Skip to content

Top Navigation

Midwest Living Midwest Living
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Home
  • Garden
  • Holidays & Entertaining
  • Videos
  • Spring Getaways Sweepstakes

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Win Your Dream Getaway!
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Magazine Issues
  • Destinations
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Midwest Living

Midwest Living Midwest Living
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Midwest Living's Best of the Midwest Winners 2021

      Midwest Living's Best of the Midwest Winners 2021

      Read More
    • Best Midwest Family Vacations

      Best Midwest Family Vacations

      Read More
    • 25 Top Easy-Care Plants for Midwest Gardens

      25 Top Easy-Care Plants for Midwest Gardens

      Plant these low-maintenance perennials and shrubs—including hostas, peonies, yarrow, daylilies, catmint and switchgrass—for a carefree Midwest garden. Read More
  • Travel

    Travel

    See All Travel
    50 Midwest Resorts We Love

    50 Midwest Resorts We Love

    Our favorite Midwest resort destinations range from cozy lakeside lodges to indoor water park behemoths. Dive in to check out our top picks for a fabulous Midwest getaway.
    • Illinois
    • Indiana
    • Iowa
    • Kansas
    • Michigan
    • Minnesota
    • Missouri
    • Nebraska
    • North Dakota
    • Ohio
    • South Dakota
    • Wisconsin
    • Around the Region
    • Free Travel Info
  • Food

    Food

    See All Food
    Midwest Living March/April 2021 Recipes

    Midwest Living March/April 2021 Recipes

    • Comfort Foods
    • Desserts & Baking
    • Breakfast
    • Quick & Easy
    • Chicken
    • Soups & Stews
    • Midwest Favorites
    • Fruits & Vegetables
    • Fish
    • Grilling
  • Home

    Home

    See All Home
    30 Ideas to Dress Up Your Deck

    30 Ideas to Dress Up Your Deck

    Furnish your deck or patio with accessories and designs that add comfort and style to outdoor living. Here are 30 suggestions to get you started.
    • Quick Decorating
    • Featured Homes
    • Organizing & Storage
    • Outdoor Living
    • Seasonal Decorating
    • Room Decorating
  • Garden

    Garden

    See All Garden
    10 Trendy Plants for Midwest Gardens in 2021

    10 Trendy Plants for Midwest Gardens in 2021

    • Container Gardens
    • Flowers
    • Featured Gardens
    • Midwest Gardening Calendar
    • Garden Ideas & Inspiration
  • Holidays & Entertaining

    Holidays & Entertaining

    See All Holidays & Entertaining
    50 Easy Spring Decorating Ideas

    50 Easy Spring Decorating Ideas

    Add pretty spring flair to your home with our ideas for centerpieces, table settings, door decorations, Easter egg displays and more.
    • Easter
    • July 4th
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Valentine's Day
    • Christmas
  • Videos

    Videos

    See All Videos
    • How to Make an All-Butter Pie Crust
    • How to Make Pumpkin-Spice Icebox Cake
  • Spring Getaways Sweepstakes

    Spring Getaways Sweepstakes

    See All Spring Getaways Sweepstakes
    • Best Vacation Sweepstakes
    • Spring Getaways Sweepstakes

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Win Your Dream Getaway!
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Magazine Issues
  • Destinations
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

LIVE
  1. Midwest Living
  2. Homes
  3. Homes Featured in Midwest Living
  4. House Tour: Balancing Act

House Tour: Balancing Act

By Sara Diekelmann; Photographer: Ashley Gieseking
February 17, 2015
Skip gallery slides
Pin
Paint tried and true hues
What's the secret to the contemporary and vintage mix in this St. Louis designer's home? As with most things in life, it's all about balance.
Start Slideshow

