From the Ground Up: Creating a House on a Lake
“A house on a lake, not a lake house.” That’s what homeowners Frank and Vicki Pamelia requested of the design and style of their Lake Oconee home. Although they had retired and moved from their home in Indiana, their new home on Lake Oconee in Georgia would be their new primary residence, one that would feel all the comforts and warmth they wanted as empty nesters but also would be home to their grown children for holidays and summertime visits. “Our builders were great, but we truly must thank our design team at Enjolè Interiors who touched every room to design this home.”
Selecting Enjole Interiors to Travel to Georgia
The best way to create a space clients will love is to begin with a design concept, and in most cases, that’s selecting the right design team for you. “Tammy and I are twins separated at birth. We think alike.” Vicki said. “The communication is almost non-verbal. What Tammy was able to do was to bring out things that I didn’t know were there.”
At Enjolè, we always start a project by discussing client likes and dislikes, and then we start to bring in different pieces of design, colors, patterns, furniture…etc. to see what direction the client is looking to go. “It was amazing to see how well Tammy and Frank clicked, as well.
He had so much faith and confidence in Tammy. The project kind of exploded, in a great way, when Tammy was bringing things to us and Frank said, ‘Oh I love that!’”
Within no time, we got an idea of the clients style by showing them examples and we started to take their lake home from dirt to drapes.
Deciding on a Color Palette
“When we began discussing color, that’s when [Enjole designer] Margy Foster came in. She is such a ying to Tammy’s yang. Margy’s design experience was so helpful to our finished product, and I loved her vision,” Vicki said.
“Then, as luck would have, a fabric we designed around became discontinued,” Vicki recalls. It’s times like this that call for a designer to get creative. In this case, Margy was determined to find the client’s beloved fabric, and it was a success. “We couldn’t believe it!” Vicki said. “Margy saved the day and found 40 yards of our fabric.” However, it’s important to remember that luck might not be on your side, so having a back-up fabrics to flow with designated color schemes.
Using the Old to Create the New
One way you make a house home is by incorporating pieces of your past and memories you’ve made along the way. “Our builder actually had a designer for us to use,” Vicki recalls. “We had a photo album of 400 furniture and decor pieces, some that were our must-haves to stay with us as we started our new build, and the other designer said she could not work with this. We showed the same thing to Tammy and Margy, and they said they could. It was a no-brainer who we wanted as our design team.”
Thus, the work began on creating a traditional/transitional and eclectic style home for Frank and Vicki. One of the projects Enjolè completed was a recreation of a chandelier. “We knew this was one of the pieces the couple wanted to keep, so we got creative,” Tammy said. “Instead of the plastic balls originally on the light, we opted for crystals and gave them 3 different options for price. They opted for the median range, which worked out perfectly, and we replaced nearly 100 plastic balls with crystals. It turned out beautiful.”
The creativity didn’t stop there. Our design team was also able to create a feature wall at the landing of the staircase that featured a built-in bookcase. Frank enjoys bourbon, so we added 2 bourbon bars downstairs and repurposed 2 lamps in the queen’s suite. “Another project we loved creating was the war memorial cabinet,” Margy said. “Both of the homeowners’ fathers were in World War 2, so we put together a special cabinet to honor them. We could tell they were truly touched.”
“They were able to work with everything we love, and now, we are surrounded by it. We couldn’t ask for more,” Vicki and Frank agreed.
Think Outside the Box
When you start from the ground up, designers are often challenged to “think outside of the box” to make things work and recreate the vision homeowners have in mind, which can prove to be difficult, especially when there’s a list of must-haves to repurpose alongside the new.
“Vicki and I knew our visions wouldn’t be easy to recreate, but every step of the way, our minds were blown,” Frank said. “They had a piece of furniture custom made to hide my TV. Tammy and the furniture maker designed it to match the corbells in the bar and the kitchen. The idea was brilliant!”
“We would have never thought of the concepts that Tammy and Margy brought, but they are some of the most special features that we now enjoy in our home,” said Vicki.
Designing the kitchen also proved to be a challenge. “We know white kitchens are all the rage, but I like wood,” Vicki said. “Tammy talked me into a white kitchen with touches of wood, which were brought to life with the bourbon bar, coffee bar and wine bar. And the kitchen cabinets are an antique white, with a glaze over it. It’s something I have never seen before. They executed it perfectly.”
When building a home, there’s no one right way. Each homeowner has their own vision. Their own style. Don’t ever feel like you have to let items and memories go to create a new space. There is something special about making the old new again and forevering cherishing items that brought you so many precious memories.
“Some of our most rewarding projects are those that involve a vacation home or a new home as empty nesters. We want our clients to know that we are here for you, and we are able and capable of traveling to your project,” says Tammy.
From the moment we started hiring designers here at 
The first thing these clients mentioned was the color orange. They loved it, and wanted to try to work it into the space however possible. And, that’s just what we did. We added brightly orange patterned accent pillows next to a cozy, neutral colored couch by 
As we started to add furniture and decor to the space, we knew it had to be done carefully for all the colors to remain tasteful. “The Cheryl Ottoman was a little bit tricky because of the pattern, but it ended up working really well.” Margy said. This client also wanted a little bit of whimsy, with a pop of contemporary style, so we added in decor pieces like the circular lamp, modern circular sculptures, palm leaves and a mix of metals to marry the two designs together. We were also able to marry these 2 design elements together in the mantle, adding coordinating shelves on each side for balance and a circular wooden mirror in the middle. 
The final statement piece in this space was the bar. The 
This room was a blank space that continually evolved, using the Beyonce artwork as inspiration for the room. “I found the artist on Instagram, and Susan loved her art. The design came together once we incorporated the painting… it’s amazing how you plan a room around great art,” Tammy said.
The final space our design team was able to create was a powder room. “We were able to paint the ceilings in this space, which is something we’re not able to do often.” Tammy admitted. “It made sense for the design because we were able to pull in color and connect it with a piece of art that the client’s husband had made for her — so special!” The space was complete with custom cabinetry, and we repurposed the original chandelier from the dining room.
A Love for Design Blossoms
Q: How did you get started in design?
Q: Is there a specific type of client or project you’re drawn to?
“Many times the client would text me a picture of what she had in the room, and then ask me where she should move it – a little to the left, a little to the right. It was how I was really able to build the client’s trust and show them I was committed to helping them find what works best in their space.” 
Storage
Symmetry
Lighting
To build on the design elements already in the home, Brittney suggested a dramatic metallic damask wallpaper for the walls as well as a shimmery gold and pearl mica shell wallpaper for the ceiling to add texture and even more sparkle to the room. This technique of adding wallpaper to the walls and the ceiling gave the room dimension and brought everything to life. Not to mention the addition of an eye-catching chandelier and it’s reflection off of the wallpapers…with how it picked up light from the mica shell, we achieved just the glow the client had been dreaming of!
“In order to create that focal point, we had to shift the appliances around a bit to make everything more symmetrical. And, it worked. We were also able to add another layer to the design by updating the lighting from 5 small pendants to 3 large ones.”
