Name: interior designer Heather Garrett
Location: downtown Durham, North Carolina
Size: 1250 square feet
Type: a converted Liggett & Meyers tobacco warehouse, listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Lived in: owned for 2 years
We profiled Heather's store, Heather Garrett Designs, and now you get to see her downtown Durham, North Carolina home. With two kids, ages 6 and 8, Heather keeps her home comfortable but stylish. The loft, once a tobacco warehouse, has 22' high ceilings and amazing natural light. To furnish her home, Heather combines Chinese antiques, thrift store finds, and furniture from Oly, Ikea, and Julian Chichester....
Apartment Therapy Survey
Style: I'm always remixing pieces from my store, one-of-a-kind collectibles, thrift store finds, and the most unusual lighting I can afford.
Inspiration: My third floor windows provide an amazing leafy backdrop with amazing natural light. It makes me want to fill the space with other materials and ideas I'd find outside. The shell chandeliers were a big part of that.
Favorite Element: The way the place looks at night. Dimming the lights, turning on some music and pouring a glass of wine after the kids are in bed... oh, rapture!
What Friends Say: People love the 22' high ceilings, and many friends have ended up with kitchen envy.
Biggest Embarrassment: Just after moving in, I had a dinner party during summer just before sunset. My apartment faces west, and the light through those 12' third floor windows was blinding and nearly baked us alive. I hadn't yet installed my current roller shades. By the time the sun had set, we were sweating profusely and seeing double. These weren't close friends, so I just pretended everything was fine, but I'd wanted it to be perfect and it was a disaster!
Biggest Challenge: Making a loft apartment work for my 6 and 8 year-old kids. The focus always has to stay on comfort and ease, with the knowledge that nothing upholstered is likely to last very long!
Proudest DIY: Solving my storage problem. I packed one of my tiny bedroom walls with Ikea modular closet pieces, left the doors off, and concealed it all with gauzy white linen panels (also from Ikea) on a ceiling height rod with rings. It's dreamy!
Biggest Indulgence: Expensive, big, yummy down pillows. They make the shabbiest sofa or saddest headboard like a million bucks. With zippered overs, I know I can at least remove the worst stains, bu the beauty of vintage or crushed velvet is that there is a huge "camouflage" factor built in.
Best Advice: Edit ruthlessly, and cut down on the contrast. I was given that advice years ago, after having failed on an early project with too many details, too many colors, and too many themes. It's been treasured advice for me, and I use it as a guide when I'm stuck.
Dream Source/Item: I'd be happy with a closet full of Anthropologie clothes and a house full of Oly furniture.
Resources:
Paint Color: Benjamin Moore Pure White throughout and Venetial Marble in my bedroom. Custom polished plaster in the bathroom.
Furniture and accessories: Chinese antiques, thrift store finds, Oly, Ikea, Julian Chichester
Appliances: Hand Grohe and Frigidaire in the kitchen, bath fixtures from Hans Grohe and Durolfe
Window Treatments: Hunter Douglas solar shades
Art: paintings by Brad Huntzinger, sketches by Heather
Thanks, Heather!
(Images: Briana Brough Photography)
100 DIY Ideas for the 3-Day Weekend
Danielle's Charming, Classic Walk-Up
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
White Enamel Flatwa...
How To Cook Fluffy, Tasty Quinoa
Perfect Summer Cocktail Recipe: Honey Bourbon Lemonade
Ok . . . when can I move in?
The use of light in this home is UNBELIEVABLY beautiful.
Fantastic!!!!!!!
Is there any chance the pitcher next to the french press is something I could find, and not a unique thrift store item? I love it!
I have kitchen AND furniture AND lighting envy. I just wish there were more pics.
Very lovely! Love all the light and space!
That kitchen ... I'm speechless. So gorgeous!
I have to admit that, as a Durhamite, I have been a bit embarrassed by some of the other warehouse lofts from the Bull City that have been featured on AT. However, this one redeems them all. Spectacular!
Beautiful! Is that a pink coffee table? Where can I find it?
Great lighting.......where did you get the capiz chandeliers?
where on earth can i find that rug or something similar?! i love it! if anyone knows where to buy a persian-inspired rug with such modern and bright colors, please share.
