A Look behind the curtain

The Origins of Up North Cottage Style

WHO IS AL EVERETT?

It was 1962 and I can remember being a teenager sitting in a large leather chair in a huge glass walled office overlooking the intersection of the Southfield Freeway and Michigan Avenue in Dearborn, Michigan.  School was out for the summer and my dad was in the other room along with five other men.  I was told to sit still and not to touch anything.  I could not see them but you could hear sounds of a hammer, along with cutting and stapling.  They were installing at that time some of the most expensive and unique carpeting available.

As I looked around the office I could see a lot of pictures and memorabilia.  Many of the pictures were in black and white and there were so many model cars displayed it almost looked like a hobby shop. There was one face that stood out in most of the black and white photos.  Even as a teenager I knew who that was.  It was Henry Ford.

I was sitting in the office of Henry Ford II in Ford’s world headquarters.  It was almost like being in Greenfield village, which was only a few hundred yards away.  The office was needless to say pretty incredible and I will never forget the feeling of power and luxury.  I could only imagine what went on inside that office and what the interactions must have been like.  I said to myself ….. “This is what I want to do for a living”.  I want to design offices. And this is where my  interiors DNA came from as I find myself frequently thinking about those moments.  And I also never imagined that someone who I know and used to work with in our industry,  would be sitting somewhere on that floor 56 years later.

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 I have been fortunate to have worked in the built environment now in various capacities for over 40 years. During this exciting journey I have also been a  builder and realtor, building cottage style homes along lake Michigan and other inland lakes. My motto's were then and still are today “I play near the water and inexpensive doesn't have to look that way". To this day I still cannot pass a home magazine in a reception area without picking it up. It has now become a case of what goes around comes around.

Many of you also know that my wife and I realized our dream of building a new home that we designed here in the Leelanau peninsula.  The property overlooks both Lake Michigan and Lake Leelanau and we can see the lights from Fish town in Leland at night.

Because of the reception and feedback we have received with our home I decided to go back to my roots to sell, design and build cottage style residential homes. This also includes helping my clients find existing homes and property.

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I would love the opportunity to help you fulfill your dreams. If I can do it ...  you can too. 

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Let's do it together.