When a couple and their new baby moved from a whimsical loft to a midcentury modern home in Dallas, they were searching for a more sophisticated aesthetic. “They’re young, active and have an affinity for boldness,” says interior designer Ashley Mileger Eckel. “But for this house, we really wanted to create a more refined look that reflected the architecture.” The structure—with its expanses of glass, concrete floors and white exterior—is far from a typical Dallas home; but that was part of its draw. “I love that it’s so different,” says Eckel. “It has a very classic modern look and was a blank canvas from which to begin. My vision was to honor the couple’s appreciation for the architecture but bring it up-to-date.”
To start, Eckel considered the owners’ inventory, which consisted of mostly 1950s furnishings leftover from the previous homeowner and sporting deep wood tones and a very warm palette. “I wanted to give the furniture a fresher, more glam look with a fun palette of blues, greens and lighter hues,” says Eckel. To achieve that aesthetic, the designer worked with a mix of the couple’s existing pieces, and new and vintage items, but “anything that was existing was either refinished or reupholstered,” notes Eckel, who chose trendy new fabrics to enliven certain furnishings.
Starting in the great room, the designer made simple yet thoughtful selections. “We really wanted this space to have a wow factor, so I used new pieces that were scaled perfectly,” says Eckel. “Nothing is oversize, so it doesn’t take away from the largeness of the space. I wanted to tend to the simplicity of the house.” Within the spacious room, a clean-lined table mingles with an original Hans Wegner buffet in the dining area. “The buffet was meant to be a piece of art in and of itself,” says Eckel. On the opposite end of the room, the designer covered the living area’s classically modern sofa with a durable outdoor ikat fabric and paired it with a vintage Moroccan rug. Vibrant artwork pops against the gallery-like white walls.
Throughout the spaces, floor-to-ceiling windows abound, creating breathtaking panoramas of the outdoors. To further blur the line between the indoors and out, Eckel opted to keep window treatments to a minimum, using them only in the bedrooms. “For the windows in the master and guest bedrooms, I used a really crisp white linen fabric,” she explains. “A white backdrop gives the rooms an endless feel that continues into the backyard.” In the breakfast room, the Lucite table and chairs, which are clear save for the pops of orange on the seat cushions, also provide stunning views to the outside.
In addition, a backyard wall painted in a vibrant shade of chartreuse acts as a touchstone for the interiors. “Every color I used took that backdrop into account,” Eckel says of pieces such as the existing family room chairs swathed in a playful green fabric that “mixes well with the turquoise elements found throughout the home.”
The turquoise hue continues in the dining area’s glass table lamps from Nick Brock Antiques; in different measures on throw pillows in the family room; and in the master bedroom, where a chaise lounge was kicked up a notch with striking velvet. Eckel was also careful to temper the bright tones with neutral hues like those on the Baxton Studio dining chairs.
Between the bold pops of colors and reimagined furnishings set within a modern backdrop, Eckel pulled the home together exactly as she envisioned. “I love that everything is so clean-lined yet feels like a sophisticated, glamorous space,” says the designer. “It’s a beautifully modern house without being too sterile. You walk in and just want to throw a cocktail party.”
