In Nashville, Tennessee, and the surrounding areas, you can still find miles of rural landscape with rolling hills and streams — the perfect setting for an iconic Southern farmhouse with a big front porch and a working farm with cows, chickens, and horses. Sadly, many original farmhouses in the area have fallen into disrepair over the years. Today, we’re getting an inside look at the reconstruction and interior design of one such home.
With the help of Interior Designer Barbara Westbrook of Westbrook Interiors, builder Huseby Homes, architect Stephen Fuller, and landscape architect Page Landscape, one couple’s dream of an idyllic country home came to life. Just wait until you see these photos!
Building a Home With a Story
An expert at renovations, Craig Huseby (Principal and Founder of Huseby Homes) was brought in to assess the condition of the original house on this stunning piece of land in Nashville’s Green Hills neighborhood. “At a glance, the previous house had a historic façade and classic architecture, but nothing could be reused,” Craig tells us. “That house, however, is what inspired the look. They wanted something with that timeless, historic feel.” That inspiration led the couple to settle on a classic farmhouse style.
The house’s design includes front and back porches — the perfect way to invite guests to slow down and enjoy the view. Clapboard siding and an asymmetrical footprint make the house look as though it has been added onto for generations.
“They wanted that feeling of always having been there,” explains Craig. “The center and the sides look like they’ve lovingly evolved over time. People wonder how long it’s been there — 50 years? 100?”
Every decision regarding the home’s property placement was intentional. The orientation of each window and angle maximizes the views and balances its relationship with the landscape. For example, much of the home’s layout was situated with a clear view of the property’s red barn in mind. It was all a matter of minor tweaks to get it precisely right. “The porches give the house dimension. The brick, the latticework, the circular drive — everything is designed to be historic,” says Craig.
Balancing Tradition and Comfort
The home’s interior spaces feel at once luxurious and comfortable — elegant yet casual. There are beautiful moldings and uncluttered surfaces, but there is also the ease of a comfortable farmhouse where you can run around barefoot. “No room is meant to be untouched,” explains Barbara of the interior design. “Nothing is so precious that it can’t be used by every family member — down to the last little child.”
The homeowners lean towards classic design, which is apparent in the traditional elements found throughout the house. This isn’t a home that looks to contrast or juxtapose styles; it embraces its timeless, rural setting in an approachable and welcoming way.
Entering the home, the center hall makes an immediate impression. The wainscoting and the chair rail are painted in a monochromatic palette of cream and ivory that feels traditional and formal. Yet, there’s an oriental rug to offset the pristine walls. “Elements like the rug are designed to make the house feel lived in — like you don’t need to be afraid to exist in the space,” says Barbara. Simple brass sconces are placed throughout the entry, almost as if candles are guiding you through.
A Welcoming Blend of Old and New
Wood antiques are standout details throughout the home — often in a walnut finish with its beautiful, rich, soft brown tone. Antiques inherently go with everything — regardless of the wood grain. Barbara explains, “You don’t buy antiques worrying about the woods. You buy them based on what you love, and it all works together.” She offers an example. “A walnut French piece adds a European touch to the country. Not every antique needs to be American to feel authentic to the farmhouse location. If Thomas Jefferson could mix it up, we can too!”
In the living room, the diverse wood finishes continue. The shelves are pine, while the chairs next to the fireplace are walnut. This combination of wood tones also adds to a more casual look — nothing is overly serious. Throughout the spaces, heavily textured cotton and linen fabrics offer a collected, country-inspired look, with checks or stripes thrown in here and there. There are old quilts, classic spool chairs, and iron lamps with pretty linen pleated shades. All of these elements are references to the past, regardless of their true age.
Barbara offers some expertise on integrating furniture pieces, suggesting that it’s always a good idea to ensure that at least a few of your pieces are vintage and that too much care isn’t taken to refurbish them. “It’s nice to have a little ‘crud’ in the room,” she says. “When there’s paint peeling off a plant stand, it takes things down a notch, preventing it from being too precious. Then you don’t need to be concerned when a child runs into it; it adds to the charm.”
Creating a Space for Gathering
Throughout the home, there are spaces intentionally designed for gathering. The kitchen is the center of those spaces and, of course, the heart of the home. From the island stools to the Windsor chairs surrounding the breakfast table, this kitchen is made for bringing the family together. From the kitchen, a door opens to another dining area on the porch.
The porch has several seating areas, and there are benches around the dining table to support a gaggle of kids. No matter where you go, there’s somewhere to sit and take in a view of the rolling hills.
Adding a Hint of Color
The house is full of neutral, warm living spaces with layered off-whites, ivories, and creams. A few hints of color help break up the palette and add a bit of life, color, and surprise. From the blue dining room to the gray-and-white checkerboard flooring in the main bathroom to the vibrant quilts in the bedroom, touches of color create an approachability that tempers the elegant scale of the spaces.
Bringing the Pieces Together to Create a Family Home
Throughout the building and decorating process, the goal was to create a space where the homeowners could eventually bring their children and grandchildren together. They imagined it serving as the backdrop for decades of memories … That’s why they didn’t want anything in the home to be too precious or off-limits. Everything had to be equally practical and beautiful.
Craig tells us that, above all else, “This is a place where the family lives.”
**********
Check out more inspiration from home interiors across the South!
