Couple keeps casual elegance while downsizing

After years of maintaining a large family home as well as a beach home, Whitlow and Linda Wyatts’ downsizing was a gentle affair, considering their new townhome has four levels, three bedrooms and four-and-a-half baths.

One of the stipulations of the transition last September was the desire to keep a small yard.

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Photos by SEAN DRAKES/Special

Whitlow and Linda Wyatt chose a townhome over a condo because ‘we are outdoors people, and we didn’t want to take the elevator to get everywhere,’ she said.

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The ironwork on the stair railing includes plants, birds and other animals native to lakes and mountains.

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The dining room table is from the Wyatts’ previous home, with new reupholstered chairs to freshen the look.

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“I call this our New York apartment,” Whitlow Wyatt said. “It’s so easy to come in here and shut things down. I like the fact that we have our own building.”

The Wyatts’ townhome is one of nine in the development, some of which are for sale. Five of those, like the Wyatts’ home, are detached.

Hundred-year-old beams were used in the living room, kitchen and formal dining room ceilings. The home was designed by architect Jack Davis, with Susan Bozeman designing the interiors.

Whitlow Wyatt, now retired, owned a military supply company.

The owner’s entrepreneurial spirit is displayed in the living room, where he designed a disappearing painting to hide the flat-screen television. The painting slides into a pocket, much like a pocket door, to reveal the television.

He built a similar contraption for their Kiawah, S.C., beach home and commissioned a beach scene painting.

“I wanted to personalize it and make sure it means something,” Wyatt said.

Their grandchildren live just around the corner, and the Wyatts love being near all the conveniences. While they live a stone’s throw from one of Atlanta’s busiest roads, Peachtree Street, their home is quiet.

The original design had three bedrooms on the second floor, but the Wyatts converted one room into a laundry/project room.

“Our living is confined to two floors for day-to-day living,” Linda Wyatt said.

Heart of the home: The casually elegant great room and kitchen are where the Wyatts spend the majority of their time. “I’m a big kitchen person. They gave me lots of storage, and I love to be in there cooking,” she said.

Most cherished item: Sculptor Ivan Bailey made the stair railing, which features plants, birds and other animals native to lakes and mountains.

The Wyatts value the ironwork “because he personalized them to us,” Linda Wyatt said. At their beach home, a railing details ocean life. In Buckhead, the artist incorporated lakes and sky with all the animals in between. “It’s a story in itself,” she said.

Why a townhome instead of a condo? “We are outdoors people, and we didn’t want to take the elevator to get everywhere,” she said.

Tips for good living: The Wyatts spend a lot of time enjoying Christian fellowship with their friends and family. “No matter where we live it is a home of invitation,” she said. “Bible studies are taught here, and there is sense of welcome and warmth.”

Decorating style: “Not too formal, casually elegant,” Whitlow Wyatt said. “At the beach it’s the same feel. You’re not afraid of it.”

“A lively, vibrant twist to a traditional style,” is how their designer describes the home.

Linda Wyatt said fine fabrics are the key to her style. The dining room table is from their previous home, with new reupholstered chairs to freshen the look. “When I chose that dining room fabric, I chose the best,” she said.

The cheery master suite is decorated in tangerine and white. “I do punchy bedrooms,” Linda Wyatt said. The headboard is a reflection of the pattern of the intricate stair railing. “It was an el cheapo headboard. I love mixing eclectic and traditional stuff,” she said.

Coolest feature: “I’m a kitchen person. When you think of downsizing, you think of moving into a small kitchen. But this one is even bigger and better than the one I had. And I’ve always had a counter where we can hang out,” she said, referring to the room’s large walnut island.