Houzz Tours
My Houzz: Whimsical Chateau in the Pacific Northwest
Collections, heirlooms and antique finds put a quirky, personal stamp on an Oregon home
Just around the corner from downtown Lake Oswego sits a beautiful French chateau, making you feel a world away. Dede Marriott has lived in this stunning, unforgettable home for three years. The home was designed in 2003 by Gösta and Mary Nilson, owners of Marquess of Granby Antiques in Lake Oswego. Dede's favorite thing about her home? It was built for, and around, a few special antiques rather than being built first and later looking for pieces to fit the home. Dede has seamlessly intertwined the old with the new to create a cozy, functional and historic home.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Dede Marriott and her dog Mina
Location: Lake Oswego, Oregon
Size: 4,500 sq. ft., two-story detached house with 4 bedrooms and 3.5 baths
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Dede Marriott and her dog Mina
Location: Lake Oswego, Oregon
Size: 4,500 sq. ft., two-story detached house with 4 bedrooms and 3.5 baths
Marriott's home makes a bold curbside statement. To the right is a three-car garage with a small living space above for guests. The house sits on a half-acre of land. There is no grass on the property making yard work an easy task. The driveway is quarter round gravel and is safer to walk on than pea gravel because it doesn't roll under foot.
The shutters in the dining room are 200 years old. Inside the cabinet is a flag made in Portland, Oregon in 1910 that reads "fearless and true." The flag was made for Portland's "Liedertafel," a singing society made up of German immigrants who settled in Portland.
Persian rug: O'Gallerie auction
Persian rug: O'Gallerie auction
Marriott has a special knack for mixing the old with the new, the fancy with the plain and the unique with the ordinary. She decorates boldly, combining pieces most people would never think to combine but wish they had. "I don't have one style — it's eclectic. There's a story to everything I collect," says Dede.
The chandelier in Marriott's family room is from the 1700s and once hung inside a castle in Germany. Beautiful Persian rugs and embroidered tablecloths also from Germany complete the eclectic room. She mixes the old and the new in this space with a leather couch from Anthropologie.
The chandelier in Marriott's family room is from the 1700s and once hung inside a castle in Germany. Beautiful Persian rugs and embroidered tablecloths also from Germany complete the eclectic room. She mixes the old and the new in this space with a leather couch from Anthropologie.
Marriott went all out with decorating for the holidays this year. Her house was one of five homes in the Lake Oswego Holiday Tour that took place on December 8. Children's books gave her inspiration for a "gnome dinner party." According to the books, gnomes are vegetarians. Marriott served her gnomes mushroom, lettuce, milk while the tour took place.
This gnome is a great addition to Marriott's holiday theme. She found him along with the decorative mushroom and stocking at Digs Inside and Out in northeast Portland.
This gnome is a great addition to Marriott's holiday theme. She found him along with the decorative mushroom and stocking at Digs Inside and Out in northeast Portland.
Marriott doesn't buy anything unless it's on sale, and these gnome dishes from Digs Inside and Out are no exception. She also found gnome-themed wine toppers from Digs Inside and Out as a fun addition to her tabletop collection. Although Marriott has found several of her collections at Digs Inside and Out, she doesn't have a favorite store. "I just love to shop. I wish I did have a favorite store. It would be a lot easier! I find things all over the place," she says.
"I'm a collector. I can't just have one of anything," says Marriott. When she found this antique tiger rug, she already had a few Steiff tigers. She has continued to add to her collection throughout the years.
This 80-year-old vanity from Europe was installed when the house was built.
The chandeliers throughout the house are antiques from France. The mirror was purchased from Stars Antique Mall in the Sellwood neighborhood of Portland.
Marriott's library holds many of her late mother's belongings, including this white rug from Atiyeh Brothers which has a 1920s Austrian design. Above the desk hangs a painting of her mother, Gerda.
This whimsical chair is made of cast iron antlers. Marriott found it in a card store, of all places, in Beaverton, Oregon.
It was love at first sight 20 years ago for Marriott's mother Gerda when she saw this unique sheep foot stool while the family vacationed in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Drapes from Pottery Barn enclose this outdoor space in winter. In the summer she draws back the curtains to enjoy the Northwest sunshine.
Marriott loves unique houses and has lived in several different historical homes around the Portland area. This will likely not be the last home that Marriott decorates, but it will take a extraordinary home to entice her to leave this one.
More Houzz Tours:
Traditional Home Goes Coastal
Northwest Home with a Mountain View
Traditional Splendor in Minnesota
More Houzz Tours:
Traditional Home Goes Coastal
Northwest Home with a Mountain View
Traditional Splendor in Minnesota