I think that places are like people. A physical place can be so much more than what you think you see and as you get to know it more, you realize that there is so much more depth to it than you could ever have imagined.
When we saw 11 Bow Street for the first time, we saw an abandoned building that had been left alone for close to a decade. A place, thick with dust and carpets, a space broken up into mini-offices, truncated by sheets of drywall and steel door frames. Chipping paint and cobwebs, water-stained yellowing ceilings, and recessed florescent lighting. And yet, we were certain that this place was going to be the home to our second store and our third home away from home.
Perhaps we knew that there was something behind what we saw. Towards the end of the demolition phase of the construction, we were faced with the challenge of picking paint colors. Colors are not an easy thing for Tucker and I to agree on. Tucker will meticulously comb through every shade of whites, creams, and off-whites before picking a color and I will choose the first color I see that I like. So, while we had varying sample sticks and color wheels splayed out on the floor our contractor came up to us and showed us the view below.
I have always loved brick. Living in Japan and California, there was very little brick lining the streets and New England was the first place where I ever saw whole buildings made out of red brick. And here was a building that was made entirely of brick and we had no idea. There were 4 layers of drywall and strapping on top of these brick walls. And many of the windows were covered over with cement. I don’t remember Tucker’s reaction, but I felt like crying. It was everything that I had ever wanted.
After we removed the drywall from all four perimeters, we not only gained a few extra square feet of space, but also restored some of the original elements of this building. The other day, I was in Harvard Square, walking up the stairs when I looked down and saw that there were three layers to these steps. First, there was wood, and then carpet, someone had come in and put down rubber tiles, over the carpet. It reminded me of Bloc and how we came so close because we were not looking beyond the surface.
