City View: History Meets Modern Tastes at St. Louis

St. Louis designers want you to know that while their town has a long, rich history, they are not stuck somewhere back in time. “St. Louis is a centuries-old, preindustrial town with impressive layers of architectural background,” says Toby Weiss of Mosby Building Arts, “but with age comes confidence and security regarding who you are, which enables St. Louisans to be daring in their layout saying.”

For people who have a flyover-state attitude toward St. Louis, the town’s architecture and perspectives will surprise you. Residents treat their background as a living, breathing thing, celebrating it while layering their own marks upon it. Here’s a look at the numerous layers of design at St. Louis.

The Cultural Landscape Foundation

French explorers settled in the 1600s in the area, and it was acquired by the United States in 1803 as part of the Louisiana Purchase. Since it turned out to be a significant north–south trading post along the Mississippi River and also the gateway to the West, many traders and adventuresome frontier families ceased and settled in this geographic nexus, bringing a mixture of cultures and ideas together in the middle of the country.

Eero Saarinen’s iconic Gateway Arch is a fitting emblem for the town, a stunning modern feat of engineering soaring over a town that adopts its long history and traditions while looking to the future. Additionally, it marks the town’s unique place at the U.S., where North meets South and East meets West.

Inc, Grand Home Solutions

“St. Louis was founded as a French trading post, and that legacy is very evident through the city’s architecture, especially in the fleurs-de-lis seen in wood, stained glass, iron, brick and rock in countless houses,” states Adam Bulla of Grand Home Solutions. “However, as the gateway to the West, St. Louis became house to get big Irish, Italian and German communities, all people who have added their own different flair to the underlying French motifs.”

Karr Bick Kitchen and Bath

“We have a great background in St. Louis, as well as background comes historical architecture and houses with character and age,” says interior designer Jennifer Rausch of Karr Bick Kitchen and Bath. “Working with elderly structures necessitates a certain amount of imagination and mastery of mixing old and new in a way that does not betray the base and character of these spaces”

Karr Bick Kitchen and Bath

Rausch points out that a lot of 100-plus-year-old houses in St. Louis have first kitchens assembled during an era when servants were the only men and women who used them they were small, cramped and split into tiny spaces from walls. Her work transforms such areas into manageable household kitchens while respecting the design. “Wonderful in detail, bright and happy — now that is my St. Louis!” She states.

Karr Bick Kitchen and Bath

Joni Spear Interior Design

Interior designer Joni Spear’s work celebrates the historical architecture whilst updating the interiors for her customers’ lifestyles. By way of example, many of the older houses she works on have beautiful original leaded glass windows like these.

Joni Spear Interior Design

St. Louis is a town full of sophisticated people and top-notch cultural associations, Spear says. “St. Louis is a prosperous hub for the plant and medical science industries — 19 of the nation’s Fortune 100 firms are headquartered here, there are 25 universities, and there are high schools that rank in the top 10 nationally,” she states. “Cultural institutions abound, and my customers are highly educated and well traveled.”

She created the art deco toilet shown here in a Victorian house’s new addition. It is a fantastic illustration of layering and mixing different historical eras, as so much of the town’s architecture does.

Watch more of the glamorous master bathroom

Mosby Building Arts

In this house the historical elements like trimwork and stained glass windows mingle with contemporary furnishings. “Crafting thoroughly modern environments inside historical shells is a standard practice for urbane homeowners at the Central West End,” Weiss says.

Inc, Grand Home Solutions

“Our clients are looking forward to the opportunity to own and live in a gorgeous piece of background, while being able to enjoy modern conveniences,” states Bulla, whose company specializes in restoring failed late-19th- and – early-20th-century houses to their former stately glory, while incorporating upgraded touches for contemporary life.

Inc, Grand Home Solutions

Adapting historic houses to suit clients’ contemporary needs while preserving charming details increases the allure of life in town. “There is an influx of people moving out of the suburbs to gorgeous historic houses closer to the center of the town,” Bulla states. “This migration is bringing fresh life to hundreds of beautiful homes throughout the city.” This movement has revived communities that had been on a slow decrease.

Mosby Building Arts

This addition to a 100-plus-year-old house in the hip Central West End fits right in while incorporating 21st-century relaxation and technologies.

Poynter Landscape Architecture & Construction

“Eating out and St. Louis summers go together like Cardinals baseball and the Arch,” says landscape designer Richard Poynter. Thoughtful landscaping entails providing relief from summertime warm temperatures and sunlight. Poynter finds that pergolas combined with outdoor fans have become a popular approach to mitigate the sometimes brutal summer temperatures and keep away the bugs.

Mosby Building Arts

“The St. Louis climate accommodates eight to nine great months of outdoor living, making it a town that likes to party by the swimming pool,” Weiss says.

Nowadays many St. Louisans embrace relaxed Belgian design and patinated style. “A trend that’s on the rise in St. Louis is the use of natural fibers and textures using a soft colour palette of neutrals, whites and blues,” says interior designer Amy Studebaker.

Amy Studebaker Design

This colour and texture palette is an elegant selection for those who prefer design. “Many of my customers are wanting to utilize jute rugs on the ground, grass fabric over the walls and sheets on the furniture. I love this look, as it is restful to the eye,” Studebaker states.

S&K Interiors

“A move toward contemporary and contemporary design is a trend that’s definitely on the rise in St. Louis,” says Shirley Strom, interior designer and owner of S&K Interiors. Her firm has specialized in contemporary and modern design since 1998, and she finds it is no more the lonely job it once was. “In the last several years, we have been shocked to see that the rapid movement toward contemporary design,” she says.

S&K Interiors

Strom notes that both young adults and their parents are embracing contemporary and contemporary design. “Empty nesters are getting rid of their swags, tassels and overstuffed furniture and looking for clean, streamlined and colorful decor,” she states.

S&K Interiors

Those empty nesters’ adult children designing their first houses are also looking to abandon the custom they grew up with. “They need a youthful, fun contemporary look in their houses,” Strom says.

Are there any misconceptions regarding design in your hometown? Do tell, and fix them in the Comments section.

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