Rooms with distinct personality

Full interior overhaul, fresh paint, wallpaper add lots of character to Johns Creek home.

Josh and Rachel Nelson’s spacious five-bedroom Country Club of the South home feels tailor-made for the couple now, but the chain of events that helped them land the house was very much just a miscommunication.

It started with a series of text messages. The Nelsons had moved from Texas to Milton in 2019 after Josh — who works in management at Zoom — was relocated for work. The plan was initially to rent for two years before deciding to put down roots, but that all changed when Josh texted Rachel a Zillow link to the house they now call home.

For him, the location within the expansive Johns Creek gated community was kismet — a reason to jump on the listing immediately. “I like to play golf a lot,” Josh says, so the house right off the fourth hole felt extra convenient. And with his 7-year-old son, Redmond in mind, a property right across from a swimming pool and a playground felt more than ideal.

At the time, the couple were only casually browsing houses, so Rachel didn’t think much of it.

“I thought he was just joking,” she says, “so I wrote back, ‘Sold!’” She clarifies: “I was being sarcastic.”

Taking that as enthusiasm, Josh checked out the house in December 2019, put down an offer, and it was quickly accepted. As this was happening, Rachel was at a spa in Dallas, away from her phone for five blissful hours. When she finally reemerged, she learned that she was getting a new house.

The couple still charged ahead with the home — closing in February 2020 — but Rachel had reservations about the dated ’80s design, complete with wood paneled walls and wainscoting. The couple eventually decided to gut the interiors, maintaining the layout of the rooms but stripping everything down to redo elements like cupboards, counters, floors, lighting and the electrical.

Another challenge of remodeling this sprawling 7,588 square foot house was the sheer amount of space for redecorating. Figuring out how to fill the large and airy rooms with pieces that felt more true to the couple’s minimalist style called for reinforcements from Atlanta firm WAKE + LOOM Design.

To modernize the home while staying true to its layout, the firm says it incorporated classic silhouettes and neutral textures to “build a layered classic shell” and then had “lots of fun with lighting, wallpaper and paint to give the home a bold personality.”

Each of the rooms now has its own distinct character and mood, thanks to a curated selection of wallpaper, paint and modern decor — like the vibrant jungle theme in the home gym. Or the dining room and office that are blanketed in deep greens and blues to heighten the sense of drama and coziness.

All are balanced out with the couple’s pared-back approach to design. They got rid of any extraneous shelving and storage they didn’t need and focused on keeping the spaces clean and clutter-free, letting their decor choices speak for themselves.

“I didn’t want everything to be identical, with the same colors and the same fixtures,” Josh says. “I like how every room fits together like chapters in a book.”

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ABOVE: Josh and Rachel Nelson call this their “jungle gym” because of the splashy wallpaper from Milton + King that interior designer Gabriela Eisenhart chose to fit a retro ’80s vibe. Sorinex, a company that offers customized workout equipment, supplied the weights and benches that Josh selected in vibrant greens and blues to complement the walls. RIGHT: The ceilings and walls of the dining room are cloaked in a Green Smoke shade of Farrow + Ball for a jewel box effect, with dark green drapes, which make the room feel more intimate during large gatherings. A layered rattan and glass chandelier from Troy Lighting illuminates the Restoration Hardware dining table below and surrounding CB2 chairs.

ABOVE: This kitchen area used to be weighed down by dated woods and finishes but was completely overhauled from the floors up to incorporate fresh cabinets, contrasting countertops, appliances and hardware. Kitchen islands were also reoriented so anyone prepping food could look out to the backyard and the golf course. LEFT: Rounded details, from the arched Crate + Barrel bed frame to the Dims Home vanity and the Michelle Varian mirror over the bed, lend the main bedroom a sense of symmetry. The Kalon Studios bench in front of the bed, made of a solid Greenwood ash, is one that Josh Nelson jokes must be about 800 pounds.

TEXT BY LORI KEONG/PHOTOS BY AMANDA WINCHESTER This stretch of the house, encompassing the kitchen, sunroom and breakfast nook, is the couple’s favorite spot in the house because it gets so much light and offers a “beautiful view of the trees and golf course.” Josh Nelson had automated blinds installed on all of the windows so that they wouldn’t have to hassle with opening and closing those every morning and evening.