Written by Cynthia Aiken
I recently made a trip to one of the beautiful southern towns of Georgia for a design job. While driving around I really enjoyed seeing the old southern homes and the care they had been given to preserve their beauty. These beautiful old homes were perfect examples of Colonial, Greek revival, Federal-style, Victorian and even the 1940’s Cottage Style. Reflecting much preservation, it was as if time had stood still. It gave me such pleasure to see these wonderful old southern Cottage Style homes and to know how much our lifestyles have changed over the years since these homes were built, yet I realized the similarity in the styles of homes being built today to these old southern landmarks. I realized how much my southern roots of growing up in Atlanta has influenced the French Country Decorating direction for my interior design ideas, ideas that I would follow for the next 25 years. I don’t consider my Country French Design style as totally traditional, but I do feel I always start with a southern traditional style adding my signature need for comfort and modern day livability. I truly am a southern girl at heart and I think it shows in my style of French Country Décor, I love taking traditional elements and updating them to make them feel more modern by incorporating contemporary paintings into room settings making rooms classic, clean-lined and invitingly casual. I am a big believer in the mix. Mix freely. A single object on a tabletop or a single work of art on the wall can be nice, but for me, mixing collections provides the most excitement. I just like to mix things. Excitement is the perfect description to add to any classic room to make it comfortable and livable, casual yet sophisticated.
Many southern homes warm elegance is a textbook definition of the term “Southern hospitality”, this is the perfect way to live. So many of our design decisions now are based on the styles of long ago. French Country Decorating is in. We’re seeing styles in the direction of everything looking old. The trend is back for natural elements such as slate flooring, stone and rock for interior surfaces and an old brick floor can add vintage charm to any room. Anything old and anything natural is in. That’s why flea market shopping has become so popular and French Country Furniture manufacturers are recreating vintage styles for furniture, bedding and home accessories. Pre-washed fabrics and slipcovers are bigger than ever. If you take a look at our attitudes of today, you’ll realize the values of yesterday are becoming important in the way we now live and the way we raise our families. This spills over into the way we decorate our homes and the way we entertain in our Cottage Style homes. You’ve heard the expression, “I love the way this house lives”.
Grand but unpretentious is a great definition for Southern interiors. We seem to be rediscovering a classic style with the added technology for the modern lifestyles of today. I love to start a design project with southern elegance, add some less formal pieces like old wicker, a painted piece, an old dinged and dented pine table, big overstuffed upholstery with lots of ottomans and you’ve created a space with true casual elegance, a space that is really comfortable to live in, a great space for entertaining and raising a family. French Country Kitchens are in…..Look at the styles of our large country kitchens that everyone wants in a new home today. We’re recreating the Country French Kitchens of years passed with large farmhouse sinks, bronze hardware as well as different finishes for cabinets and lots of built-in cupboards with glass doors. Today’s kitchen with every modern convenience can still retain the personality and integrity of a vintage feel with natural wood cabinets with old-fashioned iron pulls. Stone floors and stone walls were something you saw in old homes and is a look we are recreating for our kitchens of today.
Lighting is another area where we’re seeing an antique influence. Lanterns have become an important style for lighting. I love to use exterior lanterns for interior lighting. A large square outdoor lantern hanging over a square dining table is the perfect combination giving a bit of casualness to an otherwise formal dining room. This can be a simple style, bringing back the look and craftsmanship of a blacksmith’s creation. I always advise going bigger rather than smaller for any light fixture, both inside and out. Lanterns are also great as entrance lighting. Black iron or oil rubbed bronze are perfect finishes for this style.
We are seeing the classic style of Cottage Style homes for bathrooms of today. Freestanding tubs, roll-top designs on claw feet are very popular now, more than the big jacuzzi tubs we’ve seen in the past.
Big Porches furnished as outside rooms are an influence from old southern homes and if you have grandmother’s antique wicker it’s even more authentic adding a certain charm to any porch.
The Country French and classic south is also spilling over into landscaping as well. Cobblestone type driveways and terraces, old stone pathways leading to an outdoor garden. Just look at the influence of our outdoor gardens, the popularity and attention our outdoor spaces have gained in recent years comes directly from old country homes. Old-fashioned perennial flowers are the latest rage.
Visit my site to see our Interior Design Catalog. Packed full of great ideas.
Email me at caiken1@windstream.net if you would like to discuss a decorating idea or dilemma. This is another in my series of home INTERIOR DESIGN IDEAS from your Atlanta Interior Designer; I hope that you use them to help you to decorate southern style.