Respectful Refresh

Cowtan & Tout’s Rutland grasscloth wallpaper envelops the dining room by interior designer Helen Davis Hanavich.

A light fixture from Foxglove Antiques & Galleries illuminates an antique table and upholstered chairs from Mrs. Howard in the cheerful dining area.

The living room is painted in Farrow & Ball’s De Nimes paint color in a dramatic high-gloss finish. A plush Eve and Staron Studio rug grounds the space.

“In all of my designs I want to be true to the neighborhood, true to the house and respectful of the architect who came before me.” —T. Blake Segars

Exquisite materials are cornerstones of the kitchen design. The zinc hood features unlacquered brass straps and the walls are composed of plaster in Benjamin Moore’s China White. The metal and glass pendant light is by O’Lampia Studio.

In the kitchen, a runner from Keivan Woven Arts softens the room’s other solid surfaces and fine finishes.

In the breakfast room, painted wicker chairs from Mainly Baskets Home add color and texture.

A spirited mix of patterns and textures gives the den a layered look. The walls are antique heart pine that received a whitewash finish. 

The bar is painted in Farrow & Ball’s Studio Green. The brass faucet is by Waterworks. 

Bedding from Gramercy adorns the ethereal primary bedroom. The bolster and chaise are upholstered in Lee Jofa’s Garden Roses pattern and a French mirror from Foxglove Antiques & Galleries reflects light around the room. 

In the primary bath, a site-specific mural was designed by Hayden Gregg. The tile is by Traditions in Tile & Stone and the cabinetry is painted in Benjamin Moore’s Blue Lace.

In the guest bedroom, curtains and table skirts are outfitted with Schumacher’s Pomegranate Botanical pattern. The bedding is in the same pattern by Matouk, part of a collaboration with the fabric house.

Decorative touches revived the home’s laundry room, including Morris & Co.’s Meadow Street wallcovering and cabinetry painted in Benjamin Moore’s Hillside Green.

One of the bedrooms is painted in Benjamin Moore’s Colonial Blue. Schumacher’s Stargaze wallcovering adorns the ceiling.

Schumacher’s Santa Barbara Ikat design was used for the wallcovering in the joyful playroom. 

A pair of wicker sofas flank the screened porch’s majestic outdoor fireplace. The sofas are by Kingsley Bate and the table and lounge chairs are from Serena & Lily.  

Interior designer Helen Davis Hanavich of Helen Davis Interior Design and architect Blake Segars of T. Bake Segars Architecture have been longtime friends—since childhood, in fact—but the two had never worked together on a project. When Segars was beginning a remodeling job for an Atlanta couple with three young children, he thought Hanavich would be the perfect interior designer for them.

One of the best parts of the project was that Segars and Hanavich discovered a couple that wasn’t rushed by a particular deadline and allowed time for the design to come together and evolve in a thoughtful manner. So successful was the ensuing collaboration that what originated as the addition of a back porch evolved into a years-long, whole-house renovation and redecoration.

In fact, it was the clients’ knowledge of design and exquisite taste that allowed Hanavich to push the envelope and explore unexpected colors and fabric combinations. In both the main spaces and upstairs private quarters, the resulting mix is both familiar, yet unexpected.

Blue-and-white moments that appear throughout the house, for example, can be described as traditional, but not. The colors grace a verdant grasscloth in the dining room, a starry wallpaper on the ceiling in another, and on a handpainted mural in the primary bath. In the family room, a mélange of disparate textile patterns—seven and counting—in various colors were layered over time, not in one fell swoop.

For Segars, nimbly melding the past and present was paramount. “In all of my designs I want to be true to the neighborhood, true to the house and respectful of the architect who came before me,” he says. Segars’ respect and reverence for the original structure was so much so that visitors often wonder what was done to the house, if anything at all.

“If only one knew that every single wall in this house was opened up,” he jokes. “There’s also the pride in that visitors have no idea that every single thing—from the floors, walls, paneling, every single doorknob and hardware—is brand new.”

In the end, it was the owner’s trust in the process—and her collaborators—that made the renovation and redecoration a success. “She knew my vision and she just let me run with it,” says Segars of the wife’s support. And Hanavich wholeheartedly concurs: “It ended up just being the most wonderful experience.”

INTERIOR DESIGN Helen Hanavich, Helen Davis Interior Design; helendavisdesign.com ARCHITECT Blake Segars, T. Blake Segars Architecture & Landscapes, (404) 550-5812; blakesegars.com