December 22, 2005 Issue                                               

©2005 The Chestnut Hill Local

Every DogHaus has his day, thanks to Rebecca Paul
by MARIE FOWLER

Rebecca Paul plays with her beloved Jack Russell Terriers. (Photo by Marie Fowler)

“We’ve all had babies,” interior designer Rebecca Paul remembers vowing, “so we can do this!” Paul speaks of the nine-month time frame in which three Chestnut Hill women conceived and brought into being the first DogHaus fund-raiser in 2003. Co-founders Lynn Lehocky, Robin Allen and Paul, all Hill natives, whirled into action, launching a designer showcase to benefit the Pennsylvania Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

The second biennial DogHaus, recently wrapped up at the Brock-Naglee House at 32 Summit St. in Chestnut Hill, surpassed 2003’s initial showcase in numbers during the first week alone. “We had between 50 and 150 people per day, and more on weekends,” Paul notes.

“We far exceeded what we did last time, and our expectations, as well.” Paul cites generous sponsorship as the reason for their success. And, she continues, the mid-October to mid-November time frame worked well weather-wise and did not interfere with holiday plans. (They are not able to say yet exactly how much money was raised because some of it is still coming in.)

Funds raised are used for the PSPCA’s emergency and rescue, as well as educational programs. “This is not a political cause,” Paul says, “but a warm, sentimental cause. Even people without animals embrace it.”

Raising awareness of animal issues is nothing new for Paul, who, as a child, always “came home from the school fair with a kitten. I had a soft spot for strays.” Turtles and even snakes were welcome in her menagerie. On a walk through Morris Arboretum, young Paul discovered a wounded owl. She tucked it under her jacket, took it home and nursed it back to health.

A liberal arts graduate of Franklin and Marshall College, Paul initially taught English to middle schoolers at Friends Select, but she declined to continue, realizing that “teaching was not enough for the creative side of me.” She dabbled in courses on reading blueprints and lighting. But it was her stepmother’s tile shop in Chestnut Hill where Paul got her design start. A client for whom she had done a bathroom and kitchen wanted her to do a living room. Paul was on her way!

Today, the designer shares her spacious home with a husband and three sons, not to mention four zebra finches, six turtle doves and three Jack Russell terriers. {Note to readers: the number of terriers is based solely upon the number of names called by Paul — Mini (Minimum, at 4 years, “the only other girl in the house”), Max (Maximum, 6 years old) and Mo (Mostly, a puppy of 6 months, “who must be part Flokati rug.”) The gregarious Jack Russells are in such constant motion, there’s no hope of counting black noses, but surely there are way more than only three!} “There’s a lot of action here,” Paul smiles.

Paul credits design partner Jane Good with her venture into aviaries. “We were shopping for a client and saw this marvelous birdhouse. Jane told me this should go in my new kitchen. I used to love cats,” Paul reasons. “Why would I have birds? But I like the sounds of birds in the house. Often we don’t hear birds until spring,” she muses, believing indoor bird songs bring a bit of spring’s renewal into the darkest winter day. Besides, Paul rationalizes, her finches serve as an in-house barometer, busily starting to nest the moment the barometric pressure drops.

The doves and finches do have decorative (what else?) covers for their spacious cages at night, not to mention a toasty warm space heater by day. “In my next life,” Paul laughs, “I’m coming back as a pet on Flourtown Avenue!”

Animals occupy Paul’s design office as well. “We have bulletin boards over our desks,” the designer explains, with fabric and paint swatches. “But mine is covered with Jack Russells from media ads — although there’s a picture of my children in the center,” she’s quick to add.

In planning for this year’s DogHaus, the committee contacted their “alumni,” designers who participated in the initial showcase. “Several returned,” Paul beams, “so we must have done something right. And we were very fortunate to have more space this time to showcase more talent. It’s a luxury of riches,” she confesses.

Interested designers submit a portfolio and photographs to the committee, which then allots rooms. “We try to give everyone one of their three first choices,” Paul notes, adding that this year’s DogHaus featured designers from Philadelphia and its suburbs, including the Main Line and New Jersey, as well as New York.

A showcase also requires willing owners. This year, Kelley and David Mansfield repaired gracefully to their carriage house, Weimaraner in tow, allowing designers a free rein among the nearly 10,000 square feet spread over three floors near Borders Bookstore. The house has, in Paul’s knowing assessment, “great karma and good bones.”

“There was not a single space that I didn’t like,” Paul insists, mulling over the 2005 DogHaus, “even things that might not have been to my taste were done well, from a professional standpoint.” She rolls her eyes, remembering her oversight of the hectic two-week installation period, juggling 25 designers and 100 installers. “I’m very admiring of the skill and level of their work,” she concludes.

Paul especially admired Rosemont designer Lisa Stone’s taking a tiny space and “making a silk purse — a jewel box — out of a sow’s ear. She was right on it!

“The Adoption Wagon was a huge crowd pleaser,” Paul goes on. “And people loved coming to Chestnut Hill — going out to lunch and shopping afterwards. For Hillers,” Paul exclaims, “these are wonderful things to hear!”

What’s on the horizon for the next DogHaus venture? “Several have offered houses and designers are already calling,” Paul acknowledges. “There’s a lot of excitement about 2007.” Paul stipulates what she looks for in a showcase house. “Newer homes have more open areas, but a showcase needs pockets of space, not to mention parking!”

If co-chairing this enormous event was not enough work, Paul and Good designed one of the rooms. “We called it ‘Her Bedroom,’” Paul explains. Along with faux fur chairs and a custom zebra rug, the designers incorporated an over-mantle painting, Hudson River Blues, by Paul’s fellow Springside grad Kathryn Lynch.

Quick and perceptive, the glowing, sparkly Rebecca Paul proves herself a magician with both space and time. She makes those (three?) Jack Russells seem — well — almost lethargic!