Date: October 21, 2015 | Story: Ashley Gill | Photography: Rett Peek | Styling: Chip Jones |
Designer Reggie Marshall proves that less is more, especially when it means you get to live in a home surrounded by your favorite things
When an interior designer and a homeowner have a longstanding working relationship—one that spans many years and numerous projects in various homes—a unique sense of partnership emerges. In addition to a deep familiarity with one another’s taste and idiosyncrasies, a mutual trust evolves that can create new and exciting possibilities. Such is the case with Reggie Marshall of Marshall Clements and the owner of this Little Rock townhouse with a stunning river view. “When she got this place, we wanted it to be more edited, fresh, and transitional in style than her past homes,” Marshall says; “She has a vivacious personality, and I knew that making some basic changes to what we had done previously would make the essence of the home really more her.” To achieve the style revision he imagined, the renovation of the house -required major structural changes, a careful culling of her existing furnishings, introduction of more current elements, and a simplification of the color palette. The result—according to Marshall? “Of all of her houses, this is my favorite, by far.”
Pare Down
One of the most difficult aspects of the transition for the homeowner was learning to let go of some of her favorite pieces of furniture in order to achieve the edited look Marshall was after. “She has a wonderful collection of antiques and objets d’art, so the goal this time was to make everything special—every piece is something that she really loves,” he says. Furnishings and accessories that had been acquired through the years—in five different homes—were evaluated and only the “best of the best” made the cut. “When you have a really large property,” Marshall explains, “there’s often a lot of filler, and she doesn’t have any now.”
Having been raised in a home where antiques were prized, the homeowner says, she feels very naturally drawn to them, and working with Marshall and Jim Clements, his fellow co-owner of Little Rock’s Marshall Clements, has only enhanced her appreciation, she says: “Jim and Reggie have upgraded me along the way and given me new knowledge about the pieces and the art. I love to know the stories behind them.” It follows naturally that she would rely on the designers’ instincts about what is a fit for the aesthetic of the new house. “It has taken a while,” she says, “but now I just trust them—if they say it’s got to go, it’s got to go.”
Brighten Up
The home’s base color palette of white and cream, with gray accents, warm wood tones, and lots of gilt and mirrored finishes is also revitalizing—a much more restrained palette than that of the homeowner’s previous homes. “That was a biggie,” she says, “because I love dark and real rich colors. But Reggie has changed my mind about color with this house. I love it. It makes me feel so light and bright.”
One striking accent color runs throughout the design: the coral hue of the Fortuny fabric on the Louis XV gilt chair in the living room. “I just fell in love with this piece of fabric,” the homeowner recalls, “and I was like: ‘That’s my color!’” Variations on the coral hue find their way into almost every room, in some form. In the kitchen, for instance, it appears on the accent pillows on the settee as well as on the 17th-century, Portuguese cabinet that stands in the corner. “There’s not much of that color, but when you see it, you see it,” Marshall says. And, much like the Fortuny fabric that inspired the color choice—what Marshall deems the “premier fabric of all fabrics”—a little bit of it makes a big impact.
Open Out
The structural remodel of the space entailed gutting the kitchen and removing the walls that divided this room from the dining room and living room, in order to give the floor plan an updated, more generous flow. An entirely new kitchen was created, wherein Marshall enlarged the appearance of the windows by adding transoms backed in antiqued mirror—an element that’s repeated on the mullioned cabinet doors. Extending the upper cabinets to the ceiling expanded the room vertically, and Walker Zanger decorative backsplash tile runs behind the range from countertop to ceiling. “We just really opened it all up,” Marshall says; “Her kitchen is my favorite kitchen I’ve ever done.”
In addition to the aesthetic benefits of a more open, unified space, the renovation also made it much more livable for the homeowner, whether she’s home alone or entertaining. The ease of traffic flow among the rooms and into the hallway makes the townhouse much more functional for large gatherings, the homeowner notes, because “there’s more than one avenue to get where you need to go, and that keeps guests from feeling jammed. But the most dramatic change, for me,” she adds, “is that I can be in my kitchen and see all the way to the river. I wanted an open space to be able to take full advantage of this view.”
Ultimately, it seems, what a time-tested relationship with a designer yields is homeowner happiness: “Every single thing is beautiful and fabulous. It makes me so happy to be in my space,” she says. “It is a happy home,” Marshall agrees; “You have this killer view, and everywhere you look there’s a nice treat to see.”
Design Resources
Interior design Jim Clements and Reggie Marshall, Marshall Clements, Little Rock, (501) 663-1828, West Little Rock, (501) 954-7900, marshallclements.com
Contractor Jack Hartsell Construction, Little Rock, (501) 376-2871, jackhartsellconstruction.com
Kitchen design Tyler Turchi, Kitchen & Bath Ideas, North Little Rock, (501) 812-0200, kitchenandbathideas.biz
Architectural embellishments—cabinetry Reborn Relics Home, Little Rock, (501) 221-2032, rebornrelicsdesign.com
Accessories, art, draperies, furniture, lighting, and rugs Marshall Clements, Little Rock, (501) 663-1828, West Little Rock, (501) 954-7900, marshallclements.com
Appliances Metro Appliances & More, Jonesboro, (870) 933-7800, North Little Rock, (501) 758-1988, Springdale, (479) 750-2200, metroappliancesandmore.com
Cabinets—installation Woodell Construction, Searcy, (501) 278-5310
Mirrors Marshall Clements, Little Rock, (501) 663-1828, West Little Rock, (501) 954-7900, marshallclements.com; West Little Rock Glass, Little Rock, (501) 223-3034, westlittlerockglass.net
