ELLEN GODFREY DESIGN AND OUR NEWEST WOLF DINING TABLE

Before the holidays we flew out to Nashville, Tennessee to get some shots of our new Wolf Dining Table. Lucky for us, our good friend and talented interior designer, Ellen Godfrey lives in Birmingham and agreed to come out for the day to style the shoot. We Earls were blessed to live by the Godfrey’s when they lived near us in Los Angeles for a few years. Our daughters were baby besties and had a lot of laughs together. Matt, Ellen’s husband is a brilliant Audio Book narrator working within all genres, but specializing in his beloved Southern Gothic. Ellen has a serious eye for interiors, an informed perspective on design, and a quick wit for what works in a space. We align in our ambition to properly integrate modernity and tradition. Keep scrolling to see beautiful images shot by Wesley and Emma Photography of our newest table and other pieces. We also interview Ellen and got some great shots of her and her family.

WHO IS IN YOUR NUCLEAR FAMILY?

Me, Matt, and Irene

WHAT MOST OFTEN BRINGS YOU TOGETHER AS A FAMILY?

We both work from home so we are ALWAYS around each other. We love it. We get to have breakfast, lunch, and dinner together most days.

What do you believe makes your family unique?

We’ve grown our family through adoption. This makes us particularly aware and grateful of all the things that had to happen at just the right time for us to be brought together as a family. We are crazy about Irene, and sometimes we can’t believe how blessed we are to call her ours.

As a family, do you have rituals or traditions?

We love family rituals. We try to have something special to celebrate each month — for instance we always rent a cabin with friends for New Years, we spend every Fourth of July at the beach, and we always host Thanksgiving in our home.

In running your own business, how have you approached managing your work life balance?

I am very strategic about the amount of work I take on.  I try to only work on two to three projects at a time so I can really give them the focus they deserve.  This lets me keep my schedule part time without sacrificing the quality of work my clients get from me.  I work hard while my daughter is at school and then get to be a stay at home mom when she is home.  I am so grateful for this incredible privilege.

Do your personal life and work ever intersect?

For sure!  My favorite thing about commercial work is that I often get to enjoy the spaces I've designed in my normal life.  I designed the gym I workout at, and I just finished a bakery that is a neighborhood staple.  I also love when I get to help friends and family with their homes.  In fact, my mom is about to undergo a big renovation on her home that I will be helping with.  She gets my services for free though :)

Do you often host visitors or guests and if so what drives you to do so?

We host people all the time and love having people in our home. Most weeks we host Sunday Suppers at our place with our close friends. I love that our home can be a place for our community to feel comfortable and known.

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Tell us a bit about your Interior Design and what inspires you.

I've been working on my own as an interior designer since 2015.  However, the first time I got paid for my design work was designing a trade show booth for the company I was working for at the time.  We would go to multiple trade shows a year and each time it was an opportunity to design a different retail space.  I transitioned from that job and began designing residential and commercial spaces.  I'd say my work is 60% commercial vs 40% residential.

I grew up in the Alabama, lived in Los Angeles for close to 9 years, and have lots of family in Guatemala.  My husband and I also particularly love traveling to the UK.  I feel like my design work is heavily influenced by spending so much time in all these unique places.  I also get really inspired by movies and television.  I'll take note of the general color scheme and feel and then implement that into my work.  Of course, I also use magazines, pinterest, instagram, and design blogs for inspiration.

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What keeps you living where you do?

We live in a beautiful little bungalow built in 1928, situated a couple miles from downtown in a historic part of the city. We love our neighborhood. It is picturesque and diverse and close to so many of our favorite spots in town. There is also a great sense of community here. Most of our best friends live less than a mile from us.

What's the perfect setting to make you smile?

The English countryside - green rolling hills as far as the eye can see.

How would you describe your home?

I usually tell people my interiors style is “new traditional.” I always like when rooms have a good mix of modern and traditional furniture and textiles. Our home is an almost 100 year old craftsman bungalow. The interior is mostly neutral with intentional hits of warm, rich color. Our furniture is a fairly good mix of traditional and midcentury pieces.

What's one word you would use to describe your family?

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THANK YOU GODFREY’S FOR HANGING WITH US AND FOR COMING OUT TO TENNESSEE SO WE COULD GET THESE BEAUTIFUL SHOTS OF OUR NEW TABLE AND YOUR BADASS FAM.