A Colorful Revival of a Classic Federalist Home in Atlanta’s Swanky Buckhead Neighborhood

To create an elegant yet modern space, designer Caroline Shanks color drenched the living room in Farrow & Ball’s Parma Gray, then added a tailored Chaddock sofa in a Fabricut textile and artwork by Catherine Booker Jones.

The living room design is centered around a landscape painting by artist Fred Cox that the husband gifted the wife for their anniversary.

Shanks added pops of green to the living room by reupholstering a pair of the clients’ armchairs in a lime-hued Kravet textile.

In the entry of this Buckhead home, Shanks mixed antique furniture, such as the console and chair, with contemporary pieces, such as the table lamp and entry fixture, both from Visual Comfort & Co.

A Pierre Frey wallpaper adds subtle interest in the hallway transition from the entry into the family room.

A favorite space of the designer’s, the powder room has layers of warmth thanks to a Jasper Textiles wallpaper, Visual Comfort & Co. sconces, and a Palmer Industries sink.

A mix of patterns and colors defines the dining room. Lively Sedersi chairs in a Carolina Irving Textiles stripe play with the Botanica Trading wallcovering from The Lot.

Above the kitchen’s handcrafted island hang custom pendants in a Penny Morrison fabric. Redford House counter stools carry the thread of blue into the kitchen.

Calacatta Regina honed marble from Walker Zanger dresses the countertops and backsplash in the kitchen. Builder Wright Marshall worked with Trinity Woodworks on the custom cabinetry.

Jasper Textiles wallpaper and gray-blue custom cabinetry topped with Calacatta Regina honed marble turn the family room’s wet bar into a jewel box space.

A green Lee Industries armchair, Highland House stools in a blue Schumacher velvet, and pillows in Jasper Textiles fabrics add subtle touches of color to the neutral sunroom.

Farrow & Ball’s French Gray provides an elegant backdrop to the Laura Deems artwork in the breakfast area. A fixture from The Urban Electric Co. hangs above the dining table.

In a nod to the outdoor views, Shanks coated the family room walls in Farrow & Ball’s Treron and covered the ceiling in a Thibaut grasscloth. The oversize Chaddock ottoman doubles as a “stage” that the kids perform on.

In a nod to the outdoor views, Shanks coated the family room walls in Farrow & Ball’s Treron and covered the ceiling in a Thibaut grasscloth. The oversize Chaddock ottoman doubles as a “stage” that the kids perform on.

A Hickory Chair bed upholstered in a fabric from The Rosa Bernal Collection makes a statement in the otherwise understated primary bedroom.

The Signature Hardware bathtub from Ferguson takes center stage in the primary bathroom.

In life, timing is everything. This proved to be true when Nashville-based designer and Georgia native Caroline Shanks of Line House was on her way to Atlanta on a buying trip. “I texted a group of friends and one said, ‘I can’t believe you’re coming to town. There’s this Federalist home [in Buckhead] we’re interested in. Would you go to the showing with me?’”

Shanks and her clients agreed there was loads of potential. This meant, however, bringing the house down to the studs—including opening up the kitchen and adding a primary suite—while maintaining the home’s classical elements. After independently reworking the layout of the house, the designer partnered with builder Wright Marshall of Revival Construction, and tapped Ross Piper of Ross Piper Architect to redesign the front door and create the exterior elevation drawings for the addition.

From there, Shanks used a blue-and-green palette as the jumping-off point, then added punches of bright colors and playful patterns to create spaces that felt as exuberant as the family itself. “When it came to furnishings, we kept with the nature of the home, but not stuffy,” says Shanks.

This can be seen immediately on either side of the entry, where the dining and living rooms showcase the house’s buoyant personality. “I wanted a dining room that wasn’t too precious,” says the designer. Floral wallpaper, chartreuse drapes, and a yellow ceiling—“the one thing I had to push them on, but now they love it,” she notes—make for a space that feels fresh: a room to be used beyond holiday meals.

With its tailored furniture and marble-face fireplace, the color-drenched living room is the most formal space in the home, but its light-and-bright palette is hardly old-fashioned.Marshall installed double doors that open to the family room creating abundant entertaining space. Snug, comfy, and painted a green that plays to the outdoor views, the space centers around a pair of sofas and oversize ottoman. “The whole family piles onto that cozy furniture,” says the designer.

The kitchen and adjacent sunroom give the family room a run for its money in terms of popularity. Island seating, a banquette breakfast area, and furniture that can withstand wet bathing suits when the kids come in from the pool ensure casual comfort.

The sunroom’s colors carry through into the primary suite second-floor addition, but in more muted tones. “We wanted to mimic those colors, but make them softer,” explains Shanks. “It’s like a treehouse with its outside views.”

“The home was designed to reflect a youthful family,” she adds. “We didn’t fight the traditional architecture, but you open the door and it’s a surprise of color, texture, and playfulness.”

INTERIOR DESIGNER Caroline Shanks, Line House, instagram.com/linehouse___ BUILDER Wright Marshall, Revival Construction, (404) 888-9886; revivalconstruction.com