Kasie DiNella knew her clients’ home in Greenland, New Hampshire, must absolutely withstand wear and tear. The family has three kids, two dogs, and three cats, after all. Still the furnishings needed to reflect their contemporary taste. “They live rough but they wanted it to look polished, too,” the principal designer of Mend Interiors says. In addition, they cared a lot about sustainability.
DiNella created a first-floor scheme that covered all the bases. The furnishings are durable and comfortable, and include a number of handmade pieces by smaller makers. “We prioritized investing in pieces that get a lot of use and feature prominently in the design,” she says. “They were interested in the process and knowing where things came from; certain pieces have a story.”
The couple favors blues and greens, which DiNella paired with light and medium wood tones. These preferences and the fact that they’re an adventurous, outdoorsy family informed the nature-based theme, which also ties to the idea of sustainability and the leafy view. Plus, it allowed DiNella to work with the existing floor color rather than fighting against it. “The main wood is oak, then we pulled in rusts and caramels that are complementary to blue and add warmth,” she says.
In the entry, DiNella pulls the tawny color of the floor onto the wall with an organic-shaped mirror that reflects the greenery and light from the living room windows. It hangs over an open console table that replaced a bulky, closed cabinet. A navy, stained wood lamp by Rhode Island–based O&G Studio and upholstered stool by Boston-based Thayer Design Studio enriches the statement-making tableau. “There’s also a mudroom, so this didn’t have to work too hard,” DiNella says.
With windows on three sides, the living room is filled with light. DiNella amped up the glow by outfitting the space with neutral pieces in clean lines that keep sightlines clear, an important consideration in an open concept layout. The sectional is upholstered in performance fabric and deep enough to be comfortable without overtaking the room. The break faces the back window so it’s not visible from the dining area and kitchen. The focal point? The commissioned coastal landscape by New England–based artist Emma Ashby hanging on the ledgestone chimney.
Furniture Concepts in Malden made the ottoman, which is firm enough to double as a coffee table. The blue powder-coated metal frame matches the kitchen cabinets, and the tweedy Sien + Co. upholstery subtly incorporates the color, too. “It’s an outdoor fabric, but you’d never know it,” DiNella says. “Good thing, because the dog uses it as a bed!” Chairs with airy black frames and leather cushions round out the seating area, and a credenza handmade from rift-sawn white oak planks by New Orleans–based Doorman Designs stands behind them. The piece stores board games and displays a jade plant close to the couple’s heart. “Their teenage daughter planted it in kindergarten,” DiNella says.
On the other side of the sectional, dining chairs and a backless bench by Maine maker Kyle Kidwell surrounds a simple white oak dining table that nestles into a sunny bay. “The family makes a lot of memories around the dinner table, so it made sense to invest in beautifully crafted pieces,” DiNella says. The paler wood keeps the center of the space from feeling bogged down, and the bench offers flexibility in joining conversation in the seating area. A leather-wrapped linear chandelier with a central arc anchors the ensemble. From the entry, the light leads the eye out the window, while from the kitchen it’s an attention-grabbing sculpture.
In the kitchen, the couple tasked DiNella with finding more storage and sprucing up the aesthetic without starting from scratch. Her solution for corralling dry goods was to replace the upper and base cabinets to the right of the refrigerator with pantry tower cabinets. The tower is flush with the refrigerator, capturing extra depth as well as vertical storage with roll-out shelves. A dusky blue stain differentiates the new section, lending a modern, color-block effect. “We used the same semi-custom brand to ensure the style and finish would be consistent,” DiNella explains.
DiNella also reworked the island, enlarging the countertop, now a stunning blue-veined quartzite, to increase prep space and bestow a more finished feel than the original cantilevered quartz countertop. It also draws the eye toward the new pantry cabinetry, helping to blend the new design features with the original. New Lostine pendants with maple shades, spaced farther apart to distribute light more evenly over the island top, carries wood into the kitchen. As for the new backsplash, Ann Sacks tiles crafted by Japanese artisans have blue-green edges that tie to the new cabinets while the stacked installation injects modern edge.
A textural, mixed media work by Élan Byrd, a bicoastal artist that DiNella discovered during the Black Lives Matter movement and who has since participated in some high-profile collaborations, turns the small wall into a compelling moment. Finally, on the adjacent ledgestone wall, DiNella arranged an array of family photos. “They’re a very sentimental family,” she says. “We love to celebrate that.”
Learn more about the project team
Interior design: Mend Interiors
Contractor: Riverview Construction