Photography by Ryann Ford
Turn an enormous, heavy-handed “castle” in Austin’s Barton Creek community into a light-filled, happy home with a bit of Hamptons style. Such was the task facing Heather Harkovich of Heather Scott Home & Design. “The only part of the home that originally appealed to my clients was the garage space for the husband’s collection of motorcycles,” says the designer. “The rest of the house was the opposite of the wife’s taste. She prefers a lot of brightness and glossy accents with a beachy attitude.”
Undaunted, Harkovich rolled up her sleeves and tackled the superscaled rooms by bringing in lighter hues of white, blue, and gray through paint, furniture, and textiles. “I used larger custom pieces to make sense of the oversized spaces and add some needed comfort,” says the designer. In the foyer, for example, she chose an 84-inch oval settee upholstered in a plush blue velvet and placed it beside two generous lounge chairs. An orb-shaped chandelier with row upon row of sparkling lights brightens the space.
In the kitchen, Harkovich orchestrated a top-to-bottom renovation. “My client is an avid home chef,” she says. “For her birthday, her husband gave her a blue La Cornue range with hood. She even traveled to France to take cooking lessons on how to use it. So the range became my starting point, and I designed the whole kitchen around it.” To allow the appliance’s custom blue color to really stand out, Harkovich created all-white surroundings. And in a nod to her client’s love of shimmering surfaces, she chose mother-of-pearl mosaic tiles for the backsplash.
As the homeowner loves to cook, the kitchen renovation was a top priority. An all-white space was in order to better showcase the custom blue La Cornue range, vent hood, and rotisserie oven. A wall of drawers and cabinets contains hidden appliances. Upper shelves offer display space. “My client collects cake plates, so we wanted a special place to showcase those,” says Harkovich. “We even matched the blue of the La Cornue and painted the back of one display area the same shade.” This nook was designed to be right above the rotisserie, so the eye travels up to the next pop of blue.
The master bath also received a dramatic makeover. Wrapped in white with mirrored vanity alcoves topped with additional Venetian mirrors, the room offers no hint of its prior dark and somber atmosphere. Two oversized chandeliers, dripping with accents that resemble layers of Chanel pearls, add to the elegant ambiance.
For the game room’s update, Harkovich departed a bit from the neutral palette by bringing in stronger shades of blue through the upholstery, window treatments, and rugs—even extending to the felt on the custom pool table. The space emits the relaxed vibe of a private club with dark gray paint covering the millwork, a navy velvet nailhead-trimmed sectional, and textured fabrics with shots of cobalt and other vivid blues.
Although evidence of the home’s prior castle-like existence remains in certain architectural details, it’s the light-filled, welcoming spaces that now reign supreme. Under Harkovich’s deft hand, the home has transformed into a Texas Hill Country gem with a Hamptons mind-set.
See all of the before and after photos in our Winter 2017 issue of Southern Home magazine.
