Skip to content

Top Navigation

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Food
  • Holidays & Entertaining
  • Home & Garden
  • Style & Culture
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Southern Living

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Explore

    Explore

    • These Haircuts Are Going To Be Huge in 2021

      The trendy haircuts you’ll be seeing everywhere next year. Read More Next
    • How To Season A Cast-Iron Skillet

      Learn how to season this Southern kitchen staple in five easy steps. Read More Next
    • The Right Way to Heat a Pre-Cooked Ham

      It's so easy, trust us. Read More Next
  • Food

    Food

    See All Food

    Lost Cakes of the South

    These simple and spectacular Southern cakes deserve a comeback
    • All Food
    • All Recipes
    • Holidays & Occasions
    • Quick Fix Suppers
    • Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Desserts
    • Casseroles
    • Healthy Recipes
  • Holidays & Entertaining

    Holidays & Entertaining

    See All Holidays & Entertaining

    70 Wedding Vow Examples That Will Melt Your Heart

    Fight writer's block and find ways to express your love with these romantic, funny, and short wedding vow examples.
    • Christmas
    • Entertaining
    • Thanksgiving
    • Southern Weddings
    • Easter
    • Kentucky Derby
    • Valentine's Day
    • 4th of July
    • Mother's Day
  • Home & Garden

    Home & Garden

    See All Home & Garden

    7 Paint Colors We’re Loving for Kitchen Cabinets in 2020

    ‘Tis the season to ditch your all-white palette in favor of something a little bolder and brighter.
    • Home Decor Ideas
    • Idea Houses
    • Before & After
    • Inspired Communities
    • Curb Appeal
    • House Plans & Builders
    • The Grumpy Gardener
    • Plant Names A-Z
  • Style & Culture

    Style & Culture

    See All Style & Culture

    50 Books Everyone Should Read in Their Lifetime

    Curl up with a classic!
    • Southern Culture
    • Hair
    • Travel
    • Beauty
    • Pets
    • Southern Fashion
    • Healthy Living
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Southern Living
  2. Home
  3. Home Decor Ideas
  4. Prepare to Fall In Love With This White Colonial Revival in Oak Hill, Tennessee

Prepare to Fall In Love With This White Colonial Revival in Oak Hill, Tennessee

By Caroline McKenzie
August 19, 2018
Skip gallery slides
Save FB Tweet
Credit: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason
Holly Williams—Nashville shop owner, musician, and the granddaughter and daughter of the famous Hanks—invites us into her home and shows off her version of vintage rockabilly style.
Start Slideshow

1 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Ultimate Rehabber

Credit: Annie Schlechter

What does a serial house fixer-upper and flipper do when she finds a home where she can actually imagine herself settling down? She takes her time. At least that was Holly Williams’ approach. The singer-songwriter and shop owner (she helms H. Audrey fashion boutique and four locations of the home-goods store White’s Mercantile—three in Nashville and one in Wilson, Arkansas) has also made a name for herself as Music City’s ultimate old-house rehabber. “I’ve done 7 houses in the past 10 years,” says Williams, who’s a mother of three (daughters Stella June, 3, and Lillie Mae, 2; son, Arlo, 1). “I take on each project as a passionate labor of love.” But when she spotted a “For Sale” sign in the front yard of a white Colonial Revival in Oak Hill, Tennessee, just south of Nashville, she decided to slow down for a bit.

1 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Setting Down Roots

Credit: Annie Schlechter

Williams then spent the next 18 months—what felt like an eternity to her—taking the dated house down to the studs and then reimagining it to create a family-friendly home for her and husband Chris Coleman to raise their brood. During the renovation (in addition to logistical matters such as removing mold and replacing knob and tube wiring), Williams reconfigured the floor plan with wider doorways and larger windows to maximize natural light. Next, she put her granny chic-meets-impossibly hip stamp on the home by incorporating a sophisticated color palette (black and white figure prominently) and dramatic wallpapers. From there, she piled on the antiques and heirlooms. An admitted sentimentalist and an obsessive collector, she took her time finding the right spot for each gritty, patinaed piece. “A room just feels more authentic when it isn’t all designed in one afternoon online,” she says. “And it’s also a lot easier for me to picture a future in a home when I’m surrounded by pieces from the past.”

With the renovation now finished, her children are adding their own scuffs and imperfections to walls and family treasures. “A house is never really done, but I’ve gotten pretty close with this one,” says Williams, who’s content to stay here for a while—that is, until the next time an unassuming “For Sale” sign catches her eye.

The handsome Colonial Revival—located just south of Nashville in Oak Hill—already had curb appeal in spades. Except for some sprucing up of the landscaping, she left the exterior untouched. The traditional facade became her inspiration for reviving the interior. "I wanted warmth and elegance that matched the outside's beautiful bones," she says.

2 of 13

3 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Graphic Entrway

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

Plenty of people would lose their cool if they discovered that an installer had hung half the entryway’s striped wallcovering (Farrow & Ball’s Closet Stripe) in the wrong direction—but not Williams. Instead of starting over and eating the subsequent costs, she rolled with it, hanging the paper both vertically and horizontally. The result is a fresh take on a simple motif.

The foyer’s assemblage of framed oil landscapes keeps the room’s graphic wallpaper from completely stealing the show. “I purchased all of the paintings over a number of years at Scott Antique Markets in Atlanta,” says Williams. “It was only when I finally pulled these pieces out of the basement that I discovered they were all picturesque farm scenes that look an awful lot like the Louisiana homestead where I spent summers as a child.”

