Ep. 167: Nashville Week: Stephanie Sabbe

Today’s episode comes to you from Nashville Week! We sit down with Stephanie Sabbe of Sabbe Interior Design. She started her career working in commercial and restaurant spaces and has transitioned to residential clients in her hometown of Nashville. We talk with Stephanie about how cozy her spaces make us feel, her love of traditional artwork, her favorite color palette and developing a flow to a room that feels personalized yet elevated!

What You’ll Hear on This Episode:

• Stephanie specializes in cozy and comforting spaces. She approaches design from a livable way and often works with families.
• How Stephanie pairs her unique curation of traditional artwork with fresh colors and clean lines to create a more modern look.
• Stephanie tries to evoke motion as you move throughout a house; she wants a flow but for each room to feel like it’s a different space.
• If there is a space in your house you aren’t using, you need to design it better.
• Designing with kids in mind requires a great deal of practicality and thinking ahead.
• A lot of Stephanie’s style was inspired from her time living and working in historic Boston.
• Stephanie has an affinity for the autumn and earth tone color palette and often muted colors.
• Stephanie talks about her widely shared image of a bookcase behind a tub.
• Fun and personality are so important to Stephanie’s brand and her projects.
• Second to natural light, Stephanie thinks sconce lighting is the best lighting.
• Stephanie tried an old but new trick; painting the trim the same color as the wall.
• Tips on designing the “dog chair”.

Mentioned In This Episode:

Stephanie Sabbe on Instagram

Sabbe Interior Design

Decorating Dilemma

Hi Julie!

We love this sofa. As far as furniture layout, we would pull the two wingback chairs back closer to the fireplace and flank them on either side. If you use the storage below the glass shelving often, you could probably angle the chairs in a way so you can still have access. You could definitely add a second sofa; something smaller like a loveseat. Just be sure to consider back height and arm height on the sofa to make sure one doesn’t dwarf the other. Since you already have so many solids, we would try something fun like a bold pattern to make that second piece pop. We like the grey upholstery on the wingbacks and adding a patterned throw pillow. The shelves are hard because of their differences; we like your lamp idea. Another thing we would suggest is taking the art over the fireplace and replacing it with a mirror since you already have artwork over the sofa. You might also consider painting the space; definitely the ceiling coffers. We like creamy white for the whole room. The fireplace has a lot of elements going on and we think if the room were all the same color, it would unify it.

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How about a rug to ground the seating area? It’s not entirely clear from the pictures, but what if you centered the sofa with the fireplace? You may have to move the piano to the other wall because it feels a bit lopsided having everything on one side of the room. Stephanie agrees with moving the piano and then putting the bookcases behind the piano. Then centering the art and adding two side tables, two table lamps will make that wall feel more symmetrical. If you move the piano and wingback chairs, you have room to put additional chairs in there, as well, to accommodate all the people.

You have a great space and a great start; especially for only 7 months living there! Keep us posted!