Candler Park family gets comfy in ‘Not So Big House’

If you are among those whose grandmothers sealed the living room sofa in plastic, you probably got the message and never lounged there, nor did you want to. And if the idea of such a room seems strange and a little sad, you might be aligned with Katie and Skipper Hartley, who aim to fully use their space.

They subscribe to the “Not So Big House” philosophy, outlined by North Carolina-based architect Sarah Susanka.

Enlarge this image

Sean Drakes/Special

Skipper and Katie Hartley advise anyone building a home to read ‘The Not So Big House’ and to pay attention to details of design choice, such as light fixtures, that can make a house unique.

Enlarge this image

Sean Drakes/Special

The Hartleys wanted their home to be very family friendly so they decorated with durable furniture. ‘If food gets on this couch, who cares?’ Katie Hartley said of the family room sofa that can camouflage spills.

RELATED LINKS
• Photos: See more of the Hartley home
• Private Quarters Classic archive
• See our luxury homes channel!
• Home & Garden
• ajchomefinder.com
• NEW! 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.

“Maybe it was the 1980s that created what I call the ‘starter castle’ complex — the notion that houses should be designed to impress rather than nurture,” she writes in a book on the concept. “A Not So Big House exchanges space for soul so that the quality of the space is more important than the sheer square footage.”

Inject that sensibility into a custom-built Craftsman-style house in Candler Park, and the Hartleys call it home.

Awash in reds, golds and greens, softly lit and filled with sturdy Mission-style furniture, the four-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath house conjures the comfort of a lodge — a look that appealed to the couple long before they deliberated over home style.

The Hartleys, who met in high school and started dating in college (he went to Emory, she was at Clemson), married at Asheville’s Grove Park Inn, “the most famous Arts & Crafts resort in the world,” according to the Arts & Crafts Conference, which meets there annually.

Attached to their intown neighborhood but requiring more room for their two sons, the couple moved here 2½ years ago from a bungalow three blocks away.

Built by The Renovation Company with interior design by Jane Pignolet, the home is meant to make each room feel inviting.

It’s not hard to imagine Katie’s book club (renamed “parlour chat” since they meet for wine and “girl talk”) gathered happily in this oak-laden living room around a fireplace framed by sage-colored tiles.

In the children’s room, where their boys bunk together, a window seat was built in to create usable space while “adding character in the house,” said Skipper, who does computational finance.

The home is “very family friendly,” said Katie, a stay-at-home mom. “If food gets on this couch, “who cares?” she said of the rust-colored sofa that can camouflage spills. That’s also why they decorated with leather chairs and a distressed wood dining table. “You don’t walk around on eggshells in this house.”

The practicality of Mission style also works to blend Skipper’s modern tastes with Katie’s penchant for antiques. For example, overhead wooden beams in the kitchen complement the stainless steel and honed black granite countertops, while the Mission-style furnishings in the living room flow with an antique secretary.

At the same time, the old-fashioned craftsmanship fosters a feeling of warmth in keeping with Susanka’s ideal.

Coziest room: The music room, just off the foyer, is a nook enclosed by French doors. “It’s all about conversation” in this room, which has armchairs and a shared ottoman. The couple meets here for wine and pizza night, Katie said. “It’s the cozy room, and it’s just the two of us.”

The room takes its name from the couple’s former music career. There’s a piano, guitar and banjo, and a placard with the artwork from an album cover for one of their bands, Toenut. The couple toured America and Europe while in their 20s, with Katie on lead vocals and Skipper on guitar.

Coolest feature: The large screened porch is ideal for dinner parties brimming with adults and kids. Sunbrella drapes make the area more formal, friendly and, especially, rainproof. Also on display here and elsewhere are various colored bottles that Katie’s grandfather dug up in South Carolina.

Tips for good living: Skipper advises reading “The Not So Big House.”

Katie said that when you’re deep into designing the details of your home, and you’re considering the umpteenth choice, “you just want to give up.” Don’t, she said. Lots of those final decisions on, for example, light fixtures, are what “really make a place beautiful.”

“The details are very important, and I think that’s what makes a house unique,” she said.