Stephanie and Jerry Weiss are such prolific world travelers — they even lived abroad for a time — that when it came time to consider a place to spend retirement, they were in a quandary.
"We looked in Panama, Costa Rica, Italy, Holland, Florida [and] we couldn't make up our minds," said Stephanie Weiss, a 70-year old retired art teacher. "'For all of our looking, nothing fit the bill."
It was soon after an extended stay in the historic international arts town of San Miguel de Allende in Mexico, that the couple happened upon a spacious corner residence in the Charlestown retirement community, where Jerry Weiss, 80, a retired Protestant minister, had many friends who were also retired clergymen.
"I knew immediately that this was it," said Stephanie Weiss, gesturing toward the many windows in their Catonsville home, each with a view of green trees. "There is so much open space and no parking lot that we look down on."
In April 2008, the couple purchased the 1,800-square-foot third-floor residence for $540,000 and proceeded to make a new home filled with the treasures they love and that help define a 35-year marriage — artwork, artifacts and stellar memorabilia from their travels.
Visitors arrive through an entrance where a long hall — one side completely filled with framed artwork — opens to a reception area and the bright open layout of their apartment.
On soft-yellow walls, a Japanese kimono is displayed alongside a Delft wall clock from Holland. Hand-woven garments from Guatemala are draped over a tall round table in a gallery of Stephanie Weiss' design.
After their move, the couple put $17,000 into upgrades for the home, such as high-quality paint, window blinds, upgraded carpet and laminate flooring. Finally, an art studio was created with the addition of interior walls off a portion of the large living room.
Stephanie Weiss is a founding member of a group of resident artists at Charlestown and devotes a great deal of time getting more exposure for them in the community. She also works in ceramics and instructs residents in the art of hand-building with ceramic clay.
"All of my artwork is for sale," she points out, indicating her specialty of working in pastels, many pieces embellished with acrylic backgrounds. Gravitating toward still life, many of the pieces feature vases of tulips and daisy mums. She has also created scenes from life in San Miguel de Allende.
Fundamental to the home's decor is a collection of contemporary and antique Delft pieces, tiles and knick-knacks, amassed during her husband's two assignments as pastor of the American Protestant Church of the Hague.
A silent reminder of the wonderful time spent there is a pair of wooden shoes sitting in the five-window bay of the home's extended sunroom.
"If I had to live in one room, it would be the sunroom," Stephanie Weiss said. "It gives me the biggest sense of space."
A seat at the sunroom's round table provides the best view of the home's interior. There is a distinct sense of taking part in a soiree at an artist's salon. The Weiss' choices of rich cherry wood furniture, green velvet sofa, Persian carpeting and a lacquered round table purchased by Jerry Weiss while assigned to clerical duties in Japan create a feel of warmth and elegance. In contrast to the great splashes of color on the home's walls, the kitchen's sleek white cabinetry and appliances provide a backdrop for Delft pieces sitting on an uncluttered counter.
As opposed to the warm colors elsewhere in the home, the couple's bedroom is painted two shades of blue, offering a canvas for a mahogany bedroom suite, where dramatic contrast is found in the white spread and blue-and-white toile quilt — a family heirloom — on the four-poster bed. More Delft pieces, including an antique table clock, rest on the dresser.
With a story behind every piece of artwork and artifact, Stephanie Weiss chooses the creation that pleases her most in the home — the view from her many windows.
"This is God's gift," she said. "My paintings of the seasons."
Making the dream
Dream element The Weiss residence in the Baltimore County retirement community of Charlestown is a third-floor corner apartment boasting nearly 1,800 square feet of living space. Every window looks out on mature elms and oaks. An entrance hall opens leads to a reception area beyond which the home's open layout provides an instant feel of spaciousness and light.
Design inspiration Numerous pieces of artwork are framed in traditional moldings of fine woods and gilt, complementing furnishings in traditional style constructed of cherry wood. Rich upholstery includes hand-stitched crewel work on an elegant Queen Anne-style wing chair and throw pillows of needlepoint, designed and executed by Stephanie Weiss' twin sister, Leslie, also an artist.
Personal touch: In a residence teeming with original artwork, travel mementos and family heirlooms, beautifully preserved pieces of Hardanger embroidery (Norwegian lace cutwork) table runners — hand-worked by Stephanie Weiss' mother — are displayed on shelves and on the bedroom bureau and dresser.