Finally, almost a year after moving in… I am thrilled to share all the photos of my Charleston apartment (+ links to artists and all my furniture) with you. I’m so, so pleased with this space and how it has turned out. I worked with Erin Gates from Elements of Style remotely for this. And I wanted to keep my colorful aesthetic (I always want anywhere I live to have personality and feel like someone fun lives there) but I also wanted it to feel a little more sophisticated and serene. Today I am going to share the living area. My bedroom can be found here, and later this week I will share the guest room/office.
I have to tell you, balancing color is a real struggle! I love art and fun little objects and want to buy all of the colorful things (they make me happy!) but I went way overboard in my Brooklyn apartment. It took being locked down to feel like “THIS IS TOO MUCH.” My space felt chaotic and cluttered, not inspiring. The challenge with this apartment was to create a space that felt creative and fun without going overboard. More neutrals, but still me. There is definitely a tipping point from interesting and unique into cluttered chaos, and I can have a hard time straddling it. I joked that Erin was my chaperone throughout the process.
There is a lot to tell you, so buckle up!
Above: Maiden Home Sofa, gifted Rebecca Atwood Pillows (these are 5 years old but she has so many newer styles), Room & Board Parsons End Table with Quartz Topper, Kelly Wearstler Lamps, Lulu & Georgia Side Tables, Lemieux Et Cie Coffee Table, gifted Jonathan Adler Tray, gifted Elements of Style x Momeni Rug // Custom Curtains from Loft.
My Charleston Apartment
The boucle swivel chair above is from CB2.
Let’s talk about the gallery wall first! I was really thrilled with how Erin put it together. These are all pieces I owned prior to moving to Charleston and I never would have thought to put them together this way. This apartment has really high ceilings so we were able to have some fun and go BIG.
The Don’t Panic is an original piece by Samuel Jablon.
I purchased it from Ober Gallery in Connecticut (the owner, Rob Ober is a good friend of a friend, I bought my first ever piece of original art from him several years ago – that one is in the bedroom, you’ll see it tomorrow! And I bought this during peek lockdown… I was panicked! Oddly, it soothed me?
The bunnies are all originals by Hunt Slonem, one of my absolute favorite artists.
I have built a small collection of his pieces… when I lived in New York he became a friend. And I always seemed to walk away from his studio buying another bunny. I am up to four now… I have a striped one in the bedroom which you’ll see in tomorrow’s post. No framing needed, one charming thing about his work is that he sources the most beautiful antique frames, which are sold with the painting.
The pink painting gets a lot of questions!
It is actually a print of a silk textile, by Paule Marrot. I didn’t do anything special to it, I purchased it here and opted to buy it pre-framed. The framing really makes it special.
Bottom left is an Alexander Calder lithograph (print).
I purchased this on Chairish and had it framed at this shop in New York. They do a great job and I’d highly recommend them.
Bottom right is where I went a little rogue from Erin. After she had already designed the wall, I bought a tiny original Jill Hooper painting (Jill is a prolific artist here in Charleston, she’s the youngest artist to be collected by the Gibbes Museum). Erin is insisting I find something to put at the top left of the wall to balance it out, but I haven’t found the right piece. I take my time with art.
And next to the pink bunnies and the Jill Hooper is an original painting of The Beverly Hills Hotel by my friend Aly Harte that I commissioned her to paint. Aly is a really talented artist, living in Belfast. She is a dear friend and I think of her whenever I see it.
I keep getting asked for a “review” of my Maiden Home Sofa and I am not planning to do one but I will tell you that I really, really love it.
I did not think I needed new couches but this was something Erin was quite insistent about. And I am glad I listened to her as I love it so much. It is really, really comfortable the fabric has held up well, and it is BIG and cozy… like a second bed. The higher ceilings of the apartment made my old couch look miniature (you can see that here!)
Maiden seems like a great company, and since they make everything here, the production / shipping lead times were great. I ordered it in mid-March and had it by the end of June.
My counter stools are from Design Within Reach.
They’re really comfortable and though they’re real leather they are practical – they easily wipe clean, etc.
The armchair is from Design Within Reach.
