Southern Home Home Style #2 2019

A Nantucket sensibility embodies this home, inspired by the family’s summer residence there. Light abounds in the understated foyer, showcasing the barrel ceiling and detailed wainscoting. For the dining room, designer Meridy King chose a crystal chandelier that evokes a serene airiness in the formal space. In a sitting room off the entrance, an unexpected art piece above the mantel expresses the homeowner’s individuality. “I love the fact that it is round and not the expected rectangle landscape,” says Meridy. “It’s a little flash of bright and happy.” The circle motif extends to side tables and a porcelain garden seat, all of which are new additions to the once formal space. In the foyer, a lamp fashioned from a Haitian glass vase and colorful Haitian fabric brightens the welcoming alcove. Knowing the…

To offset the home’s new-construction polish, designer Cindy Barganier incorporated details such as limestone flooring, antique French interior doors, and a custom refrigerator wall that feels like an old-fashioned case piece. An antique Heriz rug enlivens the otherwise neutral living area. “We wanted everything else in that space to be background—a pleasing canvas on which to spotlight the architecture,” Cindy says. Twin swivel chairs allow guests to take part in kitchen conversation. The dining room mirror and chandelier, two of the first pieces homeowners Lomax and Sally Byrd fell in love with, helped dictate the bold scale of the furnishings and accents throughout the house. Tall dining chairs, paired with a round table that facilitates group conversation, correspond with the room’s high ceiling. “I wanted the backs of the chairs to…

Designer Will Huff and his team gutted and revamped this oceanfront structure, opening up the kitchen and dining area and configuring three new bedrooms and baths. The abstract painting over the living room sofa touched off the color scheme—Will incorporated blue accents throughout for continuity but mixed in other hues to punch up the various rooms. “We didn’t want the house to feel like you were in a beach house, but at a house that happens to be at the beach,” Will says. A chevron-patterned white wainscot offsets the heaviness of the traditional antiques and makes the lacquered marine-blue walls pop; a garden-stool cocktail table and capiz-shell lamps add a bit of levity. For the dining area, Will designed a banquette surrounded by bookcases (above) to carve out space for…

In the formal living room, homeowners David and Julie Chadwick wanted a soft, pretty palette. The space also showcases designer Libby Greene’s use of antique furnishings with new upholstery, an approach she followed throughout the residence. “There is something about the old setting off the new,” she says. “They balance perfectly and provide warmth to a room.” Libby began working with the Chadwicks as soon as the couple broke ground on their home, and more than five years later, the project is still ongoing. “There’s nothing quick about finding antiques,” she explains. “It’s like a daily treasure hunt.” They filled the study with pieces meant to create a cozy ambiance—from the chestnut walls and mantel to the tufted leather wingback chair, tapestry pillow, and Oriental rug. In the dining room, silk…

HOMEOWNER AND DESIGNER LUCY FARMER SAYS, “I LOVE USING INTERESTING TEXTILES FOR THE BACKGROUND OF THE HOUSE AND THEN POPS OF COLOR AND VINTAGE PIECES FOR ACCESSORIES.” Lucy had reclaimed flooring installed throughout her home, but the boards in the kitchen hold a special Southern heritage, originally from a mid-1800s general store in Tennessee. Handmade terra-cotta tiles create a honeycomb effect on the accent wall behind the range. These also balance the restored mantel on the opposite side of the room, where a painting, commissioned by S.A. Maples Studios, provides modern polish. A stately dining table—made from reclaimed heart pine—helps visually divide the spaces. The media room provides a comfortable place for the family to relax together. An Americana tone encompasses the space with a ceiling mural made of tin from an…

Natural light acts as its own design element in this residence, dancing between arches that define the great room and reflecting off limestone floors to bathe every inch of the space. An intricately carved Chinese chair holds court before one of the room’s two seating groups, its delicate design matched by an antique rug and a detailed coffee table purchased in South Florida. A palette anchored by mocha walls and matching draperies makes the library the ideal spot to curl up with tea and a good book. Family portraits and collectibles personalize the room, while accents of red and blue provide depth and texture. A small tapestry, originally bought as a Christmas display, has found a year-round backdrop against the fireplace screen. Artfully displayed collections of china, crystal, and pottery exemplify the…