A Sophisticated Cabana | KL Milam Interior Design
What turned out to be a picture-perfect pool cabana in Godley started out quite simple, with just a 22-by-22-foot slab of concrete and three sets of French doors, to be exact. That's all the client had when he called on Kim Milam to create a standout space from, literally, the ground up. “The requirements were a full kitchen, a comfortable TV viewing area and a dining area to seat six,” says Kim, owner of her local namesake design company, who spent a year working on the project. “When pouring the slab, they used a beautiful stamped concrete, so we were able to leave it natural for our flooring material.” From there, she painted the walls in Wenge, a darker hue from Benjamin Moore's Affinity Colors collection. Next, she assembled a thoughtful collection of furniture, like vintage Baker chairs from eBay, which she painted matte white, and an incredible natural tree table base the client purchased from a local woodworker. “I had it painted silver and added an umber glaze myself. It's one of my favorite pieces ever,” says Kim. Sofas and chairs were custom upholstered in indoor/outdoor fabrics so that they were “impervious to wet bathing suits and a little barbecue sauce.” Other design-savvy details include a ceiling-high Daltile stone fireplace, concrete countertops and easy-access open shelving in the kitchen, and a chic Oly Studio wood light fixture. “I was able to take the ceiling to a height of more than 16 feet, and that enabled me to use that fabulous chandelier,” says Kim. “The client said [the cabana] turned out the exact opposite of what he expected in the beginning, and he loved it.”
A Calming Home Office | KL Milam Interior Design
The only home office that interiors expert Kim Milam has designed to date turned out to be quite the stunner (you can see various other projects of hers throughout this feature). Owner of KL Milam Interior Design and her furniture store, House Essential, Kim is no stranger to top-tier storage and organization, which drove the design inspo for this project. “Space planning is key to any design, and before space planning, you have to find out how your client lives or intends to use the space,” she says. In this instance, the client suffers from back issues, so Kim thoughtfully designed an oversized burled walnut veneer desk that can be raised or lowered to a seated or standing height with just the push of a button. Then she sweetened the arrangement with a modern Aeron chair by Herman Miller. And aesthetic-savvy functionality materialized via the antelope-patterned carpet, which not only catches the eye, but also hides all electrical cords to the desk beneath it. “It's always been one of my favorite carpets, and this is the only time I've used it in this color, but it won't be the last,” says Kim, who also custom designed the beautiful built-in. Dennett Construction fabricated the piece, which features a flat rock installation in its center for texture and visual interest. A set of simple, contemporary lamps from House Essential and a circular wood mirror from Wrare complement the carefully styled shelves, as does the pretty Chelsea Gray paint by Benjamin Moore and the oversized hardware on the drawers — which disguise hanging lateral files and storage. “Fully functional can be beautiful, too.”
