Old Academy Road and Elm Street, Fairfield, Connecticut
(I couldn't decide which watercolor I liked better, so I gave you both.)
There's something to be said for serendipity. I was looking up "pantry potting rooms" for a possible post, and Google thought I might like this house on Old Academy Road in Fairfield, Connecticut.
Google was right. I do like this house. It was built in 1853 and has 6 bedrooms and 7 bathrooms in 7,316 square feet. (Update: there are now more listing photos and a video tour here.) It doesn't have a "pantry potting room," but its magazine-worthy interiors more than make up for that.
It also didn't have a room that I would change if it were mine, which led me to find this Fairfield house 7 minutes away:
It was built in 1950 and has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms in 1,684 square feet.
It also has this clean and bright living room...
...that would be fun to freshen up like this:
{Meg Braff, via}
Even though some of the rooms need updating, this house has a lot of potential.
Love that Marimekko bedspread. (You can buy it here.) It's what led me to pair the house with a Meg Braff design, because she has a similar style.
Wonder if Meg would consider a design like this bathroom wallpaper for her next wallpaper line? It's certainly memorable.
Another feature that this house has is a flagstone patio surrounded by trees.
I would want it to look more like this:
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...because it's one thing it has in common with the larger Fairfield house:
These houses left me a little short on history this week. The only historical document I uncovered for the 1950 house was a fax about removing its old boiler. As for the larger house on Old Academy Road, at least I found out the origin of "Old Academy":
{source}
It opened as a school in 1804 and also served as a library and town meeting place. It's been moved from the original location, but still serves as a meeting place with occasional tours.
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With finds like these, maybe I should search for "pantry potting rooms" more often.
