Tailor Made

A neutral base palette allows colorful artwork by America Martin through Tew Galleries to pop in the dining area.

Seamless rift-cut white oak kitchen cabinetry by Cabinets of Atlanta provides plenty of storage, while its carefully aligned millwork details create a tailored, sophisticated look.

The living room offers sweeping views of Atlanta’s Peachtree Heights neighborhood. The four armchairs are Lee Industries through UpCountry Home.

Designers Niki Papadopoulos and Mark Williams transformed the original galley kitchen into a spacious, open-concept—one with plenty of space for entertaining. “The island is great for informal entertaining and also makes a great work space that allows us to enjoy our views,” says homeowner Donny Guercio.

In the living room, built-in shelves are as useful as they are beautiful. “It’s not so much about the amount of storage, but the precision of getting all of these lines to align to keep things clean and simple. That’s something that I think people underestimate,” says Papadopoulos. The sofas and coffee table are RH and the artwork is Cathy Lancaster. The drapery panels are through Yoma Textiles.

The designers knocked out the home’s third bedroom to add more space to the living room, where a pair of sofas from RH provide a cozy yet tailored sitting area.

Because the second bedroom doubles as a home office, storage was an important factor. Office supplies are cleverly concealed in a floor-to-ceiling storage cabinet. The carved wood wall hanging is from Andrianna Shamaris.

Thanks to gray flannel walls and bird’s-eye views of the Buckhead skyline, the main bedroom “feels like a luxe hotel suite,” says Guercio. The bed linens were custom- sewn by Rigsby.

Storage was a big factor in the bedroom, where seamless, unadorned cabinetry is both decorative and practical. Artwork is by America Martin through Tew Galleries.

Thanks to gray flannel walls and bird’s-eye views of the Buckhead skyline, the main bedroom “feels like a luxe hotel suite,” says Guercio. The bed linens were custom- sewn by Rigsby.

Donny Guercio and Rob Rigsby always knew that when the time came to downsize, they wanted it to be in Plaza Towers, Atlanta’s historical high-rise condominiums in the heart of Buckhead.

“The combination of location, square footage and views—plus the fact that there are only four units or less per floor—sold us,” says Guercio. The couple kept an eye on the building for years until at last the perfect unit—a three-bedroom that was just the right size and had the scenery they were looking for—became available. 

Having been impressed with their work on a neighboring unit in the same building, the couple didn’t hesitate to enlist the expertise of Mark Williams and Niki Papadopoulos of Mark Williams Design to design their dream condo. “They were really happy with the open kitchen concept because that’s not common in that building,” says Papadopoulos. “They fell in love with the kitchen layout, and when this three-bedroom became available, it was just perfect timing.”

The clients’ directive: a space that combined modern sensibilities with classic design style. And because they were downsizing—coupled with the fact that Guercio, a realtor, works from home—a balance of function and beauty was imperative. “They wanted a space that was sophisticated and modern, but not too cold and calculated,” says Williams. “Their home needed to be both beautiful and comfortable.”

The first step was opening up the home’s footprint, knocking out a bedroom to add more space to the living room and transforming the original galley kitchen into a fresh, open-concept space with an island and plenty of rift-cut white oak kitchen cabinetry.

Likewise, built-in storage in the living room and main bedroom achieves a sophisticated yet warm look while keeping clutter at bay. In the second bedroom, which functions as both a guest room and home office, ample cabinetry cleverly conceals office supplies, making it easy to transition from a nine-to-five to hosting guests. 

To soften the linear look of the home’s more geometric details, the designers anchored the space with a tone-on-tone palette, embracing the natural grains of the millwork, and adding subtle texture to the walls with an off-white grasscloth wallcovering. The final result is a perfect balance of scale, texture and contrast. “From an aesthetic standpoint, it was a constant balance of warm and cold,” says Papadopoulos. “It’s those tiny detailed selections that really make the atmosphere of a space come together.”

INTERIOR DESIGN Niki Papadopoulos and Mark Williams, Mark Williams Design, (678) 539-6886; markwilliams-design.com