Mountain Chic Design – Home Tour

By Interior Designer TRACY SVENDEN | Published on April 25, 2025 |

Modern Mountain Chic Design: I recently viewed this enchanting Appalachian escape featured in the cover story of LUXE’s Southeast March/April issue. Tucked away in North Carolina, this stunning home celebrates the natural beauty of its surroundings—hiking trails, breathtaking vistas, a trout stream, remnants of an old apple orchard, serene ponds, and gorgeous mountain views. This one-level space seamlessly blends rustic charm with modern style, making it perfect for family life and entertaining.  

Nestled in a fertile valley of the Nantahala National Forest, this refuge was designed by architect Tim Adam for clients who are busy professionals from Atlanta. The property rests higher than the others, overlooking a meadow with views through pine trees and a natural plateau where the home was placed. A one-story structure was designed that rambles outward rather than climbing skyward, diverging from typical mountain homes. Feature image courtesy of LuxeSource.

View from the Exterior

Architect Tim Adams incorporated a mix of cedar shakes from Jennings Builders Supply & Hardware and standing-seam bonderized metal roofing from Best Buy Metals. The home’s well-considered design thoughtfully separates private areas from communal hubs. Vibrant shared spaces form the heart of the residence, while the primary suite occupies its own distinct wing, and the children’s and guest bedrooms are situated in another.

The architect acknowledged the clients’ desire for single-level living, noting that this layout “creates a seamless flow that enhances both everyday life and entertaining.” In terms of style, the design draws inspiration from the Craftsman aesthetic, blending rustic and contemporary elements. Refined materials such as reverse board-and-batten siding, standing-seam metal roofing, and steel-and-glass windows are juxtaposed with hand-hewn beams, cedar shakes, and locally sourced stone, creating a compelling textural contrast.

Mountain Chic Living Room

In the great room, designer Amanda Wyatt created a diverse seating area featuring Maiden Home sofas and Shoppe Amber Interiors ottomans, all anchored by Materia’s midcentury-inspired Forchette 18 chandelier overhead.

This serene and elegant modern rustic space features a neutral color palette elevated with black accents and warm earth tones. A bespoke, ten-foot Verona marble coffee table from Bottega Surfaces grounds the arrangement while adding a modern touch.

The Keeping Room

The keeping room features CB2’s Fitz swivel chairs in sumptuous, rich green velvet, which pair perfectly with Soho Home’s Tisbury coffee table. Open shelving allows for the display of a modern rustic selection of vases, bowls, bookends, and books. An aluminum-framed NanaWall system seamlessly merges the indoor and outdoor spaces.

A Dream Kitchen With Rustic Charm

In the modern rustic kitchen, warm white cabinets create an elegant focal point while complementing the rough-hewn beams and European white oak flooring. The kitchen counter stools by Four Hands add farmhouse charm, while the Roman Guild Flush mounts bring a contemporary feel.

Wyatt employed a direct, hands-on approach throughout the project, successfully merging the distinct aesthetics of midcentury design and Americana. This stylistic blend is evident in details like the circular flush-mount lighting that tops the kitchen’s Shaker-inspired cabinetry and the rustic, primitive wooden stools. Additional design elements include black accents for dramatic contrast, a large expanse of windows that bring the outdoors in, and an artful display of rustic pottery.

The Details Matter

A brass hanging rail by deVol adds the perfect finishing touch and contrasts the Lace White honed marble backsplash from Bottega Surfaces. The kitchen’s custom vent hood, finished with limestone plaster, adds texture and a sculptural quality to the space. The hand-hewn oak ceiling beams are from Taylor’d Designs.

A Majestic Fireplace in the Dining Room

In an elegant dining room that balances rustic and modern aesthetics, a fieldstone fireplace is flanked by wool flannel draperies in a soft shade of blue. This lovely space features vertical shiplap walls, an RH concrete table, and Howe London Windsor chairs. Potted branches and trees add warmth and dimension, while a large area rug grounds the space.

Bright & Colorful Art Room

A fun, bright, and colorful attic-level art room with a stunning view of the outdoors features Kerri Rosenthal’s Azure Dropcloth wallpaper. Baby blue open shelving flanks the window, providing a spot to store baskets, books, and accessories. Hay counter stools and a Muuto chair accent the custom white oak table with a zinc top by Taylor’d Designs.

Primary Bedroom

This warm and inviting primary bedroom features a neutral color palette, shiplap walls, and sophisticated window treatments. Layered textures include a linen duvet cover, warm earth-tone throw pillows, and a large Soho Home Silvanus rug. Upholstery pieces by the same brand—a Paolo bed in sycamore leather and Willis bench in antique rose velvet—hold court with Skylar Morgan’s Arc lounge chair.

Wyatt’s thoughtful and evolving approach to color palettes resulted in a layered aesthetic, giving the impression that the home had gracefully developed over time. In the primary bedroom, warm terra-cotta hues, featured on the leather bed, modern velvet bench, and arabesque rug, offer a surprising contrast to the invigorating blues and greens in the shared living areas.

View to the Outdoors

Custom steel French doors by Metal & More lead to the primary screened porch with a gorgeous stone fireplace and flooring. This space perfectly exemplifies how neutral hues can be elevated with layered textures, warm earth tones, and contrasting elements.

Brown Jordan’s Oliver armchairs and Terra Outdoor Living’s Bordeaux coffee table gather beneath The Urban Electric Co.’s 1600 exterior light and Hinkley’s Sag Harbor sconces. Rustic pottery filled with leafy branches, wicker baskets, and a soft knit throw add the perfect finishing touch to this dreamy outdoor oasis.

Guest Bedroom

This elegant and serene guest bedroom boasts soft, rosy pink accents that pair perfectly with the neutral palette. Feminine accents grace this space, with Soho Home’s Adeline bedspread and Hackner Home pillows adding delicate pink hues to a Lulu and Georgia bed dressed in Hale Mercantile Co. linens. A Workstead lamp sits elegantly beside Anthropologie’s Isla nightstand.

Rustic Outdoor Living Area

This inviting outdoor living area features irregular crab orchard flagstone pavers, a fieldstone fireplace, an Espasso sofa, and rocking chairs made of weather-resistant Brazilian Itauba wood. The expansive property unfolds like a natural tapestry of forest and meadow, its generous acreage providing space for several structures, including a subterranean wine cellar and inviting guest cabins. These cabins offer visitors a welcome seclusion and a more profound connection to the surrounding landscape.

The homeowners’ commitment to quality is evident in the extensive use of prized Doggett Mountain fieldstone, featured on several fireplaces, sections of the home’s exterior, and substantial support pillars across the four generous porches. Here, the uneven flagstone pavers transition smoothly into a textured fescue lawn, thoughtfully accented by landscape designer Alex Smith’s placement of rhododendrons, Korean boxwoods, cinnamon ferns, and young black gum trees.

Home Details

Architecture: Tim Adams, T.S. Adams Studio Architects, LLC

Interior Design: Amanda Wyatt, Design Insider

Home Builder: Ben Harris, Harris Custom Builders, LLC

Landscape Architecture: Alex Smith, Alex Smith Garden Design, Ltd.

Styling: Eleanor Roper

Photography: Lisa Romerein

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