Peek Inside Leanne Ford and Grace Mitchell’s Latest Design Project
Round Top, Texas, is known for many things—its antiques fairs, bluebonnets, the pie at Royers Cafe—but the sign along Highway 237 touting the 90-person population may be the most iconic. However, designers Leanne Ford (@leannefordinteriors) and Grace Mitchell (@astoriedstyle), who are no strangers to an overhaul, think even it could use an update. “I joke that they need to change the sign to 99 to include the Mitchell party of six and the Ford party of three,” says Grace. That’s because the creatives—best known for their respective HGTV series (Restored by the Fords; One of a Kind)—have officially put down roots with a home in the Texas Hill Country.
Time for an update?
As is the case with many a Round Top purchase, the 1880 farmhouse was an impulse buy. “It was truly on a whim,” says Leanne. “Grace and I have been going [there] on antiquing trips for many years. This time, neither of us bought any furniture, but we did buy a little house on Round Top Road!” Although the property was in decent shape, the designers couldn’t quite shake the urge to go all in. “It became more of a reno than initially anticipated,” says Grace.
“At first, we chatted about it just needing a paint job, but then we encouraged each other in many silly ways to just go for it.” Adds Leanne: “We both have a tendency to ‘undesign’ things by ripping out basic box store stuff and replacing it with old vintage pieces that carry so much more soul to them.”
Here’s what they learned during the four-month friendeavor.
Lesson 1: Find Common Ground
Instead of pushing each other outside of their aesthetic comfort zones, Leanne and Grace instead focused on where they overlapped on their design Venn diagram. “Normally when working with a client, you have to convince people to get the 100-year-old sink, but with Leanne and I, we both just love that kind of stuff!” says Grace. “We never have to convince each other of the vision. It has been really freeing.” In the bathroom, their aesthetic align- ment included painting the base of an old vanity to match the walls, and then swapping the original sinks for more neutral marble ones.
Lesson 2: Go Big or Go Home
“Sometimes when you put big, oversize furniture into a room, the space actually feels bigger,” says Leanne. Case in point: This extra-large round table from Architectural Artifacts, which replaced the kitchen’s middle island. Also vintage: Dining chairs from Mark Dooley (@jerseyjunker), the stately orb sconces , and 1930s Bakelite doorknobs cleverly repurposed as cabinet hardware.
Lesson 3: Take the Broken Road
While the designers both love the clay undertones of Calacatta Rosa marble, the stone can be expensive. However, Grace happened to come across a slab that was broken. “Broken equals much less expensive,” she says. “That’s how we got our countertops, so ask your stone yard about broken slabs!”
Lesson 4: Embrace “Costs-Half” Math
“The best surprise of renovating a house with a friend is every- thing feels like it is half off,” says Leanne. “One person buying a marble bathtub is bonkers, but when you have two people buying it, it’s basically 50 percent off.” That built-in discount also helped justify the purchase of the kitchen’s ivory AGA stove.
Lesson 5: Don’t Give Up on the One That Got Away
“If you are a frequent flyer at Round Top, you naturally have a list of regrets, right?” says Grace, who says she and Leanne were both in love with this glass- front cabinet —and thought they had put it on hold—but when they went back to the dealer to pay, it was sold. “That happens and you typically just move on, but I really felt the need to not move on,” says Grace, who tracked down the person who purchased the cabinet. “As it turns out, it was another vendor I had bought from before, so I called him. After one really heartfelt speech, some tough negotiations, and, truth be told, a little extra money, we got it back, and it was so worth it!”
Lesson 6: Dig Through the Pile
Although the shower door installed by the previous owner was “perfectly fine,” says Leanne, she stumbled upon this vintage steel door while shopping at Jardin de France. “It was just this sliver of an old door peeking out of a pile of doors.” To give the subway tile interior a more unique finish, she and Grace plastered over it, which saved them from doing demo and, says Leanne, “making a huge mess.”
Lesson 7: Buy in Bulk
The oversize milk glass orb sconces throughout the home came from Leftovers Antiques. “We originally only wanted four, but the dealer was selling them as a set of 30,” says Leanne. The duo ended up buying the lot and used them all over the interior and exterior. “It’s a great example of how to have a cohesive conversation,” says Leanne, noting how the bulk approach is frequently seen in boutique hotels. “In a small house, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel in every room.”
Lesson 8: Divide & Conquer
Although Grace and Leanne spent countless hours working together—even spending nights sleeping on the porch before the AC and plumbing were hooked up—they also took the reins where needed. “Because Grace is local to Texas, she took the lead as our boots on the ground,” says Leanne. Adds Grace: “Leanne excels at things I’m not as proficient in, and I enjoy some of the nitty-gritty details that she doesn’t.”
Lesson 9: Use Paint to Unify
The breezy white porch is an extension of the monochromatic scheme indoors. “We knew we’d be bringing in vintage pieces from all parts of the world,” says Leanne. “The all-white palette keeps things unified and allows for the antiques [including the porch’s Verner Panton chairs from Knock on Wood] to be the stars of the show without feeling disjointed.” Another bonus, she says: “When shopping, you can focus on shape and material—not just ‘Does this work with my color story?’”
Lesson 10: Get ’er Done
The set of Adirondack chairs and steel firepit both came from Paul Michael Company. “Our local friend, Jake, literally tractored that firepit in on the final day of our install,” says Leanne. “He was at the house helping us with things and was like, ‘I’ve got a firepit for you—I’ll go get it.’ Sure enough, he brought it on over with his John Deere and the firepit strapped to a trailer, right down the highway,” she says. “This is one of my favorite memories of this house!” adds Grace. “It was the perfect example of the ‘small town get-her-done grit’ that we love.”
Psst: You Can Stay Here!
“We’re thrilled to have a home here for our families to enjoy, but equally excited to share it with others when we are not here,” says Grace. “Come on over!” For info, visit hostievacationrentals.com.
Rachel Barrett is the Editor-in-Chief of Country Living. She can’t pass up a vintage seascape, drives an ’89 Woody Wagoneer (that is, when it’ll start), and hopes to buy you a lemonade at a future Country Living Fair.
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