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Houzz Tour: Chic and Fun Texas Party House for Longhorn Fans
A designer uses bright colors, lively patterns, layers of texture and bold artwork to elevate this Austin home’s design
These University of Texas alums and longtime Longhorn fans wanted an Austin vacation home for game day weekends and more. After purchasing a spec home that was within walking distance of Austin’s happening South Congress Avenue, they hired local firm Mark Ashby Design to perform a renovation that would give it a custom-home look. Spec homes are new builds usually finished in a way that will appeal to the most buyers, so they often feel like generic blank slates. The goal was to make this home feel anything but.
Making things even more challenging, the clients wanted it “toothbrush-ready” by the start of football season, leaving interior designer Christina Simon just a few months to complete the renovation and fully outfit the home with furniture, lighting and accessories. She embraced the challenge and used her local connections to get custom pieces made in a hurry. She used layers of organic textures, bright colors, strong patterns and beautifully curated art to elevate the home with a high-end playful and chic look. One jumping-off point her clients had given her was to work their alma mater’s signature color, burnt orange, into the design.
Making things even more challenging, the clients wanted it “toothbrush-ready” by the start of football season, leaving interior designer Christina Simon just a few months to complete the renovation and fully outfit the home with furniture, lighting and accessories. She embraced the challenge and used her local connections to get custom pieces made in a hurry. She used layers of organic textures, bright colors, strong patterns and beautifully curated art to elevate the home with a high-end playful and chic look. One jumping-off point her clients had given her was to work their alma mater’s signature color, burnt orange, into the design.
“I realized UT’s burnt orange could also apply to terra cottas, peaches and shades seen in leather,” Simon says. The main part of the living room has a sectional sofa with a tufted leather ottoman she designed. She had the pillows made from soft, velvety fabrics, some with Turkish kilim-like patterns.
“We wanted the house to be colorful but also relaxing and refined at the same time,” Simon says. “Part of getting rid of the spec-house feel was using layers of textures. Textural, tactile elements we used throughout the house include leather, woven wallcoverings, handmade ceramics and natural wood and stone.”
She also used a layered-rug strategy. “You can have a sisal rug cut to any size to create a boundary for any space, then layer smaller rugs on top of it,” Simon says. This allowed her to use colorful vintage rugs without worrying about their sizes. She sourced all of the rugs in the house from local business Black Sheep Unique.
Browse area rugs in the Houzz Shop
“We wanted the house to be colorful but also relaxing and refined at the same time,” Simon says. “Part of getting rid of the spec-house feel was using layers of textures. Textural, tactile elements we used throughout the house include leather, woven wallcoverings, handmade ceramics and natural wood and stone.”
She also used a layered-rug strategy. “You can have a sisal rug cut to any size to create a boundary for any space, then layer smaller rugs on top of it,” Simon says. This allowed her to use colorful vintage rugs without worrying about their sizes. She sourced all of the rugs in the house from local business Black Sheep Unique.
Browse area rugs in the Houzz Shop
Simon and the couple worked with Alexis Armstrong of Armstrong Art Consulting, who curated the artwork. “Alexis has an amazing eye for art and interiors, and she helps collectors curate everything from up-and-coming artists to major players,” Simon says. After Simon discussed the vibe of the home and the color and texture palette she was using, Armstrong made the art selections.
The wall sculpture is by Paul Villinski, who made the colorful birds out of LP records. Vinyl fans, don’t be upset. Villinski repurposes discarded materials in creating his work, such as butterflies made from aluminum cans thrown out in New York City. In this case, the records had been destroyed by Hurricane Katrina; he found them left behind, warped and caked in mud, then made something beautiful out of them.
The wall sculpture is by Paul Villinski, who made the colorful birds out of LP records. Vinyl fans, don’t be upset. Villinski repurposes discarded materials in creating his work, such as butterflies made from aluminum cans thrown out in New York City. In this case, the records had been destroyed by Hurricane Katrina; he found them left behind, warped and caked in mud, then made something beautiful out of them.
Armstrong also sourced this bold striped Ian Davenport work. It was the inspiration for the dining room and serves as a focal point.
Light furniture with subtle curves plays a supporting role to the bold stripes. “We wanted well-rounded corners and organic shapes to keep the relaxing feeling,” Simon says. A sculptural light fixture with caned fan-like pieces brings in a natural texture. “The pieces of this fixture move like a mobile,” Simon says.
Light furniture with subtle curves plays a supporting role to the bold stripes. “We wanted well-rounded corners and organic shapes to keep the relaxing feeling,” Simon says. A sculptural light fixture with caned fan-like pieces brings in a natural texture. “The pieces of this fixture move like a mobile,” Simon says.
Simon gave the kitchen a significant face-lift. She removed the upper cabinets around the range and replaced them with floating shelves. “This is a second home so they didn’t need so many cabinets,” she says. She added a zellige tile backsplash all the way up to the ceiling on the range wall. Zellige tile is a handmade clay tile from Morocco. It has a wonderful natural look with lovely variations in color and texture — no two tiles are exactly alike. Simon replaced the countertops with quartzite, a natural stone, and added new pendant lights.
To the right had been a freestanding fridge and a desk area. “That desk was across from the bathroom and had no view. No one was ever going to want to work there,” Simon says. Instead, she created a row of white oak cabinets and included separate refrigerator and freezer units concealed with matching panel fronts in white oak. The remaining cabinets on that wall serve as pantry storage.
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To the right had been a freestanding fridge and a desk area. “That desk was across from the bathroom and had no view. No one was ever going to want to work there,” Simon says. Instead, she created a row of white oak cabinets and included separate refrigerator and freezer units concealed with matching panel fronts in white oak. The remaining cabinets on that wall serve as pantry storage.
