Varied styles.

That's an interesting point, Pal.

In thinking about it, I would totally trust her with MCM because I bet many of her friends have MCM homes.

Re: the nursery, toddler's room, I watched another one of these and the designer/mother walked into her son's room and said "This room was clearly decorated knowing I would be spending a lot of time in the room for a few years, so this is for Me, He won't even notice what it looks like for a few years, and when he has an opinion we will go from there".

I moved into a new fully decorated bedroom at age seven that got a new paint color and window treatments when I was about 13 and I don't think, other than the large bulletin board I had (we each had) that it occurred to us that our rooms were somehow to be a means of personal decorating expression. Many of my friends had unchanging bedrooms from the first time I saw them until they went away to college and beyond, they weren't really "decorated" at all. I had friends that had a toybox in the corner of their room until they left home.

(I probably had the best appointed room of any of my friends, though. The people who bought the house when my dad was 90 asked only that my bedroom be left intact)

Our rooms were definitely an opportunity for expression, and we all chose our own decor. My older sister had a very groovy floral wall paper in blue, purple, lime and black, and friends and visitors all signed her ceiling. My brother's room was a wood-paneled den of iniquity, festooned with posters of dubious appropriateness.

In middle school I moved out of a room shared with DS and decorated my own. It had a ballerina wallpaper feature wall, white and gold french provincial furniture, and raspberry plush wall to wall.

When I was a teen. I redecorated in a way I might still choose today. The hardwood floors were refinished and I got a big rag rug. Ditched all the furniture for a pineapple bed, a gate leg table, and a lovely secretary. I had lots of plants in clay pots and big Boston fern on a wood pedestal. The room was wall papered in a slate blue colonial pattern. The funniest thing was I didn't want a big clunky bureau so I made over my closet with shelves. I put my underwear and accessories in a series of glass fishbowls on the shelves. My BFF and I still laugh about this --I convinced her to do the same thing in her room.

When I was in 6th grade my room got a makeover and all I remember was picking out horse wallpaper. Then in high school I wanted grasscloth and all the colors were blue/aqua/purple. hahaha.

Although I had input into colors and patterns, my mom maintained that my room was part of the house (her house) and orderliness, etc. had to meet her standards. I couldn't go randomly sticking thumbtacks into the walls, so I needed mom-approved bulletin boards. Beds got made, cardigans put away, clothes on hangers. Nag nag nag.

When I moved out, I indulged my inner slob for a long time. My daughter got to put whatever she wanted on her walls, wherever she chose.

high school I wanted grasscloth

Well, laa-di-da! Fancy. I had never heard of it until we bought out CT house, were it was all over the large sloped, beamed ceiling in our family room. I ripped it out. : (

More portfolio - - Easterling & Long - (Don Easterling and Nina Nash Long)

Beautifully done!

They also do work for Mathews Furniture & Design - Atlanta

I can't believe what I had was fancy. Maybe I'm calling it the wrong thing.

My parents had grasscloth in their bedroom since 1975 that was there when the house was sold 40 years later, and it stayed at least a few years longer based upon the new owners' FB.

I'm sure I've already told this story. We lived in a rental before we bought this house. There was a small hallway that connected three rooms. It was papered with grasscloth, the kind with long, vertical, grass-like fibers. We had a Maine Coon named Luther. Despite his impressive bulk, he would scale the walls, straight up, gaining purchase via the fibers. Eventually the paper and fibers began to break away and would flop away from the wall. I had to give it haircuts and it did impact how much security deposit we got back.

Bunny, that happened in my first apartment. Living room had a grasscloth accent wall, Calico gleefully used it for climbing and claw sharpening.

I mean, who needs a scratching post when you have an entire wall?!! Plus it looks pretty cool to scale a wall like a lizard.

Mtn linked a portfolio. Wasnt there another? it featured this photo which I saved for inspiring me to go creamy beige…pistachio? . ( More on that later) . Did Hz remove it, or did I get it mixed up?

Despite his impressive bulk, he would scale the walls, straight up, gaining purchase via the fibers.

Handsome turn of phrase there.

We tested extensively before installing grasscloth, with full width yard long samples taped up on the wall. For some reason the cat had no interest in them at all.

Marti, I saw that photo but maybe in a different link. Pretty

marti, I think it's in the link above that I added - just checked. It's in

BUCKHEAD NEEL REID HOME

Pal, cats excel at confounding humans.

