In Scottsdale, a newly refreshed home is a study in elegant design. Against a backdrop of crisp white walls and warm oak flooring, comfortable furnishings with classic lines and a mix of natural fabrics, metal and wood invite visitors to linger over conversations and meals.
At first glance, this transitional-contemporary home by interior designer Tanya Shively, founder of Sesshu Design, seems to have a silver, gray and blue palette. But just below the surface, the abode’s true color might be green—as in sustainable and healthy. Scottsdale-based Shively, a leader in healthy home design, crafted a residence that speaks to the client’s wellness as much as her desire for a stylish environment.
The project’s backstory began when the client developed a toxic reaction to mold in her previous home. “She found another house that dates to the 1980s and asked me to do what we thought would just be a facelift, updating it for aesthetics,” recalls Shively, who founded her firm in 2005. “But when we ripped out a cabinet and opened up some walls, we found mold there, too. The project’s scope grew.”
Shively and her team mitigated the mold issue in the 4,500-square-foot main house and 1,800-square-foot guest quarters, then addressed the homeowner’s ongoing interest in creating a healthy place to live. “Our main focus was to make the home healthy, beautiful and functional,” Shively explains. “A lot of emphasis went into behind-the-scenes efforts.”
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One issue the designer tackled was the risk of EMF (electromagnetic field), which some research suggests can lead to adverse health effects with long-term exposure. “We installed a wireless router that could be turned off at night and brought in an EMF consultant, who helped us focus on reducing the exposure in the primary suite,” the designer says. “We put metal in the walls, used metallic underlayer of paint on the exterior and hard-wired everything.”
Plastic plumbing lines were replaced with healthier copper ones, and a new HVAC system and ductwork were installed for efficiency and to reduce toxicity. In the primary suite, a new humidifier added just the right amount of moisture to the air, as did a fountain designed by Shively just inside the front entry. In the backyard, the existing pool’s chlorine-based system was replaced with a hyper-oxygenated unit.
Shively dug even deeper into meeting the homeowner’s health needs by creating an exercise and hot yoga space and adding a hyperbaric oxygen chamber in the guest house. In the kitchen, she installed a steam oven as a healthy alternative to a microwave.
“There was a lot that happened in the house before we even got to the furnishings,” Shively notes. Indeed, the designer also suggested architectural renovations to the home, including expanding the kitchen, reconfiguring the primary bathroom, leveling the dining room ceiling to create a more intimate setting, and transforming an unused attic corner into a reading nook, which can be reached by a new, custom-designed spiral staircase.
The walls were done in low-VOC paint and Venetian plaster, and oak flooring was finished with natural oils and waxes, which help keep off-gassing to a minimum. Wool area rugs were chosen for texture underfoot, and natural fabrics were selected for chairs, sofas and draperies.
Despite the home’s complex details, it is refined and gracious. With light pouring in from a tall arched window, the living room is detailed with classic wainscoting and full-length draperies that add softness. A deep, cushy sofa anchors the space, while an abstract painting and a contemporary area rug add subtle color.
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In the dining room, a coved ceiling provides a luminous lid for the long wooden table and curvaceous chairs. The client fell in love with richly patterned Klondike quartz in a slab warehouse, which Shively installed as a dramatic, natural art piece to surround the fireplace in the family room. The final ambiance is chic and serene, not clinical and sterile.
“Creating a sustainable, healthy home is important to me in all of my projects,” Shively reflects. “But here, as with all the homes I design, it’s not obvious—it’s not a certain ‘look.’ Livability and aesthetics are important, too.”
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