From the petite to the palatial, every home tells a story
We’ve all heard the saying “A man’s home is his castle.” The official, slightly less catchy quote is: “the house of every one is to him as his castle and fortress.” It dates all the way back to a legal case from 1604 (hence the sexist language), and it’s about property rights, not design and décor.
Of course, no home in this magazine is an actual castle. But we suspect that several of the properties featured in our second volume feel like castles to their fortunate owners. These folks get to wake up each day in a space created just for them, that suits their lifestyle and expresses their personality.
What a treat it is to be able to usher our readers into these unique spaces. From petite to the palatial, each property in this issue brims over with creativity and innovation.
The homeowners’ personal style shines through in details large and small: the selection and placement of furniture, the species planted in the yard, the art and decorative items that adorn the spaces. It all adds up to the story that a house tells about the people who live there.
Sometimes, those people are the ones who built the home—over a period of months or even years. Or they may have had a substantial hand in the design and construction. At the very least, they made hundreds or thousands of decisions during the process of bringing their place to life. Creating a castle takes vision, focus, and determination.
It also takes collaboration. In her story, “Building Basecamp,” Everest MacDonald refers to “the many authors” of her mountain cabin. What an apt metaphor. From sketching out preliminary ideas right through to final inspection, each chapter in a build has been written by not only the homeowners themselves, but by the architects, engineers, builders, contractors, landscapers, tradespeople, designers, and more (not to mention friends and family members) who shared their insights, skills, labour, and expertise.
As you peruse these pages, perhaps you’ll find ideas that you can implement in your own home. Whether it’s the concept of buying affordable art that you love, trying out a bold colour that pops from one of the pages, planting a lovely native species, or using old materials in new ways, there are ways for you to tell your own story in the place where you live.
This second volume of Nest, like every ROAM publication, is a celebration of creativity and collaboration. To the talented photographers and writers who contributed their work, and to the businesses whose support made it possible: thank you. We couldn’t do it without you. And to you, our readers: The castle tour is about to start. Come on in!
