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 A young Charlotte couple transforms a neutral palette into a lively, livable, and distinct home, unique to them.  When Caroline Trammell and her husband purchased their home in Myers Park, the clean, crisp palette of white walls and neutral decor was so appealing. It was tempting to leave well enough alone, but one look at the design boards created by Charlotte Lucas of Charlotte Lucas Interior Design and the pair couldn’t wait to get started. Of course, it helped that Lucas was a lifelong friend of the family, so her intuition on their style and needs were happily spot on. With a toddler running around and one on the way, the home had to be simultaneously functional, classy, and full of character. “The neutral palette made it easy to forget what interest color brings, but after seeing what Charlotte had planned, I wanted every room in the house full of bright, vibrant colors and patterns,” Trammell explains. Together, Trammell and Lucas agreed on a beautiful, inviting home that was still appropriate for children. Part of the design plan also included a renovation of the master bathroom, but within just a few months the home was ready for the young family to enjoy every day. Lucas’ design plan came together fairly easily. “I design best for people I know well,” she says. “Specifically for Caroline, I wanted her home to tell their story. They do a lot of ministry work in Africa, so I really wanted to turn the sitting room off the foyer into a fun, inviting jungle-inspired room.” Using the many treasures the Trammells brought home from Africa, Lucas mixed African print wallpaper, genuine zebra hides, woven baskets, and African swords with Trammell’s style requests, which included the modern velvet sofa and splashes of peacock blue with hints of blush. It’s one of Trammell’s favorite rooms. “The jungle room is so fun! I feel like I’m on vacation in some fabulous city,” she says. Lucas adds, “It’s so happy and so Caroline; you can’t go in there without wanting to sit and hang out.” The new, improved master bath is sophisticated, soft, and bright, designed around Miles Redd for Schumacher chinoiserie wallpaper, which was a favorite of Trammell’s. “I have to say, my bathroom is my favorite room,” Trammell admits. “It’s romantic and feminine. I love it.” With a few heirloom pieces refurbished and repurposed, the Trammells’ home is at once personal and stylish, new, and curated. The family dining room table found a home with modern chairs and a new sisal rug, layered underneath the heirloom antique oushak rug for depth. The pair of chairs and ottoman in the master bedroom sitting area belonged to Trammell’s parents but found new life with a little white paint and some gorgeous Kelly Wearstler fabric. Art pieces were carefully selected – some from Africa, some local, and even still, some personalized. The framed bird panel tucked into the book corner of the master bedroom, for example, echoes the de Gournay wallpaper style Trammell loves so much but is actually a hand-painted antique silk screen that Lucas had framed and hung. “Art is a great way to personalize a home,” Lucas offers. “Without art, there’s no story.” “Getting to know my clients is what creates successful projects. It goes beyond scale and down to the finishing touches with accessories,” Lucas explains. “It’s hard to go there after all the money is spent, which is why we try to include it in the budget, but it is what truly makes a house home-y. Without the layering of accessories, the home never feels quite finished.” Pulling locally from Slate Interiors, Darnell & Company, and their own inventory, in addition to all over the world, Charlotte Lucas Interior Design hand-selects every finishing piece according to their client’s style, interests, and needs. “We freehand it and do what feels right. But one thing is true: you can never have too many books.”

