ELECTRIC REGENCY

Glamour, symmetry, and a bookish emerald study: In Richmond, Suzanne Kasler and Carter Skinner usher in a new era of bravado for so-called neutrals.

The clients' directives The Richmond, Virginia, empty nesters were downsizing from a were, well, direct. stately Georgian, here in the land of stately Georgians, and wanted to go a little bolder in their next nest. On their tree-canopied corner lot in Windsor Hills, the wife asked architectural designer Carter Skinner and Atlanta-based interior designer Suzanne Kasler for a courtyard-centric, Regency-style house steeped in her favorite colors: black, white, raspberry, and brown.

"That was it-no other color options," recalls Kasler. The lone exception would be a vivacious green library. Beyond that, the scheme was set. "I've never had a client who pushed us creatively quite like this," Kasler adds.

And yet she was thrilled. Perhaps because it was a never-before idea, or perhaps because of the exciting style prescription. A fan of Regency's classic symmetry and graphic punch, indulgences of Hollywood glam, and glints of gold, she notes that it has a very modern air but still retains a foundation of tradition. "The challenge was to take the colors," she explains, "the Regency details and elevate them together in a sophisticated, timeless way."

To wit, Skinner's rectangular O-shaped floor plan encircling a central inner courtyard created a deluge of natural light. The primary living spaces would open to the inner oasis, and loggia beyond, via 11 pairs of arched French doors. "The resulting rooms have wonderful proportions, and the spaces flow beautifully," says Skinner.