TRUE N RTH
on the south end
S
By Cole Dittmer • Photography by Joshua Curry • Photography Assisted by Matt Miller
et within the concrete paver driveway of the south end home of Kel Landis
and Nina Szlosberg-Landis is a stone compass, and another inlaid in heart
pine on a stair landing between the first and second floors. While the
compasses are functional — synced to true north — their inclusion in the
home’s design was more symbolic than practical. With both homeowners
being leaders in their respective careers in the business and political community in the
Triangle, it was their intention to build a home to serve as a guide to realistic environ-mental
consciousness and the importance of buying products made in the United States,
and more specifically, in North Carolina.
At street level the evidence that this home is no ordinary cedar shingle beach cottage
appears with little effort. To the left of the twin garage doors made of sapele mahogany
unfurls a fanning staircase trimmed with the same rich wood, welcoming visitors with
open arms to the mahogany front door across the landing.
Making a statement with a home’s entrance is a staple in the designs of project archi-tectural
designer Scott Sullivan.
“I wanted a dramatic staircase and they did too,” Sullivan said. “It really lets you know
where the front door is, which is always important when you design a house and the front
door has to be special.”
Inside the foyer, one of the many paintings adorning the home’s walls reminds those
entering that time spent in the house is characterized by relaxation. The simple depic-tion
of a man, baseball cap on head and book in hand, his beach chair halfway sunken
in the wet sand next to a pier, somehow seems like it could be nowhere except a North
Carolina beach. Nina says they chose the piece because the man in the painting bears a
striking resemblance to Kel and serves as a reminder to the couple to unwind while at
their Wrightsville Beach retreat.
Another characteristic of the home that adds a sense of warmth to the interior is the
wormy, reclaimed heart pine acquired by a Whiteville flooring company frequently used
by project builder Jimmy Doster.
The wood was harvested from an old factory and dock on the Cape Fear River that was
the property of Agnes Beane, Nina says. Planed and refinished, the wormholes and nail
holes are still present and lay the foundation for the theme of conservation and the utili-zation
of North Carolina products seen throughout the home.
Reclaimed heart pine runs throughout the
home. On this stair landing a compass was
inlaid into the flooring. It is one of two on
the property.
“I wanted to use some kind of reclaimed product for the environmental reasons and just
the warmth I think it brings to a place,” Nina says. “It is really nice to know we are helping
a local company. The wood is 100 years old so we didn’t cut down any trees, and it came
from Wilmington so every box got checked on that one.”
With some planks wider or shorter than others, Doster said it was important to have a floor installer who could think abstractly.
“Our floor guy is really like an artist,” Doster says. “He lays out every piece of wood before he nails down any of it … like a jigsaw
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