Tour an Atlanta Craftsman Bungalow Filled With Art, Family Heirlooms and Lots of Creativity

The home of entrepreneurs LaToya and Andrew Tucciarone is an eclectic, time-traveling and globe-trotting reflection of their passion for family, travel and beautiful objects.

October 19, 2020

By: Felicia Feaster

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Photo By: Jamestown

A Home Where Craft Is King

LaToya Tucciarone is an entrepreneur with a singular vision founded on world travel and doing good. Her Atlanta shop SustainAble Home Goods supports craftspeople around the world by bringing handcrafted home goods to her customers. She lives in a 1920s Craftsman bungalow in the Atlanta suburb of Decatur with her husband Andrew and four children, ages 4-11 and their rescue dogs Ranger and Cookie.

Warm Welcome

This family's friendly vibe is established right off the bat on their wide, welcoming front porch and this charming tableau of cacti and cheerful artwork.

The Beauty of the Human Touch

Craft is a big part of LaToya Tucciarone's life, whether it's the handmade objects she sources all around the world, from Italy, Peru, South America and Mexico and sells in her store, or the vintage items that ornament her warm, eclectic living room. "I have a deep, deep love of vintage," says LaToya. "Not only are the pieces often one-of-a-kind but they are so well made! America has its own craft history, albeit young in comparison to the rest of the world, but it's there and you get to see it in beautifully crafted vintage pieces."

The World in a Vignette

Andrew and LaToya have traveled the world (26 countries in all) for enjoyment and to find goods for LaToya's business. Every vignette in her home seems to express that love of handcrafted, one-of-a-kind items, whether pottery from Mexico or a vintage wooden table from an American craftsperson. "We have been to Oaxaca, Mexico; Guatemala; Peru; South Africa and Italy in order to source products. Traveling to source is definitely part of the job and one of my favorite parts at that. It is so special to experience a culture through its craft traditions — traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation for over a millennia in some places. Some folks experience another culture through food, I do it through craft," says LaToya.

Plant Mama

LaToya admits that she is definitely all about plants. "I am obsessed," she says. "I did not grow up with a lot of plants. This is definitely a newfound obsession of mine," she admits. "I love so much about plants. I love that they are markers of time. I love nursing them in order to bring them back to life. I love the life lessons they teach, like sometimes something good has to die in order for something new to come or that something can look dead but if you love it and nurture it, new life can come. I think they are just beautiful and bring so much literal life into a space. It’s also another thing to care for, like four kids, a husband, two dogs and a business isn’t enough!"

A Very Personal Gallery Wall

A tidy cocktail bar (LaToya's favorite cocktail at the moment is a Manhattan) shares space with this vibrant gallery wall full of special significance for the family. "One painting is actually an original self-portrait painted by Andrew’s grandfather Leonardo Tucciarone. He was a phenomenal artist. It’s one of our most prized possessions," says LaToya. "One of the photographs is my grandfather, Rhan Randall, from WWII and another photo is of my father, Richard Rose, who passed five years ago. Having those precious photos on the wall means the world to us and keeps our kids connected to the family they can no longer see. The other paintings are a collection of our travels or found pieces that really spoke to me. It is a deeply personal wall we love having in our home."

A Practical Solution

Older houses don't always come with a lot of closet space so LaToya has had to improvise. The family relies on vintage chifferobes throughout the house for storage. "That particular piece houses our jackets and other winter gear," says LaToya of the vintage wooden closet in the family's light-filled dining room.

Local Art

"The 'You are Worthy' piece is by local artist Kristen Ramsey," says LaToya. "We strategically placed it in the family room because that’s where the kids spend a good portion of their time. We wanted to make sure that was a message that was front and center in their lives."

Space for Entertaining

There are plenty of groupings of chairs and couches in LaToya's home for gatherings. "The house is rather large, to us, and my desire, when we bought it, was that none of it would go to waste. That we would use this house in its entirety for not only our family but our community."

Embrace the Eclectic

"I feel like my style is the definition of eclectic," says LaToya. "I’m looking at my bedroom right now, and I have vintage pieces from the early 1900s to woven baskets from Zambia, a chair from Nicaragua and modern art from Indigenous makers, all in one space!"

Home Goods

LaToya says that despite owning a home goods store, she doesn't fill her home with things from SustainAble Home Goods. " It’s actually a small percentage because I try to save the pieces for our customers. Though, it’s so hard to not have everything in my house! But, every time we travel and meet our artisan partners I bring something back special just for our home," she says. You can find the Zambian Tonga Winnowing Baskets on the wall, the black and white Nicaraguan Masaya Lounge Chair and the Rwandan Runda Honey Pot Basket with the plant next to the chair all at SustainAble Home Goods.

Old School

Finding the bedroom's matching vintage pieces in such perfect shape was a stroke of good luck. "I found the dresser and vanity on Facebook Marketplace, many moons ago when we first moved into this house. It fit the vibe of our bedroom perfectly. I absolutely love it," LaToya says.

Basket Wall

A design trend many homeowners are embracing: the basket wall. "The baskets on my wall are all handmade in Zambia," says LaToya. "They are woven out of palm leaves, twigs and recycled plastic."

Artisan Goods

One of the items sold in her SustainAble Home Goods shop at Atlanta's Ponce City Market is this Micaela Bean on the kitchen counter which LaToya calls one of her favorite pieces. "It was made by a woman named Macrina Mateo Martinez. Macrina lives in a region right outside of Oaxaca (Mexico). On our last trip to Oaxaca we got to meet Macrina, her sister and her aunt. She is an amazing artist whose passion is felt in every piece. Her pottery is not just about making pretty things but preservation of her Zapotec culture. It really is an honor to have one of her pieces in our home."

In the Mix

The '20s-era kitchen is a characteristic, idiosyncratic LaToya mix of global items from her world travels, farmhouse-style pieces, vintage objects and furniture, and a delicate, feminine light fixture to complement and complete the mix.

Vintage Minimal

LaToya wanted her bathroom to be a sanctuary while still reflecting her love of vintage. "When you have four kids, the bathroom may be the only place of calm you get!" she says.

Blue Mood

Though predominately white and off-white, LaToya's bathroom benefits from this lovely weathered blue table and the green of the plant. "For the bathroom, we wanted a clean spa-like feel. Our tub is the centerpiece so we wanted it to just feel calm as you soak," she says. "I love having everything in this neutral palette that then allows the green from the plants to really pop."

A Dose of Serenity

While the rest of the home is filled with colorful, crafty objects, the bathroom had a lovely, peaceful simplicity that affirms LaToya's use of the space as a retreat.

The Story a Home Tells

Asked about what story she thinks her Georgia home tells, LaToya says "I know this will sound cheesy, but I hope the story it tells is one of love. I always tell people to fill their homes with things and people they love and it will all come together. Sometimes we get so caught up in design principles and trends that we forget to simply bring things into our homes that make us smile or inspire us. Everything in my home for the most part is something I love and has a story. That is one of the reasons I started SustainAble because I wanted my customers to be able to bring stories home as well."