Playing With Patterns | Kay Genua Designs
Both antique pieces and new furnishings effortlessly mix and mingle throughout a home like comfortable acquaintances, a signature aesthetic of interior designer Kay Genua. The fifth-generation Fort Worth native and owner of her namesake Kay Genua Designs, located on Camp Bowie Boulevard, has a well-honed talent for combining the treasured old with the custom-made new and a dose of color. All of that abounds in her clients' new master bedroom in their Ridglea area home. This was Kay's second time to design this particular space, which originally served as a guest room when it was built onto the home in 2008. “The husband had room envy and decided to move into it as the master and add on another master bath,” Kay says of the homeowners, who harbor a love for fine antiques. “My clients also adore color and trust my mixture of fabrics and prints.” The designer painted the walls a serene light blue to balance the heavier hues like those in the Brunschwig & Fils draperies and the bespoke upholstered sitting chairs at the foot of the bed. A skirted table occupies one side of the bed — which features a dramatic headboard custom-made by Kerr Collection — while an antique desk sits on the other. The entire space is grounded by a colorful Feizy rug atop darkly stained walnut wood floors. Antiques, like the old bamboo table and chairs, were sourced from various area shops like Country French Interiors, Lovers Lane Antique Market, Legacy Antiques and more. Which merely confirms there are no rules and guidelines Kay follows for creating such compelling designs, just instinct. “All my jobs are different and inspiration comes to me.”
A Balanced Bedroom | KL Milam Interior Design
After she completed their living room transformation (featured in our “Best Living Room” category), Kim's client then asked her to do their master and the remainder of the home. “When I told them I would prepare a budget, the husband said, ‘Don't worry about it; we just want something restful and beautiful,'” says Kim. “That's the relationship we all dream to accomplish.” And dreamy it was, as Kim commissioned a custom bronze iron bed with multilayered finish on the head, foot and sideboards, complete with bespoke bedding as well. At the end of the bed are antique stools from Debris, reupholstered in Lee Jofa cut velvet flame-stitch fabric in a rich emerald hue that the designer dubs “complete luxury.” She echoed the color with celery-green glass lamps on either of the bedside tables — which were purposefully coordinated versus matched — as well as a very visually poignant artwork original titled “Oculus” by Fort Worth artist John Holt Smith. Kim selected it, along with several other artworks for the client's home, from local gallery William Campbell Contemporary Art. A plush upholstered chair and small side table from Baker Furniture designate a comfy sitting space, which also helped realign the layout. “This room was a bit of a challenge in that there are no 90-degree angles,” says Kim. “So with furniture placement, I was able to bring symmetry and balance back in.”
