Damn Ice Dams

Thankfully the warmer weather is finally making its way to New England ~ however slowly!  The downside to the arrival of Spring is that now many thousands of homeowners have to repair the damage that the Winter of 2015 left behind. Miss K, a longtime client of mine (17 years!) is one of these affected homeowners.  We met last week at her home and I saw firsthand the heartbreaking ruin caused by this year’s record-breaking winter.

When I first met Miss K, her 6,000 square foot home was all white: trim, walls and ceilings.  She admitted that she was afraid of color ~ obviously we were meant to work together!   I love color and the more of it the better.  Over the years we have painted, installed 25’ custom built-ins, created draperies for every room and laid beautiful carpets.  I enjoyed every minute of transforming this house into a home which reflected Miss K and her family. It was perfect (well, except for the Dining Room chandelier, but that’s another story).

However, what I saw when I returned to the home last week was not perfect, it was devastating.

This is what I walked into in the Kitchen 

A far cry from this:

The once beautifully faux finished walls by decorative painter Marilyn MacLeod are ruined.

Before:

Now:

And just look at the ceiling

All of this damage was caused by ice dams.  What is an ice dam? An ice dam is a ridge of ice that forms at the edge of a roof and prevents melting of snow (water) from draining off the roof. The water that backs up behind the dam can leak into a home and cause damage to walls , ceilings, insulation and other areas. Damn!

And of course dampness + water = mold 

My client has admitted to going through various emotional stages as she and her family watched buckets placed on the kitchen table fill up with water that came raining down through the light fixture above.  Then there was shoveling the roof, yes there is such a product as a “roof rake”, for the entire month of February and most of March. She has been angry, frustrated, and sad.   She  is now dealing with  insurance adjusters,  contractors, and clean-up crews.  However she is determined to restore her home and I am amazed by her remarkable resiliency!  My task in this recovery is to be positive and tour the house to select new paint colors and to re-create the home that existed before the Winter of 2015.

This is a candid photo of one of the son’s bedrooms. I still love the valances, a seersucker with a polka dot and banding.

Take a peek at the current photo~

Here are a few more spaces, just to demonstrate the extent of the damage…

Another bedroom

The Guest Room

The Office

The Master Bedroom

Not even the Laundry Room escaped damage

I am more than looking forward to getting this home “back to normal” and working with this lovely, strong and brave woman. Believe it or not, Miss K wanted me to select paint colors that are mostly the same as they were in our original design for all of her spaces. This made me feel very proud that the designs we collaborated on together many years ago are standing the test of time. That’s what I call Classic Design.

xo,

Pamela

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