My gym recently started a rotating art exhibit on its concrete block walls. While I like having something to divert my attention from the flat-screen TVs, it didn’t seem to me like the optimal gallery experience. I like some of the paintings, but we find it hard to imagine buying relatively expensive art — in the $300-$1000 range — off a gym wall. For some reason we are more inclined to buy cheap art from flea markets, Etsy, or street vendors and to buy “investment” pieces from proper galleries, art school exhibits or the artists themselves. Something about seeing the art used as decor in another setting makes it harder for us to bring it into our own space...

People have been finding ways to make the most of their space long before they could click around the internet for ideas. With vibrant colors in mind, we decided to look through internet archives of vintage print publications for some examples of rooms doing double-duty more than 20 years ago.

Katie and Ian Walker's Buckhead home was profiled in this month's Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles magazine, and we thought the place was the epitome of eclectic glamor. Katie told reporter Clinton Smith that the architecture was inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright, Italian villas, and "a more streamlined international style," while the landscaping has elements of South Beach and Long Island. The interiors are carefully curated, yet welcoming. See some examples of what we mean after the jump...

Modern wicker furniture has been around for a while, but we still think that it's a great way to introduce clean lines into an otherwise traditional space or to introduce texture into a room that might be a little too sleek. Check out our round-up of wicker chairs — good-looking enough to crowd around a table now, but ready to be pulled out on the porch when the snow clears.

For some reason, the recession has left one Atlanta market strangely untouched — there is a paint-your-own pottery shop in every quaint strip of shops in the Atlanta area. In honor of DIY month, we decided to test-run the trend and attempt to knock off one of our favorite ceramic designers, Bailey Doesn’t Bark. Pick up some tips for trying a similar experiment yourself after the jump…

Bee culture is not new to the South — it was around long before the Secret Life of Bees and Ulee's Gold. Lately, the hobby has been taken up by some who believe that harvesting their own honey helps build immunity to local allergens and there is even a beekeeping society in Atlanta that occasionally hold workshops at the Botanical Gardens. Luckily, those of us who fear getting stung or don't have the time to tend a hive can delight in honeycomb-inspired decor. Check out our roundup of bee-inspired design and inspiration after the jump…

Because we’re blogging from Atlanta on ATDC, we’re feeling the need to explain why we belong here. The most obvious reason is that DC is the closest AT comes to covering a distinctly “Southern” region. That got us thinking about whether a distinct regional style below the Mason-Dixon line and east of the Mississippi River even exists. Much of Southern Style could just as easily be called “traditional” — or “kitschy.” Although we gave up kitsch after college — and we’ve always been a tax bracket or two removed from Garden Club glamour — we still think there is such a thing as Southern Style. So we got started on a partial list of objects that are sometimes associated with it. What do you think? Are these Southern? Are they stylish? What would you add?