Gary Inman was selected to transform a room in the 2014 Richmond Symphony Orchestra League Designer House before its host residence had even been built. After studying the floor plan, Inman chose the master bedroom. “I loved the bay window, the location, the light,” he enthuses. “It’s not huge, but with a ceiling pitched up to 14 feet, it feels gracious and dramatic.”
During construction, Inman, now a designer with Richmond architecture firm Baskervill, spoke to the owners of the new home, wishing to factor their lifestyle into the design. “They have small children,” he explains, “so I kept coming back to the idea of a sanctuary, of young parents needing a retreat.”
To create a sense of tranquility, the designer chose Benjamin Moore’s Skyscraper— a robin’s egg blue—for the walls. Schumacher draperies in aquamarine added to the fresh palette, and a hand-knotted Tibetan rug grounded the space.
Inman selected classic furnishings and objects—but with a particular agenda. “Wherever possible, I wanted to highlight the talent in Richmond,” he explains. He designed a mahogany vanity and had it made by local company Vanguard Woodworks; the Grantham Chest—part of Inman’s “Downton Abbey”-inspired collection for Moore Councill—occupied a niche. A white-painted table from Richmond-based McKinnon and Harris stood near a wall that showcased a series of pressed flowers by local artist Anne Blackwell Thompson.
Other furnishings included a sofa and dresser from Kindel and a bedstead, bench and mirror by Niermann Weeks.
Interior Design: Gary Inman, Allied ASID; Catherine Stanley, CID, Glavé & Holmes Architecture, Richmond, Virginia. Builder: Joe Hill, Bel Arbor Builders, Chesterfield, Virginia. Photography: Kip Dawkins.
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