February 2010

We arrived to photograph this home, designed by Barrett Studio architects of Boulder, for our May Eco-Living Issue at 8:30 am to lovely, soft sunshine. Photographer Emily Minton Redfield (left) and her assistant Kimberly Gavin unloaded all of the photo gear and started setting up. After we looked at the many possible angles of this stylish, eco-friendly home, we decided to start in this living room area. We shot a couple versions (one just might be the cover) and were pleased as we moved through the house capturing very nice images of several rooms. But just after we broke for a quick lunch, the snow started falling–which would never do for a spring issue! We were so relieved that we had finished shooting all of the rooms that required natural sunlight and had moved on to other interior shots and the basement. Phew.

Don’t miss the full story in the pages of our May issue, due to hit newsstands mid-April. –Elaine St. Louis, CH&L art director

We are in the midst of creating our April "real estate" issue, so I’m especially tuned in to good news about Colorado’s markets. And I was pleased to hear this bit of particularly good news about one of Denver’s most interesting neighborhoods: This Old House, the national home-improvement magazine that has been around forever, named Curtis Park one of the country’s "Best Old-House Neighborhoods."

Curtis Park, TOH reports, has nearly 500 late-19th-century homes in styles such as Second Empire, Italianate and Queen Anne. If you’re in the market for a dramatic roofline, beautiful turrets or unusual facades, Curtis Park could be the place for you.

The neighborhood is enjoying a strong cultural renaissance, and smart investors–and homeowners in search of homes with some architectural history–are renovating the old houses to great success. TOH says that the prices are right: fixer-uppers average about $173,000.

Curtis Park’s boundaries aren’t clear-cut, but here’s a rough estimate: The neighborhood is bordered by Broadway and Downing streets on the west and east, and by 23rd and 38th to the south and north.

You get the benefits of city living at affordable prices about 15 minutes from downtown. It’s a good mix, and we’ll be keeping our eyes on Curtis Park in the coming years. You should, too.

War Paint by Susan Bell

We’ve long admired the work done by the volunteers at the Horse Protection League, a non-profit dedicated to the welfare of horses, ponies, mules and donkeys. The HPL is run entirely by volunteers, who feed, groom, exercise and nurse back to health as many as 20 horses at a time at the historic Churches Ranch in Golden.

Given this group’s good work, we’re pleased to help spread the word about Art for Horses, a fundraising art show that opens Friday, Feb. 19 and runs through Saturday, Mar. 6 at Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design’s Rotunda Pavilion. The show will feature equine- and western-themed fine art across a range of media, including painting and sculpture.

Swing by for the opening reception on Friday, Feb. 19, from 6-9 p.m. Admission to the show is free, and art is available for purchase during show hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

Learn more about the Horse Protection League’s important work by clicking here.

Sangre Sun by Dix Baines