A 1930s Tuxedo Park Home Gets the Ultimate Update from Local Talents

The formal living room’s Locust Lane rug coordinates with the walls, painted in Worldly Gray by Sherwin-Williams. The eight sketches were drawn by the homeowner’s great-uncle in the 1920s.

Originally a New England Colonial-style home, a 1990s renovation by Harrison Design turned this Tuxedo Park dwelling into a charming English Manor. It’s since seen other renovations, including most recent improvements by David Childers with MacAllan Custom Homes and Charlie Sears with Land Plus.

The sculptural table from Noir/CFC adds a dose of personality to the foyer. The hand-painted mural wallcovering is by Lori King.

The breakfast room covered in Thibaut grasscloth is filled with abundant natural light, giving it a solarium-like feel.

In the powder room, a custom marble sink is a statement against Schumacher’s Whirlpool wallpaper.

Once covered in wood paneling, the study is now a rich shade of blue.

Once two stories with a Juliet balcony above, the fully renovated kitchen is now a cozy space with warm wood beams and oversize light fixtures from Visual Comfort & Co.

A prime spot for the entertaining-loving homeowners, the wet bar features eye-catching green reeded cabinets.

Built-in shelves in the family room house special mementos that have been collected throughout the years.

The piano is a family heirloom that has been passed down through several generations.

An exterior breezeway was enclosed to form a hallway leading to the primary bedroom. Pecky cypress on the ceiling infuses a natural appeal.

A large-scale rug from Parviz Rug and artwork by Kathleen McCloud anchor the dining room.

In the primary bedroom, a custom headboard designed by Kristan Moore and covered in blue velvet by Schumacher is the focal point.

Moore selected soapstone for the tub facade in the refreshed primary bathroom.

The guest room has feminine details such as floral fabric from Cowtan & Tout and a petite nude sourced during a trip to France.

Lee Industries poufs are a funky addition to the media room. The artwork is by John Sparagana.

Moore and homeowner Britt Richards say the kids are so smitten by their bunkroom that they choose to sleep there instead of their respective bedrooms.

Atlantans first built homes in Tuxedo Park in 1904, and its legacy of architectural elegance has remained since. Living in this neighborhood is like owning a piece of Buckhead history. On the exterior, residents are protectors of the past while on the interior, they are pioneers of the future.

The Richards family tasked interior designer Kristan Moore of Kristan & Co. to give their circa-1932 estate vibrancy in its next era. The trio, formerly neighbors, worked in simpatico to infuse character and charm. “The most important thing about this house is that it has been a complete collaboration between Britt and Adam and myself,” says Moore. There are touches in every space that the three of us put together.” Now dressed in its traditional best, the home honors its original design while living well for its modern-day family.

Inside, happy doses of color welcome upon entering, most notably in the rosy hues that sprout from various corners of the home. Homeowner Britt Richards’ passion for pink is most evident in her formal living room, which is appropriately nicknamed the lady’s sitting room. Here, floor lamps topped with raspberry shades flank the reupholstered tone-on-tone sofa from the couple’s previous home. An abstract by John Torrey takes center stage above the fireplace while eight nudes drawn in charcoal and pencil by Britt’s great-uncle in the 1920s are a cheeky statement. The rug has bits of pink silk cheetah that perfectly match the warm neutral walls, and the room’s French doors open onto the terrace where garden benches are outfitted in none other than pink pinstripes.

This refined room sets a balanced tone for the rest of the home. Each distinct space is a harmonious blend of feminine and masculine and curves and clean lines. The nearby foyer is covered in a hand-painted mural by fine artist Lori King, and its centerpiece is a bulbous reclaimed Douglas fir table. The dining room, situated just after the foyer, features a whimsical bubble-esque chandelier. A piece from the homeowners’ growing art collection, Shakespeare’s Horse by Kathleen McLeod, hangs on the grasscloth-covered walls. “We found her in a gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico, one day,” says Britt. “It’s a collage, so I find something different every time I look at it. There’s a map of Paris in the piece, and many different colors—it’s layers upon layers.”

Artwork by prevalent regional and national artists adorns many of the walls. “When you look around the house, all the pieces are originals from decades of collecting things together,” explains Moore. In the family room, there’s a painting by William McLure that Britt had commissioned for her husband, Adam, for his birthday. The family’s affinity for art continues in the media room, where there’s a piece by John Sparagana.

Even the boys’ bunkroom, meant for multiuse like playing video games and having boyhood sleepovers, has been thoughtfully designed. The mature space is decorated with antiques and a cheery duck-print wallpaper. It will grow with the kids, but for now, it’s their own boys’ club where they choose to sleep nightly despite having respective chambers.

Britt delights in the newfound serenity of her primary bedroom and the transformation of her kitchen—which used to be two stories with a juliet balcony—but it’s the piano room that gives her pause. “That piano is probably my most prized possession,” she says. The instrument has been in her family since 1914, and many pianists have played its keys over the years including President Jimmy Carter’s sister and Britt’s uncle who was a music producer in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. “Most important to me, though, is my dad, who passed away 12 years ago. He played that piano nightly, and I often fell asleep on the sofa listening to him play. When people come into this home and play that piano, it brings me so much joy.” The piano is the room’s showpiece, but like many of the spaces in the home, it’s the sentimentality that makes it special.

INTERIOR DESIGN Kristan Moore, Kristan & Co., (404) 680-1828; kristanandcompany.com PREVIOUS ARCHITECT Harrison Design, (404) 365-7760; harrisondesign.com RENOVATION BUILDER David Childers, MacAllan Custom Homes, (404) 603-8833; macallanhomes.com LANDSCAPE DESIGN Charlie Sears, Land Plus, (404) 238-9595; landplusassociates.com LANDSCAPE INSTALLATION Hamilton Land Services Inc., (404) 355-3330; hamiltonlandservices.com