Sallyann Cox used her creative talents to extend a small bungalow and make the most of the delightful coastal views. Idon’t want to live in a bungalow – I’m not ready for that!’ was interior decorator, stylist and maker Sallyann Cox’s reaction when her husband R ichard suggested it. It was back when the couple were regularly spending a few months at a time sailing around Greece and knew a lock-up-andleave home would fit the bill. The idea became a sad necessity, however, when Richard was diagnosed with motor neurone disease and had to use a wheelchair. ‘We’d looked at so many places, none of which were suitable,’ remembers Sallyann. Finally, and with no real enthusiasm, she went to see a small, two-bedroom bungalow almost untouched for nearly 50 years and had a change of heart. ‘During the viewing, I walked into the cluttered garage and noticed a tiny window on the side – one glimpse at the view and I realised there was so much untapped potential here,’ she recalls. The house itself had effectively been built facing away from ever-changing views across fields to the Salcombe-Kingsbridge estuary much beloved by the couple. ‘I knew that by doing some rejigging to the garage, I would be able to make a special place where Richard could enjoy sitting and watching the ebb and flow of the tides, and the boats down on the water – it would be a nourishing environment.’ In the end, Richard was not able to move in as his illness progressed quickly, but, after his death, Sallyann decided to continue with their plans. ‘It was very hard to be there without him and, for the first couple of years, I didn’t do much at all apart from replacing the bedroom window with French doors onto a little balcony; I had a constant need to get outside rather than be cooped up, so opening up the house as much as I could became a priority.’ Two years later, when she felt able, Sallyann began work on the rest of the house. The garage and carport were demolished and replaced with a sleek extension. ‘I knew I wanted an open-plan space where I could cook, eat and relax,’ she says. The original rooms were reorganised making an extra bedroom and guest bathroom, as well as a large, bright hall where Sallyann makes lighting and mirrors from items she salvages on nearby beaches. ‘I’ve always been drawn to the sea, whether living on it or near it and I’m always out collecting all manner of things!’ Her creative eye has also been used on the interiors. ‘I’ve designed and decorated shops and restaurants in the past, invariably in vivid colours with a Mediterranean influence, but in this house, I’ve been more restrained with lots of neutrals. I decided to think of it as a blank canvas that I could add to or remove from if I felt like a change.’ There are still pops of colour evident in the soft furnishings and the odd wild wallpaper and vintage find. ‘I used to have a lot more furniture and general “stuff” but we sold practically everything when we went off sailing. I had to start again which is surprisingly cathartic, if expensive!’ Renovating the house also proved to be a turning point. ‘It was completed in nine months and I barely had time to think about much else as there were so many decisions to be made but it was good to engage with something,’ she says. So has Sallyann been converted to bungalow life? ‘I actually feel really lucky to live here,’ she says. ‘The house makes for such easy living and with beautiful views, too – it’s an absolute privilege.

The House and Garden Festival at Olympia London is the shopping goal of the period, with an improving system of master talks and exhortation centers to kick begin an undertaking The House and Garden Festival, occurring at Olympia London, is an excellent shopping desti-country incorporating insides, greenhouse and way of life marks nearby reviewed workmanship and old fashioned sellers. Locate the most recent items from any semblance of Arlo and Jacob, Crucial Trading, Orchid Furniture, Thomas Sanderson and Kitchen Architecture. With an advancing system of talks and workshops, it's additionally the ideal spot to become familiar with another expertise or look for counsel about an up and coming venture straightforwardly from the specialists. These incorporate the Expert Theater talks and Expert Advice facilities with BIID experts and RIBA licensed modelers, taking on such themes as getting the best from your engineer, picking flooring, feasible structure and how to utilize customary enlivening thoughts in current ways. See directly for a portion of the features from the program. Floor appear I figure floor coverings ought to sit discreetly and make everything else in the room look wonder-ful,' says the rug architect Sandy Jones. Presently, her plans are becoming the dominant focal point in a review pitching presentation from May 14 to June 14 at the Afridi Gallery, SW3, which has practical experience in twentieth-century structure and old fashioned floor coverings. Seven of Sandy's perky, shading blocked works, mirroring her 27-year vocation, have been recreated for Sandy Jones: Stepping into the Light.Having demonstrated for Mary Quant in her childhood and later filled in as an outfit creator, Sandy went to materials in the mid Nineties. She ended up energetic about African and Asian models – thanks to a limited extent to her inside planner spouse, Chester Jones – and selected on a materials and weaving course at London College of Fashion. She began making floor coverings when a customer of her better half's recommended that two or three compositions in Chester's office would give superb motivation to a rug. 'I made eight for him,' reviews Sandy.Since at that point, she has made floor coverings for inside architects, including Hugh Leslie, and took a shot at lofty activities, for example, a 12 x 12-meter carpet for Claridge's. The floor coverings in this presentation, made in a joint effort with the exhibition's proprietor, Shahbaz Afridi, are made in Turkey from hand-colored, hand-spun fleece. 'The craftspeople don't scour the fleece, so you get a superbly unpredictable completion,' she says. Presently in her seventies, she keeps on taking on commissions. 'A few people simply approach me to structure a floor covering for their space,' she says. 'They don't determine a style and they let me continue ahead with it. I make the plans by destroying high quality papers, shading them and playing with their course of action,' Sandy explains.The display is holding various presentations over the coming months, including a feature of Neisha Crosland's unique craftsmanships in September.