The home tours on Design*Sponge over the last 11 years have taught me that there’s no one way to use color. Dreamy, neutral homes are published alongside rich, colorful spaces. It might be true that no color is bad, but there are good ways and bad ways to use each hue. Stacey Blake has used bold pops of color to design her entire home in the best way.
Stacey, design blogger and stylist correspondent for the Fayetteville Observer, and her husband Andre, Army Special Forces specialist, grew up and met in Jamaica. Andre moved to the States to join the Armed Forces and Stacey followed him when they became engaged. After getting married, they lived a nomadic lifestyle through the military so they were excited to build their large, two-story home in Fayetteville, NC in 2011. Stacey was pregnant when they first moved in and was able take her time and really get a sense of the home and what it needed before moving forward. And she found that a stunning dose of color was exactly what it required.
The Blake Family’s home has turned Stacey into a designer, blogger and stylist. Each room has challenged and inspired Stacey to push the boundaries of color and style. “I love color. I grew up with lots of color living in Jamaica and that has translated into our home. We wanted a home that is sophisticated, but still very much child-friendly and reflects our love for art. Our home is undoubtedly our happy place.” –Lauren
One of the most beloved rooms of the house is the sunroom. Stacey's mix of color, material, texture and plant life has created a gorgeous space that the Blake Family can relax in.
"Though we gravitate quite a bit to a modern style, we also have pieces that we love that are not modern, so the overall vibe of our home is more on the eclectic side," Stacey says.
"I painted almost all of our rooms, which is actually great because I tend to change colors a bit," Stacey says. "Imagine if I had to pay someone to paint each time I wanted to change a wall color!"
Stacey doesn't decorate with clutter or too many accessories. Her furniture pieces are the focal points in her designs. Stacey reupholstered this chair in an ikat print.
"I like to take my time when decorating because it's important to find the right pieces. We used our dining room chairs as seating in our living room for a while because we took our time searching for the right sofa," Stacey says.
Stacey's play with color doesn't stop at solids. Her layering of colorful patterns and textures in their master bedroom is the perfect amount to keep the space lively enough and completely restful.
"We are not formal people. In fact, our formal dining room is our boys' playroom and for us that is a much better use of the space," Stacey says. "When the hubby is home, he draws fun murals on the chalkboard for the boys. He is very artistic."
Ian's bedroom shows off Stacey's knack for refurbishing secondhand pieces. "I love mixing high and low pieces together. A couple of my pieces are thrifted and one would not readily know that unless I told them," Stacey says. "I love repurposing items, so there [are] a few painted pieces that got a new lease on life with a little elbow grease and some paint."
Andre is deployed overseas so Stacey makes sure the boys are able to stay connected to their father. "I felt the need to make sure that he didn’t become an abstract concept," Stacey says. "I decided to have the map mural installed in Zion's room to enable Dada to 'be there' for bedtime routines, for morning-time routines, or just whenever we wanted to go and randomly 'visit' Dada."
I love your use of color! It definitely looks like a happy house.
I was hoping to find out the paint color used in the bedroom that has the orange curtains and orange patterned bed covering. I need that color for my bedroom!
That hot pink wall color just makes me smile. I’d never have the nerve, although my dining room wall is acid green like the bedroom with the map, but it looks great here. The bold upholstery patterns and colors are fabulous!
So refreshing, finally someone who loves to use color as much as I do. All white walls can be lovely, but I prefer (tasteful) color saturation like the above. And please tell me how to get a fiddle leaf tree to grow that big indoors!
Hi Meg!
I am not sure if you are referring to the sunroom since that’s the first image. The paint color there is Benjamin Moore Wedgewood Grey. If you are referring to the living room, the paint color there is Benjamin Moore November Skies.
Stacey’s lovely home pales in comparison to her fabulous outlook on life. Her blog and instagram are always an inspiration for how one might view the world and be a better person for it. So glad to see her featured here.
WHOA! I was giddy to read a home feature in my home city of Fayetteville, NC!
If you are ever looking for more homes in the NC region. My childhood home is filled with treasures from my parents time in Korea, their upbringings in New Orleans, their travels, and other life journeys all curated beautifully under one roof!
