Both originally from snowy Chicago, Kristen and her husband James moved to Charleston two years ago from Houston, Texas, for work. Kristen and James have recently been gearing up for two new additions to their family — twins! After transforming their office into a nursery and clearing out the rest of the clutter, they are ready to welcome their little ones into the world any day now, into their warm mix of historic and modern.

You can even see more of their cute maternity session on their porch at home here.

Our Style: Our style is very modern. I tend to gravitate towards Scandinavian designs and love all things clean, white, and Lucite — a blank canvas to serve as life’s backdrop. My husband’s style is much more traditional — he loves antique pieces and family heirlooms. Our home is mostly a result of everything we could agree on! I think we surprised ourselves by incorporating more bright colors than either of us expected.

Inspiration: In the art world, I am a huge fan of the surrealists and abstract impressionism. I love art and design that is surprising and fun and thought provoking. Given that this is a house where we plan to raise our children, we tried to hone in on “fun” while also keeping the style flexible enough to accommodate changes as our tastes evolve.

Favorite Element: Beautiful art created by friends here in Charleston!

Biggest Challenge: Finding a style that not only suits both of us, but also works with this house, which is over 150 years old.

What Friends Say: We love to cook and entertain — I think our friends would say this house feels communal. We want everyone to feel at home here.

Biggest Embarrassment: Our guest room. It’s a hodgepodge of furniture from prior houses and rentals and I’d like to overhaul it.

Proudest DIY: Installing pull-out shelves in our pantry so I can keep my baking supplies and sugary cereals organized and easily accessible.

Biggest Indulgence: The leather sofa in our living room. We knew we wanted that sofa before we even found the house and we were determined to make it work!

Best Advice: Don’t try to buy everything at one time — I’ve made this mistake too many times and then end up returning things or being stuck with a piece I don’t love!

Dream Sources: School House Electric, Anthropologie, Angie Hranowsky

PAINT & COLORS
Wall Color: Benjamin Moore Swiss coffee
Trim Color: Benjamin Moore Lancaster white

LIVING ROOM
Pillows — Boho Pillow
Leather Sofa — Anthropologie
Loveseat and chairs— Celadon
Rug — GDC home
Coffee Table — Crate and Barrel
Painting — Lulie Wallace

DINING ROOM
Table — Custom commission from a local Charleston artist
End Chairs — consignment store find
Side chairs and side table — Antiques from my husband’s family
Painting — Raven Roxanne
Mixed media artwork — Rachel Justiss
Stools — Ro Sham Beaux

KITCHEN
Kilim Rug — an eBay find

BEDROOM
Rug — lulu and Georgia
Bedding — Lulu DK for Matouk
Chair — GDC home
Bed — Pottery Barn

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