Good Morning Lacquered Lifers. By now you all have seen (a million times) the T Magazine piece on Sara Ruffin Costello and Paul Costello’s New Orleans Garden District home. I have seen it a million times as well, but I keep coming back to it. Obviously for the architecture – their Italianate home was built in 1868, and my Greek Revival Italianate mix built in 1873, but for the lifestyle. There is a comment in the article that Sara makes about living in New Orleans, which just about hits the nail on the head about how Mr. B and I live in Charleston. ” The other thing I love here is blending with all age groups, we hang out with a lot of older people here.” For a long time, this part of our lifestyle here in Charleston has been one of our favorite things. Age has never been a barrier to entry at a party we have been invited to, or a party we have hosted. Sara also mentions what it has been like moving into a home with so much history, even history for those still living … now that we have moved to New Street, stories about our house keep coming back to us, and people have been eager to reminisce about all the wonderful times they spent here with the previous owners … who had a tenure of 52 years. It seems that us northerners, Costellos and Brocks, have really lucked out with our transitions to the South, and to our homes filled with history. I look forward to getting our renovation started, and to uncovering more of the stories that the Louis Barbot house has to share. 

Photos via T Magazine