Residential design · Nashville, Tennessee

Homes that only
look effortless.

Nearly one hundred Nashville homes, designed by someone who has stood on the job site for every one of them. New construction, mid-century restoration, and the finishes in between.

Start a project See the work

Every element has to work together — or none of it does.

Trim, tile, electrical, plumbing, finishes. Most designers pick each one in isolation and hope. Natalie learned the other way around — inside residential construction, next to the trades — so the look that reads as effortless in a photograph is actually a hundred decisions that were made to agree with each other.

Fewer projects, chosen with intention. That is the whole business model.

100≈Nashville homes designed
1Designer, on every site
’50sMid-century, her specialty
0Homes that look alike
The approach

How a home comes together, one layer at a time.

01 — The shell

Start where the builder starts.

Floor plan, window openings, ceiling heights, door lines. Because Natalie came up through construction, the design conversation begins at framing — not after the drywall is up and the good options are gone.

02 — Tile & stone

Chosen with the plumber in the room.

Vertical-stack sage tile only looks right if the sconce, the mirror, and the valve all land on grout lines. That coordination happens in her head before it happens on your wall.

03 — The risk

One move that nobody else would make.

A pink speckled terrazzo running up every wall of a bath. A planter box where a structural post had to go. Every home gets one idea you will not find in any other house in Nashville — that is the point of hiring a designer.

04 — Millwork & color

Then paint the whole thing out.

Built-ins, trim, and walls in a single deep color read as architecture, not decoration. It is the last layer — and it is only convincing because the first three were made to carry it.

Selected work

Six rooms, six different answers.

Request the full portfolio
Primary bath with vertical sage tile, double round mirrors and brass sconcesPhoto slot · work-01

Sage & brass bath

New construction
Wet room in blush speckled terrazzo tile with a brass pendantPhoto slot · work-02

Terrazzo wet room

The risk
New-construction exterior at dusk, every window litPhoto slot · work-03

New build at dusk

New construction
Dining room with exposed walnut beams, brick fireplace and a brass starburst chandelierPhoto slot · work-04

Beamed dining room

Mid-century restoration
Open stair in blackened steel against an exposed brick wallPhoto slot · work-05

Brick & steel stair

Mid-century restoration
Living room wrapped in black cabinetry with a pale sectional on white oakPhoto slot · work-06

Black-clad living room

Whole home
Living Dining Former porch Planter box Structural post
A problem, solved

The post that became the feature.

A 1950s lake house with all the mid-century charm intact. When part of the porch was enclosed, the structure needed a new support — and it landed dead center in the dining room.

The ruleA structural post cannot move. Most plans just box it in and apologize.
The moveNatalie designed a built-in planter box around it, dividing living from dining the way a mid-century architect would have.
The resultA feature that feels original to the house — useful, period-correct, and unrepeatable anywhere else.
Natalie Mayes seated at her desk in front of a wall of deep teal built-in shelves Photo slot · Natalie portrait
Natalie

She has been redoing rooms since she was a kid.

Every few years, growing up, she asked her mom if she could redo her bedroom. The answer was always yes — one year that meant a cloud mural on every wall and a comforter to match. The instinct never changed; the tools did.

A few years ago she stepped into residential construction and learned how homes get built from the ground up, next to the subs and mentors who build them. Nearly a hundred Nashville homes later, she is still the designer who is on site, still learning the hard way when she has to, and still most excited by mid-century modern — the Frank Lloyd Wright and Palm Springs houses where the usual rules of new construction simply do not apply.

Next up: a mid-century project in the heart of Brentwood.

Named one of Nashville’s Rising Stars.
NashvilleVoyager Magazine, May 2026
Services

Four ways to work together.

New construction design

Full interior design for builders and homeowners, from framing walk-throughs to the final styled photograph. Finishes, fixtures, millwork, lighting plans, and the coordination that keeps them cohesive.

Learn more →

Mid-century restoration

Bringing 1950s–70s homes forward without erasing what made them worth saving. Structure-aware design for the quirks, the problems, and the opportunities they create.

Learn more →

Finish & material selection

Tile, stone, plumbing, hardware, paint, wallcovering. A complete, trade-ready selection package so nothing gets picked in isolation and nothing gets picked twice.

Learn more →

Styling for photography

The final layer for builders and listings: furnishing and styling a finished home so it photographs the way it was designed to.

Learn more →
The process

What working with Natalie looks like.

01

The conversation

A site visit or a call. Where the project is, what the house is asking for, and whether this is the right fit — for both of you.

02

The concept

One clear direction with the idea that makes this home unlike any other, priced and scoped before anything is ordered.

03

The selections

Every finish and fixture chosen together, checked against the trades, and delivered as a package your builder can actually use.

04

On site

Walk-throughs at framing, rough-in, and finish. Problems get solved in the room, not in an email three weeks later.

Client words

What people say afterward.

Placeholder — replace

“Sample quote from a homeowner about the design process and result.”

Homeowner · Neighborhood
Placeholder — replace

“Sample quote from a builder about coordination on site.”

Builder · Company
Placeholder — replace

“Sample quote about a mid-century restoration.”

Homeowner · Neighborhood
Start a project

Fewer projects. Greater intention. Maybe yours.

Natalie takes on a limited number of homes at a time so each one gets the whole of her attention. If you are building, restoring, or standing in a room that is not working yet, start here.

Send a note
Emailhello@nataliemayesdesign.com Phone(615) 000-0000 Instagram@natalie_mayes_design StudioNashville, Tennessee