Designer Hattie Sparks Collins looked to the energy of New Orleans for this charming home, located in the Irish Channel neighborhood. “It’s a historic, but funky, part of the city and we wanted the design to exude the spirit of the neighborhood,” she says.
It’s her client’s second property—home base is in Atlanta—and the goal was to create a space where he could entertain and host weekend guests. “He loves New Orleans,” Hattie shares. “One of his goals was to fill the house with local art, which we always love sourcing.”
Before they could address art, however, a few cosmetic upgrades were in order. The house had been flipped and featured a lot of builder-grade details. (Basically, boring selections that felt a bit sterile against the vibrant backdrop of the Big Easy.) The list of everything Hattie removed and replaced is long: lighting and fans, window treatments, plumbing fixtures, cabinet hardware, bathroom vanities, and bathtubs. Each room received a coat of paint or wallpaper, which Hattie was most excited about.
“The full dipped blue office has to be one of my favorite rooms in the house,” she shares. “It’s moody without feeling too dark, and the custom sofa really shines against the blue shade of paint. I also love the primary bathroom. The builder selected the shower tile, which I really liked, and we drew upon that color as inspiration for the wallpaper. Since the primary takes up the whole second floor, we wanted the bathroom to have a treetop jungle-like feel to it. New Orleans is the ‘northernmost Caribbean city’ after all!”
As for the art, it’s all an homage to the area. The living room features a painting from Mary Ball, an expressionist painter known for intricately layered, colorful pieces. The office has a Frank Relle photograph of the Atchafalaya Basin bridge, which holds special childhood memories for the client. The guest room features a Logan Ledford painting in her signature textured dots, livening up the space, and there are two Josie Azuma prints above the bed which lend a graphic touch. The primary bedroom has a green Mallory Page painting, which is ethereal and calming.
The fact it was a second residence meant Hattie could flex her design skills. “We pushed him a bit creatively with some of the paint color and wallpaper selections, as well as the art selections,” she says. “He wanted it to be fairly different from his primary residence so that it felt like more of an escape when he comes to visit. He was thrilled with how it turned out and loves hosting and spending time there. When a client wants to show their space off to friends and family, it’s the biggest compliment we can get as designers.”