With snow showers reportedly en route here in New England again soon, architect Sergio Lopez-Piñeiro's essay in Design Observer about the architectural potential of snow got me thinking.  He writes, "Few architects and urban planners have considered the aesthetic, spatial or ambient qualities of the accumulation, organization and distribution of snow..."  How true.  Why not sculpt with design intent the snow covering our cities, villages, and neighborhoods?  Lopez-Piñeiro's slideshow captures the unintentional artistry of snow-plowed parking lots in Buffalo, New York. 

Imagine if we shaped the snow in our backyards, patios, or driveways to create inspired winter designs viewed from within our homes and experienced outside them.  Winter snow gardens are a largely untapped home-design opportunity.  Sounds like an idea that might appeal to the inner child within us all.  Let it snow.  Let it snow.  Let it snow.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast  

Click on this photo to see it in the KHS photo note cards/prints gallery.Some folks have visions of sugar plums as the holidays draw near.  My visions tend more toward New England’s vernacular barns, boat houses, sheds, and folk houses surrounded by snow.  With this winter photo of a favorite Connecticut tobacco barn, I wish you all a warm and hearty holiday season.  Cheers.

by Katie Hutchison for the House Enthusiast

Now that we’re well into fireplace (and Santa) season, I’ve got chimneys on my mind.  Often the most we see of a chimney is the three feet or so which extends above a roof top.  End chimneys, however, can have a larger impact.  This brick chimney with stone and ceramic accents is a standout.

It carves a unique silhouette with two primary tapers below the eave line and two subtle tapers toward the cap.  The unusual mix of material and color, coupled with the unique arrangement of components, teases our curiosity.  What is meant to occupy the herringbone niche at second-floor level?  What is the meaning of echoing the herringbone pattern above the niche?  How do we explain the placement of the stone elements?

This chimney seems to be telling a story.  Perhaps the two solitary rocks are eyes in an upside-down face, featuring a niche nose and ceramic “o” mouth above a herringbone goatee.  Or perhaps I’ve seen too many of those smiley-face Amex ads.

Whatever its story, this chimney reveals the human hand and spirit at work embellishing and communicating through abstraction.  It’s an imaginative, compelling expression.  If only more chimneys exhibited such exuberance.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

Don't miss Patti Moreno, Roxbury's "Garden Girl", speaking about urban gardening and sustainability on December 16, 6:00 pm at the Boston Public Library's Rabb Hall as part of the Boston Society of Architects Exploring Design free lecture series. 

Patti can be found on GardenGirlTV.com and in her ezine Urban Sustainable Living promoting back-to-basics sustainable gardening, farming, and homemaking practices for the city and suburbs.  For me, to be a house enthusiast is to be a garden enthusiast.  Each contributes to the other, much as my mother's in-town house and garden do.  If you haven't the time or opportunity to attend the Boston Public Library event, check out Patti's online offerings.  You'll find plenty of food for thought.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

KHS Photography is happy to be part of the Salem Open Studios tour this year.  The event is Saturday, December 12 from 10:00 am-6:00 pm and features 26 artists at 17 locations.  Print out the event map and explore the work and spaces of Salem's creative community.  I'll have framed and matted prints plus note cards available for purchase, a fire in the hearth, and the door to my loft studio in the c. 1768 Captain Edward Allen house open.  Tell a friend and drop by.