Southern Lady Southern Style Decorating 2021

As Andrea Wilson dreamed about, sketched, and revised plans for a forever home, she always came back to her children and the memories they would make in every room. “I want my kids to grow up and say, ‘Do you remember the lemon wallpaper in the pantry?’ I kept thinking of 1960s kitchens, where you would see these bold wallpapers and bright colors and out-there prints, and I wanted that fun, kind of memorabilia feel,” says Andrea, who juggled starting her company, Wilhouse Designs, with completing her family’s modern farmhouse last year. The mother of two struck out on her own after 14 years of honing her expertise at an interiors firm in Huntsville, Alabama. “I wanted the flexibility to spend more time with my kids, who are six and three.…

Interior designer Jena Salmon not only preaches that clients should buy what appeals to them, she lives the tenet. In her own dwelling, you’ll find French antiques, refurbished roadside finds, lucky estate-sale bargains like a 17th-century wedding clock, a farm table turned kitchen island, and so much more. “The way I look at a project, it’s how you feel and what you like—even in my home,” says Jena, who has moved nearly a dozen times, including three coast-to-coast treks. Jena and her husband refurbished a 1952 split-level house in Atlanta where they raised their now-grown daughters. The five-bedroom abode in the Buckhead neighborhood captures Jena’s architectural aesthetic with English and French antiques mingled with a few contemporary pieces and lots of color. “I love color; it makes me happy,” says the…

From Venetian light fixtures and modern oil paintings to a luxe velvet sofa, an eclectic mix of furnishings collected by California transplants sent the imaginations of design partners Jason Oliver Nixon and John Loecke into overdrive. “We wanted [the home] to be a kind of oasis, a place where you walk in the door and there are pops of color and amazing art and whimsy,” says Jason, co-founder with John of design house Madcap Cottage. In the front entry, a multihued Murano glass chandelier adorned with delicate blooms hints at the enchanting surprises around every turn, starting in the dining room. “It’s like Venetian meets Chinese meets this sort of magical aesthetic you can’t quite pinpoint,” Jason says of the space enlivened by hand-painted chinoiserie motifs on the hardwood floor and…

Despite her husband’slast-minute cold feet and a floor plan that hadn’t been altered in nearly100 years, designer Meridy King forged ahead with the purchase of a 1932 Atlanta home and made it her own. Never mind the pink marble floors in the solarium, unsightly yellow walls, tiny formal fireplace, and the fact that it had no outdoor space. She focused instead on the intriguing and well-preserved architectural elements. “[The house] had never been touched,” says Meridy, principal of Meridy King Interiors. “It was all original windows, terra-cotta roof, quartersawn oak floors, and plaster walls.” Now, it even has a secret passageway that goes from the master suite to the living area. The interesting character of the structure appealed to Meridy and—just before they signed closing papers—helped her convince husband Woody, who is…

Most homeowners would have tried to eliminate any hint of the disco era, but when Lori and Larry White revamped their 1974 townhouse villa in Hilton Head Island’s picturesque Sea Pines Resort, they made efforts to preserve some of its vintage flavor. They embarked on a full renovation, bringing the aesthetic into the 21st century while infusing it with accents that evoke its history and locale, including a lacquered turtle shell, antique coral, and a rare designer parrot lamp produced the year the home was built. “I was going for upscale beach chic,” says Lori, who scoured secondhand markets and social media sites for pieces with plenty of character. “I wanted it to have an island feel, but not have seashell lamps and seahorses everywhere.” Sea Pines—a community spanning a vast stretch…

Bold, colorful rooms backed by pretty florals, soft patterns, and timeless lines give this Dallas abode pizzazz nurtured by the incredible synergy between the savvy owners and a duo of designers—one working remotely. “The wife wanted every room to have its own personality, each area distinct. That was a goal of hers—that it look different than everyone else’s home and different from her old house,” says Emily Johnston Larkin of EJ Interiors in Dallas. Emily had worked with the couple on their previous open-concept residence in Keller, Texas, where they employed mid-century modern elements. This time around, the wife and husband, who was also the builder, selected a more traditional plan for their expansive accommodations in the Westlake neighborhood. A black-and-white marble tile floor in the entrance immediately creates a sense of…