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On a tight COVID-19 deadline, designer Sheila Bridges overhauled her Hudson Valley guesthouse.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY Frank Frances
WORDS BY Jessica Cumberbatch Anderson
STYLING BY Benjamin Reynaert
Last year, before sheltering in place and quarantining became part of our collective reality, designer Sheila Bridges had big plans to turn the two-bedroom cottage next door to her Hudson Valley, New York, home into a guesthouse.
The Pallet House—built in the 1940s and named after the wood pallets Bridges found on nearly every inch of the property—had the makings of a cozy place for visiting family and friends, but the New England–style farmhouse needed a considerable amount of work, and in a short period of time: Bridges had arranged for a renter to arrive in June, meaning the 800-square-foot space would need to be completed by Memorial Day weekend.
So in January she got her contracts in order and rolled up her sleeves. She took the interior down to the studs; addressed the mold issues that had developed as the house sat unoccupied; and installed new windows and doors, as well as heating, cooling, and septic systems.
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