Moving to Waco to get away from the city and retire near family, Annette and Robert McCarty hired Palmer Davis Design to help them remodel their new home to accommodate spending time with their large family and enjoying their peaceful new lifestyle. One room in their home, however, they found themselves at a loss with how to utilize the space, until their designer, JeraLyn Wilcox, suggested a full transformation to create a uniquely beautiful and functional space the McCartys had never imagined.
“We were downsizing when we moved to the Waco area, but we had some really specific needs in that we both have big libraries of books,” Annette said. “My husband’s books all fit in one space in this new home, but my books, not so much.”
In their new home, Annette and Robert had a small dining room where they had managed to fit two bookshelves, a table and chairs and a piano, but had found it to be too much going on in one space. Wilcox suggested closing off the opening that connected the dining room to the kitchen and drawing in the other opening to the size of French doors, providing more space in the kitchen and wall space within the room to install floor to ceiling bookshelves.
“There’s plenty enough room for cozy chairs for our reading space while we’re in there and we also chose to vary the depth of the bookcase shelves on one wall to accommodate larger books,” Annette said. “We have an album collection that really needed a home and of course my library has been divided in so many different spaces in our house and this is the first time it’s all going to be in one space.”
Wilcox chose to include layers of lighting options with candle lights, overhead dimming lights, natural light from the east wall window and, the star of the show, a crystal chandelier in the center of the room, chosen by Robert.
“I think it just takes it over the top,” Annette said. “I trusted his judgment and it turned out spectacularly because it gives a real sense of light and airiness in that room.”
For the color palette of their home, the McCarty’s chose a green family to bring in colors from their favorite aspect of the home: the backyard. This led to the inspiration behind the soft gray-green bookshelves that take up much of the wall space in the library. Annette explained that she was delighted when Wilcox proposed the vision for a green library, having not even considered the possibility herself. The uniqueness of the library room truly came together, however, when Wilcox found a floral wallpaper that, because of the lack of wall space left from the bookshelves, she expertly chose to display on the library ceiling.
“We found that wallpaper and it was just so beautiful and it had that old world kind of classic vibe and we didn’t want to waste it on the little bits of wall space that were going to be left,” Wilcox said. “We just decided to propose it and see how the clients felt about it, and it was a hit.”
Annette said she did not even realize that placing wallpaper on the ceiling was a design option, but she loved how it complemented the green palette throughout their home. From the muted green shelves to the dazzling chandelier lighting up the deeper blues and light lavenders of the floral papered ceiling, the transformed library is the perfect cozy getaway for grandma and grandpa’s reading time.
“One of the main things that I mentioned to our designer was that we have a big extended family,” Annette said. “My vision all along for the house was to have it be functional for a large family — with the library, not so much. I think it’s going to be just a reading room. The kids play out in the open living area and outside, but this is just a little space for grandma and grandpa.”
Wilcox’s transformation of the room, which began with the simple idea to create a space to fit all of the McCarty’s books, became a unique project that expertly displays both a vintage elegance and cozy book-nook feel, customized to the t for the family’s wants and needs.
“You know, I’m not a big trend follower,” Wilcox said. “What’s in fashion as opposed to what’s usable for the client? It’s the client who has to live and function in a space, so making sure that it’s something that they’re going to be happy with long-term is my biggest priority. I think that’s the most rewarding part, everything working together and the homeowner loving it.”
Wilcox said there is something satisfying about creating a consolidated, cohesive space for people to relax, almost like a hug, sitting where you feel most at peace.
This restful library, hidden away from the outside distractions, is designed with a lovely atmosphere where the McCarty’s can relax with a morning cup of coffee, a good book or a sweet, private conversation.
“I never even considered anything other than wood shelves and cream color walls like every other house we’ve ever lived in, but the beauty of it is that it just completely flows with all this other living space and it’s very tranquil,” Annette said. “We moved from the metroplex, and we were tired of the big busy city. We wanted quiet and peace and what we’re now seeing is exactly what I was looking for.”
