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No matter if the weather is cold and dreary, the sunny décor at the home of Myleen Kottas is as warm and lighthearted as the condominium in Vero Beach that inspired it.
Hidden away, yet still within close range of Nashville's downtown scene, the Brentwood home is near Radnor Lake State Natural Area and across the street from the Richland Country Club. Kottas and her husband, Bill, downsized to the four-bedroom home from something larger after their children left the nest.
Julie Brown, the co-owner of Nashville's Providence Interiors, created the condo's interior, which is a serene study in white and blue.
'She loves blue,” Brown says of Kottas. 'So, in her new house here, she didn't want it to feel just like her beach house, but she loved what we did there.”
Brown and her team like to keep pieces that will have longevityrugs and large furniture, for examplein a neutral color palette. They then add pops of color with chairs or pillows. 'Then your art really pops,” Brown says.
The Kottas' home is a new, custom build that feels cozy and settled through a blend of new and old. Many of the tabletop items are from Providence Interiors and Brown culled other pieces from antique purveyors and custom furniture designers.
There are hints of glamour here and there: A chandelier in the dining room custom made of iron and rock crystal by Lowcountry Originals; a Lucite table, set beside a bathtub, adds some shine; and at the foot of a bed, a bench with Lucite legs and furry Mongolian lambskin upholstery.
What sets this home apart from the couple's beach home is the addition of dark flooring, as well as a mix of corals that were brought in to keep it from getting too close to the ocean, aesthetically speaking. After all, it is a primary residence, and it is set under a woodsy canopy of tree leaves in a community called Você (pronounced 'vo-chay”) after the Italian word for 'voice.” Originally purchased by country singer Eddie Arnold as a retreat from the spotlight, Você is 65 acres of wooded beauty.
There are crisp, geometric patterns to be found in the rugs and wall coverings. For example, the Ann Sacks tile in the kitchen, called Hive, is a hexagonal pattern similar to that of a beehive.
'The tile is my favorite piece in her kitchen,” Brown says. 'The tiles have just a little bit of gray definition around the edges. That's the pop,” she adds.
Because of such carefully chosen patterns blended with a subtle color palette, the home never looks busyor, conversely, boring. 'We love layering texture to add depth to a room when color isn't the right choice,” Brown says. 'It gives it dimension, instead of it being a big sea of solid.”
Photos by Nicholas McGinn.