1 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Marry modern and vintage

Marry modern and vintage

Like a grandmother in pearls catching up with a twentysomething wearing a mod print, a pair of  Louis XV armchairs sit across from a contemporary sofa in designer Amie Corley's living room. The gilded antiques gain youthful spark from the clean-lined piece. Similarly, a touch of class rubs off on the sleek seating. "The point of mixing old and new is to have something that's a bit more clever and unique," Amie says. "Begin with antique pieces and layer in contemporary stuff that's easier to find."Inspired by a Parisian photo shoot in Vogue, Amie painted her living room walls two shades of aqua. "It also reminds me of New Orleans," the Louisiana native says. "You see that aqua everywhere."Buying Guide: Balancing Act

1 of 19

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Calm down spunky color

Calm down spunky color

A fuchsia reupholstered chair and bold car painting by New Orleans artist James Michalopoulos amp up the dining room.Jazzy brights look more sophisticated if they're moderated with whites and neutrals. "I love color," Amie says. "But I don't have to do all crazy colors in a room." Pair one or two pops with subdued hues.

2 of 19

3 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Find pattern harmony

Find pattern harmony

​The dining room connects to the foyer, which gains fresh style from an unlikely pattern combination: a Turkish kilim rug and purple-and-white ikat fabric covering the seat and back of a 1970s Pierre Cardin chair.Offset a busy motif with a classic stripe or animal print. "Animal prints go with anything," Amie says. Ikat is another design that works well in a mix. If these make you nervous, start with a lattice or geometric print. "Those are familiar patterns that are easy to imagine on a wall," she says.

3 of 19

Advertisement

4 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Eclectic mix

Eclectic mix

Blending styles and adding doses of wild pattern and color give Amie's 1907 Beaux Arts home youthful yet timeless allure. But the self-taught designer admits she had no clue what she was doing when she and her husband bought the house 11 years ago. At the time, local designers were sticking to traditional burgundy, forest green and gold paired with dark, heavy Victorian furnishings. "People here thought old houses should look old," Amie says. "I didn't feel like I needed to follow the rules."

4 of 19

5 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Make a wall of difference

Make a wall of difference

Layers of color and texture energize the sunroom, where paintings, photographs, kids' art and words in assorted frames take center stage. The key to designing a showstopper gallery wall is varying the media. "You want things that are painted, things that are drawn, a sketch of something," Amie says. Collect at least 10 pieces before arranging.

5 of 19

6 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Plan ahead for kids' rooms

Plan ahead for kids' rooms

Floral wallpaper that looks hand-painted jives with peachy curtains in daughter Marie's bedroom. "It's definitely girlie," Amie says. "But I didn't want it to be a cliché pink girl's room." When choosing furniture, rugs and window treatments-decor that can get pricey-imagine putting a full-size bed in the room and not a crib, Amie suggests. "The last thing you want to do is redecorate when they're 5 or 6 because it feels too babyish," she says. That doesn't mean you can't have fun; use bright colors and whimsical fabrics. Work in age-appropriate accents that you can easily swap.

6 of 19

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Room to lounge

Room to lounge

In son Henry's room, splatter-dot draperies look playful next to a reupholstered reading chair scored on eBay. Vintage furniture is typically small in scale, so it's perfect for older homes with compact rooms. 

7 of 19

8 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Touch of whimsy

Touch of whimsy

On the other side of Henry's room, a holiday garland around a wooden animal head injects whimsy year-round. 

8 of 19

9 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Size up lighting

Size up lighting

People often gravitate toward small-scale light fixtures and lamps because they're considered "safe," but Amie advises clients to go big, as she did in the master bedroom. "I can't stand dinky lighting," she says. She designs with overscale chandeliers that "look intentional and make an instant difference in the way a room feels." Amie uses mixed textures-a hide rug, matelassé coverlet, linen drapes-in the master bedroom to create depth.

9 of 19

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Space saver

Space saver

To fit a soaking tub in the master bathroom, the homeowners opted for slim his-and-her sinks.

10 of 19

11 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Serving style

Serving style

A neoclassical-style bar cart made by Maison Jensen, a turn-of-the-century French design firm, glitzes up a corner of the living room. A gold-painted tortoise shell and a gold-framed vintage painting add sparkle.

