Designer Bill Musso has transformed homes around Atlanta, but his Mediterranean villa transforms visitors with its rich colors and architectural details.

He and his partner, Bryan Cooke, bought the 1925 home four years ago, knowing it needed some TLC.

Alison Church/Special (ENLARGE)

The home, reminiscent of a Roman villa, is centered on a two-story atrium. One of its main features is a specially ordered chandelier that was crafted from a photograph taken in Verona, Italy.

Alison Church/Special (ENLARGE)

Bryan Cooke (left) and his partner, designer Bill Musso, sit with their dog Aaron in the den of their Druid Hills home. The room originally was the dining room.

Fascinated by its history, they researched the builder, James Lawrence Turner. "It's fun to look back," at the builder's vision in the '20s, Cooke said. "He talks about some of the same things we're talking about today ... such as sustainability."

A 1925 article from The Atlanta Constitution said, "Mr. Turner, who believes that dwellings should be built not only 'upon a rock,' but just as strong and as enduring as the rock itself, has evolved a type of house that is unique and attractive."

The article refers to the home as one of "the famous Turner dwellings on University drive."

The story said Turner, his engineer and architect made a special trip to the Mediterranean to study dwellings. Turner called Musso and Cooke's house "the Villa Mira Flores," and it once was his private home.

"It was my purpose to give the man of moderate means a dwelling place that would stand throughout the years," the story quoted Turner as saying.

It reported that thousands of people flocked to see the Turner-built homes, which were open to the public.

The neighborhood is a highlight, said Musso, whose firm specializes in residential design.

"It's quiet, it's private, and it's only a mile from work," said Cooke, executive director of the Clifton Community Partnership for Emory University.

After purchasing the home in 2004, the couple embarked on a yearlong renovation. They replaced 54 windows and 10 sets of French doors and updated the plumbing and wiring. They tore out the rose-colored carpet and shined the parquet floors, which are now found throughout the home.

The backyard needed work, too. The previous owner had left a neglected swimming pool, 20 feet wide by 40 feet long.

"The guy who built it wanted the biggest pool in DeKalb," Cooke said.

The pool was rife with repair problems and not to their style, so the men demolished it. But they still wanted a pool, so they installed a smaller one.

"With this house being Mediterranean, it needed a water focus," Cooke said.

He and Russo used architect Richard Stevens for the renovation. Stevens was also helpful in making sure the changes met historic preservation standards.

"A lot of people had different ideas about preserving it," Cooke said. "We used what they used in 1925. It's something we know will last another 80 years."

The landscaping is low maintenance and perfect for entertaining, said Cooke, who loves gardening.

"Bill does the inside, and I do the outside," he said.

The lines of the house are reminiscent of a Roman villa. When Musso opens the front door, he can look straight through the back door into the garden.

The home is centered on a two-story atrium. Four upstairs bedrooms were converted into three bedrooms and a master bathroom.

The den, which used to be the dining room, flows into the butler's pantry. To give it an old feel, Musso used distressed paneling and silk grasscloth wallpaper.

Musso, who grew up in upstate New York, describes his style as "very clean lines, New York-y, natural colors."

But their home presented a challenge.

"The house is so big, it stretched my own personal style," Musso said.

He used more color than he had in his previous houses. The home also had once had canvas murals mounted to the walls and framed in stucco. By the time Musso and Cooke took possession, only empty frames remained.

"We're only the fourth owners. Every light fixture was stuccoed and painted white," Musso said.

The atrium-living room floors, however, are the original white-and-blue porcelain tile.

"We have two cracked tiles. That's pretty good for a floor that's 85 years old," Musso said.

His most challenging design element was a special-order chandelier. He had a California company craft it from a picture taken in Verona, Italy. After it was discovered the house had fire damage, the architect added engineered beams to support the massive fixture.

The downstairs also was reconfigured to transform a full bath into a powder room and office, which Cooke now uses. Musso designed the powder room around a blue sink basin. He used Turkish limestone on the floor and a Venetian plaster treatment on the walls.

The couple had a trip planned to Italy before buying the home. Since their vacation happened during the renovation, their photos are odd by tourist standards — filled with pictures of doorknobs and paint colors.

In the dining room, the pumpkin color was given depth by using a striation technique. The colorful silk draperies, which inspire attention, are by Nina Campbell. The room also includes an unusual element: an 1840s daybed perfect for Thanksgiving diners who need a rest.

"I wanted to do something fun in here," Musso said.

Upstairs, the main guest room is cream and gold. It is nicknamed "the Queen Room" because the couple's mothers stay there when they visit.

For the second guest room, Musso found antique twin beds at Scott Antique Market. In the master bedroom, he upholstered the walls with silk in gold and chocolate tones, giving the room a cocoon effect.

The master bath features a mosaic medallion with mother of pearl and gold and silver leaf. Marble and travertine blanket the rest of the room.

HOUSE HIGHLIGHTS

• The home has 3,700 square feet of space. The pool house, which Bill Musso uses as offices for his design firm, is 1,000 square feet.

• Musso and his business partner, Jenni Ling, have a business called Knob Appeal. They design and manufacture specialty door and cabinet knobs. The knobs are on display in several areas of the home.

• The home, built in 1925 by James Lawrence Turner, was an attraction in Druid Hills when he opened it and several others to the public.

RELATED LINKS

• Photos: See more of the Musso home

• Previous Private Quarters

• Home & Garden

• ajchomefinder.com

• 2007 Home Sales Report

Step back in time

• Search our historic archives for stories on historic homes and more about the Atlanta environs from 1868 through 1939.