That’s exactly how I felt Kurston! I too grew up in “Fayette-nom” and couldn’t be more proud of the fun, non-traditional approach to decorating the Blake family has embraced. How inspiring!
I like that there is no fear to use vibrant colors here :) I’m not sure I could get away with a pink kitchen but at this point anything is better than my plain Jane nondescript one. And by the way, I LOVE the map mural!
Beautiful home! It´s good for the soul to watch the vibrant colors and your abundant plants! I´d love to know where you got the ikat print fabric for the chair you upholstered! Have to check out your blog! All the best from Berlin, Germany
I love your use of color! It definitely looks like a happy house.
I was hoping to find out the paint color used in the bedroom that has the orange curtains and orange patterned bed covering. I need that color for my bedroom!
Thank you Annie! The color is Benjamin Moore Soot.
thanks!!
I have been following Stacy’s IG for quite a while now and love that you featured her and her family. What a vibrant, lived in, family space!
I love what you have done. Makes me want to dump every thing and start over.
That hot pink wall color just makes me smile. I’d never have the nerve, although my dining room wall is acid green like the bedroom with the map, but it looks great here. The bold upholstery patterns and colors are fabulous!
This is hands-down, my favorite house tour I’ve seen! What a beautiful home filled with color and life!
So refreshing, finally someone who loves to use color as much as I do. All white walls can be lovely, but I prefer (tasteful) color saturation like the above. And please tell me how to get a fiddle leaf tree to grow that big indoors!
I love the cool and calm affects of the wall color in the Sunroom and consistent pops of color present in each room.
Thanks everyone for the wonderful feedback and thank you Design Sponge for having me!:-)
Much to love here! Wish I knew the color of the sunroom. Wishing it to be the color I just bought for my master bedroom. It’s what I was aiming for!
Can you please share what that amazing blue paint color is in the living room (image 1)?!
Hi Meg!
I am not sure if you are referring to the sunroom since that’s the first image. The paint color there is Benjamin Moore Wedgewood Grey. If you are referring to the living room, the paint color there is Benjamin Moore November Skies.
Stacey’s lovely home pales in comparison to her fabulous outlook on life. Her blog and instagram are always an inspiration for how one might view the world and be a better person for it. So glad to see her featured here.
Love, love, love! Can’t wait to see your blog!
So perfect. In a world that seems to embrace beige and white to look high end, I applaud your awesome choices. Love every bit of you place…inspiring!
A second request for the living room paint color. It’s perfect. Love this house– it’s so happy!
Astounding use of color!I love it!
What a great space! It looks sophisticated but still totally livable.
A very intelligent use and brave of colours.
WHOA! I was giddy to read a home feature in my home city of Fayetteville, NC!
If you are ever looking for more homes in the NC region. My childhood home is filled with treasures from my parents time in Korea, their upbringings in New Orleans, their travels, and other life journeys all curated beautifully under one roof!
That’s exactly how I felt Kurston! I too grew up in “Fayette-nom” and couldn’t be more proud of the fun, non-traditional approach to decorating the Blake family has embraced. How inspiring!
The light in this home is incredible. What a happy family home!
I like that there is no fear to use vibrant colors here :) I’m not sure I could get away with a pink kitchen but at this point anything is better than my plain Jane nondescript one. And by the way, I LOVE the map mural!
Oh my goodness! What is your secret for your fiddle leaf fig!?
(This whole home is amazing, too!)
Thank you Kelsey! I have a post in my archives on the blog where I share how I take care of my fig. Here is the link:http://designaddictmom.blogspot.com/2014/06/how-i-care-for-my-fiddle-fig-and-hello.html
Stunning. The living room color actually made me suck wind, lol. Please share?!
Beautiful home! It´s good for the soul to watch the vibrant colors and your abundant plants! I´d love to know where you got the ikat print fabric for the chair you upholstered! Have to check out your blog! All the best from Berlin, Germany
Hi Tina! Thank you! I bought the IKat print from Hancock Fabric and it’s from Robert Allen.
Soot is black, what is the lovely shade of the accent wall?