Designer Jayson Cain captures the spirit of adventure and pays homage to the past in this gracious and grand, new-construction Maumelle home
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Set the Table in Seasonal Style
Holiday Cheer
Sissy Clinton and Lydia Hall, Fifth Season, Little Rock
Create a relaxed holiday tabletop that is as versatile as it is cheery. “Casual with lots of color sets the tone for the fun to follow,” says Clinton. Red polka dot china can be used year-round, square Santa Claus-motif salad plates double as dinner plates, a utensil container holds a bottle of wine, and a footed punch bowl filled with sequined tree ornaments is transformed into a festive centerpiece. Tall white trees can be moved to a buffet during a dinner gathering. And to maintain a casual feel, incorporate traditional red and green plaid linens and natural accents such as greenery, pinecones and woven wood chargers. “But,” says Clinton, “a more formal tablecloth and place cards are also fun for holiday get-togethers, to make guests feel special.”
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Bathed in Luxury
1. Lovell Designs Green Clover clothes hamper. Bella Boutique, Little Rock
2. Set of four Provence Sante fine French soaps. Yves Delorme, Little Rock
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Traditional Green
At Home in Arkansas: As a builder, tell us about your decision to build your own green home in Woodlands Edge, which is a sustainable neighborhood.
Jennifer Franks: It was an obvious next step for us to build a traditional Southern-style home, our favorite look, and marry that with green technology. We wanted people to see that you can live comfortably in a certified green home. We’re not extremists. You need to balance your life with all these things, but it’s doable.
Bret Franks: We learned much more by actually building it than was possible by just reading books about how to do it.
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Insider’s Guide to Little Rock’s Riverdale Design District
Elegant Inside and Out
At Home in Arkansas:
What influenced you to design your home around a central courtyard, with doors from nearly every room leading directly to it?
Debbie Tinnin:
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The Mix Master
At Home in Arkansas: What plans did you have for the home you and your husband, Don, built in Little Rock’s Valley Falls Estates?
Mona Thompson of Providence Ltd. Interior Design: I wanted it to feel European but not dressy; just open, warm and comfortable.
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Gracious Glass
Glass decanters were born out of necessity to decant, or pour, filter and oxygenate wine. Their various shapes also have a purpose, such as those designed with very large bases so as to not tip over while traveling on a ship. But beyond that, says collector Larry Jordan, owner of Little Rock’s Fabulous Finds Antiques, their appearance is largely ornamental. “The fancier the decanters were, the more impressive,” he says. “It was a sign of wealth.”
Jordan, however, doesn’t collect decanters for their monetary value or to hold liquor. “What I’m after,” he says, “is a unique look that no one else has.” He offers a plethora of original ideas for decorating with and using decanters.
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Second Story, Second Chance
The Sheid women have always liked to shake things up a bit. Stacy Sheid’s grandmother, Vada, was the first woman in Arkansas elected to the Senate. Now Stacy is following in her grandmother’s footsteps, not in politics but by bringing big city loft living to a small town, something her grandmother did 50 years ago.
When working in Little Rock, Vada and her husband, Carl, rented a penthouse near the Capitol. Upon her return to Mountain Home, Vada decided she missed the penthouse lifestyle and renovated the second floor of their business, Sheids Furniture, into a large loft apartment. Now Stacy, returning from Dallas to help run the family business, found she also missed big city living.
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A Collection That Measures Up
Charles Duval, who works at Little Rock’s Fabulous Finds Antiques, was looking for something small to collect, when his friends found a cat-shaped tape measure at an antique store. Charles had never seen anything like it before, “as whimsical or unique,” he says, so he bought it. The next week, he bought another one. And he is still collecting them nearly 40 years later. “I’m known for it,” he says with a smile.
Charles owns more than 1,250 antique tape measures. There are cats, dogs, birds, boats, people, hats, cars—“almost any shape you could imagine,” he explains. They’re made from brass, tortoise shell, ivory, sterling silver, celluloid, wood, metal, rubber, and, in the case of one miniature charm variation, even gold. Some also have moveable parts, such as a windmill, clock or the brass, spinning carousel that Charles discovered at an antique show in Kansas City. “It’s my favorite,” he says, noting its rarity. Meant to be used and not simply displayed, interactive varieties in good working order are very unusual today.
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