Luther, not far from the scene of the crime

Speaking of turns of phrases, Mtn, ”den of iniquity” is one if my all time favorite phrases. When our children were growing up and coming home with inappropriate information of dubious origin I referred to school busses as ”rolling dens of iniquity.”

Adding…. I didn’t mention that in the tour this homeowner / designer referred to many items and styles as ”this cute little [fill in the blank],” a description that covered everything from an empire-style chandelier (“light with these cute little glass beads”) to decorative lacquer boxes. She clearly doesn’t have the vocabulary of the profession, but maybe that is a plus when dealing wih clients who also don’t know anything about it and aren’t interested enough to learn? The overused and often incorrectly used word ”accessible” comes to mind.

I've tried several times and have yet to watch the entire video at one sitting. 42 minutes was too long and would have benefited from editing. Her home was beautifully decorated and while I'm a fan of traditional style I found her home too polished and formal, almost 'overdone' if that's possible. Although considering her profession and location I guess that should be expected. I absolutely loved the oyster plates in the living room and the rugs. The kitchen was my favorite with the beautiful window over the sink and the clean, uncluttered look. I kept looking for a touch of whimsy during the tour to lighten the overall impression but never found any.

Perhaps I've become too sensitive as I get older but her voice and vocal patterns were harsh to me. It very well might be her natural voice but the combination of vocal fry and rising inflection along with the over use of like - kinda - cute - you know - fer sure - were grating. For some reason I have an abhorrence when books are used as mere decorative items. And as others have already pointed out she didn't recognize Collier was a publisher. She loved the books because they were blue. I wonder if she noticed that it was a set of Harvard Classics. Hopefully a first edition. I would have thought it would have been noticed in editing and deleted.

We had grasscloth in DH's study and I always liked it. No cats but it was very nubby and required a light vacuuming near the HVAC ducts.

I like her kitchen a lot, esp the expanse of windows over the sink. No screens though on the operable sides. Is that typical for where she lives? The South in general? Weather permitting, I love open windows. Without screens, I'd have flies, wasps, mosquitoes, etc. I know screens aren't always lovely to look at, but function, people.

I usually watch all of these videos with the sound turned off and will turn it on if I think they might be saying something of interest.

I actually don't like a lot of subjective adjective descriptions of the finishes and objects and accessories. We know you like it, we know you think it works together, we know you think it's beautiful. Otherwise you would not have picked it.

When I was doing project presentations, I would say "I picked this reproduction Cowboy wallpaper from the 1950s from Mt. Diablo Handprints" if I wanted to give any detail on something unusual. Just the facts.

There was a colleague who would say "I picked this beauuuutiful fabric as an accent for the rug, because I think they look gorgeous! together."

Really. Do you.

I can see it. Let me decide whether I like it or not. A description like that is not going to sway me one way or the other.

I never watch with sound either.

Oh - now you tell me that! Without the sound I could have watched the entire video. Pal's right as usual - subjective descriptions seldom convey anything significant. When I watch these videos I would rather hear a brief explanation, the history of the piece, the type of wood, why certain items were chosen.

“…i worry that she may name her future children Random House, Hachette, and Simon and Schuster.”

Annie, ROTFL! And it’s certainly in the realm of the possible 😎

It's interesting because I watch a lot of other stuff with the covers pulled over my head. Like the show about verifying a painting's authenticity. Once I have seen the painting, the rest is research and scientific process. I may take a peek if they are comparing two things visually. But mostly I am a person who never quite fully engaged with media one way or the other.

No screens though on the operable sides.

I didn't watch the video (at work, too long), so this may not be the issue, but an option on new windows is to have screens that roll away when the window is closed. Roll them down when window is open. Perhaps that's what she has? I can't imagine opening windows without a screen either and I would think it would be especially bad in the south.

jsk, I just rewatched the window part and it doesn't look like there are hidden screens. She mentions how much she loves the window and that it's original to the house. Maybe not a candidate for a screen retrofit?

Ok, I tried to watch the entire video but had to take a break. I love the house and could live there now. She has great taste - more formal but beautifully done. One thing that bothered me in the LR - the white chairs were pushed back so far off the rug. I know, small thing. Loved the oyster plates on the wall and all the rattan / bamboo / wicker accents. The kitchen was perfect to me and the windows! So I will return for more but have to take it in small doses. The "Collier" comment about being puzzled that the name was on all the spines of the books was, well... surprising. Every time I view Atlanta homes, I find myself loving them.

