PRIVATE QUARTERS / A look at Atlanta's properties and personalities

Asian travel memories brighten Duluth home
Mike and Debbie Slawinski traveled extensively in Japan, Thailand, Korea, China


The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 06/10/08

At every turn in Mike and Debbie Slawinski's home, visitors are reminded of the couple's world travels.

Family photo
Debbie and Mike Slawinski have decorated with accents and furnishings brought back from their travels to Japan, Thailand, Korea and at least 10 cities in China. This is the couple at the Great Wall.
 
Sean Drakes / Special
The Slawinskis' travels are always visible, like this antique Chinese lunch box on the dining room table.
 
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Mike Slawinski — inventor and CEO of the ProSpot fitness machine — and his wife, Debbie, have traveled extensively throughout Asia. The ProSpot weight-training system allows users to lift weights safely without using a spotter. The system is manufactured in China, a connection which explains their exotic itineraries.

"Most everything in here is from our travels," Mike Slawinski said of the decor in their Duluth home. "The most important thing for me is what I buy in our travels — the memories we've made."

Memories like their visit to China's Great Wall, which is recalled by an embroidered fish that hangs above the fireplace. Throughout the home, the couple have decorated with accents and furnishings brought back from their travels to Japan, Thailand, Korea and at least 10 cities in China.

Before the addition of daughter Jade, now 4, the couple traveled for up to two months of the year. Jade was adopted from China, and the Slawinskis hope to adopt another child soon.

Pulling the look together

Debbie Slawinski is in charge of design. She also faux painted the living room and bath, among other areas.

"We buy it, and somewhere it all goes together," Mike Slawinski said.

Their home reflects a love of all thing Asian. There's the nautilus shell from Thailand that sits on the breakfast table. An antique wooden lunch box is the focal point of the dining room table, where spoons made from the shells of abalones decorate the place settings.

The decorative wall hanging in the dining room was handmade by a Kashmir family in Bangkok.

"It took three years for the whole family to make this," Mike Slawinski said.

A fairly simple lifestyle

The brick traditional home sits on an acre of land that backs up to a spring-fed creek. Living just down the road from Sugarloaf Country Club, the Slawinskis are a rarity because they have lived in their home for 21 years.

"We try to maintain a fairly simple lifestyle so we can travel," Debbie Slawinski said.

The sophisticated kitchen includes granite counters and stainless steel appliances. Outside, the Slawinskis also rebuilt their deck and added a slate floor and a second level for Jade's playset.

Upstairs, Mike Slawinski's office includes sports memorabilia representing clients from his company. The collection includes NFL helmets and even one high school football helmet representing Slawinski's first sale of his invention, to a team in Houston.

Down the hallway, the history behind many of the pieces transports Mike Slawinski back to a special trip. A painting hanging in the hallway is unique because the artist used only his fingers and fingernails to spread and shape the paint. He remembers chatting with the artist.

The silk embroidery over the bed in the master bedroom is Jade's favorite.

"It's a scene of typical life in China," Mike Slawinski said.

HOUSE HIGHLIGHTS:

• This is a four-bedrooms, 3-bath home in Duluth.

• The home is situated on one acre and includes a spring-fed creek.

Do you have a tip or a nomination for Private Quarters? Email writer Chris Reinolds (creinolds@ajc.com) or call her at 770-326-8958.

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