Antique Jade Paint, Benjamin Moore; Sofa, Interior Define; Vintage Coffee Table, Side Table, Table Lamp, and Ceiling Lamp; Custom Curtains; Chair Upholstery Fabric, Wallace Sewell; Rug, Rug Vista; Hacked Ivar Sideboard, IKEA; Sideboard Legs, Pretty Pegs; Print, Joan Miró.
Painting the walls white initially felt like a clean slate for Hannah Carpenter when her family of six moved into their 1923 farmhouse on the edge of Searcy, Arkansas, the small town where she and her husband, Heath, grew up.
But there were soon hints that Hannah was inclined to more colorful sensibilities—think: a campy Wes Anderson wardrobe meets a proclivity for decorative gingham touches. (“My mom had a thing for gingham, and I’m sure that’s where it came from,” she says. “I’ve never been able to shake it.”)
Then a few years ago, the Carpenters and their children—Tristin (19), Silas (15), Enid (13), and Tom (9)— temporarily relocated to Tuscany where Heath, a college professor, was teaching for a semester. During their time abroad, it became more apparent to Hannah, an illustrator, photographer, and art director, that simplicity wasn’t so much a design choice as it was…well, safe: “I wanted our home to feel more like us, and we really aren’t minimal. I love a clean, white interior, but as my family grew up, the pared-down aesthetic just wasn’t representing us.”
HOME TOUR
A Trip to Italy Sparked
This Formerly Minimalist Mom’s Vision for Her
Arkansas Family Home
Where modern plaid and a pink den play
nice in a small-town farmhouse.
Photography by Rett Peek
Words by Chantal Lamers
April 14, 2022
Ready for a change, the mom of four was eager to incorporate the dynamic details she had admired in Italian decor, namely vibrant painted millwork and window trim, fabrics in saturated hues, and geometric stone floors. “I wanted our home to be like stepping into a different world within our small-town life,” explains Hannah. “I wanted our kids to see me taking risks and being confident and trying new things and experimenting, not being afraid.” However, the transition from neutral was proving to be a struggle. “I couldn’t make decisions, and I didn’t have someone to validate what I loved,” she says. “But then Meta came along.”
But there were soon hints that Hannah was inclined to more colorful sensibilities—think: a campy Wes Anderson wardrobe meets a proclivity for decorative gingham touches. (“My mom had a thing for gingham, and I’m sure that’s where it came from,” she says. “I’ve never been able to shake it.”)
Then a few years ago, the Carpenters and their children—Tristin (19), Silas (15), Enid (13), and Tom (9)— temporarily relocated to Tuscany where Heath, a college professor, was teaching for a semester. During their time abroad, it became more apparent to Hannah, an illustrator, photographer, and art director, that simplicity wasn’t so much a design choice as it was…well, safe. “I wanted our home to feel more like us, and we really aren’t minimal. I love a clean, white interior, but as my family grew up, the pared-down aesthetic just wasn’t representing us.”