Kara Cox is recognized throughout North Carolina for her fresh, tailored, and timeless takes on modern decor. Drawing inspiration from travel, fashion, and, most of all, art, Cox loves to create classically designed homes with a modern feel. “I love starting a design inspiration from a client’s original art collec - tion or a piece that we purchase together,” she says. A perfect place to be adventurous, she suggests, is in a powder room. “They don’t have to coordinate with the rest of the house—powder rooms are a great opportunity to layer patterns and colors that could otherwise overwhelm a larger room.” In this design, Cox got creative with a vintage shell as a soap dish to coordinate with the John Derian sepia wallpaper, and added a vintage rug for a collected look. “The right mix of patterns and scale can create a really fun and exciting jewel box in a small space.”
Vintage Turkish Rug / $175 / knottedturkishrugs.com
Framed Vintage Shell Prints / $380 / chairish.com
Zodiaco European Small Hand Towel / $58 / courtlandandco.com
Aerin for Visual Comfort Fontaine Sconce / $499 / circalighting.com
Wallpaper in Captain Thomas Brown Shells Sepia / to the trade / johnderian.com
Vintage 1970s Folk Art Shell Tissue Box / $100 / chairish.com
Regina Andrew Clam Shell Serving Bowl / $120 / perigold.com
Montara Mirror / $268 / serenaandlily.com