Gutting a House in New Orleans

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As Home’s senior decorating editor, I spend many hours looking at furnishings, thinking about what goes well together, and selecting the best of the best for the magazine. So it was a disturbing but moving experience for me to walk into the house of a stranger, whom I will call Melissa, and throw out all the things that made her dwelling a home.

This happened two months ago, when I was in New Orleans to assist with the post-Katrina cleanup. Even though it had been a year and a half since the hurricane had caused the city’s levees to breach, much remained to be done. Our 50-person group of volunteers was there working with the national non-profit Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN); during our five-day stay we tackled a variety of projects. I chose to help gut houses that had been damaged by the flood.

Gutting houses doesn’t provide the satisfaction that building them does, but it is a necessary first step for those who hope to return and rebuild; it also must be done in order to avoid having a home and property deemed abandoned by city officials. In the hardest-hit zones, such as Melissa’s Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood, many of the former residents—having relocated to far-flung places—cannot afford to make the trip back to do the work themselves. And while water, electricity, and gas services have been restored to numerous areas, few stores and businesses have reopened, making it difficult for those without cars to access groceries and other staples.

A Painter’s View of Home

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A home can mean many things. Some people see it as a refuge that offers protection from the elements, others feel it's a place to enjoy a meal with family and friends, and even others use it as a space to express themselves and their personalities. For Chuck Connelly, it is what and where he paints.

For East Oak Lane, his recent show at DFN Gallery in New York City, Connelly exhibited canvases of the interior of his North Philadelphia house and the exteriors of neighboring residences. Rendered in thick brush strokes and richly colored oils, the paintings document his decor and his singular obsession—his art. In his house and in his work, his canvases are everywhere: stacked against the walls, leaning on the fireplace, and even framing the edge of the bathroom door.

Connelly complains his home has too many windows and not enough wall space. He moved to the 115-year-old, three-story dwelling to get away from the distractions of New York City so he could concentrate on his work; he says he appreciates that he has more time to paint, but finds himself missing the sense of community and the liveliness of his former locale. For Connelly, his home is “a cozy cave, a work place, a crash pad, an entertainment unit, my jail, and my freedom.” —Susan Weiman, assistant to the editor-in-chief

Music to putter, clean, build, and decorate by

You may be a serial renovator, a habitual organizer, and an obsessive cleaner, but I'll bet you could still use a bit of a boost when it comes time to clean out the pantry or rearrange the furniture. So how about some rousing tunes to ease those household chores? Below is a music list carefully crafted to get you off the couch and sweeping, scrubbing, hammering, and mowing. These inspirational and energizing tunes—part of my home music series—should be played whenever something needs doing. But, fair warning—your feet might get a bit happy. —Room Whisperer

1. “Hold On, Hold On”—Neko Case, Fox Confessor Brings the Flood

2.”Liza (All the Clouds'll Roll Away)”—Stephane Grappelli, Timeless Stephane Grappelli

3. “Chan Chan”—Buena Vista Social Club, Buena Vista Social Club

4. “Feeling Good”—Michael Buble, It's Time

5. “Four Winds”—Bright Eyes, Cassadaga

6. “Better Way”—Ben Harper (single)

7. “When Love Comes to Town”—Herbie Hancock (featuring Jonny Lang and Joss Stone), Possibilities

8. “All Over Now”—Eric Hutchinson, Before I Sold Out

9. “La Riunione”—Giovanna Salviucci Marini, Award Winning Titles 4: La Notte Di San Lorenzo e Il Cinema Civile

10. “Time to Confess”—Gov't Mule, Austin City Limits 2005 Music Festival

11. “The Sweet Escape”—Gwen Stefani, The Sweet Escape

12. “Hallucinations”—Bobby McFerrin, Bobby McFerrin

13. “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”—Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, Facing Future

14. “No Hay Problema”—Pink Martini, Sympathique

15. “Wild Horses”—The Rolling Stones, Rarities 1971–2003

16. “Roll On”—The Little Willies, The Little Willies

17.” Mystery”—Live, Songs From Black Mountain

18. “One”—Mary J. Blige (featuring U2), The Breakthrough

19. “Bermuda Highway”—My Morning Jacket, Acoustic Citsuoca: Live at the Startime Pavilion

20. “Things Behind the Sun”—Nick Drake, Pink Moon

21. “Mustt Mustt (Lost in His Work)”—Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Mustt Mustt

22. Handel Violin Sonata in D Major, Opus 1—Nathan Milstein, violin, Handel, Mozart, Prokofiev

What red wine spill?

If you're prone to splashing your pinot, some of the newest colors in quartz countertops may be for you, and they'll be available soon. Berry and eggplant tones were introduced this week in Las Vegas at the annual Kitchen/Bath Industry Show & Conference (KBIS), a trade convention. Paired with cabinets in a dark-brown espresso finish, these colorful surfaces take on the rich appeal of a chocolate-covered cherry, while raspberry ripple comes to mind when they're teamed with cream-colored built-ins—another trend evident at the show. —The Editors

Koan quartz countertop from the Zen series by Silestone by Cosentino.

Mulberry Mist quartz countertop by CaesarStone

Book Showcases Tomorrow's Collectible Products

When Lisa S. Roberts graduated from architecture school in 1977, it was a difficult moment in the profession. Interest rates were at an all-time high, construction rates were down, and there was little work, even for established practitioners. During those fallow times, she noticed that her fellow architects, unable to build, began to apply their design talents to everyday objects, such as toasters, potato peelers, pepper shakers, and even toilet brushes.

Feeling that these goods, like any changing fashion, reflected a particular mood and place, Roberts—now a product and graphic designer, as well as a trustee at the Philadelphia Museum of Art—began collecting them. "I realized I might never be able to afford a building designed by Michael Graves," she says, referring to the avant-garde architect, "but I could certainly own the Whistling Bird Tea Kettle he made for Alessi." Now, having amassed over 300 of what she dubs the "icons of our time," Roberts has chronicled them in Antiques of the Future ($30; Stewart, Tabori & Chang). Each of the six-dozen pieces covered in the book features a brief history of the object, and lists its designer, manufacturer, year of introduction, size, and price Roberts paid for it.

"I'm smart about being a collector—I research, I go to exhibitions, I read the trade journals, and I talk to experts," she says. To be included in Roberts' collection, the item must have been exhibited in museums or included in a permanent museum collection, designed by a notable architect or designer, manufactured by a design-oriented company, received a major design award, or published in a magazine or a book.