For Rebecca and Sam Tuck’s active family of six, spending time together often meant gathering in the backyard of their Jonesboro home. However, they were limited to eating meals on the patio and playing on a grassy lawn, and soon began considering ways to improve their time spent outdoors. Because their two young daughters enjoy swimming, and because they wanted to give their two older sons a place to hang out with their friends at home, they decided to install a pool, and the rest developed from there. “We’re not formal people,” Rebecca explains. “I wanted it to be a relaxing place for our family to play and also entertain.” Thanks to the collaborative help of several local professionals, what resulted is a natural, family-friendly oasis where the Tucks can both relax and welcome visitors all year long.
Off to the Lake
When Gary and Jackie Childers decided to build a lake house in Heber Springs’ Brighton Pointe community, they envisioned an outdoor area where they could entertain family and friends. Inspired by coastal vacations in Florida, the couple also hoped to create a relaxing space that would take advantage of the waterfront views. “We wanted the best of both worlds,” Jackie explains, “the natural beauty of Greers Ferry Lake mixed with the tranquil feel of a seaside getaway.”
Enlisting the help of Little Rock-based designer Lou Anne Herget, the Childers began by installing several entertaining areas to accommodate large groups of people, including a deep back porch for watching sunsets over the water and a wide deck where lounge chairs, a sectional patio sofa shaded by an umbrella, and a dining table all cater to al fresco parties and meals. A stone walkway leads to a lower landing closer to the water, where more seating and a freestanding rock fireplace allow for cozy get-togethers even on cooler evenings. “It’s where we keep an eye on our grandchildren as they play in the trees,” says Jackie, noting that an outdoor shower added for convenience is another favorite space for the kids.
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Made in the Shade
Jeanne Spencer’s roots are evident in her Little Rock garden, where the Arkansas native’s love of the South shows in the magnolias, crepe myrtles, azaleas, camellias and hydrangeas amassed in the landscape.
Inspired by her favorite courtyards in Charleston, Savannah and New Orleans, Jeanne and her husband Dan began transforming their backyard into what she calls “a Southern-style city garden” nearly 16 years ago, when the couple returned to their hometown after two decades spent in Dallas. Located in the Prospect Terrace area of Little Rock’s Heights neighborhood, the lot was “a blank canvas, with some tall trees but not much else,” says Jeanne. “It’s a city lot, and the first challenge was how to turn a small space into an inviting garden.”
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Garden Grandeur
Saying that Chip and Cindy Murphy like to entertain is an understatement. From gala events for hundreds of guests to private dinner parties with specialty chefs, the philanthropic pair regularly throw open the doors of their 1947 Georgian-style home in Little Rock’s Edgehill neighborhood and host a myriad of charitable fetes for the community.
When they purchased their home six years ago, part of the appeal was that its classic elegance and ample grounds were well suited to their entertaining style. As their event calendar grew, they sought ways to make better use of an existing pool and cabana area and the open lawn, which sloped down to a wooded ravine and neighboring Allsopp Park. They turned to renowned garden designer and author P. Allen Smith, who “brought us an encompassing vision of how we could unify our home and garden,” says Cindy.
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Colors in Bloom
Contemporary Comfort
After seven years of living in their Conway home, Chris and Jennifer Crain decided it was time to give their house a design update. “It was very traditional,” Jennifer says, “and we wanted something a little more colorful and contemporary.”
Enter friend and Conway-based interior designer Tami Risinger. “Our goal became to make the space bright and full of energy, just like the family that lives here,” Risinger says. “That involved making a traditional home more modern, updating the space with abstract art and clean-lined furnishings.”
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Lively Living
When Heather Letterman bought a 1920s-era home in the Hillcrest area of Little Rock six years ago, she had a colorful vision. “I knew exactly what I wanted this house to eventually look like,” says the aspiring interior designer, who works for a pharmaceutical company. “I was constantly pulling pictures out of magazines, finding ideas for the final product.”
When Heather married Jason Letterman four years later, her dreams were realized. Jason, an aeronautical engineer, used his expertise to help lay out their extensive renovation plans. The couple hired a contractor, moved into an apartment and put their furniture into storage while their home was enlarged and updated with an open floor plan and a new kitchen.
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Dining Drama
“Dark and uninviting” is how Nancy de Bin describes the dining room in the Little Rock home she and her husband, Chris, purchased a few years ago. Eager to create a space better suited to their lifestyle, one that was elegant enough for formal entertaining yet relaxed enough for family meals with their young son, they decided a renovation was in order. And with the help of designer Scott Paterek of Massimo, they got exactly what they wanted—beginning with a heaping dose of red paint. “The color is warm and inviting but also dramatic,” Nancy explains, “and it blends with all of the warm earth tone colors that I am drawn to for tablescapes.”
To complement their choice of color, the couple also kept the other elements of the room colorful and interesting. Silk draperies in a similar bold hue line the two windows that flank the fireplace, and the mantle features brilliant rusty-colored glass tile. The de Bins, who are art collectors, also opted to hang a graphic painting found in Italy, as well as a mother-and-child painting by New Jersey-born artist Gino Hollander, to punctuate the color-saturated walls. As for the dining table, while long and simple lines give it a formal feel, tall chairs with copper backs lend a touch of whimsy, and a statement-making crystal chandelier, which hangs centrally from above, emits a warm and relaxing glow throughout the space. “The room looks lovely at night because it shimmers,” Nancy says.
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Fresh Traditional
For product designer Brad Beach, identifying trends and refining home décor ideas is a daily practice. As the senior product development director for Walmart’s Mainstays and Home Trends lines, he travels the world, visiting stores and trade shows in search of fresh designs. Those concepts weave their way into his work, and often influence his own home as well. “My style continues to evolve,” says Beach, “because of the ongoing exposure to great design ideas.”
Renew
Angela Duke’s Glenwood house stands as her family’s home base, yet it’s been in a design transition for years. “The house originally belonged to my grandparents,” she says. “Throughout the years, it’s gone through several remodels, but I never felt like it was finished.” With her son Clark living in Los Angeles and her other son, Chandler, soon to be graduating high school, she felt it was time to rethink the house. She contacted interior designer Tobi Fairley of Tobi Fairley Interior Design in Little Rock, with whom she had worked on many previous projects. “I know Tobi gets my style,” Angela says, “and I was ready to start from scratch.”
The 1960s ranch-style house has a comfortable atmosphere, thanks to the large rooms and numerous windows that offer views of the Caddo River, and Fairley’s goal was to complement the mid-century architecture with the furnishings. “She wanted a space that was both relaxing and beautiful for her, and one that would remain functional when her family visits,” says Fairley, who began her design with the color scheme. “Every woman looks beautiful in warm peach, coral and rosy hues, and I pulled the blues from the river and nature views,” she says. “I kept each space primarily monochromatic, which lends a more calming atmosphere, and I incorporated lots of original artwork.” As an avid collector, Angela enjoyed outfitted the home with works from Arkansas artists. “I joke that if I had to choose between art and furniture, I would pick art,” she says.
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