This Designer's Home Is Full of Sophisticated Style

Anyone might feel the itch to move after living in the same home for 20 years, but for designer and mom of five Saudah Saleem, the urge came on especially strong in early 2020. “We’d outgrown our townhouse physically, even with my oldest, Jasirah, getting ready to move out, and I’d outgrown it from a design perspective. I’d done all the projects I could do there,” says Saudah. Looking for a fresh start and a bigger yard, the family moved into a 100-year-old home not far from their old place in Baltimore, Maryland, that had been flipped by a builder. Saudah started personalizing every room, her creativity fueled by new blank spaces to decorate. “When my kids were younger, I leaned into more playful colors and choices. These days, things look a little more sophisticated, but we still have fun!”

Saudah decorated this space with blues and greens, including a performance velvet sofa from Anthropologie, which she chose for its shape. “I like the coziness that the curve creates,” she says. The swivel chairs are from Kirkland’s Home, and the stools are from Burke Decor. They come in handy as extra seating but easily tuck away when the kids aren’t home.

Saudah scored this burlwood table secondhand for just $300 and paired it with acrylic chairs that she has had for years. “Those chairs are my tried-and-true because they are so easy to clean, and I love how you can see the table through them,” she says.

Since the move, the family has started cooking more. “It’s nice to be together in the kitchen without feeling like we’re on top of one another,” says Saudah. She replaced builder-grade lights with new pendants from Pottery Barn and added a gray marble backsplash and gold cabinet pulls. "Changing the backsplash had a huge impact," she says. "I used large floor tiles, so I didn’t need many."

After making sure everyone else was comfortable with their rooms, Saudah got to work on her own. “I was going for an elegant hotel retreat,” she says. She chose sculptural sconces from Alora Lighting, a bed with a tall tufted headboard from Saatva and wide nightstands from an estate sale.

The two youngest kids share a room, and making it look gender-neutral was the goal, says Saudah. She paired terra-cotta walls with a sleek white bunk from The Home Depot and blue and black accents. “This color scheme makes the room feel like something they can grow into,” she says.

This was the first room that 19-year-old Saleh, a college sophomore, didn’t have to share with a sibling. “I wanted him to have a room he can come home to and not feel like he’s in a kid space,” Saudah says. She chose black faux-grasscloth wallpaper from Tempaper & Co. and a leather West Elm bed. The astronaut art is by DAAS.

This bonus space in the basement quickly took shape as a homework area. Saudah spruced it up with wallpaper from Spoonflower, blue desks from Wayfair and faux leather chairs from Poly & Bark. “Samori and Zaria are at the desks all the time!”