Featured Homes
Small Spaces: Second-home Treasures
Designer Alice Cramer creates a turnkey interior for a downsizing couple by giving their favorite pieces a new look
BY
Heather J. Paper
PHOTOGRAPHY
Erica George Dines
PRODUCED BY
Clinton Ross Smith

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The graphic-yet-classic patterns on the living room's rug and Chippendale chair add artful interest to all the right places in this Buckhead home.

Small Scale, Bold Style

Like many now making the urban migration, Alice Cramer’s new clients were looking for a second home with as much high style as low maintenance. A place well suited for entertaining but one, too, that could be turnkey when they wanted to take off for the beach and beyond.

They found just the right Buckhead residence but needed their designer’s deft touch to make it live larger than its diminutive dimensions. “Editing was very important here,” says Cramer. “The clients came from a house full of furniture and personal items but were moving into a much smaller space.” The challenge for this designer went beyond merely dealing with minimal square footage. The empty nesters wanted to use some of their most treasured pieces but end up with a residence that looked totally different from their previous ones.

To give this couple their desired décor—a transitional blend of old and new—the designer started by keeping the basic architecture intact but replaced existing wood flooring with more reflective surfaces that would enhance light streaming in through floor-to-ceiling windows. From there, it was a matter of selecting a few new furnishings, updating old ones with fresh fabrics, and finding creative ways to incorporate storage.

“At the end of the day,” says Cramer, “this condominium is a blend of favorite pieces from their previous home that have been given a fresh new look.”