Ann Benning, president of the Junior League of Boston.
MetroWest designers are prominently featured in the show house, and the work of two in particular are hard to miss: A Blade of Grass, a Wayland firm, designed the area around the front porch and grounds, and Weston Nurseries of Hopkinton designed the landscape around the side porch.
The Junior League took possession of the home on Feb. 1 but designers got a glimpse inside and submitted their proposals last fall. The past few weeks have seen a flurry of work as walls were stripped, painted and wallpapered, window treatments were hung and all types of furniture and decorative elements were made "just so" before opening to the public.
"The house was actually in such good shape the designers didn't have to make any structural changes," said Krys Niklarz, co-chairman for the show house along with Medway resident Laura Sjosten.
Designers may submit proposals for up to three rooms, with most enclosing fabric swatches, paint samples and sketches. Janet Gaffey of Santini & Co., a Concord firm, went one better: her bedroom, "Alexandra's Room," has a theme and a story.
"It's always nice to have somebody in mind to design for," Gaffey said. "I did a composite of people I've met -- my own daughters who are grown now...people with grown children who have gone away. As an empty-nest parent myself, I thought, 'How would I get them to come back?' So I designed this room with that in mind, not that I've done it myself."
The room mixes floral elements with modern touches such as a tech-lighting piece over a reading chair. The daybed has a welcoming canopy, a portrait on the wall suggests a possible owner and Chanel cosmetics, as well as designer clothes draped casually over a chair, suggest that the child of the family has grown to have expensive tastes -- but is still a blue-jeans girl at heart.
"Some years there are a lot of styles that don't go together...but this year there's a flow," Gaffey said. "And what I've noticed is some years there's a lot of tulle, some years there will be a lot of beige and this year, there seemed to be a lot of sisal."
Many of the items in the rooms are for sale, with price lists posted on the walls. Not everything is up for grabs, however; while some items are from the designers' own collections or on loan from clients, one item in particular was made for the house and will stay.
"The table for the dining room was custom-made for the room and will remain there," Niklarz said.
The Junior League of Boston Decorators' Show House at Prowse Farm, 5 Blue Hill River Road, Canton, is open through Thursday, May 26, Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6 to 9 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Advance general admission tickets are $20 per person, tickets are available at the Show House for $25 per person. Due to insurance regulations, children under 8, including infants in arms, are not permitted to tour the Show House. For information, call 617-536-9640 or visit www.jlboston.org.
