Photos by Genevieve Garruppo
New Moon Rugs designer Erika Kurtz turned to her sister Josephine, principal designer of Kurtz Collection, to reimagine her Wilmington Home.
There are projects where there are too many cooks in the kitchen, and there are those that are tightly knit. A 3,800-square-foot traditional colonial brick home, built in 1949 in the Rockford Park area of Wilmington, would fall into that latter category. That’s because Erika Kurtz (New Moon Rugs designer) looked to her sister Josephine Kurtz, principal interior designer of Kurtz Collection, to conceive a five-bedroom, 4.5-bath house for herself and her daughter Izzy.
“The house was definitely a collaboration between my sister and me,” Josephine says. “Having grown up with art, antiques and exposure to global cultures from a young age, we both felt that it was important to incorporate these things into the design. Erika had a strong role in choosing fixtures and finishes. Working in the interior design space, she is well-versed in what’s out there and what she likes, so it was easy to collaborate on those decisions.”
The meeting of the minds was therefore already in place: “The fun part was that we have very similar aesthetics and passions,” Josephine says. “It’s so exciting to have a whole house project where I could bring together all the elements that excite me, and also know that they’re perfect for the homeowner. The tough part is that we’re sisters. That changes the dynamic a bit when working together on a personal design project, as you can imagine.”
Meanwhile, the smoothest aspect of the sisterly collaboration—a 10-month-long journey—was the absence of shopping around: All the furnishings came from the Kurtz showroom, save for a few family antiques.
Because the sisters speak the same language, they were able to cut to the chase in terms of the overall goals for the project. “The functional goal was to create a more open floor plan with a continuous flow throughout, giving the home a more updated, contemporary feel,” Josephine explains. “The design goal was to create a home that really felt welcoming and vibrant while showcasing Erika’s unique sense of style and incredible mix of art, antiques and rugs.”
As Josephine tells it, it was the wealth and variety of pieces—both new and antique—that makes the home so singularly Erika’s: “One of the biggest challenges in bringing so many unique pieces together is allowing each to have its moment while still creating a cohesive feel within the room, but I think we achieved that balance by leaving lots of open space and bringing more light into the rooms through our renovations. The result is everything that we hoped for: lots of color, texture, pattern and art everywhere you look. It’s joyful and sophisticated while still being open, airy and inviting.”
To visit the Kurtz Collection is to experience the sisters’ passion for texture, color and pattern, but before any of their tastes could be put into place, there was the matter of rethinking the interior architecture. The sisters saw to it that several walls were knocked down and there was a total kitchen and bathroom gut renovation. “The overall purpose of the structural changes was to create a sense of openness and symmetry, allowing light to enter dark spaces and improving the flow from room to room,” Josephine says. “Bathroom and kitchen remodels were designed to increase functionality, update the aesthetic and enhance the quality of daily life for the homeowner.”
The watchword was flow. They added a doorway into the living room from the back hall, removed the existing coat closet and widened the kitchen opening into the back hall so that it matches the opening in the dining room that shares the same wall. They also installed a doorway beside the living room fireplace (now refaced in a Grey Mist granite), leading into the sun porch, to create symmetry with the three other openings on either side of the main rooms.
Also on the first floor: “We removed the wall between the dining room and the kitchen, creating a cohesive space perfect for entertaining or family time, and enclosed the breezeway, connecting the kitchen to the garage to produce a beautiful, functional mudroom with custom built-in storage.” (The window seats are wrapped in Osborne & Little fabric.)
The second floor also came in for some structural changes: “We vaulted the ceiling in the primary bedroom, which felt very closed-in originally,” Josephine says. “We removed the original closets in the primary bedroom and expanded the bathroom, creating one large walk-in closet and bathroom area. We made the intentional choice to sacrifice some of the bedroom to create more closet and bathroom space.”
Then came the resplendent décor: “We are definitely not afraid of color or pattern. In fact, we embrace it. We love experimenting with layering colors and textures,” the designer says, pointing out the lush, jungle-inspired foyer wallpaper by Cole & Sons and the custom ombre stair runner from New Moon.
“Right when you walk in the front door,” Josephine says, “you really get a good sense of the style of the entire house—and the distinct talents of both sisters.”
Related: This Dreamy Rehoboth Home Is an Eye-Catching Custom Project
