Design Where You Live: Texas
Welcome to Design Where You Live, a monthly digest of regional trends from our editors—delivered straight to you.
This month, we're heading to Texas with Homes Editor Lara Hallock. We'll explore the varied aesthetics of the Lone Star State. From Austin with its penchant for funky spaces, to Dallas with its classic luxury, to Houston where transitional interiors abound, Texas is filled with creatives crafting stunning projects that reflect each city's unique style.
Keep reading to explore homes that inspire, materials making waves, the latest design hot spots and more.
The Big Picture
What is the overall design scene in your region?
Texas design is as varied as its landscape! While there are plenty of exceptions, Austin is known for leaning funky and organic, while Dallas homes feel a bit more formal and opulent, and in Houston you even get some coastal vibes. In each region, you can find plenty of Mediterranean estates and transitional dwellings alongside ranch-style abodes, and vintage and antique treasures seated next to modern marvels. Across the board, indoor-outdoor living, highlighting big personalities via design and intentional use of light are some of the biggest priorities.
What’s the most surprising place you’ve seen great design lately?
I’m always inspired by the spirit of reinvention that resounds throughout the state. San Antonio’s Pearl district, including the new Pullman Market with interiors by Joel Mozersky, have redefined a historical district and brought new energy to the entire city. And interior designers are creating the most beautiful boutique rentals, including The 1874 Guest House, an adorable Galveston inn re-envisioned by Alayna Louise Interiors.
Expansive glass doors blur the boundaries between the abode’s indoor and outdoor living spaces in this Austin escape designed by CoXist Studio.
Interior Inspiration
What do people want in their interiors?
Indoor-outdoor spaces will always be a big consideration. Lately, people also love romance and warmth, whether in a brutalist-inspired bedroom in Austin or an artfully layered living room in Dallas.
What’s popular in furnishings, accessories, etc.?
Layering vintage and antiques to create a collected look has to be one of the most substantial interiors movements happening lately. Especially with the Round Top Antiques Fair (and, this year, the inaugural Round Top Show House) gaining popularity, the vintage scene here is drawing people from all over the country and really amping up design possibilities.
Related Read: 8 Ways The Round Top Designer Showhouse Spotlights Texas Design
What’s a recent design project or home you’ve come across that perfectly represents what’s trending right now?
It’s so hard to find one home or style that encapsulates it all! In Austin, a welcoming home by CoXist Studio with interiors by Studio A Group is a gorgeous example of sculptural architecture with vintage and modern accents and the use of warm, natural materials such as hemlock and plaster. Its inner courtyard and pool, which are accessible by most rooms, are also in keeping with homeowner desires for indoor-outdoor living.
"It was important to me to use locally sourced items when I could, as it speaks to what Round Top is known for," Julie Dodson says of her work on the primary suite at the Round Top Designer Showhouse. "It is a wonderful collection of people with an appreciation for antiques and a keen eye."
This primary bedroom by Purveyor Design features vintage Italian chairs refinished in Schumacher fabric, a Lulu and Georgia bed and sconces and lamps by Le Klint. Tour the home here.
Layers melding past and present in the living room of this Chad Dorsey-designed abode give the home character. Explore the home tour here.
What's Hot In Materials + Trends
Are there any particular materials, finishes or textures that feel distinctly “of the moment” in your region?
Natural, local materials are greatly emphasized: Rammed earth (keep an eye out for our May/June Austin + San Antonio home feature!), limestone and large, raw-as-possible slabs of wood and stone. You can also expect ample floor-to-ceiling windows, which let in even bigger views.
Is there a particular color palette or pattern emerging in recent projects?
Warm whites and dusty earth tones aren’t going anywhere, whether used in paint colors or patterned textiles. I love seeing what people are doing with texture and finishes, too, from raw and leathered slabs to lacquered everything.
What are people investing in most right now?
Custom millwork is a must for high-end homes at the moment. You’ll see statement ceilings, arched doors and windows and custom cabinetry. People are also going for more boldly veined and colored stones in honed and leathered finishes.
Artistic Tile opened their new Dallas gallery this spring. Each week, the world’s most sought-out quarries send the gallery shipments of treasures such as Arabescato Orobico marble from the Cornalita Quarry in northern Italy, Venetian terrazzo blends from manufacturer Santamargherita and Danby Imperial marble from Vermont’s Green Mountains.
Local Talent
Which local designers are setting the tone for trends?
I love seeing designers breathe new life into homes and smaller Texas towns, as Paloma Contreras did in this home passed down through three generations, and I greatly respect how Nina Magon is pushing the Houston scene forward and making an international mark through her refined designs, one project of which will be spotlighted in the May/June edition. In my opinion, the best thing about the Texas design community is its collaborative spirit. One designer I greatly respect in Dallas for both her aesthetic and outlook is Traci Connell. Her use of stone and layering materials creates an enriched aesthetic, and she also brings others up through her interior-design coaching company, The Gloss.
Read exclusive interviews from Traci and other top designers in our LinkedIn newsletter.
Can you share a memorable quote or insight from a designer you’ve recently spoken with about a specific design element?
"Stone slabs are pieces of art that nature has created so slowly over centuries."
– Vinny Tavares, Owner and Founder, Aria Stone Gallery
What upcoming feature(s) are you excited about?
I got to connect with American Leather’s president, Veronica Schnitzius, to get the scoop on their upcoming new branch launch. Keep an eye out for our teaser next month!
This chic lounge by Traci Connell demonstrates the designer's love of layering.
Around Town
What’s the most unforgettable feature you’ve seen in a home recently?
Some of the most memorable moments I’ve been seeing lately are people highlighting spaces that have in the past been humbled or hidden: workhorse rooms like laundry rooms, closets and pantries.
What’s your favorite local shop or showroom?
Few things bring me more happiness than a good garden, so my dream Sunday would be spent filling up carts at Barton Springs Nursery or The Natural Gardener. I love any chance to peruse textiles at Supply Showroom—their canopied ceiling immediately sets the tone for all things fanciful. A slew of exciting new openings have happened lately around the state, including Houston’s new Modulnova showroom and Dallas’ new Artistic Tile gallery.
What’s a well designed dining spot or hotel worthy of an immediate reservation?
The 1874 Guest House in Galveston—it’s an adorable historical mansion turned into a boutique hotel by mother-and-daughter interior design team Mary Louise Stonecipher and Jordan Alayna Vaughn. The Hill Country also has some exciting new and upcoming hotels worth booking a vacation, from the newly opened The Albert to the state’s forthcoming first Waldorf Astoria, set to open in 2027.
If your region’s design scene had a signature drink, what would it be?
It’s got to be a margarita–bright, zesty and strong, and there’s a version for every taste.
Mother-daughter duo Mary Louise Stonecipher and Jordan Alayna Vaughn transformed this Victorian home into The 1874 Guest House, a boutique hotel in Galveston, Texas.
About The Author
Lara Hallock is an Austin-based editor and writer with more than a decade spent covering the best of the best in luxury design, travel and lifestyle for national and regional publications. Most recently before joining LUXE Interiors + Design, she helmed Austin Home magazine as Editor in Chief. Read more of Lara's work here.
