Story and photographs, Kathryn Retzler

© San Juan Publishing
 

Respite, recreation, relaxation—Pam Stewart believes your home should provide all of this and more. “When I put things together,” she explains, “I strive to achieve a harmonious flow, which creates a comfortable feeling that begins when you walk through the door. I want the spaces to nurture the spirits of those who live there, to compliment and  enhance. To invite and entreat. That’s why people come into my home and say, ‘Wow! This place feels so good!’ Color, density, shape and texture all come together in a harmonious way.”

Stewart is a master at making you feel at home—in hers, in your own. She calls on a lifetime of living and traveling in 30-plus countries around the world. “My creativity comes from the way I was brought up,” she says.  “My father was a career Air Force officer and pilot. We lived in Asia, the Orient, Europe. Bangkok and Istanbul are two of my favorite places. I had a very enriching childhood, as far as travel and culture. I learned how to be adaptable.” And to tune into the energies of the people and places she has experienced.

Drawing on that diversity of ethnicity,  Stewart defines her style as “Energetically Integrated Design.” Her interiors all have some sort of ethnicity. And color. “I like the energy of different colors. And I like to create little vignettes, little pockets of color, shape and texture that flow together, sort of like a series of still life paintings.” 

Like smooth Georgian silver candlesticks on a rough-hewn antique Mexican dining table flanked by chairs upholstered in a nubby Turkish Kilim. Along the wall behind them, a many-layered, painted mustard-colored hutch, a gilt-framed painting of glowing aspens by Colorado artist William Hook and a whimsical totem of movable ceramic faces by Montrose artist Bill Wilson. In the living room, a hot pink hydrangea spears above a hand-needlepointed pillow (one of Stewart’s; she is also an accomplished painter). Behind the voluptuous blooms are a giant Balinese wall calendar (given Stewart by the great granddaughter of the last Empress of China), framed Greek icons and temple rubbings from Bangkok, all with successive red-based shades from dusty rose to deep claret.

Not surprisingly, red is Stewart’s favorite color, but she uses it with a balanced hand—an entire red wall in the kitchen, red plaid on a library chair, a glistening red onion in one of her own still life paintings. Stewart’s home, a reflection of her own harmonious energy, is a symphony of contrasting and complimentary textures, colors and shapes, with a touch of whimsey and surprise here and there. Taken all together, it is a vivid example of her unique design style. 

Stewart is available to help with all aspects of design, from the earliest planning stages (working with the architect and builder) to redesigning an existing home (adding to, taking away or starting with bare walls and floors) or simply rearranging the components of an interior, perhaps to make a home show successfully when it is for sale. 

At whatever stage Stewart comes into the design process, she is sure to help achieve a gracious, inviting, harmonious space. “You don’t have to sacrifice elegance or a certain feeling of luxury to have comfortable interiors,” she notes. 

Pam Stewart is a woman who understands what a home should be and all it can offer. She is a designing woman who understands the complex relationship between a dwelling and those who dwell within it. For an example of Stewart’s “Energetically Integrated Design” stop by Exotics, in the old library building 525 Clinton Street, Ridgway, Colorado. Or call for an appointment. (970) 626-4190 or at Exotics: (970) 626-3775.