FORCE of NATURE

After painstakingly restoring this 1895 Colonial Revival outside Boston, one daring designer went all out for the interiors.

- Carly Olson

LIVING ROOM

To complement the restored wood accents in this Boston Colonial Revival, local designer Cecilia Casagrande settled on a deep, rich paint: Farrow & Ball Hague Blue. Chandelier: Arteriors. Sofa: Jonathan Adler. Pillow fabrics: (from left) Pierre Frey, House of Hackney, Romo. Painting: Hunt Slonem. Swivel armchairs: Thayer Coggin. Coffee table and side table: vintage, Autrefois Antiques. Ottoman: Cisco Brothers. Rug: Ramble Market. Table lamps: Kelly Wearstler for Circa Lighting.

"FUN, GLAMOROUS, AND A LITTLE CHEEKY.” AFTER A decade in social work and public health, Bostonian Cecilia Casagrande started a new chapter by pivoting to interiors: She founded an eponymous design firm in 2015 and swiftly garnered attention for her lively reinventions of historic houses. “The way Cecilia uses unexpected nature motifs like bugs and birds in fabrics and wallpapers, combined with sleek midcentury modern and vintage, lends a dignified quirkiness to her style. I really wanted to work with her," says Liza Hunter, a nurse practitioner who, with her partner, Jamie Heywood, a biotechnology entrepreneur, enlisted Casagrande to overhaul their home in Newton, Massachusetts.

Built in 1895 by inventor and developer Moses Crane, the Colonial Revival occupies a prime piece of lakeside real estate, but a patchwork of renovations over the years left it far from its former glory. “We had this sense of wanting to return it to the place he'd originally intended it to be," says Heywood. After stripping back the muddied architecture, Casagrande focused on reviving the spaces through creative use of color. For large rooms with big windows, like the living room and Heywood's office, she chose darker hues to make the spaces feel cozier.