From House To Home

I‘ve always had this thing for Chinese pagodas. I think it started when I first saw the waterfront, Oriental-style house not far from my family’s home in New Jersey. From its delicately upturned corner roof peaks to its manicured Zen garden to the white pebble driveway, I was simply stunned by its presence—this exotic structure sandwiched between what was probably a couple of modest Cape Cods. It was stained a light color with blue trim and looked at once completely out of place and right at home in the neighborhood. I imagined the owners were sophisticated globe-trotters who couldn’t care less about what the neighbors thought. I knew I wanted to live like that.

While I don’t currently reside in a pagoda, I think the existence of that house ignited my penchant for theatrical decor. As a kid, I would sketch ideas for houses my father might someday build for me—ranging from miniature, Transylvania-style castles to circular structures I inexplicably decided should be placed in the middle of the woods. When I was told my rudimentary blueprints were unrealistic, I would think of the pagoda house—surely built not by idealistic children but by adults—and held onto my whimsical notions of the perfect real estate.

When I grew up and embarked on furnishing each new apartment, it became clear that I simply could not be subtle with a theme. I once lined all the walls of my 350-square-foot space with dozens of white birch branches, offset with white and silver furniture and accessories. When it earned the nickname “space forest,” I couldn’t have been more pleased. But for all my interest in the futuristic side of things, I nonetheless continually acquired items with an oriental bent. A Thai Buddha, rice paper screen, and 4-foot jewelry chest that resembled a pagoda always found their place among the egg chairs and ‘60s plastic lamps.

Now that I live in a new house, I’ve been looking for pieces of furniture that will complement both my husband’s and my style, which as anyone with a spouse knows, isn’t easy. After fruitlessly endeavoring to find an entertainment center that was actually appealing to the eye, I went online and found the perfect solution—a custom-made, red lacquer pagoda. When I thought about it, I realized why I was so attracted to the style after all these years: it’s at once classic and modern, edgy yet somehow complementary to other elements in the home. And for me, those graceful, upturned lines still evoke that same desire to live creatively, if on a slightly smaller scale.