Annie Brahler House Tour

Annie Brahler is a lucky woman.  Not only does she get to live in this gorgeous Beau Arts house in Jacksonville, Illinois, she is also the owner of "Euro Trash," which is a store that provides custom paintings, carpentry and sewing.  I saw pictures of her lovely home about 8 years ago and I was struck by how well she matched the historic formality of her house and the decor.  I would never attempt to decorate my own home this way, it isn't necessarily my style or the style of my house, yet I can appreciate the beauty of what she has created.  There are definitely things that I have learned from her too.

Even though the pieces, in and of themselves, are fancy and formal, the way she arranges them is very modern.  There is a simplicity and restraint.  How beautiful are those arched doors!  

I admire the fact that she was unafraid to paint out the heavy, dark woodwork throughout the house.

Here in the breakfast room it is all about site-lines.  You can see into the kitchen, and the reflectionin the mirror is the entryway: every room flows, there is nothing unexpected to compete for attention.

Even the hallways have little formal, cozy settees.

The formal dining room lives up to the name.  Grand yet comfortable.

This is one of my favorite spaces.  It feels simple and light.
I want a little tree like that in my kitchen, decorated in blue
and white ornaments just like Annie's.

This is my favorite room!  The kitchen is perfect for the house because it doesn't feel jarringly new or contemporary. It is modern but it has an old-fashion warmth.

I like the fact that she has 3 golden retrievers and 3 kids.  The house is truly lived in and loved.

Quite the hall of mirrors, no?

Again, simple and formal

Annie chooses paint colors from old book bindings, and not paint
chips.

The library.  It isn't cluttered so it doesn't distract from the architecture of the room.

 Daughter Isabelle's pretty room

I have learned quite a bit from Annie.  Hope you did too!