THE REAL PARADE OF HOMES IN THE TRIANGLE
The Parade of Homes is a chance for home designers and builders to showcase the latest and greatest constructed throughout the Triangle each year. It’s also a chance for the public to ooh and ahh over special features, high-end design elements, and Gold Ribbon winners. All the side prep kitchens, gorgeous lucite fixtures, and sunken fire pit lounges in the pool beg the question, “Does someone really get to live here?” Suddenly your little slice of Raleigh feels a bit...meh.
Well, we can’t have that. Not in the month of thankfulness and gratefulness. So OTL asked friends around the Triangle to submit a special feature that makes their own home a Gold Ribbon Winner.
This is the real Parade of Homes (no blue booties required).
“The view from our A-frame window in the family room is by far my favorite feature. It makes us feel like we are in the mountains. Every season offers a beautiful view, but the best is when it snows. And because of the high ceiling, we can get a big Christmas tree and it always looks great by the window.”
“My screened porch is my favorite sweet spot in our home as it adds life to our not-so-huge lot and gives it a big personality. It’s a livable and charming space brought to life by family and friends, a glass of wine, a ball game on the TV and our wall monkey to bring a smile and fun conversation. The tongue and groove ceiling and black doors add to the coziness to make it a place we love.”
“The Kids’ Activity Table: We call it that, but it’s more our everything-but-eating table. This is our go-to place to draw, craft, decorate cookies, make messes, do homework, and make memories! It changes with the seasons, the holidays and morphs as the kids grow and interests change. During Christmas, it’s overflowing with Christmas drawings and crafts on the windows and walls surrounding it. It’s more a reflection of our lives and I love this space. The table is normally filled with papers, markers, glue, tape, and scissors, but cleaning it up was a nice reminder that’s it’s a nice space for me too.”
“My favorite spot in my house that I couldn’t live without is my screened porch. It has a warmth and coziness to it that makes for such an inviting atmosphere year-round.”
“We built our home almost 2 years ago and it has many special features and qualities unique to us because we designed it ourselves. When I take a minute to think of something that makes it extra special, I picture the view from our bathroom at night. We chose to vault our bathroom ceilings and it looks out (perfectly centered) onto the most beautiful oak tree that has surely been around longer than any of us. When I see that view at night I know I am home and I am very thankful for my little piece of dirt in Raleigh.”
“Instead of built-in shelves next to our fireplace, we used old antique doors and made the space into closets. One is a wine closet with a wine fridge, and one is a craft closet with the overflow of wrapping and scrapbook items. The two doors do not match, which is probably my favorite part, they have the old crystal knobs, and are shorter than every other door in our home so they had to be framed out just for these doors specifically. The doors came from a 200-yr old church in Virginia, and I have yet to see it in another home which is what makes me love it the most!”
“My favorite part of my house is our open-concept first floor. Especially now when the kids are happily chasing each other when I’m cooking, and they do laps through the kitchen, breakfast nook, foyer, dining room and back past me in the kitchen...their squeals and laughter make my heart so full.”
“Our screened porch showcases our private, wooded lot perfectly. The porch is our 2nd dining room, game room, and the occasional outdoor office space. The EZ breeze windows (a happy mistake on behalf of our contractor) allow us to use the porch more months of the year, and most importantly, keep the pollen at bay in the spring!”
BOTTOM LINE: Find something to love about your home, and it will love you back.
