My Houzz: A Celebration of Color in an Artist’s Family Home
Hand-painted walls and a kaleidoscope of happy hues brighten up this South Carolina house
Sam is pictured here on a West Elm sectional with the family’s speckled dachshunds. The couple bought the older one, Dexter. Sam decided their next dog would be a rescue, so she was happily surprised when, 10 years later, a veterinarian friend sent them a picture of Doug — a rescue with the same coloring as Dexter. The pup has been a part of the family ever since.
A friend gave the colorful embroidered pillow by Jonathan Adler to the couple as a tribute to their New York roots.
Pairing the pillow with the chair is another example of Sam’s willingness to mix things up. “People say, ‘I like this, but it doesn’t really go with my style.’ But if I like something, then I say it goes,” she says. “It’s like when you get dressed. If you feel good in it, it’s a good choice.”
Pairing the pillow with the chair is another example of Sam’s willingness to mix things up. “People say, ‘I like this, but it doesn’t really go with my style.’ But if I like something, then I say it goes,” she says. “It’s like when you get dressed. If you feel good in it, it’s a good choice.”
Before Sam found the bold Regency sofa the family has now, they had a simple cream couch. “When I saw the vintage sofa, I thought, ‘This is so much more special, and more our style,’” she says.
In the sitting room, giant anatomical drawings make a bold statement. The vintage scrolls are family heirlooms, given to Darren upon his graduation from medical school.
Vintage couch: Indigo Market; Wassily chairs: Design Within Reach; coffee table: antique; Moroccan leather poufs and rug: Serena & Lily
Vintage couch: Indigo Market; Wassily chairs: Design Within Reach; coffee table: antique; Moroccan leather poufs and rug: Serena & Lily
Sam says her friends tease her for her tendency to constantly swap out her decor, but she says it’s like a puzzle. “You just have to do little tweaks until you get it just right. Now that it’s what I love, I’m not switching it,” she says.
Sam enjoys mixing bargain buys, such as this card catalog found on Craigslist, with more expensive splurges, including the modern Wassily chairs also in the room. All the furnishings also speak to Sam’s love of functionality — the drawers in the vintage library card catalog, for instance, serve as storage for the couple’s wine collection.
This ultramodern chair juxtaposes the vintage couch and posters nicely.
The midcentury cabinet is one of a pair Sam found while antiquing one day. At $175 each, they were a steal.
The walls are covered with the work of other artists as well as Sam’s own work. This gallery wall is composed of commissioned underwater portraits of the couple’s three children taken by Charleston photographer Leigh Webber.
Each item in the house serves a specific function, and sometimes more than one; the pingpong table doubles as a dining room table for large parties. “You can seat 10 people there,” Sam says. The family keeps stackable chairs in storage for those occasions, and when the table isn’t needed for dinner, this is a favorite hangout spot for the kids and their friends.
Bola Service table: Design Within Reach; vintage theater chairs and taxidermy: antiques store
Bola Service table: Design Within Reach; vintage theater chairs and taxidermy: antiques store
While some rooms have been kept simple with white walls, others show off Sam’s creativity, such as the spotted walls in the dining room. They were a DIY project inspired by an image Sam saw online. She found a stencil from Royal Design Studios and used graphite chalk paint for the dots, and while it was a big undertaking, taking her two days, she says it was fun.
Framed portraits of Doug and Dexter hang above a set of vintage wooden theater chairs that Sam found at an antiques store in Charleston.
Many displayed items have sentimental value, like the vintage map and retro yellow lamp in the dining room. Both were from the couple’s time spent living in Florida before moving to South Carolina.
Sam and Darren are originally from New York City. They ended up in Charleston for a fellowship for Darren, a cardiologist specializing in electrophysiology. They rented downtown at first, unsure of whether a job would open up following the fellowship. However, things aligned, and they bought their house in 2012.
Sam and Darren are originally from New York City. They ended up in Charleston for a fellowship for Darren, a cardiologist specializing in electrophysiology. They rented downtown at first, unsure of whether a job would open up following the fellowship. However, things aligned, and they bought their house in 2012.
Since moving in five years ago, Sam says they’ve been updating little by little. Only now, she says, does she feel like things are complete.
