A quick drive from the hustle and bustle of Nashville takes you to the peaceful, rolling hills of the Tennessee countryside.
Located in peaceful Leiper’s Fork, this year’s Southern Living Idea House blends indoor and outdoor living with surrounding natural elements for a welcoming farmhouse feel with an emphasis on modern details.
Lake + Land Studio the architects tried to embody the trend of the modern country house while reflecting the historical landscape of the region.
The great room’s soaring vaulted ceilings are balanced by smaller adjacent gathering spaces, and various windows cast bright light throughout the home. The multi-slide back door opens to the expansive hills and valleys of Tennessee.
Classic Southern outdoor living
As with any archetypal Southern home, the 2023 Southern Living Idea House emphasizes outdoor living spaces with a welcoming front porch and cozy back patio with optional screens.
An outdoor kitchen and garden with raised beds conjure up visions of warm summer nights spent entertaining.
“Overall, the house (has) deeper and exaggerated overhangs in the front and back porch brackets, which allow you to enjoy those areas a little longer when (the day) gets to the hot parts of the sun, but also helps protect you from many rainy days with which we cope,” Luke Sippel, architect s Lake + Land Studio, he told Southern Living.
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With an emphasis on blending indoor and outdoor living, interior designer Laura Hodges and the architects worked together to select durable floor coverings that still looked stylish. T
he team chose Zuri® Premium Decking from Westlake Royal Building Products™ in chestnut because “we wanted to make sure the decking would match the interior floor,” according to Hodges, owner of Laura Hodges Studio.
“First we chose the floor, choosing a color that would go well with the white oak floor. For the interiors, we chose a darker floor color on white oak and knew that the Zuri floor would live beautifully with it.”
The seamless transition of the indoor-outdoor room is reinforced by the cohesiveness of color and texture. “We worked with the architects on the exterior color palette, choosing colors that reflected the landscape and would coordinate with the interior,” explains Hodges.
“We carried the stone from the exterior to the fireplace in the great room, which gives a great sense of design continuity.”
Additionally, “Zuri was a beautiful and natural complement to the paint colors and stone finishes,” she says. “The floor covering color we chose has a warm undertone that goes so well with the muted greens and grays of the exterior.”
Natural elements, sustainable design
Hodges followed similar principles for the interior. “We wanted to ensure that the interior design was a reflection of the natural environment,” she says. At the same time, “We wanted the house to reflect Nashville’s vibrant music and art scene,” which can be seen in the original artwork and local rugs and vintage furniture.
With a warm, natural color palette, Hodges incorporated stronger textures, including linen, velvet and leather, and added striking light fixtures with graceful silhouettes.
The use of vintage and antique pieces is part of Hodges’ approach to sustainability that extends from the inside out and invokes rich Southern traditions.
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“We deliberately chose a sustainable design inside the house,” says the designer. “What is beautiful about Zuri decking from the outside is the durability and longevity of the product.
Zuri floors look and feel natural while holding up very well with little maintenance. We hope that every new homeowner will keep it even if the house changes hands, and that speaks to the idea that good design is sustainable.”
To see how Zuri Premium Decking can help you create the perfect outdoor space, learn more here it out deck visualizer, or order a sample.