The kitchen is my favorite. This is all so beautiful.
I love the kitchen, you gave me a fresh idea for shelving (something I'd been struggling with for ages), THANKS!
Love the bedding, are you able to tell us who it is by?
I luv this place.
Such a lovely space!
Beautiful loft! Tell us where you got that white shelf as well. :)
Lovely space but curiously I see no evidence of the children.
agree with others, great place. Shows what nice lighting can do to a place too. You even managed to make a straight on shot of the toilet look good!
I love the mirrored armoire in the living space. Where did you find that piece?
the pink coffee table is amazing! where can we find it?
Love it.
Oh boy, more pics please. I want to see every nook and cranny. Amazing.
Now that I'm thinking of it, after a second tour and reading over the intro again, pictures of the kids rooms? We want more!
not 100% my style but i love how it is designed-absolutely seamless. the appearance of two coffee tables is unexpected and the tv blends right in. i don't think i have EVER seen wallpaper successfully done in a kitchen before. i love the contrast of the matte wallpaper against the shiny subway tile. i'd love to see your children's rooms!
FABO!!! This place is beautiful...the light, truly incredible! More pics, PLEASE!!!
This place is perfect. It is both chic and homey. I could happily curl up with with a book and a glass of wine. This is my own personal rating system.
I am particularly in love with the chandeliers in the main living space. They are elegant and very fun. Well done.
Beautifully done and the photography is superb.
Beautiful space. Could you share where you got the 'O' sculptures from? Thank you :)
speechless it's so "good".
So warm and homey...very nice.
Simply fantastic -- the lighting, the furniture and accessories -- it's all perfect. Thank you so much for letting us get a look into your home. :)
Laura
http://www.grafxnerd.net
Wow. Wow. Wow. Congratulations on a stunning home.
My 20 minute break simply wasn't enough time to take in all of the splendor that is this loft. I love it!
Where did that rug come from?
Beautiful! I've got to know where that white modular bookcase came from. It's exactly what I've been looking for to replace my IKEA one!
gorgeous job, heather! love the use of space and all the lighting. i too am a big oly fan, been considering saving up for the phillippe dining table.
oh, and....lets see the kids rooms!! :)
Your place looks like a super-chic hotel – but I mean that in a good way. Wow. So inviting and..well..chic!
Love it!
Anf fun to see a loft that's not "loft-style", one doesn't have to go for minimalistic insdustrial style in a loft.
Lovely! (And loved the "faint scent of tobacco in the air" comment) The entire space has beauty and emotion.
More pics and more resources please! You are an amazingly talented person!!!
So happy you guys are enjoying my apartment! I wasn't sure these photos would be included in a tour, so I didn't send the kids rooms, but those photos are on the way! Some answers to resource questions: coffee table by Julian Chichester, armoire and chandeliers by Oly, bedding by Brocade Home. The rug is an antique, but I sell rugs by Davis & Davis which offers many similar Oushak styles that can be entirely customized using your choice of colors.
I love your living area! Where is the white, modern bookcase from? I want one!
Where is the low white buffet from? (In the hallway.)
Thank you again for sharing your beautiful space!
Hi Heather, what about the O shaped sculptures? Thanks!
Beautiful place! Where did you get the circular mirror over the bed?
Beautiful space, really well done. To add to the list of questions, I love the counter stools in the kitchen. Source on those?
That kitchen....ah...I die! I live in Elizabeth City, attended college in Chapel Hill, and have a dear friend that moved to Durham on June 1st. I think a visit to your store is very likely before summer's end. Plus, my eyes made a beeline to the tiered shell chandeliers in your loft, which I hope you carry in your store. Whether you're at home or at work, you must smile constantly.
Lots to like, even love, in this apartment. However, I have two quibbles: (1) What are the antlers doing in the kitchen, other than being knee-jerk fashionable; and (2) how often is the angel statue on the top of the toilet knocked over by the kids?
Thanks for introducing me to Oly.
Brilliant.
Beautiful! Very well thought out and quite grown up! Heather's loft is clearly an authentic representation of her style, tastes, and life. No irony here.
did anyone get info on that fantastic rug?! love this place :)