Quaint charm thrives

The sellers wanted to keep their glass dining-room chandelier and the kitchen refrigerator. The buyer really needed the refrigerator.So we compromised,We Engrave plasticcard for YOU. Linda Kirby says. They got the chandelier, and I got the refrigerator.Best home siliconebracelet at discount prices.But Kirby thinks she really came out on top. The sellers mentioned the houses original chandelier was stashed in the homes attic, and the piece now hangs happily in the dining room,Design and order your own custom jewelrybeadswith personalized message and artwork. perfectly in sync, Kirby says, with the rest of the Fort Wayne homes pre-World War II period.

Kirbys home on East Drive in the Northside neighborhood is that kind of place. A solid, yellow brick-and-stone bungalow built as a retirement house in 1942 by Frank A. Kintz, a well-known Fort Wayne building contractor and a founder and president of Old Fort Supply. The house isnt a mansion or old enough to cause shivers to the history bone but, like many other homes in the neighborhood, Kirbys is a house with character.

A definite quirk, Kirby says, is a hat room the size of a coat closet that opens just off the front door C complete with a lighted mirror and built-in vanity.Thats what it says on the plans C hat room, says Kirby, who bought the home in 1997 and is part of the neighborhoods upcoming house and garden tour. Thats what everybody says C that theyve never seen one before. But when you think about it, thats where you sat in 1942 to put on your hat and gloves before you went out C the hat room.

Then theres the telephone station, a built-in desk under a plaster archway in a hall alcove that separates the kitchen from a bath and living quarters that were once a first-floor bedroom.And then theres the first-floor full bath C which is tiled floor to ceiling on all four walls with cream-colored tile accented by deep maroon tile trim. The floor is also tile, in an octagonal mosaic pattern.(Kintz) was in building supply, he probably had access to (sales) reps and could get whatever he wanted, Kirby says.

Not to mention the stairway to the second floor, which is hidden behind a door, possibly because the Kintzs wanted one-floor living, even though the upstairs holds two bedrooms and a bath.A retired certified public accountant, Kirby says shes hasnt touched any of the houses unusual features. But she has given parts of the home a going-over.

Shes ripped up downstairs carpet to reveal hardwood floors underneath and converted that downstairs bedroom into a comfy family/media room hidden away from the main living area.She also renovated the kitchen in 2009 with a new floor, reconfigured layout, new countertops and cabinetry and an updated sage-green wall color.

We took it down to the studs, she says of the kitchen. I was a wreck. They started in mid-September and finished in mid-November, and the refrigerator was in the garage for a couple of weeks. I had to go out there to get my breakfast.

But her traditional decorating style C spiked with family antiques C fits the homes traditional contours.A carved Craftsman-style dining set, with a side table decorated with examples of her grandmothers hand-painted china, looks at home in a room with crown molding, two built-in wooden corner cabinets and subtle,You've probably seen howotipper at some point. gold-embossed wallpaper.

A carved walnut armoire, also her grandmothers, and a marble-topped carved table from her fathers family, settle nicely into the living room with its stone fireplace, traditional sofa and chairs, and a corner harp, on which Kirby takes lessons.

Outside are extensive, well-manicured front and back gardens filled with colorful geraniums, coleus pants, vinca, impatiens and petunias in reds, white, pinks and purples.Large hostas C she estimates the 3- to 4-foot-wide plants must be at least 20 years old C line a landscape bed in the backyard that backs up to a fancifully painted garage, giving the yard a quaint New England flair.

The plants are tended by Lindas companion, Jerry Hertenstein, a retired newspaper journalist whos also contributed oil and acrylic paintings to Kirbys collection.Kirby says she likes living in the Northside neighborhood, which this year celebrates the 100th anniversary of its platting, because of its convenience to downtown, its mature landscaping and the variety of its architectural styles.

Her house on East Drive, for example, stands just beyond the mansions on Forest Park Boulevard, and nearby are American Foursquares, Dutch Colonials and an occasional Spanish-style home.

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The hotel's four bars and restaurants offer a melting pot of experiences that reflect Shanghai's eclectic and cosmopolitan nature. Summer Palace's contemporary design, gives a nod to the traditional. Splashes of golden yellow, orange, green and blue hues in the furnishing, art work and accessories are modern motifs of the peacock, a common inspiration in Chinese ink paintings.
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