Beauty on a budget: Spiffed-up hand-me-downs and a little ingenuity bring a whole lot of pretty to a young couple’s first nest, in Belmont.
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Photograph by Michael J. Lee
A former porch now serves as cheery dining space off the living room of Bill Springer and Caroline McCabe Springer’s Belmont home.
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Photograph by Michael J. Lee
Caroline and her young son read together in the living room, where reupholstered and new pieces blend beautifully.
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Photograph by Michael J. Lee
A leopard-print ottoman and Tibetan rug brighten the family room.
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Photograph by Michael J. Lee
Melrose-based interior designer Ana Donohue had Caroline’s grandmother’s easy chairs reupholstered in a fabric with an Indian sensibility, chosen to reflect the couple’s love of travel. For the sofa, also a hand-me-down, she picked a coordinating neutral with textural dots. On top she layered bright pillows trimmed in colors pulled from the oil painting over the mantel. The painting is the work of B. Prabha, one of India’s first widely known female contemporary artists. Caroline’s father purchased the piece while a student in the country in the 1960s. “It has such a cool vibe,” Donohue says, “and the scale is perfect.”
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Photograph by Michael J. Lee
The master bedroom is a study in dark color done right.
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Photograph by Michael J. Lee
For 10 years, Bill Springer lived just around the corner from the home he and his wife would share. He could even see it out his window, though he never really took note of it. Turned out, despite its initial unremarkability, the house had serious potential. “We loved the amount of light that streamed in all day,” says Caroline.
