Southern Living March 2020

I LIVE IN A QUIRKY HOUSE. If someone asks me what style it is, I usually say “farmhouse,” but really it’s a rambling old two-story thing built in 1952. When we bought the place (pictured above), it had sat on the market for a couple of years, probably because no one wanted to take on such a daunting project. It needed a new roof, new wiring, new floors, new plumbing, a new driveway—and those were just the basics. The kitchen was tiny, with a linoleum floor and metal cabinets that squeaked when you opened them. The baths had pale green and yellow tile and little bitty tubs with showerheads about 5 feet high. But there was something very charming about the house and the location that kept bringing us back. It…

“WHEN A TAPE MEASURE wouldn’t reach, I counted bricks,” explains architect Alyson Sailer about her precise approach to reinterpreting one of Nashville’s oldest houses, the circa-1810 Grassmere Historic Home (the estate is now the site of the city’s zoo), as a new house in College Grove, Tennessee. When Mary and Patrick Hatcliff, owners and operators of Murfreesboro, Tennessee-based Hatcliff Construction were looking to build a Southern Living Showcase Home, they turned to Sailer and six of the region’s best designers to spotlight old Southern style in a fresh way. “Character is often lost in new construction, but we wanted to show how to capture older-home details in smart ways,” says Mary. “Although the exterior is made of all low-maintenance composite products such as James Hardie siding and PVC shutters, handrails,…

“I HAVE A HEART FOR restoration and saving places that need life. This one was a prime candidate,” says designer Kara Hebert of the 1,600-square-foot fixer-upper she bought for her family in her hometown of Jupiter, Florida. When she arrived, this town house was stuck in a different decade with mirrored living room walls, popcorn ceilings, a closed-off kitchen, and lackluster beige tile flooring. The home’s prime location on State A1A (just a skip away from the beach and a short bike ride to her office), won Kara over. “I started my career doing hard-core renovations for general contractors, so I’ve always had a bug for a good project,” she says. The downstairs needed a fresh start; gutting it opened the floor plan to max out space. Next, she added…

Give Containers Character Velvety moss adds extra charm to plain terra-cotta vessels. Speed up the growth by applying a moss-and-buttermilk mixture on new clay pots and spraying them weekly with water. Fill with Pretty Plants Try dwarf English boxwoods, ‘Icy Blue’ violas, and tulips. Make Them Last Surround boxwoods with violas. Add potted tulips purchased from a garden center. (Or next year, plan ahead and plant some tulip bulbs in December or January for early-spring blooms.) Water plants, and let them drain thoroughly. Place in part to full sun. At the end of spring, replace the violas and tulips with summer annuals. ROBBIE CAPONETTO; STYLING: BUFFY HARGETT MILLER…

A FEW MONTHS AGO, I opened the cabinet doors under my sink to get the dishwashing soap, and it wasn’t there. Thinking it could have been shoved to a far corner, I stuck my arm farther in, reached around the entire cabinet, and landed on nothing but air. It was empty. What I’ve pieced together is this: My toddler, who has been known to throw things in garbage cans and toilets like he’s playing a sorting game with remote controls and socks, spent a few rare unsupervised minutes putting the dishwashing soap, hardwood-floor polish, Windex, and Bar Keepers Friend into the garbage can under the sink. Afterward, my sleep-deprived husband lifted out the trash bag, tied it, and then threw it outside without noticing that it contained a cabinet’s worth…

Modern Coastal Homeowner: CHRISSY SERRANO Instagram: @CHRISSYMARIEBLOG Chrissy Serrano and her husband, Jose, built themselves a three-story farmhouse-style home on an urban lot in Durham, North Carolina. “It’s such a versatile look,” explains Serrano, who also admits that she loved the building process so much that it “lit something inside of me.” So she started sharing her inspiration with others. Bring In Seaside Touches “I love the fresh feeling you get at the beach,” she says. “Incorporating coastal elements into a farmhouse gives an unexpected effect. It can be as small as the blue undertones of a gray paint.” Say “Yes” to Shiplap “I want it in every room! Paint it any color, stain it, or leave it raw,” Serrano says. Shiplap adds charm, so you don’t have to do as much decorating. Embrace Cozy; Banish Clutter “I invite…