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The laundry room is off the kitchen. “It was just kind of an ugly room with a stacked washer and dryer, cabinets and a mail drop space,” Simon says. Knowing she could do better, she covered the machines up with a colorful curtain in Schumacher fabric and created this bar next to it.
She replaced the upper cabinets with floating shelves and covered the backsplash in a stunning encaustic cement tile from Clé. In some ways, the tight time line helped her make quick decisions — luckily, the tile was in stock with no lead time. She also replaced the countertop with basaltina (made from volcanic rock), painted the lower cabinetry to match the tile and swapped in leather drawer pulls. The spot makes it easy for guests to serve themselves.
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She replaced the upper cabinets with floating shelves and covered the backsplash in a stunning encaustic cement tile from Clé. In some ways, the tight time line helped her make quick decisions — luckily, the tile was in stock with no lead time. She also replaced the countertop with basaltina (made from volcanic rock), painted the lower cabinetry to match the tile and swapped in leather drawer pulls. The spot makes it easy for guests to serve themselves.
Find a local countertop pro
Another shade of orange pops up in the powder room. Simon had the vanity painted a peachy apricot hue. She added texture with a woven patterned wallcovering.
The designer also replaced the existing faucets, countertop, mirror and lighting. The new countertop is quartzite with a matching high backsplash that accommodates the wall-mounted faucet. The single faucet handle has a wood inlay — another little added dose of texture.
Not sure where to start on your home project? Click here to learn the basics
The designer also replaced the existing faucets, countertop, mirror and lighting. The new countertop is quartzite with a matching high backsplash that accommodates the wall-mounted faucet. The single faucet handle has a wood inlay — another little added dose of texture.
Not sure where to start on your home project? Click here to learn the basics
“The silkscreened woven wallpaper in this guest room was another one of the muses for this home’s design,” Simon says. “It’s textured, has some of the peachier tones that bring in the orange, and the scallops look like abstract Longhorns. The clients loved it.”
She played off one of the colors in the wallpaper by designing a custom bed upholstered in rust-colored mohair. Hammered metal side tables and a pair of ceramic lamps add soft curves to the room.
Wallpaper: Brushed Scallop in Blush, Kelly Ventura
She played off one of the colors in the wallpaper by designing a custom bed upholstered in rust-colored mohair. Hammered metal side tables and a pair of ceramic lamps add soft curves to the room.
Wallpaper: Brushed Scallop in Blush, Kelly Ventura
Armstrong found the cowgirl photograph by Anja Niemi.
The bathroom’s toilet and shower areas are shared by this and another guest bedroom, with separate vanity areas for each.
The bathroom’s toilet and shower areas are shared by this and another guest bedroom, with separate vanity areas for each.
The guest room on the other side of the bathroom has a similar color scheme. A few splashes of burnt orange offset the neutral colors and natural woven textures. The wallcovering is grasscloth. For over the bed, Armstrong chose a photo of U2 by photographer Colm Henry.
In their bedroom, the homeowners wanted a calming blue for the walls. “They love to spend time in the Bahamas, so that feeling came into play,” Simon says. “In many of the other rooms we brought in texture with grasscloth wallcoverings. Here we gave them the blue walls and brought in a grasscloth feeling with the wall-to-wall window treatments, woven pendants and other furniture.”
Playing off the blue of the walls, Simon designed a custom headboard that extends across the entire wall and upholstered it in a Kelly Wearstler fabric. She had outlets for charging devices installed in the nightstands.
Armstrong sourced the mercury glass sculptures by Jennifer and Thor Bueno over the bed. “She finds truly amazing artists,” Simon says. “Since this project, I’ve been working with her for other clients.”
Playing off the blue of the walls, Simon designed a custom headboard that extends across the entire wall and upholstered it in a Kelly Wearstler fabric. She had outlets for charging devices installed in the nightstands.
Armstrong sourced the mercury glass sculptures by Jennifer and Thor Bueno over the bed. “She finds truly amazing artists,” Simon says. “Since this project, I’ve been working with her for other clients.”
The homeowners’ bathroom was fully renovated, but Simon kept the layout the same. She used a palette of marble mosaic penny rounds on the floor, a white oak vanity, quartzite countertop and brass accents. She used a large-format tile all the way up the walls for a luxe look. “I had the outlets installed in the medicine cabinets so that we wouldn’t have to break up the tiled walls with outlets,” she says.
After just a few months, the house was toothbrush-ready in time for football season. “I had never had this kind of quick turnaround on a project before,” Simon says. “But I said yes because I thought it sounded fun, I love a challenge and I wanted to learn how to do a quick reveal, especially because I am currently working on a major renovation of my own house.”
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After just a few months, the house was toothbrush-ready in time for football season. “I had never had this kind of quick turnaround on a project before,” Simon says. “But I said yes because I thought it sounded fun, I love a challenge and I wanted to learn how to do a quick reveal, especially because I am currently working on a major renovation of my own house.”
More on Houzz
Tour more colorful homes
Hire a local design pro
Shop for your home
House at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple
Location: Austin, Texas
Size: 2,400 square feet (223 square meters); three bedrooms, 2½ bathrooms
Designer: Christina Simon of Mark Ashby Design
“The image of the diver wearing orange trunks was one of my muses for the house,” Simon says. “I realized that it would be a lot of fun to play with orange’s opposite color, blue.” The photo is by Austin photographer Clay Grier. The colors in this corner of the living room play off the colors in the landscape seen through the large windows.
Working on such a tight schedule meant there was no long lead time for ordering products. “I had to find vendors that would sell me floor models and still get a high-end look,” the designer says. She worked her local sources and had the furniture upholstered in-house to save time. The fabric on these chairs is by Kelly Wearstler; the fringed footstool brings in the burnt orange.
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