I've lived in the South all of my life. Even when we had screens, we never opened the windows. Personally, I do not like looking through screens. Our last house had the roll up screens (Pella, 1985), but we never used them and neither did my parents.

Our seasons do not vary much from this, but it is better now that we are in Florida. We don't have many bugs and no mosquitos with the Gulf breeze, but the Scrub Oaks loose leaves twice a yearr so that Fall x 2. At least the acorns only come once.

Allison, tell more about never opening windows. What about fresh air on a pleasant (or even not so pleasant) day?

It would be lovely not to have to look through a screen over a window, but I've stop seeing them. They serve such a vital function.

We know you like it, we know you think it works together, we know you think it's beautiful. Otherwise you would not have picked it.

Touche, Pal

I always watch these at an accelerated speed. Because that also makes people sound like Donald Duck, I turn off the sound and use captions. Then I get to giggle at the typos, too.

I really dislike a/c. I always find myself needing a throw and or getting a cold. We open windows a lot, and we use screens only when and as needed. It kind of all depends. For example, in Maine, we leave the french doors to our MBR wide open. I think because it is so high up, and there is a breeze, we don't get bugs. The time of year, the time of day, the level of breeze, all sorts of reason we may not use screens.

I use A/C only when there are back-to-back 100+ days. It's low humidity here, so there's that.

Open windows make me feel alive and connected. Once it's over 65, my front door is always open. It's a big window. Love my screen door.

Anna wins the internet today.

What about fresh air on a pleasant (or even not so pleasant) day?

We use our HVAC 24/7/365. We spend a lot of time each day outside. Beach is a block away and we have a pool. We walk. DH swims and soaks in the spa 2x a day. He even showers outside - 2+ years and he can count on one hand the number of times he's showered indoors. There is a shaded patio by the pool. Screened porch for more fresh air and relaxation, or visiting with family and friends. I also work in the yard.

I'm with Allison. I do not like screens and we do not have any on our house. We do have colder weather about 3 months of the year and while we still get outside, not as much. Otherwise we spend a good deal of time outside. Our AC runs early spring through late fall usually. We have a sunroom that has sliding windows that we can open for fresh air. No screens on those windows either.

Allison, fair enough, outdoors is really the best, weather permitting. I should have qualified my comment to mean getting fresh air into the house.

Starter home? Wonder how many of us still live in one. We've done some remodeling and a small addition, but it's still our starter home 40 years later. Guess when you don't have kids it's easier to accomplish.

Used to love opening windows in the spring. With climate change spring hardly exists anymore. A day or two here and there is about it and then you have to contend with the pollen, so it's not really fun anymore.

I knew that's what you were asking, but going in and out the door 40x a day didn't sound like an answer that would have satisfied you. DH is big on watching humidity level inside the house. He might have a stroke if I decided to start opening windows. LOL

Allison, we can't discount our different climates. :)

I would’ve bought the house for the kitchen windows.

I love the powder room, and the brass hardware and faucets.

I literally did LOL at the Collier bit. That is just plain dopey.

Thank you Arapaho for finding this pic for me. I spent 10 minutes responding why I was interested, then, BOOM, away it went . GRRRRR. Really takes the wind from my sails when that happens. Basic issue, I love that soft beige with wall and cabs, etc. being same shade. I’ll start another post, maybe.

Allison, I'm with your dh.

Back to the tour, I did notice the sheers she loves, she must also love due to blocking the busy road behind. No harm in saying that. Many home sites are not perfect.

I'm back to Nina and thought it was interesting to see what she started with..... here is

her home when she purchased it.

Viewing the transformation can be similar to a lesson in interior design, at least it seems that way to me.

Yes, I did see that. Honestly that home does not very before-y to me; it was in very good shape IMHO. Even the K is not so bad.

Interesting! I like some aspects of the before home more than the after— the nursery, for one. It was definitely not a fixer upper whenshe bought it.

Thank you for sharing. Enjoyed seeing the home before and after. While I liked much of her design, the overall feel is a bit too formal for me. I appreciate that she has put together a very nicely decorated home, suited to her taste. My favorite bits were the oyster plates, the kitchen windows and some of her paintings.