A family of four creates a new chapter for a historical Old Village residence in a dire state of disrepair.
Annie and Matt Hamnett have breathed new life into the home to share with their own family— son, Matthew, and daughter, Sadie.
Fresh Perspective: This carefully renovated Queen Anne-style Victorian house in Mount Pleasant’s Old Village was built in 1901 by a doctor for his family.
Lighten Up: The Hamnetts were able to expand the front windows to welcome more sunshine into the living room. Complemented by drapes, pillows, and playful fabric-wrapped chairs—all by local design team Lennon + Flohr—the previously drab space is now a bright sunny spot, perfect for watching life in the Old Village go by.
Color Play: An Emily Brown abstract painting from Charleston Artist Collective and a pink rug from Zuma Imports add pops of color in the main entry hall, which is painted a calming “White Dove” from Benjamin Moore. A bold light fixture from Circa Lighting, framed between the extra wide cased opening with transom window, adds a touch of drama to the dining room.
Mixed centuries: The daring Galbraith + Paul “Sumi” wallpaper in “Julep” brings color and visual interest into the formal dining room, where an antique dining table and chairs from Bungalow Classic and a former cheese cart from Maxim’s de Paris await a large family dinner. White wainscoting offsets the wallpaper and pays homage to the Victorian era of the home, while “I’On” fabric drapes from Palmette Home tie it all together.
The space between: A coffee nook with slim, brass-accented shelves hung on a shiplap-covered wall breaks up the expansive floor-to-ceiling pantry that also houses a full fridge and freezer behind its Benjamin Moore “Gray Wisp”-painted cabinets. Pulls from Water Street Brass complement the shelves and the oversized Restoration Hardware pendants hanging over the quartzite-topped island.
Three’s A Crowd: This part of the house was originally the living and dining rooms, with a galley-style kitchen to the side. The Hamnetts moved the dining area to accommodate a large open kitchen. They added the built-in bookshelves to the living room wall and reused two existing pocket doors (now painted in Farrow & Ball’s “Card Room Green”) to separate the spaces.
Two Simonini cane and leather stools from the Brazilian designer further set off the two rooms.
The garden also serves as an outdoor dining room where the family can convene around the Couture Jardin table from Outside Is In, while enjoying the scent of fresh citrus from their trees.
For the Hamnetts, the main draw of the property was the large lot with two additional structures and room for a pool. The couple put the extra spaces to good use, fashioning a pool house that doubled as a schoolroom during the COVID lockdown, a guesthouse., and a luxurious pool.
Inside the carefully restored Queen Anne-style Victorian manse