11 of 19

12 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Creative nook

Creative nook

Amie typically starts with antique pieces and layers in more modern decor that's easier to find. She placed the vintage settee in this nook by the staircase and then designed everything else around it. A Lucite coffee table looks mod and unexpected.

12 of 19

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Color contrast

Color contrast

In the sunroom, a patterned aqua chair next to a perky pink sofa creates playful contrast. Soft pink paint on walls works as a warm neutral.

13 of 19

14 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Cozy retreat

Cozy retreat

A chaise lounge, the one piece Amie inherited from her grandmother, provides a cozy retreat in the third-floor guest bedroom. Originally striped velvet, the chaise lounge now wears a more contemporary small-scale animal print.

14 of 19

15 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Soothing style

Soothing style

Soft floral wallpaper brings soothing style to a tiny powder room. Hanging monogrammed hand towels is an easy way to add a personal touch.

15 of 19

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

16 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Colorful gallery

Colorful gallery

A gallery wall in the girl's bedroom shows off framed birthday invitations and Mardi Gras bead art made by Rob Corley, who brings beads back from visits to New Orleans.

16 of 19

17 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Fashionable fusion

Fashionable fusion

A design board by Amie Corley illustrates her knack for mixing tones, textures and patterns.Many of her clients admire the eclectic look, but Amie doesn't do only flashy color and pattern. "I have clients who want all white, and I love that, too," she says. "Getting the balance right is what makes a room beautiful."

17 of 19

18 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Use stain-free fabrics

Use stain-free fabrics

Amie swears by Perennials indoor-outdoor fabrics for upholstery and pillows in busy family rooms. "It feels like linen, but it's acrylic, so you can take your cushion covers off and throw them in the wash," she says.

18 of 19

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

19 of 19

Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Paint tried and true hues

Paint tried and true hues

When Amie started working in design, she tested gallons of paint colors on walls. Now, she shows clients 12x12-inch paint boards of her top picks. Her go-to white is Swiss Coffee from Benjamin Moore because it has a little gray in it for depth. Amie finds Farrow and Ball paint is worth the $97-per-gallon price. "Their paints are so highly pigmented that the colors are spot on," Amie says.

19 of 19

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Sara Diekelmann; Photographer: Ashley Gieseking

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 19 Marry modern and vintage
    2 of 19 Calm down spunky color
    3 of 19 Find pattern harmony
    4 of 19 Eclectic mix
    5 of 19 Make a wall of difference
    6 of 19 Plan ahead for kids' rooms
    7 of 19 Room to lounge
    8 of 19 Touch of whimsy
    9 of 19 Size up lighting
    10 of 19 Space saver
    11 of 19 Serving style
    12 of 19 Creative nook
    13 of 19 Color contrast
    14 of 19 Cozy retreat
    15 of 19 Soothing style
    16 of 19 Colorful gallery
    17 of 19 Fashionable fusion
    18 of 19 Use stain-free fabrics
    19 of 19 Paint tried and true hues

    Share options

    Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

    Login

    Midwest Living

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • Contact Us
    • Help
    • Free Newsletters this link opens in a new tab
    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Customer Service this link opens in a new tab
    • Renew this link opens in a new tab
    • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
    • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
    • Affiliate Program
    • Free Travel Info this link opens in a new tab
    • Special Promotions this link opens in a new tab
    • Sweepstakes this link opens in a new tab
    • Video
    • Home Advisor this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Follow Us
    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Other Meredith Sites

    Other Meredith Sites

    • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
    • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
    • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
    • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
    • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
    • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
    • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
    • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
    • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
    • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
    • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
    • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
    • Health this link opens in a new tab
    • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
    • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
    • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
    • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
    • More this link opens in a new tab
    • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
    • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
    • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
    • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
    • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
    • Parents this link opens in a new tab
    • People this link opens in a new tab
    • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
    • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
    • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
    • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
    • Shape this link opens in a new tab
    • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
    • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
    • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
    • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
    MeredithMidwest Living is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.midwestliving.com

    View image

    House Tour: Balancing Act
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.