Blending Old With New – Interior Design Among Charlotte’s Historic Roots

Charlotte is one of the most historic cities anywhere in the USA, and this has once again been reflected in official designations. As Spectrum News 1 highlighted in mid-August, yet another neighborhood – McCrorey Heights – has applied for, and received, historic designation by the City Council. While this is great news for the heritage of the city, there is a conflicting demand that puts these designations at risk. With huge interest in house purchasing, and free money being deployed to undertake redesigns and refits, Charlotte’s homes are chasing extensive renovation. How can the old blend with the new to create a modern, yet tasteful, Charlotte?

An effective way to ensure that renovations are conducted in a sensitive manner is to draw on local expertise. The Washingtonian magazine highlighted a community, online, that brings in interior designers in an effort to collaborate efforts and ensure historical sensitivity. This includes one group in Charlotte, a clear indicator of the proactive efforts being made in the city by its experts. Charlotte is well known for its austere exterior architecture, typical of the Federal and Georgian ages, but what’s also tasteful is pairing together exuberant interiors, personified by the use of wood paneling and indoor plants and trees. Accuracy is everything, however, and coming together in this fashion helps designers to ensure that they are using, for instance, the right types of wood and correct plant species.

Bringing in wider expertise is key, but so is keeping it local. In a recent overview of local interior designers, the Charlotte Observer highlighted some of the best talent in the local area – and all of them are noted in the way they deploy heritage design. Their interiors are tasteful, appropriate to the area, and clearly inclusive of the design and vintage history of the city and its surroundings. That’s what is needed, especially for those day-to-day homeowners who want good service and a quick turnaround on renovations; a route to quickly find classy design without having to resort to the most in-depth, research-led areas.

It’s not enough to simply design in a way that might be considered vintage. The risks of this have been clearly shown in the controversial planning proposed for musician Darius Rucker’s property in South of Broad. As outlined by Fox 46 Queen City News, period features and sensitive detailing has been used to obfuscate what may be an unnecessarily large feature, according to critics. This shows that an important line is there to be drawn when it comes to new developments. Sensitive changes are an absolute must.

Making Charlotte the center of the home is a great way to respect and retain the heritage of the city. Historic designations make finding that path easier – but sometimes, accomplishing changes without damaging older features can be difficult. Fortunately, there is a wealth of high-quality talent to help manage that process for homeowners across the city.