Today on Unexpected Guests, we’re traveling clear across the country to the eastern town of Framingham, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston. We’re dropping in on Kim Ludy, aka ethanollie – a new flickr friend I’ve recently ‘met’ when she contributed some beautiful shots of her home in the sfgirlbybay group pool. I instantly fell for her charming, vintage-inspired home, as well as her wonderfully retro etsy shop, trampoline. Kim’s got a great eye for adding just the right amount of vintage flair to her clean, stylish decor. i think you’re going to like it. for more on kim, checkout her flickr photostream, and her etsy shop.

What city/neighborhood do you live in?
I live with my husband, son and pooch, about 20 miles west of Boston in a very large town (nearly a city) called Framingham, Massachusetts.  It’s both demographically and topographically diverse — which is one of the things we love about it most.  We live on quite a busy road, but are minutes from farm land and state forests.

What is your idea of a perfect day in Framington?
I’m a homebody, so I would have to say the most perfect day would begin and end at home.  It would be in summer, since I detest the winter, and would begin on the screen porch with my son, coffee and a bit of breakfast. Then, though I love him dearly, that lovely son would be magically whisked away (for just a bit) so that I can get a few minutes, or hours, to myself in the garden.  I might work a bit photographing product for my Etsy shop, or not.  Or, better yet, go to the kind of Flea market that starts later in the day, instead of early morning (you said perfect, right?).  In the late afternoon, we’ll swim and lounge.  Dinner (prepared by someone else) again on the porch, and then, reading or relaxing with a good movie after E goes to bed.  Pretty simple — but my idea of perfect.

What don’t you leave home without?
Oh — I am eternally unprepared!  I am always seemingly in such a rush that I’ll leave home without the one thing I need most.  So, I guess the only thing I don’t leave home without are my car keys, since without them I wouldn’t be able to get anywhere.

What are some of your favorite local shops?
Although I love many things about my town, it is not, unfortunately, known for it’s stylish shops.  I do love to visit the local thrift and there is a lovely garden shop in a neighboring town called Winston’s which has a wonderful showroom filled with inspiration.   But my two hands down favorite places are the Sandwich Flea Market on Cape Cod and the SOWA Market in Boston’s South End.

What’s on your wish list?
I always have something on my wish list, mostly art.  But the one thing that has been there for some time is a new kitchen, one that’s filled with light and enough space for everyone to gather, and with doors straight out to the garden.  If you are around me, the longing is palpable — I want it so badly.

What’s your favorite bargain find or product?
Really, too many things to mention.  I have had my fair share of bargain finds, they’re wonderful, and I’ve loved them all.  But sometimes there is also something to be said about investing in a really great piece, and then hanging onto it forever.

What is your biggest interior design nightmare?
I’m not sure I’d last too long in a space with small windows, low ceilings or lack of sunlight — or a combination of all three.

Who are some of your favorite artists? And why?
I have many favorites, but I seem to gravitate to those artists who can cross mediums, a sort of consummate ‘creator’.  I also love it when someone can the take the mundane and make it amazing.  I think what Maria Vettese, and Stephanie Congdon Barnes have done with both the 3191 project and their individual endeavors is bliss.  I love Alyson Fox, Rachel Bone, Rachel Sumpter, Lena Corwin — they’re all amazing artists, and it seems, amazing women.  They make me want to live a more beautiful, creative, simple life.

Where do you find inspiration?
I’m a very visual person, and usually will forgo text and devour pages upon pages of images from magazines and photo blogs.  I can sometimes spend the whole day subconsciously thinking in ‘frames’ where everything becomes a still life, color study or vignette.  I take away a lot from being in the garden, and I think I’m infinitely more creative in the months when I’m designing and working there.

Do you collect anything?
I collect everything, especially pottery and ceramics — which is why it is almost necessary for me to have a vintage shop, because I am also somewhat of a minimalist and editor.  I love many things, and often have to have many of them.  But then it comes time to purge, and I like to feel like I’m passing all of this great stuff on.   I’m pretty sure I’ve passed this trait down to my son, and I’m not the wiser for it.

What’s your favorite feature in your home?
We live in a 1920′s mutt — part bungalow, part cape cod, part colonial…which I love.  It’s not too big and feels both cozy and spacious enough for three.  But the best feature for me has to be the screen porch.  It’s only big enough for a small dining table and wicker love seat, but I spend more time here in the span of five months, than I do anywhere else in the house the rest of the year.

If you could photograph anyone in the world, who might that be?
My Grandmother.  She’s deceased now and I don’t have many photos of her.  She had a face that could tell a million stories with one glance, and I feel sorry that I wasn’t able to capture that on film.

Who would you like to sit down to drinks with?
My Brother.  He’s an amazing person who now lives 3,000 miles away from me, so I’ll take any time I can get with him.

Do you have a guilty pleasure?
Believe it or not, work is my guilty pleasure.  Having a small child and working from home is often quite a juggling act.  Even though I love my work so much, it takes a lot of time away from time spent with him, and ultimately I end up feeling guilty for it.  I’m fortunate to have parents who love spending time with him and take him on extended stays where he stays up late, swims in the ocean, and gets spoiled rotten.

What is your most treasured belonging?
I have many ‘things’ I love, but my family is the most treasured.

What is your greatest indulgence?
Unadulterated time.  Time spent alone, or thrifting with my mom, or working, or with my son.  uninterrupted, long swaths of time dedicated to one thing.  Any way I can get it, I take it with abandon.

What is your idea of living hell?
Living hell would have to be living without a home, and I mean that in both the physical and emotional sense.  I am so tethered to my home and family, that living without it/them would be unimaginable.

What are some of your favorites websites/blogs to visit?
Since starting a business on Etsy, I seem to have less and less time for browsing.  But i don’t miss a week of 3191, and some of my must-visits, even for just a quick peek, include Fine Little Day, ~>O<~, Ah-Yi, The Selby and Flickr to keep up with family across the country.