When Ruth and her husband, Jack, built their family home 12 years ago, they wanted to incorporate the elements she grew up with—stone flooring, ancient mantels, rustic beams, copper gutters—not only for themselves but for their children. But their search was frustrating, and Ruth ruminated over the lack of sources for such items.
When the kids were older, Ruth, still searching for the elements she recalled from childhood, headed to Europe on a scouting trip—the nanny and her youngest child in tow.
