25 Ways to Add Southern Soul to Your Home

22 of 25

25 Ways to Add Southern Soul to Your Home

22. Instead of Staining the Floors, Paint Them.

Bathing floors in a sea of color is a great way to update worn hardwoods, to unify a space where different types of materials join, or to simply add visual interest. Thomas Jefferson decided to employ the technique at Monticello in 1805 after seeing painted floors at the home of the celebrated portraitist Gilbert Stuart. One modern Southern tastemaker, the designer Andrew Howard of Jacksonville, Florida, is also a fan of the idea—and of Behr Country Dairy 370E-1. “The color instantly warms up a room,” Howard says. “It’s best used in rooms that get great sunlight and allow the light coming in to reflect off the floor, like a foyer, sunroom, or breakfast room.”

Photo: Patricia Lyons