Uptown Utopia

Introduction

If you’re familiar with Atlanta, you surely know of Buckhead. This bustling area of the city, ranked as one of the top 10 affluent communities in the nation, is well known for its diverse mix of commercial, retail, and residential properties. While much of west and north Buckhead is populated with single-family homes, the Peachtree Road corridor has become a major focus of high-rise construction for both residential and commercial use. Today, Buckhead has more than 50 high-rise buildings, almost one-third of all such structures in Atlanta. 

When Annysa LaMantia Design was tasked with updating a 3,000 square-foot condominium in one of these Buckhead skyrises, the goal was to create an open space to showcase the incredible views from the home’s floor-to-ceiling windows. Originally built 10 years ago, the condo needed a complete refresh, and LaMantia set out to design a chic oasis with dynamic colors, clean lines, and soft curves.

The  Story

The main living area’s open floor plan combines with the dining room and kitchen spaces. To create interest and dimension on a very long wall in the main living space, LaMantia opted to cover existing built-in bookcases by specifying a combination of two Crossville Porcelain Tile Panels by Laminam collections as wall covering. The tile contractors with Vantage installed two panels of Fokos Terra at the far end of living space next to the windows. These panels, in a solid tone with a matte finish, provide a perfect backdrop for a large piece of artwork. Next to the Fokos panels, the wall covering transitions to the contrasting six panels of veined Cava Noir Desir Polished. Along this expansive section of the wall, the team inset a large screen television flush with the porcelain panels, reducing its visual prominence along the wall. 

Then, LaMantia got exceptionally creative in making the most of the installation capabilities and versatility of Crossville’s porcelain tile panels. She utilized the lean-profile, large-format Cava Noir tile to skin a door located on the wall so that it is visually imperceptible—a hidden entrance to a bedroom suite located behind the living area. With LaMantia’s creativity and the skill of the installers with Vantage, the hidden door proved to be one of the most unique, sleek aspects of the renovation project.

“Hidden doors are an excellent surprise feature for any space and using Crossville’s porcelain tile panels to conceal the door can be exciting. I also recommend in setting a large TV into a wall with the porcelain panels as it helps with visual balance,” explained LaMantia.

With its ability to skin a variety of surfaces, Crossville’s porcelain tile panels offered many unique benefits for this condo renovation. Only 5.6 mm thick, it is relatively lightweight compared to many materials—such as stone slabs—yet extraordinarily hardwearing and durable. Also, its large size, 1m x 3m, means fewer grout joints. In addition, Crossville’s porcelain tile panels require much less maintenance than natural stone.