Interior Design Inspiration : A Few Of Our Favorite Things

Great design inspiration for your own home awaits you when you step inside the inviting seeded glass, knotty alder door of the Nashville’s only Southern Living Showcase Home open daily through Sunday, November 6. So, slip on the shoes covers, grab your camera and be prepared to take some great notes.

First, from the tour guide outlining paint colors and room sources to the display area in the garage, the Southern Living Showcase Home provides great building and design information. In addition, there are over a dozen designers and decorative artisans contributing to the project. Their website and contact information is included as well.

Bring some drama to a smaller space has been accomplished by designer Kippie Leland in the Gentlemen’s Study with an English Jacobean style coffered ceiling. Leland has taken a simulated clock face with hand-hammered zinc leaves as numbers creating a unique focal point for the room. Acquired from Garden Park Antiques in Nashville, the piece has huge wooden clock arms.

Not your college dorm captain’s chairs! Designer Jerome Farris has woven whimsy into the elegant Living Room with a new take on this element with chairs of silver-leaf, chrome and cream leather with raw-silk cushions.  You’ll also see a great example of using a neutral palette (Sherwin Williams’ Oyster White Walls) and adding dramatic splashes of teal and turquoise.

Convert a picture frame into a clever bulletin board. Bella Tucker Decorative Artists’ Brook Tucker found a nice size picture frame and converted it into a clever corkboard in the Tween Girl’s Bedroom by designer Kristen Finney.  Using the popular Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, described as faux paint for dummies, Tucker’s frame takes on a new personality.

Speaking of new ideas in paint, Castle Homes’ in-house designer has used dry-erase paint outlined with decorative moulding for clever family message board in the home’s mud room.

What, what do you do with the narrow wall of a two-story staircase? Local art expert Ron York called in one of his creative big guns Michael Bush to create a delightful triptych “Caballo” custom to the slender space framed by pretty sconces. York encourages homeowners’ to be unafraid of commissioning special pieces for their home. By doing so, you transform the transition space into an artful addition.

Rough and tumble boys with huge imaginations deserve a room which reflects that personality. Designer Lee Shacklock has re-purposed plumbing pipe into the curtain rod and desk frame of the Industry Whimsy themed boy’s bedroom. Using a world-map mural to wrap a flying machine, created by Tweed Baby Outfitters, completes this inspiring space.

Intimidated by Pink? Designer Amanda Burdge has provided the showcase home with a fresh take on this sometimes disastrous color. Weaving a vintage pink, a variation of the design industry’s top color of the year, she brings Southern glam to her soothing guest retreat.

Encourage your kiddos to linger at the dinner table through informal seating.  Desiger Beth Jones has long been an advocate of adding comfy seating to the kitchen table to please all members of the family.  Mom will love the look of the clever bench seating in the showcase home’s Breakfast Room while kids will appreciate the posture break.

Castle Homes’ in-house designer and company vice president Heather Looney recently appeared on WSMV’s More at Midday with an additional “Five Great Southern Living Showcase Home Ideas.”

Find your own inspiration through Sunday, November 6 at Nashville’s only Southern Living Showcase Home in the new Dorset Park neighborhood off Old Hickory Boulevard and Granny White Pike benefiting Ronald McDonald House Nashville. For directions, hours and on-line tickets, visit www.castlehomes.com and follow the Showcase Home on Facebook and Twitter.