Demolition? No. Preservation? Yes!

Through a partnership with the Junior League of High Point and ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME, this unique home will reopen as a stunning Designers’ Showhouse at Fall 2019 High Point Market. “We support Designers’ Showhouses across the US,” said Lori Sheldon Lenis, Vice President of Brand Partnerships for ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME. “This project intrigued us from the beginning, because this is the earliest documented Craftsman style home in High Point. Its clean lines and simple form make it the perfect canvas for our diverse team of talented designers. Also, as it’s located in the Johnson Street Historic District, so the High Point Preservation Society is a strong proponent of the project.”

“There’s much work to do on this house before we can turn the designers loose,” said Ray Wheatley, owner of Spruce Builders, Inc., the High Point construction firm hired by the Lewis family. “We want to salvage as much as we can while replacing all the floors and ceilings and bringing everything up to code. We’re trying to salvage the dining room hardwood floors, as they are the only section of the original flooring remaining. We will have the century-old planks refinished even though they might show signs of the house’s neglect.”

“We selected Ray for this job based on the outstanding work he completed on our home several years ago,” said Rick Lewis. “We knew he could handle all the challenges that arise when you start digging behind the walls of a 106-year-old building.”

“The sense of community and perseverance that this house represents, as well as the architectural significance of its Craftsman pedigree, is in complete alignment with our mission,” said Steven Mandel, publisher of ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME. “We enlighten, educate, and create opportunities to engage in interior design projects for our readership by actively supporting the preservation efforts of partners like the Junior League of High Point. The fact that this project is in the home of High Point Market allowed us to attract some of the most talented designers in the world who have donated their time to this signature Showhouse.”

Eighteen designers will create the rooms of the Showhouse. Two of the firms, Allen and James Interiors and Madcap Cottage, hail from High Point. Other North Carolina firms include Gray Walker Interiors and Lauren Nicole Designs of Charlotte; Raleigh’s The Warehouse, CAROLYNLEONA, and Colorful Concepts Interior Design; and Meg Caswell Style of Wilmington. Bauer/Clifton Interiors came all the way from Juneau, Alaska. Scot Meacham Wood Design is in from San Francisco, and Cynthia Ferguson Designs comes from north of the border, in Toronto, Canada. Andrea Schumacher Interiors of Denver, Colorado; Nashville’s Chad James Group; McCory Interiors of Burlington, Connecticut; and New York’s Right Meets Left Interior Design, Casa Santi Interior Design, Elissa Grayer, Libby Langdon Interior Design, and Root Cellar Designs complete the roster.

Nationally acclaimed New York designer Libby Langdon takes the project personally. Langdon grew up in High Point and was good friends with Mary Powell Y. DeLille, the Junior League’s Showhouse Chair. “This is a passion project for me,” said Langdon. “I’ll be crafting a design for the living room that represents the history and the souls of the families who lived here over the decades, but also speaks to the ways I see people wanting to live today. I’m thrilled to be a part of the transformation of this special, historic home that deserves to be lovingly restored. And it’s especially meaningful to me because it’s in the neighborhood where I was born and raised.”

The completed Showhouse will preview at a Grand Opening Party and Fundraiser on Friday, October 18, 2019, the day before Fall Market officially opens. The party will be held jointly at the Showhouse and the JH Adams Inn, located directly behind the home. The Showhouse will be open to the public October 19 through November 3, 2019. Tickets may be purchased on the Junior League of High Point website, and funds raised will be used to support their projects benefiting women and children in the community.