Saturday, June 20, 1998BY MIKE PULFER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The Allantra features a sunken living room.
(Michael E. Keating photos)
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With nine of the 11 houses sold, interior designers at this year's Homearama at the Heritage Club in Mason generally played it safe with comfortable decorating schemes preferred by real families.
Nevertheless, Homearama, the annual showcase for residential architecture, construction, interior design and landscaping, offers some surprises.
Faux-look wall treatments remain in vogue, with some subtle examples that show off advantages of the technique. In particular, a neutral multipattern design with disappearing diamonds on the foyer walls at the Fairway Manor, by Schnicke Co. and Bonnie Albers of Globe Furniture, changes character with the light.
IF YOU GO
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What: Homearama 1998, 11 new homes, furnished and landscaped, priced $455,000-$975,000.
Where: Heritage Club, Mason.
When: 4-11 p.m. weekdays and noon-11 p.m. weekends, through June 28.
Admission: $6, under 12 free.
Directions: from downtown Cincinnati: From Interstate 75, turn east on Tylersville Road,
north on Butler-Warren Road, east on Hamilton-Mason Road and then north on Maxwell Drive. From Interstate 71, turn west on Western Row Road, north on Butler-Warren Road, east on Hamilton-Mason Road and then north on Maxwell Drive.
Information: 851-6300.
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For the dining room walls at the Wilmont by Woodcrest Homes, designers with Lazarus Interior Design Studio came up with royal-blue classical images, such as urns and leafy vines. Leather furniture -- tufted and smooth benches, sofas and chairs -- pop up frequently in home offices, hearth rooms and great rooms. Camel and dark browns are the designers' favorite colors, with an occasional forest-green or burgundy accent on a footstool.
The Charleston, by Hensley Homes, Studer Residential Designs and June Surber and Associates, reflects warm southern living with rough brick interior walls with archways and a staircase with black wrought iron spindles. In the dining room, interior painting specialist Gary Lord depicted the countryside of a Southern plantation.
The owner of the Charleston, Mike Jackson, who supervised construction and interior design, says his goal was to create "a soothing, muted atmosphere."
The bathroom has a built-in television, doorless semi-private shower stall, pewter fixtures and an adjacent room-size "closet."
Other Homearama highlights this year:
The Wilmont's walls feature royal blue classical images.
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Universal design. While many of the homes have features that are attractive to older and disabled occupants (first-floor master bedrooms, higher vanity sinks, multilevel kitchen work surfaces), the Regency III by Amherst Homes is "user-friendly to anyone at any stage of life," says Amherst President Ron Wietzel. Examples: wider doorways and halls, no-step entrance, moveable shower heads, convenient appliance controls.
Hard surfaces: Limestone kitchen and foyer floors, marble and stone fireplaces and granite countertops are found throughout the show. One house, the Allantra, by Daniels Homes and June Surber and Associates, has a poured-concrete 2-inch vanity top in the master bedroom, with a glazed finish.
Coordinated fabrics: Although they hardly ever cover the windows, draperies and blinds show up in rich fabrics. Some could be used as carpeting. Upholstered cornices frequently feature two or more fabrics.
Birck is used on interior walls in The Charleston.
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Bathroom access: If a bedroom doesn't have its own bath, it likely has its own vanity and share a full bath with a nearby bedroom in a so-called "Jack-and-Jill" arrangement. Master baths typically are big enough for a Cadillac.
Lights: Oversize ceiling dish lights, trimmed in pewter, copper and other metals in Homearama homes have given candelabra chandeliers their walking orders.
Accents: There's lots of pottery and lots of metal trim on occasional and cocktail tables, bar stools and chairs. Elements of the African animal kingdom are found in fabrics and on lamp bases and armoire doors. There are Gothic urns and sculpture all over the place.
Wicker and rattan: Look for it in chairs, cocktail tables and beds.
Serious-looking appliances: Stainless steel dominates refrigerators, ovens and dishwashers. Serious cooks will find commercial-type gas cook tops.