This was a big splurge four years ago and I’m glad I went for it. It’s something I will own forever and the perfect reading chair. It’s also incredibly comfortable. I still remember the day my dad tried it out. He initially looked at it with an expression I can only describe as disdain, but then he sat down and his whole face changed. “Oh wow – this is comfy!” Duh, dad. A good goal is to find furniture that looks uncomfortable but is actually incredibly cozy. This chair is that.
My shelves came from CB2.
Erin loves using these as they give you that built in look, without actually investing in built-ins. A renter’s dream, but still very nice. My little rule is that I keep all clutter to these shelves and try to keep the other surfaces clutter free. Contained chaos!
Pillow (gifted) is from The Inside, from their collab with CW Stockwell)
I love cocktail tables as I always want my guests to have a spot to put their drinks. And I love these from Lulu & Georgia. I will tell you that I am glad that I bought them (I truly love how they look – functional sculpture!) but they were an annoying purchase. They took forever to ship (I mean right now everything takes a long time to ship but this was wildly long) and when they did, the delivery team was a nightmare to coordinate with. In hindsight I probably wouldn’t order from them again. West Elm has amazing drink tables too. These and my bedroom mirror (we will talk about that tomorrow) were my only problematic pieces.
My little entryway.
I love this vignette. The rug is quite old (meaning I’ve had it a long time, but it’s also an antique. I bought it 5 years ago from this Etsy shop). The little X-Benches (gifted) are from The Inside. I love these, they add a fun pop of pattern but also make for extra seating when I have friends over.
The console table is from CB2. I bought the mirror several years ago on Chairish – it is an antique French Louis Philippe mirror from the 19th century, there are similar ones here!
The lamp is Kelly Wearstler… and the art is a collage by Melvin G (I am a HUGE FAN and her pieces are pretty accessible) that I had framed on Framebridge, plus a little piece of shell art that my mom made me for my birthday.
This is where I spend a lot of my day.
I really do try not to work from the couch (it’s bad for my back and my productivity) rbut it happens! It’s also the perfect reading/movie watching nook. The blanket is from my sister Rebecca Atwood but sadly she no longer does bedding or blankets.
(Mug is from Workaday Handmade, a cool Brooklyn-based ceramics company).
I love my Fferrone glassware.
It’s so pretty. I buy a couple every year and am building up a solid little collection.
The acrylic pill sculpture was a gift from Jonathan Adler. One of my favorite little objects.
You can’t quite see it but behind it is a charging mat from Courant.
I have these on both side tables, I think it is such a nice touch. I always have a place to charge my phone. Or if a friend is over, they can easily throw their phone down without hunting for a charger. I have these in the primary and guest bedrooms too, I think it’s a really nice touch.
The cat is sadly old and spoken for but this mirror is from Ballard Designs.
It is BIG and I love it. It is on sale right now, too. Highly recommend.
High ceilings (they are 13 feet) were a blessing and a curse as they are dramatic and amazing but you need to find pieces that work with the height, otherwise they feel stumpy and squat.
Disclosure: If you buy something through my links, I may earn an affiliate commission, at no cost to you. I only feature things I truly love here. Thanks for your support.
Photography by Margaret Wright.
Your apartment looks amazing, I can’t wait to see the rest. I love all of your unique art pieces and they look so good put together too. You nailed the curated but eclectic look that is so hard to do. Thanks for sharing all of these links, I love those Melvin G zazu birds—adding to my wishlist! It’s a breath of fresh air to see color when it seems like neutrals are taking over the rest of the internet. Well done!
Thank you so much!!!!! You are too kind.
Ok, I think you e sold me on that design within reach arm chair! Which color leather did you choose?
Hi CG, it’s the Saddle Luxtan leather 🙂
So fun to see it all come together – you’ve had such a good attitude about the delayed lead times on everything too!
Do you have strong feelings about having a sofa but no dining table? I love sitting at a bar in a restaurant but hosting at a kitchen counter always feels a bit womp to me! I’m temporarily moving out of my rental until the fall so I get a second chance to do it up and revisit all the choices I made (or didn’t make) the first time.
Hi Cléa, for me a sofa was an absolute must have but I do miss having a dining table. Usually when I host we keep it casual, sitting around the living area. However, this is just a temporary apartment, I’m planning to purchase a home in the next year or so, so I don’t mind so much. But if I were planning to be here for longer (like my Brooklyn apartment) I would absolutely make sure the space had a more formal entertaining space.
