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Two Cooks & a Cottage

Photography Margaret WrightPhotos 15Issue FEBRUARY 2019
Jacques and Carrie Larson’s West Ashley home looks contemporary from the curb, but it’s filled with meaningful pieces from the past and present, like this pomegranate still-life by Carrie, needlepoints by Jacques’s grandmother, and a red clog carved by his great-grandfather.Jacques and Carrie Larson, pictured here with six-year-old son Jack and pups Lily Bean and Maggie Mayhem, hired Alicia Reed of Reggie Gibson Architects to help them transform their West Ashley cottage into a modern home perfect for the way their family lives and eats. Much of the landscape is devoted to edible plants, including an olive treeA Meyer lemonFAMILY HEIRLOOMS: In the living room, a mid-century vibe reigns thanks to a Herman Miller coffee table and Eames chair, both hand-me-downs from Jacques’s father. The umbrella plant behind the couch is also a family keepsake: after nurturing it for more than 40 years, Carrie’s father passed it down to her for safekeeping.Crafted by local carpenter and friend Dan Perrin of Perrin Woodworking, this custom media console echoes the look and feel of a mantel.BEST SEAT IN THE HOUSE: The renovated kitchen is too small for a proper island, but no matter: a walnut bar fabricated by a close family friend delivers similar functionality. “This has become probably my favorite part of the house,” Jacques says. “It’s a great place for less formal meals or catching up while one of us is cooking.”Two Cooks & a CottageWHERE THE MAGIC HAPPENS: Thanks to the removal of a wall between the kitchen and living room, cooking for guests is no longer claustrophobic. The refreshed space makes good use of local materials, including the faucet from Molufs and painted concrete backsplash from Palmetto Tile. “Tile can really make a space without being too distracting,” Carrie notes. Quartzite countertops, flat-face cabinets, and hardware from Anthropologie add to the clean look, while a rotating display of objects provides the finishing touch. “We love the open shelves, and I find I’m always rearranging and shuffling things around; it is really inspiring to see fresh produce and artwork in the kitchen,” she continues.Two Cooks & a CottageMIX, MASTERED: In the couple’s bedroom, a hand-me-down rug helps establish a color palette of earthy neutrals and olive greens; black accents, such as the sconce by Workstead, keep things grounded.In the master bath, contemporary mirrors from Hausful commingle with antique sconces for a look that’s both vintage and modern.PERSONAL TOUCHES: Portraits of jazz greats Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie, painted by Jacques himself; above the cabinet is a portrait of a farm once owned by Jacques’s family, framed in wood from the very barn that’s pictured.PRIME PERCH: Just off the back deck, an angular screened-in porch makes the most of the triangular lot; its tin roof adds an industrial touch that feels perfectly in step with the rest of the modern-minded renovation. “I’m so glad we made the screened-in porch happen: I love being outside, but the no-seeums drive me nuts,” Jacques says. “There’s nothing better than sitting on the couch outside, listening to the wind blow, birds sing, and children playing in the neighborhood.”Two Cooks & a CottageHOMEGROWN: Carrie, who coordinates Lowcountry Local First’s Growing New Farmers Program by day, enjoys cultivating food for her own family at home. She and Jacques worked with Ables Landscapes to install raised corten steel beds filled with lettuces and other seasonal produce items.

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