3 of 13

Advertisement

4 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Not-So-Country Kitchen

Credit: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

It’s sophistication to the hilt in this completely renovated space, with a glossy La Cornue gas range, dark cabinets (Tricorn Black, SW 6258; sherwin-williams.com), and brass hardware from Rejuvenation. The brass shelving is the result of tenacious decor sleuthing—Williams tracked down the maker of Ralph Lauren merchandising displays to replicate the design (which was a custom order from Urban Archaeology).

From the kitchen cabinetry to the playroom decor, the timeless color combo of black and white makes more than a dozen appearances in this home. "I love that this scheme is simultaneously casual and glam, classic and fresh," she says.

4 of 13

5 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Multipurpose Breakfast Nook

Credit: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

The kitchen’s eating area is a bold mix of old and new with a dramatic but discontinued wallpaper (Lily of the Valley by Cole & Son), a black metal pendant from Circa Lighting, and a painting done by her maternal grandfather when he was a student at the Ringling College of Art and Design. The built-in banquette features a ticking-stripe outdoor fabric (Jake Stripe in Black Tie; perennialsfabrics.com) and offers additional storage space.

She scaled back some of the home's formal architectural elements by exposing the existing brick framework in the kitchen. "It may sound counterintuitive, but I find that a home feels more inviting when it's a little rough around the edges," she says.

5 of 13

6 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Elegant Dining Room

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

After she meticulously revamped the millwork, Williams let it be the star. She coated every surface in the dining room but the floor in Farrow & Ball’s Green Blue and decided to leave the windows sans curtains to avoid disrupting the effect. She paired the chandelier (one of her first ever antique finds) with Napoleon Chairs from Jayson Home and a sleek glass-topped table from One Kings Lane.

6 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Cozy Living Room

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

Exposed brick, pink french doors, and personal mementoes add warmth to this living room the whole family can enjoy. Williams layered oriental rug is from one of her favorite local shops, The Nashville Rug Gallery.

7 of 13

8 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Embrace Family Traditions

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

“This is a family home in every sense of the word,” says Williams, who filled her house with sentimental heirlooms—such as her dad’s cherished dog painting over the living room sofa. “I’ve loved that piece ever since I was a little girl.” Other meaningful items on display include the duck-hunting scene her mom’s great-grandmother painted for her own son.

8 of 13

9 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Peaceful Master Bedroom

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

Color and pattern get a rest in the master suite, where Williams went with shades of white, cream, and barely there gray for a tranquil air. Among the many neutral, textured items is one of her prized possessions—an old armoire that she purchased at a Paris market in her twenties. “It was one of my very first antiques. I’ll never let it go,” she says.

9 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Whimsical Bath

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

It left contractors scratching their heads, but Williams insisted on placing the soaking tub smack in the center of the room to replicate a look that she’d seen in a European hotel. An antique rug (from Nashville Rug Gallery) used as a bath mat and a pair of reclaimed doors from France round out the room.

10 of 13

11 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Private Dressing Room

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

With three young children, Williams needs a quiet space to escape all of the chaos—even if it’s just to get dressed and ready for the day. Enter her to-die-for closet, swathed in a pale blush shade (Pink Ground by Farrow & Ball). Williams is far from a girly girl, but her “all-time favorite paint color” is a soft, rosy shade, which covers the walls, molding, cabinetry, and ceiling of her dressing room. “It brings a ladylike elegance to the edgier items I’m drawn to,” she says. A demure vanity and artful doors complete the look. “It’s so much better to be able to hide your mess!” she says.

11 of 13

12 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Blooming Guest Room

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

Williams’ home is filled with antiques and tchotchkes, yet it feels far from cluttered. Her secret? Give showstopping, mostly floral wallpaper enough breathing space. “Every few rooms, I make a bold wallpaper statement. I find that when I do, less furniture and accessories are required,” she says of areas such as the breakfast nook, powder room, and guest suite.

“You like what you like,” says Williams, who blanketed this space in a lush floral wallpaper (Seraphina Delft by Designers Guild) that’s made appearances in her previous projects. “I love that it’s feminine but the blues and oversize scale help keep it from feeling too fussy."

12 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 13

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Inspiring Playroom

Credit: Photo: Annie Schlechter; Styling: Matthew Gleason

She designated the upstairs area as the kids’ space and accented the pitched ceiling with a blustery gray wallpaper (Nuvolette by Fornasetti) that’s playful but not twee. Also on display is a collection of whimsical faux-taxidermy heads from White’s Mercantile and a gallery wall chock-full of sentimental pieces, including her husband’s fourth-grade silhouette and a print that pays homage to her paternal grandparents’ farm.

13 of 13

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Caroline McKenzie

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 13 The Ultimate Rehabber
2 of 13 Setting Down Roots
3 of 13 The Graphic Entrway
4 of 13 The Not-So-Country Kitchen
5 of 13 The Multipurpose Breakfast Nook
6 of 13 The Elegant Dining Room
7 of 13 The Cozy Living Room
8 of 13 Embrace Family Traditions
9 of 13 The Peaceful Master Bedroom
10 of 13 The Whimsical Bath
11 of 13 The Private Dressing Room
12 of 13 The Blooming Guest Room
13 of 13 The Inspiring Playroom

Share options

Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Login

Southern Living

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • About Us
  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Books from Southern Living
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en EspaƱol this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Southern Living is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. Southern Living is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab All Rights Reserved. Southern Living may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.southernliving.com

View image

Prepare to Fall In Love With This White Colonial Revival in Oak Hill, Tennessee
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.