Oh, the pitfalls of rental living! 🙂
It’s so fun to see you in a space that feels so *you!*
xoxo
Looks amazing!
thank you!
I love what you’ve done with the place. It’s so light, bright and sophisticated, yet still FUN! I think you and Erin did a wonderful job incorporating just a smidge of a feminine touch with color and art while avoiding some typical Southern decorating clichés. Well done.
Highest praise, thank you!
It looks lovely! I feel so inspired to keep designing my own home, thank yoU!
Thank you!
That natural light though!!
It makes me so happy. To look at and to live in.
Omw
I love your home!
Invite me!!!
Love all the bright colors
Love your dress!
Thank you!
Pleasure
Thank you for linking to the artists! I really love many of your pieces. I have to ask – did you get rid of the thermostat permanently or just photoshopped out? It really does make a huge difference in your gallery wall. Thanks for sharing
I wish. I rent. The placement is obviously a huge bummer – I hate it, it makes me furious! My photographer kindly photoshopped it out for the magazine feature. This is just a rental apartment, I do not own it so obviously cannot make adjustments like that… when I someday own my own place I’ll be a little more intentional with where I put things like that.
I’m late replying to this. Agree it’s not ideal, but I think it’s awesome that you still did your gallery wall and displayed all your art the way you wanted to and didn’t let that little piece of plastic stop you 🙂
Thank you for the lovely pictures your home! Would you mind sharing what fabric you selected for your Maiden Home sofa? Has it held up well?
I did the performance linen in creme – and yes it’s held up beautifully, I LOVE it.
Loved seeing all these details, Grace. 🙂
Carrie
Thank you Carrie 🙂 🙂
So beautiful and Elegant . It must feel so wonderful to wake up there every day . Always being so very traditional in my taste and deviating periods of furniture , this is a real treat to see your style . Thank you for posting your home
Thank you!
I love how airy and open it is. And the color 🙂 It looks beautiful. Your apt is larger than our entire house (from the mag feature), 880′ over here and my spouse likes to call it the “too small for any person home” because he wants more than 2bd 2baths later so he can hide from me basically. I think size pref is pretty individual and personal.. Less to clean/heat/cool/fill with items but also nowhere to hide but I grew up in a split level of 2bds 1 bath that reno’d to 3bds 2 bath (1 bath for a 3 people is unpleasant). I will say big houses do help you exercise just going from spot to spot. Also I’m not saying your apt is big; it seems just right!
Thank you 🙂
Your home makes me happy. I am 74 but my heart is young. I love what you have done.
That is so nice, thank you!
The Cincinnati Art Museum’s Café has an entire gallery wall of Hunt Slonem bunnies, its such a delight. I wish I could find a good link to send, you can’t really see the whole wall on the website. As unlikely as it is if you are ever in Cincinnati we have a beautiful museum and very impressive collection- I am an art lover myself (love all the art related books you recommend!) and its one of my favorite things about our city.
Ooh I would love to see it. Oddly, I have actually been to that museum (a million years ago, a wedding with an old boyfriend). Such a fan of his work!
LOVE this, thank you for sharing. Would you mind sharing where the white table lamps are from?
They’re linked at the top of the post, you may have missed it 🙂
So beautiful! Your home is so happy and colorful. All these beautiful paintings. I am currently redesigning my house so getting some inspiration. Thank you for sharing. Your stories on IG always make me so happy 🙂
Thank you Lorna!
Hi Grace! Thanks for sharing your apartment. I love how you balanced out the color. Like you, I love color but I’m afraid of going overboard. I think your current place has the right blend of neutrals and pops of colors that I also want to aim for. Please keep making home decor related content, you have great taste!
Thank you so much for the kind words!
Hi Grace! I love what you and Erin have created. May I ask what vacuum you use and how the wool and jute rug holds up with you vacuuming for Tyrion’s fur? I’m thinking about a rug like it, but want to make sure I’m being realistic with a dog that sheds. Thanks!
Hi Ana,
I have the Dyson vacuum and the rug has held up perfectly. No shedding or anything like that, and I vacuum just about every day.
I’m here a few months later to let you know that I bought the Cb2 bookcases after seeing them in your home – love them! Put two in my office, and they look so great. I’m tempted to get more for the rest of our house!
Oh good, I’m so happy to hear that!