Date:  February 29, 2024  |   Story: Tiffany Adams  |   Photography: Rett Peek  |   Styling: Stephanie Maxwell Newton  |  

A Little Rock dining room update mixes formality with flair

When Drs. Kevan Beth and Steven Meadors returned to their home state of Arkansas, they were eager to settle into the Heights neighborhood of Little Rock where Steven grew up. “We love this location; there’s so much charm, and you can easily walk to restaurants and shops,” Kevan Beth says. With a volatile housing market in 2021, it took them a bit to find just the right place. “We have three small children, so this house attracted me because it has a lot of space,” she recalls. However, many of its contemporary design elements didn’t suit their traditional style. Still, Kevan Beth saw the potential and has since begun working room-by-room to make the house their own, starting with the dining room.

After updating light fixtures and adding draperies with the help of local designer Chandler Bailey, Kevan Beth later fell in love with a wallpaper mural in a friend’s home. Her friend recommended calling Atlanta-based designer Katie Wolf, who had helped with her home’s design. “When we met initially, they had two goals: to maximize the space in the room and to make it beautiful,” Katie says. To accomplish this, an underutilized heirloom china cabinet was relocated to allow room for a table that can accommodate up to 10 for a meal. “The ends are wide enough to seat two, and we also included a leaf option so they have room to grow,” Katie says. The custom table is paired with chairs from Ballard Designs in a performance velvet that’s easy to maintain. “We thought about where to save and where to spend,” the designer says of the mix.

To tailor the room to the couple’s traditional style, the walls were covered with a mural wallpaper featuring branches, birds, and butterflies that play off colors seen in the adjoining den. The statement piece acts as the room’s art and also coordinates with the blue on the chairs and draperies. “They are such a fun, young family, so to see them enjoy this room now and also think about the opportunities they’ll have to enjoy it down the road brings me joy,” Katie says.

“When there are stuffed animals all over the living room, it makes me so happy to look in there and see a really beautiful space.”
—Kevan Beth Meadors, homeowner

Indoor Garden
Since the dining room is open to many of the spaces on the ground floor, Kevan Beth was hesitant to go too bold with a wallpaper. “I wanted something warm, and this blush background was perfect,” she says of the Iksel via Schumacher mural. “The kids and I even play ‘I Spy’ to find different animals and flowers on the panels.”

On Pattern
An easy-to-clean wool rug—perfectly durable for a young family—provides a neutral base. “The geometric pattern counterbalances the sweet florals in the mural,” Katie says.

Timeless Table
Katie specified a custom mahogany antique reproduction table from Holland MacRae that can comfortably seat 10 as is and also has a leaf. Details like the flame mahogany top and antiqued brass toe covers on the legs add to its traditional flair.

Give a Wave
When the Meadorses first moved in, Chandler Bailey of B. Interiors helped Kevan Beth select draperies for every room in the house. In the dining room, a blue-on-blue fringed trim and Lucite hardware bring a playful, youthful feel to the neutral draperies. The dining chair fabric was selected to play off the trim’s hue.

Design Resources
Interior design Katie Wolf, Wolf Interiors (Atlanta) Accessories, furniture, and rug Wolf Interiors Lighting Providence Design Window Coverings B. Interiors