Boldly Personal

Story by Terri Glazer | Design by Tara Felice Interiors | Photography by Sarah Voigt Photography

Designer Tara Engelberg believes a home should make a statement about its owner. She designed every square inch of Anna Bishop’s East Memphis house to do just that.

“Anna is a smart, hard-working, awesome woman. The house needed to reflect female empowerment—a go-getter attitude—so we went bold in a lot of places,” says the owner of Tara Felice Interiors. That would be a 180-degree turn from the look the house had in 2021 when Bishop bought it. Previous owners had updated it, but the neutral, gray color palette that ran throughout said nothing about its new resident, a top agent with Crye-Leike Realtors.

Bishop says she decided to team up with Engelberg after seeing the work the designer did at Hen House, an East Memphis restaurant and wine bar. “I told her I wanted something beautiful, like a retreat, so that when I come home I love being here,” Bishop says. She was happy to leave the artistic specifics to the professional. “I was a nurse for a long time before I became a realtor. I’m more math, science and business. That’s how my brain works.” 

Engelberg stepped up to take the reins on the renovation; she believes that projects turn out best when clients develop a level of confidence that allows them to trust her choices. “When we start, I want to know their goals for their home’s overall look and feel and how they want to use the space, but most people don’t know exactly what their style is. I feel like I have a really good ability to read what clients want.” 

It didn’t take long for Bishop to develop that degree of faith. “After we started working together, I knew it was going to be beautiful,” she recalls. “I loved everything she picked out so I wasn’t worried that she’d do something that I wouldn’t like.”

The initial bit of inspiration for this project came from a painting Bishop had bought at an estate sale before meeting Engelberg. Says the designer, “Its colorway set the tone for the house. The greens, the blues, the oranges; it all tells the color story. Everything else just kind of fell into line from there.”

That story’s first chapter opens in the entryway, where a saturated blue bathes the walls. Engelberg selected a sunburst motif and repeated it on the mirror and the ceiling light fixture intentionally to convey the sense of optimism and positivity Bishop exhibits in her life. 

Blue hues continue into the dining room, but in a bit of an unexpected format. The room makes a big statement thanks to Martinique wallpaper, a classic from CW Stockwell since its introduction in 1942. The unexpected part? The paper’s blue colorway. “I wanted this room to be bold and amazing, and I like a grand-scale wallpaper in a smaller room. It makes it feel larger than life,” says Engelberg.

The dining room furnishings are an eclectic blend of vintage and contemporary. Engelberg had been holding onto a mid-century glam chandelier since she acquired it for her vignette in the ARTSMemphis Art by Design event back in 2019, waiting to find the perfect spot for it. The fixture, along with other patinated treasures, coexist with a colorful new commissioned painting by Charlie Bluett, an angular dining table and ten velvet and chrome chairs upholstered in a mouth-watering shade of green. Bishop counts them as favorites, saying, “If I could save only one thing in this house, it would be these chairs.”

The celebration of color continues in the office space that extends from the dining room. A chic lucite desk is surrounded by the joyful painting that inspired the home’s palette, patterned Roman shades and ottomans that introduce warm tones, and stylish storage for part of Bishop’s book collection. Below the desk sits another classic design element with an unconventional twist: a cowhide rug in brilliant blue.

Engelberg zhuzhed up the living room fireplace to create a focal point, adding a dramatic black mantel, an emerald tile surround and a brass screen. A soft abstract by artist Ed Nash adds to the interest. Deep greens, blues and brick reds in the furnishings play perfectly off the neutral sofa, console table and walls. Those white walls created a unique opportunity for the designer to bring in yet another out-of-the-ordinary addition. A pair of antique tapestries, sourced from one of the estate sales she loves to frequent, flank the TV. “We had this huge expanse of white walls and so much art already happening. I didn’t want to just do another canvas or another piece of art behind glass. I remembered these tapestries. We custom designed the frames with Garner Picture Framing. I wanted them to pop, to feel fresh and not heavy,” she says.

The room opens to the kitchen, an area that needed only a cosmetic refresh. Existing appliances and cabinets stayed, accessorized with new brass hardware. Glass-front wall cabinet doors now sport antiqued mirror panels that play up the dressy feel of the new Calcutta Gold marble countertops. The reworked backsplash of stylized white subway tile extends to the ceiling. Engelberg also modernized the room’s lighting, adding brass sconces over the windows and replacing nondescript pendants above the island with brass and glass fixtures inspired by the Modernist movement of the 1920s. 

“I love everything about my bedroom,” Bishop says, and it’s no wonder. Although it’s a study in how to mix vibrant color, pattern and texture, the space exudes a refined feel. Bold blue walls make a reprise here, as does another vintage brass and glass light fixture Engelberg found on 1stdibs.com. A channel-tufted white headboard projects a restful feel and serves as a visual anchor as it pops against the dark wall. The elegant backdrop shows off a grouping of textiles curated by the designer. She points out the antique bed scarf, found on a visit to Designers Guild in London. Shades from that fabric reappear in the orchid-colored drapes that line the room’s window.

Already outfitted in elegant Carrara marble, the attached bath only needed a bit of personalization to elevate its look. New hardware, lighting, mirrors, window treatments and art give the room a completely custom and decidedly feminine flair.

Also perfectly suited to its inhabitant is the home’s meditation room. Fashioned from one of two guest bedrooms, the spot is a tranquil space for Bishop to recharge, whether through meditating, practicing yoga, working out or relaxing with a good book. The earthy pink color, 36 Hours in Marrakesh by Backdrop Paint, gives the space a warm, almost glowing vibe. Engelberg outfitted the room with several mirrors to reflect light and to help it function as a studio when needed, and chose the furnishings with a world view in mind. A rope wall hanging created by a Mexican artisan hangs next to a pair of African fanner baskets. Textiles on the day bed’s pillows are a nod to South Asian design.

Bishop describes her wellness room as one of her favorite spots. That’s high praise, considering she also says she loves every inch of her home. And that she is grateful to Engelberg, first her designer and now a great friend, for helping make her home so beautiful and personalized. She adds, “When people walk in the house, always, they’re like, ‘This is so you. This house is absolutely your personality!’ I hear it all the time, that’s amazing.”