Gamma Breuer bar stools: Seats and Stools; kitchen towels: Charleston Weekender; light fixtures: Shades of Light
Gamma Breuer bar stools: Seats and Stools; kitchen towels: Charleston Weekender; light fixtures: Shades of Light
The kitchen, finished in May 2017, was the last room to be updated. Sam had the lower cabinets and island painted navy, swapped the previous owner’s brown granite countertops for bright white quartz, added subway tiles to the backsplash and purchased all-new light fixtures and bar stools. She estimates the kitchen update cost about $20,000, including labor and materials.
The kitchen’s dining space is a retro-inspired nook outfitted with vintage lockers that the kids use for storing schoolwork and supplies. The table is often used for homework after school.
Table: Page’s Thieves Market; Riviera bench: Serena & Lily; Penelope pendant light: Jonathan Adler
Table: Page’s Thieves Market; Riviera bench: Serena & Lily; Penelope pendant light: Jonathan Adler
A retro red telephone next to the lockers helps cozy up a corner of the sleek and modern kitchen.
Bright orange stripes run from the front door entry to the top of the stairs.
Wall and door paint: Hot Spice, Benjamin Moore
Wall and door paint: Hot Spice, Benjamin Moore
The second story is home to the master suite and three kids’ rooms. The sofa and pillow are vintage finds from a local antiques market.
Architecture bed: Room & Board; bench: Indigo Market; bedside tables: Charleston Revisions
Architecture bed: Room & Board; bench: Indigo Market; bedside tables: Charleston Revisions
Tropical colors continue the Palm Beach theme found here and there throughout the home.
Sam stuck to her clean and colorful style in the master bedroom, pairing white walls with a bold bed and bright accents. The fun and funky banner is an Etsy find.
The kids’ rooms are bold and bright. Sam says 7-year-old daughter Tessa has the best room in the house. “Girls’ rooms are how you would decorate your whole house if you could,” she says with a laugh. “I wish a lot more stuff in this house was hot pink.”
An idyllic farm scene that hangs in Tessa’s room was painted by Sam’s father when Sam was a kid.
How to Get a Half-Painted Wall Right
How to Get a Half-Painted Wall Right
In the boys’ rooms, neutral walls are accented with playful pieces and a mix of modern and vintage furniture. The beer garden table is an antiques store find and is used to store and display favorite toys.
Sam paired Ikea Kallax shelves with an antique drum table in 5-year-old Henry’s room.
Primary bed in blue: Land of Nod (no longer available)
Houzz TV: How to Paint Perfect Wall Stripes
Primary bed in blue: Land of Nod (no longer available)
Houzz TV: How to Paint Perfect Wall Stripes
The downstairs powder room has an eclectic gallery wall. Swim trunks from the younger days of the couple’s oldest son, Charlie, are framed; they hang above a boat painting from Darren’s grandfather and across from a painting of a woman Sam found at a garage sale when she was in college.
Also included in the gallery wall is a collection of framed cards from Sam’s grandmother and one of her own paintings of a cake. The patterned bag doubles as storage for bathroom toiletries.
Also included in the gallery wall is a collection of framed cards from Sam’s grandmother and one of her own paintings of a cake. The patterned bag doubles as storage for bathroom toiletries.
Another one of Sam’s paintings hangs by the back door in a collage of antique antlers and a self-portrait of Tessa.
The screened-in porch is clean and bright.
Beer Garden outdoor dining collection: Cost Plus World Market
Beer Garden outdoor dining collection: Cost Plus World Market
A double rattan swing chair hangs on the front porch.
Sam removed the ceiling fans that hung above the entry porch and replaced them with Swurfers, locally made “swingboards” for surfing the air. The choice combines her love of fun and functional decor.
“I wanted it to be a fun place for the kids to hang out,” Sam says of the home she’s created.
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See more photos of this home
My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
Browse more homes by style: Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
Who lives here: Darren and Sam Sidney; their children, Charlie, 9, Tessa, 7, and Henry, 5; and their dachshunds, Doug and Dexter
Location: Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Size: 3,800 square feet (353 square meters); four bedrooms, 3½ baths
Year built: 2005
There’s no single word to describe artist Sam Sidney’s decorating style, though eclectic comes close. Her decorating style in her family’s home is similar to her bright and playful illustrations. She calls it “tidy and neat — lots of white with pops of color.”
The living room chandelier was a DIY project. Sam updated the fixture that came with the house by removing the original candle-style lights and replacing them with PVC pipe and round bulbs to give it a more modern look. Then she painted it blue and glued a colorful pompom ribbon around the edges. Now, the once ordinary chandelier is a statement piece.
Eames Lounge chair and ottoman: Design Within Reach; coffee table: Indigo Market; rug: Rugs USA