A Closer Look at the Rooms Inside the 2016 Idea House: Foyer, Dining Room, Living Room
After nine months of planning, construction, enhancing, and decorating, the 2016 Southern Living Idea House opened to the public in late June. The house, which celebrates Southern Living’s 50th Anniversary, was curated by five esteemed interior designers, each of whom was hand selected by Southern Living. Amy Berry, Ashley Gilbreath, Lauren Liess, Margaret Kirkland and Mark D. Sikes were assigned to different spaces in the house and tasked with incorporating components from past issues of Southern Living magazine into their own distinctive design. The result is a set of unique rooms that showcase the breadth and depth of Southern style, weaving timeless elements into modern design that encompasses all the tenants of Southern interior design—inviting, comfortable, and one-of-a-kind.
Over the next few weeks, we’ll be taking a closer look at the pristine rooms in this year’s Idea House to highlight a few of their distinct features. This week we’re featuring 3 spaces on the first floor: the foyer, the dining room, and the living room.
The Foyer
Created by Montgomery-based interior designer, Ashley Gilbreath, the 10-foot wide foyer design sets the tone for visitors as they enter the house and separates the first floor into two parts: a more active side for the kitchen and dining room and a calmer side for the living room and master bedroom. The ship lap walls are a neutral and inviting light gray color, allowing the accent pieces Ashley chose to stand out. “I tried to pull off some overstated, catch-your-attention pieces,” Gilbreath told Southern Living Magazine. On the right side of the space, Gilbreath used an antique English console table to support a variety of trinkets, framed by two unique and modern table lamps. Above the table is arguably the most striking element in the foyer, a 9-foot antique seascape painting from France that adds color and texture to the assemblage. On the opposite wall, Gilbreath hung a 9-foot tall chestnut drying basket behind an antique steamer trunk, both of which add a touch of heritage to the entrance of the house.
The Dining Room
For Atlanta-based decorator Margaret Kirkland, color was key in the dining room design. The primary color that ties the diverse elements of the room together is a deep coral, a modern homage to the orange that was used for the 1989 formal dining room that Kirkland was given for inspiration. Catching your eye as soon as you enter the room, the dining room chairs were covered in rich and durable coral fabric with a blue motif. Continuing the use of that color and adding unique texture to the space, the lower half of the walls are wrapped in a fun, coral lattice fabric. The warm coral color is also present in the traditional, floral chinoiserie curved pelmets and drapes that frame the floor-to-ceiling windows in the room. Two elements that break the traditional mold of the room, and add to its vibrant color palette, are the striking faces hanging on the wall behind the dining room table. Created by Atlanta artist Sally King Benedict, the paintings are a bold twist on time-honored portraiture that hang in many formal, Southern rooms.
The Living Room
While he is currently based in California, living room designer Mark Sikes was born in Texas and raised in Nashville, and his Southern upbringing has an obvious influence on his work. The interior design of the living room Sikes created for the 2016 Idea House is characteristic of his natural, yet still classic, style. The thing you’ll notice immediately upon entering the room is the warm, neutral color palette. Shades of brown, gold, and ivory are used throughout 30-by-20 space, including the wallpaper, which serves as vehicle for one of Sikes’ signature design elements: stripes. Hand painted, the subtle gold stripes were inspired by the fabric used to cover the 2 identical sofas that anchor the room and divide it into 2 parts. In a recent interview with Southern Living, Sikes explained his vision for the room, “I wanted one space where everyone could hang out and another smaller, more intimate area by the fireplace.” Natural light floods into the room from the floor-to-ceiling windows, which are framed by rich, beige drapery and accessorized with reproduction bird prints by famed Swedish artist Olof Rudbeck.
To see more of the gorgeous details that adorn the rooms in the 2016 Southern Living Idea House in Mt Laurel, come visit to see the house in person! You can find all of the details you need to plan your visit—from hours of operation to where to park—here.
