The Cottage Journal Spring 2017

As we welcome spring we also welcome a season of growth and time for change. A newly covered chair, floor pillows, or large floral wall hanging—all add a sense of vivid color and imagination to interior spaces. Each spring, design companies introduce new products based on the Pantone Color of the Year that reflects the mood of the times. This year, it’s a zesty yellow-green hue that evokes the first days of spring when nature’s greens revive, restore, and renew. It’s the perfect symbol of new growth and rejuvenation in the home. Check out our design column on page 15 to find clever tips on how to incorporate what’s trending within your timeless interiors. The “Riverside Respite” on page 65 features a historical treasure in a Tennessee suburb. Painstakingly modernized, its…

As an interior designer, I have always advised my clients to use caution investing too much in the latest design trends. But when I saw Pantone’s 2017 Color of the Year, Greenery, 15-0343, I found myself running for the paint store. This is not just any green, but a fresh bright shade I have been yearning for. I have incorporated this newly popular color on the front door of a client’s house as well as in accents for my own guest bedroom. And I’ve been prodding clients to use this color to brighten the ever-present gray themes they find so attractive. So what is a Pantone color? Pantone is the universal language of color in the design industry. Graphic designers, car manufacturers, fashion designers, and interior furnishing markets refer to the Pantone…

“Our homes are like mirrors.” – ANNE SAGE In the book Sage Living: Decorate for the Life You Want, you won’t find advice for decorating your home in current trends. Author Anne Sage is a lifestyle writer, creative director, and social media consultant who also writes an interior design and fashion blog called The City Sage. Her daily blog has since evolved into a 205-page book. Anne dares readers to ignore what is fashionable to achieve a home that complements them and feels completely their own. She focuses on embracing your personality and using that as style inspiration. For example, say you are fond of traveling and have garnered quite the collection of photos and trinkets from your adventures. Anne would suggest putting your memories on display by creating a collage of…

A quick stroll down New Orleans’ famed Magazine Street offers a feast for the senses as one of the Big Easy’s premier shopping and entertainment districts. With seemingly endless boutiques, art galleries, businesses, and restaurants, this unique corridor courses through some of New Orleans’ most loved neighborhoods. Among the myriad of shops awaits a charming design boutique laden with treasures new and old. Founded in 2007, Perch came about shortly after Hurricane Katrina when decorator Caroline Robert and her husband, Andre, wanted to invest in the city. The couple renovated an 1860s cottage in the historic Garden District, bringing back its original beauty, and then stocked it full of unique finds from across the country. The shop’s atmosphere is just as fun as the brightly colored products that await a visitor’s discovery.…

“When I bought this house, I was in a period of reinventing myself. The renovation process was an amazing outlet for me.” —LACEY NEWMAN Nashville real estate agent Lacey Newman was at a turning point in her life, and as one chapter ended, she was looking to start fresh with her two young children. She scoured the city for a home that would be the opposite of every house she’d lived in before. “I’ve had two new houses previously, and as a real estate agent I’m around new builds all the time,” Lacey says. “The appeal of finding something older was just really strong. I was looking for a house that had really great, solid features, but needed some freshening up.” When an old stone cottage in the Green Hills area…