Houzz Tour: A Sweet Southern Makeover
A 1970s Atlanta Ranch House Goes Casually Glam
When interior designer Julie Holloway and her husband Chris decided they wanted to purchase a home, they searched high and low for their version of the perfect home. Residents of Roswell, Georgia (a suburb just north of Atlanta), they looked at almost every available home in a 30-mile radius, but found nothing they loved. "We were going to build, but it was too expensive, says Holloway. "We decided the next best thing was to find an untouched relic from the past and make it our own." Finally they happened upon a 1978 ranch house in a large Roswell neighborhood. Decorated in '70s kitsch, the home boasted everything from original goldenrod Kitchenaid appliances, to a big basement with dark paneling. "What scared off would-be buyers made us smile," says Holloway. One half of the interior design duo Milk and Honey Home, Holloway enlisted the help of her partner Anisa Darnell to transform the house into her dream home.
One of Holloway's favorite products in her home is an antiqued mirror chandelier she found at The Paris Market and Brocante in Savannah, Georgia. Even though they were on a family vacation with their two children — Wyatt, 2, and Liam, 4 — Holloway insisted on dragging it home so she could hang it in her new living room.
Described by a friend as "a retreat in Switzerland," Holloway's casual and glamorous home has a bit of country in it too. "We live in farm country," she says, "so we can get away with a lot of barn lights, and a lot of board-and-batten here." The 1x2 vertical boards in the living room help create that vibe.
Assorted mercury glass accents a piece of custom word art by Darnell. A passage from a lullaby Chris sings to Liam, Darnell has other pieces of similar art on the Milk and Honey Home website.
The entryway is Holloway's favorite part of the house. "Our home faces the south, so light pours in and bounces off the dark hardwoods and green door," she says. Darnell and Holloway papered the entry in wallpaper from Home Depot, hung a eye-catching Moravian Star light fixture, and accented the area with an antique console table and a mirror from Ballard Designs.
Holloway painted her front door with Benjamin Moore Georgian Green, and added vinyl door numbers in a classic font. Rustic looking barn sconces from Ballard Designs were installed on either side of the doorway.
Photos, mirrors, and vintage goods are often mixed up and changed out in the displays and photo shelves around her home — most of which revolve around a white color palette. "I love white so much," says Holloway. "I am more peaceful, inspired — and my creative juices flow more because our home is just always one big, white blank canvas. My ancestors were Swedish and German, so perhaps my love of white is in my genes."
Perfectly illustrating her love of white, Holloway added a sense of texture to the master bedroom with an off-white and white damask wallpaper from Lowe's. Plain white bedding from Target actually stands out against the wallpaper's design, and is accented with paint-by-number art from Etsy, and a distressed bench at the foot of the bed.
A wood-and-lace earring hanger from Urban Outfitters accents a photo wall in the master bedroom. Holloway opted for items that were low in price but big in design from Urban Outfitters, Ballard Designs, and Pottery Barn/West Elm, because she lives close to the stores. "I scored most of our items there, as well as my favorite antiques store, The Queen of Hearts, in Alpharetta, Georgia," she says.
One of Holloway's big splurges — the Verner Panton "S" Chair — sits at a feminine mirrored desk from Outrageous Interiors. A set of über girly ruffle-paneled curtains are from Urban Outfitters.
A durable, natural woven floor covering blends well with the neutral tone of this sitting room, drawing the eye to an artfully scattered picture wall. Holloway created a darling little sitting area with a Ballard Designs daybed, a chandelier from Progressive Lighting, and a driftwood table from Anthropologie.
Silhouettes made of Liam and Wyatt at their preschool are an elegant alternative to standard portraits. This cherished custom art works perfectly in the bathroom, with Holloway's white-on-white design. "We used buckets and buckets of White Dove paint," she says, "with some black, blue, and a bit of brown sprinkled in — as well as mixed metallics."
Holloway has two of these nude portraits in her home, both of which are stitch art (Done on a sewing machine!) by Kate Dukes.
For Liam's room, Holloway and Darnell chose a color palette that was classic, could be used with a variety of products, and won't need to be changed as Liam gets older. The main lighting fixture is a wicker pendant from PB Kids. Bedside sconces are from Crate & Barrel, and the green and white and green rug is from World Market.
A poster advertising Holloway's love of blogging lives in the dining room, along with a hand-stenciled pendant designed by Darnell.
More ranch house inspiration:
Visit a Restored Eichler on the Waterfront
Tour an Open and Cozy Family Space
Browse: Popular home design photos
More ranch house inspiration:
Visit a Restored Eichler on the Waterfront
Tour an Open and Cozy Family Space
Browse: Popular home design photos