Danielle Rollins — Atlanta-based author, designer, and lifestyle expert — likes to mix a dash of glamour with an approachable flair. She believes in channeling the style of Grace Kelly, the wit of Lucille Ball, and the decorating and entertaining approach of Dorothy Draper (mixed with a little fantasy from the ever-imaginative, flamboyant Elsie de Wolfe). Her iconic former home was designed by Miles Redd, however a divorce led her to a new beginning and a “pedestrian” 1970s Georgian that Rollins masterfully transformed into her dream home.
“The main thing I learned from Miles is the notion that ‘It’s only decorating,’ ” she said. “If you don’t like something, you can always change it. And if you buy good pieces that you love, you’re always going to find a place for them.” Rollins enlisted architect Bill Ingram to lead an ambitious renovation, reconfiguring her new home’s floor plan to include a spectacular living room — 40 feet in length — along with a new wing for her parents and her three children. During the renovation, Rollins also planned extensive service areas, including a butler’s hall with space for flower arranging, a china room, and a breakfast room with cabinets stocked full of silver, linens, and glassware… perfectly designed “for entertaining with style“!
Photography by Melanie Acevedo with captions by Emily Eerdmans as featured in the November-December 2017 issue of Veranda…
A curated rainbow of blue, tobacco, coral, and off-white unites an explosion of patterns in the living room. Sofas in a Prelle silk velvet, DeAngelis; curtains in a Cowtan & Tout fabric; wallcovering, Pierre Frey; artwork over sofa, Kelly O’Neal.
Graphic prints and geometric floors energize the kitchen and service areas. Above: In the butler’s pantry, the wallcovering and curtains are by Brunschwig & Fils; custom cork flooring, Globus Cork.
The breakfast room’s woven hyacinth dining chairs are a Rollins design; curtains in a Brunschwig & Fils fabric; pendant, Mallett; vintage wicker chest.
The Gris de Savoie marble countertop in the kitchen is from Marmi Natural Stone; sink and fittings, Waterstone Faucets.
Kitchen stools, Serena & Lily; pendants and sconces, Circa Lighting; wall tiles, Waterworks; custom range hood and encaustic-tile floor.
An apricot-lacquered ceiling in the dining room casts a flattering glow. Antique Italian chairs in a Lee Jofa damask; tablecloth and bench with Samuel & Sons trim in an Oscar de la Renta for Lee Jofa fabric; curtains in a Fortuny fabric; walls, Farrow & Ball’s Ball Green; ceiling in W-27, Fine Paints of Europe.
Curtains and bed canopy, lined in a Lee Jofa chintz, are in a Brunschwig & Fils satin; headboard in a Rogers & Goffigon fabric; wallcovering, Schumacher; carpet, Stanton. A Louis XV chair is upholstered in a Scalamandré silk.
A sofa in a Lee Jofa chintz with Samuel & Sons trim and an armchair in a Kravet fabric are both custom designs by Rollins.
Trellis-print walls, chintz, and a leopard-patterned carpet create a fanciful backdrop in the master bedroom.
Rollins color-matched her closet’s walls to her favorite lipstick hue.
The walls and upholstery in the master bath are in a Thibaut floral; bathtub, Kohler; fittings, Newport Brass; concrete-tile flooring, Granada Tile. Rollins in her powder room.
The powder room exudes old-fashioned glamour. The skirted table is in a Brunschwig & Fils satin; custom rose-gold wallcovering, Fromental; the lamps are made from vintage Baccarat candlesticks; 19th-century Chinese porcelain figurines, John Rosselli Antiques.
Danielle Rollins, wearing one of her own designs, relaxes in her Atlanta living room with her dogs, Bluebell (left) and Maybelline.
Danielle recently launched an elegant new fashion line, and I want one of everything! Pictured below is the Cecil Blush Silk Wool Ball Skirt, which exudes Old Hollywood Glamour…
To read this feature in entirety, please visit Veranda. For additional information on Danielle Rollins and her new fashion collection, please visit daniellerollins.com. You can follow along via Instagram for a daily glimpse into Danielle’s beautiful home and life, and her book Soiree: Entertaining with Style is one of my favorites!
A Charming Cottage by Jackye Lanham and William B. Litchfield
Downsizing with Antiques
An Elegant 1930s Atlanta Estate
A New Kentucky Home by William T. Baker
Brava Danielle Rollins-love your next chapter!
This is so awesomely beautiful! And you know, she really is a kind person as well. Several years ago I was being pressured into hosting a birthday party for my twin girls at a go kart place. I seemed to recall reading her daughter (about the same age) had been very seriously injured at a similar birthday party. But I wasn’t sure if it was the same thing (we’re in Southern California). I emailed her asking her if this was a similar kind of deal. Would you believe she emailed me back almost immediately telling me it was the same and imploring me to choose another venue. She is rich, something of a celebrity and at the time was still going through it with her daughter. I will never forget her kindness to a total stranger. On the strength of her email my husband and girls dropped the go kart idea and we did something safer – probably like sky diving… Kidding ? All she wanted was to spare another mother what she had been through. I’m so very happy for her in this new, fabulous chapter! She is a genuinely good person!
Everything is beautiful … the house, the colors, the designer and her clothes.
Please tell me the name of the chintz in the photo next to to the chest with the chinoiserie mirror above it. I believe it is in the master bedroom with trellis wallpaper. I can be more specific if needs be. The chintz ? has small flowers and lots of open ground. The carpet is a leopard. I need the name of the fabric on the chairs. It is perfect for me to reupholster two old French chairs. Thank you.