Hally Thacher, artist, visionary and president of innovative House Port (whose prototype home is tucked away in the gently rolling countryside of West Petaluma’s Chileno Valley), has launched PopUP Design Kits, a terrific new series of custom-made interior and exterior decors that can be utilized with any home. Four complete interior and exterior design kits launched this spring include the Coastal Bungalow, Mediterranean, Urban and Zen. This revolutionary idea is the ultimate in ‘instant home’ for the super stylish!
“Who has time for the selection process with interior design?” asked Hally, during our recent catch-up following the bi-coastal entrepreneur and President of House Port’s welcomed return to Petaluma from wintering in New York. “It can be very overwhelming,” she said. “We created these design kits to provide home owners with an option to get a fresh and distinctive interior and exterior look without the price tag of hiring a professional interior designer and the hassle of starting from scratch.”
Thacher selected Martha Bodman, the distinguished Malibu-based interior designer, as project liaison and head of the design team, to create an entire look for each PopUP Design kit – from bed linens to wall color. Bodman’s expertise ranging from interior designs for corporate headquarters to rock star homes provides PopUP Design Kits with a unique touch unavailable in other ready made online design kits.
“A common design challenge is to fashion a beautiful, yet functional living environment,” said Martha Bodman, IIDA designer for House Port. “We successfully overcame this challenge by creating four sophisticated and intimately warm environments. The PopUP Design Kits don’t only provide home owners with stylish, functional and sustainable designs, but also an enjoyable interior and exterior design experience.”
Available now are the Coastal and Mediterranean PopUP Design Kits. The Coastal PopUP Design Kit offers the comfort of a quaint and cozy New England-style cottage infused with modern conveniences. The Mediterranean PopUP Design Kit exudes the simple elegance of Tuscany creating a seamless indoor/ outdoor living environment, reminiscent of the old country. The Urban and Zen PopUP Design Kits will be available soon.
Each kit includes furnishing layouts reflecting thoughtful placement by Bodman for maximum comfort and aesthetic flow within the living space. To simply achieve the look, kits include a list of items selected by Bodman that specify purchasing details such as item and model numbers, dimensions, color specifications, prices and links to each retail outlet. For home owners interested in exclusive interior and exterior designs, customized PopUP design kits are also available at an additional cost.
PopUP Design Kits are a product of House Port, the creator of sustainable living solutions and alternative to modular and traditionally manufactured homes. The kits are a series of custom-made interior and exterior decors that can be utilized with PopUP homes, conventional homes and can also be purchased by the room. Designed by Martha Bodman, the distinguished Malibu-based interior designer, PopUP Design Kits create a total look—from wall color to bed linens. PopUP Design Kits are available online through the House Port web site.
House Port, a company dedicated to developing, promoting and marketing sustainable home living solutions, was founded by Thacher in 2004 following the development of the original House Port concept in Joshua Tree, CA. The model of House Port’s first product, the PopUP House, was completed in spring of 2009 in Chileno Valley, based on the successful Joshua Tree experiment. House Port is a privately held corporation with offices in New York City and Petaluma, CA.
I first met Thacher in the Spring of 2010 when I drove out to the Petaluma prototype PopUp House, nestled several miles off the beaten track in pastures green, for a Petaluma Magazine feature. Having never seen anything as sleek and sensible a construction, I was struck by the simplicity and clean appeal of the peaceful place, decorated with the artist’s own modern, furniture designs. The concept continues to make sense to me when I reconsider the possibilities and practical successes of the kit house of American past. It’s a matter of stretching the imagination, being open to a fresh, new, novel idea for sustainable home construction and being an early innovator in taking a leaf out of Thacher’s beautiful book on the modern American home. Living with teens, I particularly like the idea of groupings of individual units connected around a central and outer, communal courtyard. The possibilities are endless, depending upon the plot of land and its locale.
West Petaluma Living’s resident real estate pro Timo Rivetti is up to speed on House Port’s latest options. If you have an interest in finding out more about the various PopUp House kits, he’d be happy to help liaise with House Port from a Petaluma-based perspective.
Frances Rivetti
