Shocked

For the past decade, Southern Accents has presented us with a pretty, but somewhat sleepy selection of pale blue and beige bedrooms. Imagine my surprise to turn the page and discover this high contrast, David Hicksian wonder by Atlanta designer Barbara Howard.

The bedroom was designed for the Showhouse at Reynolds Plantation, part of Lake Oconee in Greensboro, Georgia. I had to do a double take--this room belongs to a lake house in rural Georgia? The times are a-changin'.

The featured fabric pattern is "Zimba" by Schumacher. The rest of the home is more typically Southern and subtle in palette, but has a few quiet nods to 1970's design. Click here for the tour.

Even though Lake Oconee is only 1.5 hours east of Atlanta, I have yet to visit. One of these days, I am going to hop over for a day of pampering at The Ritz Carlton Lodge at Reynolds Plantation. For the time being however, I am staycation city.

Interiors photographed by Keith Scott Morton for Southern Accents, November/December 2008.

Seeing Clearly

A good pair of floating acrylic cocktail tables always adds a little style à la David Hicks to a space. What I love best about these tables is their function as small and easily movable while looking simultaneously inconspicuous and funky.

Keith Irvine designed this living room for Merrill Hanley using acrylic cubes, a great option for smaller New York apartments. (Photography by Paul Costello for Domino Magazine, October 2007). For more photos of this home and that of her sister, see The Peak of Chic's September post, Sister Act.

A couple of days after spotting the cubes in Domino, I saw these Kartell "Jolly" tables in this room from Metropolitan Home, designed by Ron Marvin. (Photographed by Annie Schlecter).

As an alternative to more expensive acrylic cubes, the Jolly Table by Paolo Rizatto works well in an otherwise busy room, and measures only 16" square. Available through Kartell.

An early proponent of the clear cube, David Hicks designed this London apartment in 1972 as a "dorm room" for the sons of Stavros Niarchos, while they were in school. The lacquered walls and Perspex tables add to a nightclub feel. What a cool place to not get any studying done. (Photo from David Hicks: Designer).