Remodelista reader Kate McCann recently sent us an over-the-transom email: “I am a NYC-based still-life stylist who is working toward making a transition to interior design.” She included a few photos of her latest project, her own shingled house in northwest Connecticut that she shares with her partner, Kevin, and their dog, Willa Mae.
The interior had been updated 15 years ago, she told us, “in a nineties, Martha Stewart way: it was very traditional and packed with furnishings.” Using little more than cosmetics—white paint, new lighting, and a selection of cost-conscious fittings—she gave the rooms a new, invitingly low-key guise. Intrigued by the simplicity and effectiveness of her approach, we asked to see the whole house.
Photography by David Prince, unless otherwise noted, courtesy of Kate McCann, Grey Dove Design.
![a former barn, the structure was converted into a \1,380 square foot dwell 17](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/gray-shingled-house-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-1-733x933.jpg)
![mccann gave the cozy living room a clean look by whitewashing all but the beams 18](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/wood-beamed-living-room-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-4-733x551.jpg)
The sofa is Room & Board’s Vela design (since discontinued); for dog-proofing she tops it with Flokati Throws, $39, that are all wool and machine-washable.
![a bright, versatile off white, benjamin moore white oc \15\1, was used in 19](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/wood-beamed-living-room-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-4c-733x550.jpg)
After working in the creative departments of Martha By Mail and J.Crew, McCann freelanced as a stylist for 15 years. “Interior design has always been a passion,” she says. “I helped friends with their homes and gradually started working on projects with bigger scopes.” She went back to school to study interior design online at Rhodec International and has just launched her own firm, Grey Dove Design.
![the living room opens to the dining room. note the sconces 20](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/connecticut-dining-room-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-5-733x551.jpg)
McCann had a maximum remodel/refurbishing budget of $40,000 and kept a careful tally of costs:
- Furniture: $14,852
- Lighting: $2,970
- Rugs: $2,714
- Artwork: $2,030
- Throw pillows: (15) $1,550
- Bathroom accessories: $202
All told, she spent $28,894 on furnishings and $7,991 on labor (painting and electrical).
![the andover dining table and companion benches are from room & board and co 21](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/black-dining-table-with-benches-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-6-733x576.jpg)
“I would have loved to purchase furniture from small workshops that make everything by hand, but my budget didn’t allow for this,” says McCann. “Room & Board, while a large company, often employs small businesses to manufacture their designs. For example, my dining table was made in Vermont by Lyndon Furniture, which uses lumber that’s responsibly harvested.”
![last updated in the \1990s, the kitchen\2\17;s vintage wood cabinets had 22](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/painted-kitchen-cabinets-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-10-733x933.jpg)
Her electrician also installed new recessed lights: “the trims were yellowed and looked old once we gave the house a fresh coat of paint,” says McCann. “Changing fixtures can transform a room.”
![mccann preserved the butcher block counters and added a classic lab faucet 23](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/painted-kitchen-cabinets-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-10a-733x933.jpg)
Thinking of giving your kitchen an economical overhaul? Read How To Paint Kitchen Cabinets: Tips from a Master Painter and Remodeling 101: Butcher Block Counters.
![barware and stacked white dishes—cb\2\2\17;s frank dinnerware, wh 24](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/kitchen-white-tableware-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-10b-733x933.jpg)
![the compact mudroom has a shaker peg rail fitted in a corner and a zi 25](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/compact-mudroom-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-2-733x975.jpg)
![across the room, more shoes and gear are kept in baskets and on a tray. the che 26](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/compact-mudroom-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-3-733x933.jpg)
![a leather and raffia tassel wall hanging by etsy seller himoart of san diego de 27](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/door-tassel-kate-mccann-house-david-prince-photo-4a-733x1098.jpg)
![the steep stairs have a new pieterdam wool runner from fibreworks tha 28](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/connecticut-house-steep-wood-stairs-kate-mccann-david-prince-photo-733x975.jpg)
![the upstairs rooms have peaked ceilings. the ceiling light is the star flu 29](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/peaked-ceiling-bedroom-kate-mccann-house-david-prince-photo-11-733x933.jpg)
![the master bedroom is layered with subtle textures: garment dyed linen bedding 30](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/peaked-ceiling-bedroom-kate-mccann-house-david-prince-photo-12-733x576.jpg)
![painted paneling in the home office retains its grain pattern. the steel 31](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/home-office-painted-wood-paneling-kate-mccann-house-david-prince-photo-13-733x551.jpg)
![a built in bureau and cabinets, original \1930s detailing, in the guest ro 32](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/built-in-bureau-katemccann-house-david-prince-photo-13-733x933.jpg)
![above branch art and a vintage eames wire chair, one of a pair that mccann 33](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/black-and-white-bedroom-kate-mccann-house-david-prince-photo-12-733x933.jpg)
“Going from the city to the country was a bit of a transition,” she says. “We now have a wheelbarrow and a Weedwacker, so we’re getting there.”
Join us as we explore more ways to remodel cost-consciously:
- The One-Month Remodel: A Catskills Guesthouse by Jersey Ice Cream Co.
- The $350 Kitchen Overhaul in Two Weekends
- 11 Money-Saving Remodeling Strategies from a Hollywood House Flipper
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