Warm Welcome

Longstanding Atlanta talent Jessica Bradley tailors a Buckhead house to the tastes of a convivial family of four

When a pair of homeowners happened upon a turnkey, six-bedroom Buckhead new-build by Siegel Construction & Design, they were immediately struck by its open, airy floorplan and flowing natural light. Even the front door—typically a mode of passage rendered in wood or in metal—was remarkably absent, replaced by one of the steel-and-glass variety.

Suddenly, the couple’s comparatively tame Brookhaven abode, with its compartmentalized floor plans and dimmer rooms, appeared in stark contrast. Seeking a space that would capitalize on their desire for happy, light-filled spaces, the couple purchased the home before it was completed.

Siegel Construction embraced the opportunity to work with clients to tweak the design. As firm co-owner Kathy Siegel sat down with the family to complete their dream home, she took note of their aesthetic preferences: timeless and traditional, but with a modern farmhouse twist. Siegel ascertained that Jessica Bradley, an established Atlanta designer with whom she’d collaborated in the past, would make an ideal addition to the project team.

With Siegel having already selected most of the home’s finishes—shiplap, painted brick, subway tile, stainless steel, aged brass—Bradley’s task was twofold: to both subdue and enhance, adding her signature stamp with custom furnishings, fabrics, light fixtures, paint and other finishing touches intended to amplify the home’s attractive architecture while softening its starker lines.

Ultimately, Siegel had provided the perfect canvas, so Bradley, a forward-thinking traditionalist, sought to warm up the residence with a predominantly neutral palette—but one splashed with carefully chosen accent colors (apricot, lavender, sage) that allow the clients’ impressive art collection to shine. 

To wit, natural textures—seagrass, rope, walnut—complement components like the cypress ceiling beams and bleached white-oak kitchen island without detracting from them.

“With this house, I think it was about bringing a level of softness to it,” Bradley explains. “It’s full of iron and metal and a lot of wood textures and stone. The central challenge was to soften it.” It’s a bit edgy, yes, but still rooted in the classic concepts Bradley has championed throughout her career. And that aforementioned front door? Bradley chose to treat it like any French version, cleverly framing it with draperies.

“The front door is large, but this allows them to have the ability to close it off easily for privacy if needed at night,” the designer notes. “I love the way [the fabric] brings elegance and beauty to that metal.”

At every turn, textiles were key to infusing the home’s contemporary lines with subtle character. Even the family room’s curvaceous white upholstery is covered in a stain-treated fabric, which comes in handy when the couple’s two teens—and their friends—are piling in. Plus, with a Purdue alum in the house, the room also revolves around hosting football watch parties throughout the fall.

“It was important for them to have a home they could open up to others, and to really live in it,” Bradley explains. “They eat spaghetti in the living room while watching TV. He drinks red wine on the sofa,” Bradley notes, also pointing out the spacious wine cellar Siegel placed at one end of the butler’s pantry. “It’s a blood pressure-reducing home—even with the sense of exposure that could come from so much glass. It’s hospitable. It’s comfortable. It’s a place for happy memories.”

INTERIOR DESIGN Jessica Bradley, Jessica Bradley Interiors, (404) 846-3220; jessicabradleyinteriors.com BUILDER Siegel Construction & Design, (404) 218-3276