A Child’s Christmas |
Ninemile Schoolhouse A Child’s Christmas |
Ninemile Schoolhouse By LORI GRANNIS of the Missoulian
Photos by Linda Thompson of the Missoulian
Kurt Cyr 
Ninemile Schoolhouse
Presenting Sponsor
{ The Nine Mile Schoolhouse is not in the home tour }
Kurt Cyr grew up in Frenchtown and has the fondest memories of Christmas.
He’s been plenty of places since his early days in western Montana, but the interior designer who purchased the Ninemile Schoolhouse in 2006 can still summon boyhood excitement over Christmas.
“When it came time to descend on neighborhood homes to see holiday decorations, it was a great way to cull ideas and to see how people decorate,” said Cyr.
He said it’s that excitement over someone opening their home to you that has remained alive for three decades, and is the reason and inspiration behind Cyr’s organization of this year’s Holiday Home Tour, and his approach and collaboration with the Missoulian to raise funds for charity.
Both felt it was a great opportunity to donate money to both Watson Children’s Shelter and Youth Homes, because holidays are “for children,” he said. The $10 ticket price will be split among the two youth-related nonprofits.
With a love of Christmas as big as the state of Montana, Cyr believes the home tour will be an enjoyable new event and is poised to become a tradition for the community.
While his own home – the historic Ninemile Schoolhouse – is not on this year’s tour, Cyr proposed the self-guided house-to-house event as a means to spark Christmas spirit and engender a feeling of community.
To select homes, interested families sent in photos and proposed ideas for holiday-themed decorations. Cyr looked over prospects and chose those dwellings that seemed to promise the most “wow” moments for tourgoers.
“It’s a show, so expect some spectacular moments – and expect to see things you may not have thought of,” said Cyr of the multiple decorative themes to be featured in homes.
With the home tour, Cyr hopes to set the stage for the most unexpected of holiday environs. One modern home slated for the tour will feature a retro industrial theme that uses vintage plumbing parts and door hardware.
“Traditional Christmas decorations don’t say anything,” Cyr said. “But in this home it’s viewing the untraditional elements of design as ornaments.”
As creator and sponsor of this year’s tour, Cyr said he will also serve as master of ceremonies and tour emcee on the VIP bus for ticket-holders who pay extra for a guided tour to view the dwellings. The VIP bus will shuttle the $30 ticket-holders on the evening of Dec. 5 – just one day before general admission ticket-holders step into holiday homes.
Cyr said the Ninemile Schoolhouse, built at the turn of the century, was a magical part of his own childhood, and he remembers shopping at its Swedish Christmas market as a young boy.
“I examined every detail of those painted ornaments back then, and it was something to look forward to,” he said.
When the home and set designer had the opportunity to purchase the old schoolhouse once its previous owner lost interest in its upkeep as a Christmas market, he revived it.
His annual European-inspired market, which precedes the home tour in the weekend following Thanksgiving, features design themes from one country each year, (this year is Germany) and is a place to purchase Cyr’s handmade lasercut ornaments, inspired by these nations.
Though Cyr’s schoolhouse is not part of this year’s tour, it will be decked out in Bavarian style from Thanksgiving weekend to mid-December, when Cyr will travel to Provence to capture details for his 2009 French-themed Christmas market.
For the holidays, the home will feature Cyr’s own lasercut wood and metal decorations, his collectible snowflake strings, and intricate paper doll-like art installations from artist Tord Boontje.
“Boontje combines handicraft with modern techniques to create highly detailed paper installations from durable Tyvek home wrap,” Cyr said. “He’s an inspiration for me too. I have one foot in the old and one food in the new world in my own designs.”
Reporter Lori Grannis may be reached at 523-5251 or lori.grannis@lee.net.