Homes

When designer Jessica Davis met the young owners, who bought the house to use as their second home while working in the film industry, she knew she had to showcase its lush views. The diamond in the rough came with its quirks. But when the homeowners found Jessica on Instagram and asked her to inject their home with her vibrant style and rework its layout to make it more livable, she delivered.

Atomic Ranch homes of the ’50s and ’60s were “a cooler, more contemporary cousin” of the popular one-story style. For the Decatur couple who renovated this midcentury modern house, the style also taps into nostalgia.

This boutique neighborhood became a peaceful city escape after Hurricane Michael made landfall and cleared the area in 2018. A developer restored the dunes and regraded the entire zone to make certain that lots would be insurable and above the flood line as determined by the Army Corps of Engineers.

Architect Scott West channeled Wright’s philosophy when designing this Buckhead house for a family of four. He used natural materials like wood, stone, and concrete throughout the structure. Ipe ceilings stretch across glass transom windows and out above the terrace. Marble with dramatic veining functions as art. Glass-walled “pocket gardens” are tucked into the entry, primary suite, and even the basement garage to add organic texture.

Atlanta interior designer Leah Alexander usually dresses in black, which is something that amuses her friends, considering her fondness for bright colors in her decorating projects. “More often than not, I'm wearing all-black from head to toe,” she says, “But meanwhile . . . green, yellow, or even purple cabinetry? Immediately, yes. Floral wallpaper or saturated art? Wouldn't miss it.”

“Our client’s style is a mixture of Don Draper meets Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil meets the Brontë sisters,” says Kate Duffy, one of the team with Duffy Scott Interiors. “She loves the mix, and she loves vintage.”

If Megan and Austin Sirkin’s house looks like it could be in a Wes Anderson film—with its saturated color palette and vintage interior design—that’s not an accident. “I think we ended up with something of a cross between Hayao Miyazaki and Wes Anderson, which is pretty much perfect for us,” says Megan, referring to the Japanese animator and American filmmaker, respectively. “Warm and inviting, from some ambiguous time in the past, and full of charming little moments of joy.”

After a Fourth of July weekend in 2019, Tom and Chris Glavine were on their deck at Alys Beach, enjoying a last view of the Gulf before heading back to Atlanta, and he said, "Why are we leaving here, exactly?" The family of seven soon started pondering how to make life on 30A a year-round thing. In 2020, they switched to full-time coastal life.

Rather than starting from scratch with a custom house, the contemporary-loving owners of this traditional Brookhaven home opted for a modern makeover.

“It looks like every other house on the street from outside,” says the interior designer. “But when you walk in, it’s not. Defining the spaces as individual and special, while still being connected, was a wonderful challenge.”