The Design Team Building Character

Exclusive scenes and details from the team’s collaborative cottage masterpiece.

By
Lacey Howard
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The ‘Fren-glish Cottage’ project perfectly captures the design chemistry between the team. Architect Jeremy Corkern framed the home with classic, historic proportions, creating a timeless canvas for the interiors. Designer Anna Harris then brought old-world elegance to the space. Hand-crafted, curated, and seamlessly executed alongside builder Brooks Harris, it’s a masterclass in combining historic character with soulful, everyday living. // Photography by: Laurey Glenn , Styling by: Kathleen Varner

The Power of Architectural Mentorship

Anna Harris

Architect Jeremy Corkern and designer Anna Harris continue to collaborate on beautiful homes. It was architectural greats A. Hays Town and Bobby McAlpine who nurtured Jeremy’s love of creating beautiful homes. And today Jeremy is that mentor and generous encourager for Anna. “She is a dynamo,” he says.

An Unconventional Path to Interior Design

Anna explains that she didn’t study design in school but instead earned a communications degree from Auburn. “But as a child I was always looking through my mom’s Southern Living magazines and compiling my ‘dream home. I should have known!”

It was Brooks, a residential designer, who “brought design back to me,” Anna says. “We were always building and then moving, so I was learning a lot from him. And I was helping friends with their homes, so I was getting more hands-on experience.”

The powder room may be tiny, but “it gets a lot of praise,” Anna says. Sanderson wallpaper wraps the space, and an 18th-century Louis XVI mirror hangs above a vanity from Fixtures and Finishes.
Anna’s inspiration files included an image of antiqued mirrored doors similar to the ones she and Jeremy replicated in the primary bath. His-and-hers vanities flank a closet door. The bathroom floor is Calacatta Gold marble tiles.

Claiming the Title of Designer

Jeremy also played a pivotal role when he convinced her to claim the title of designer. “I thought if someone of his caliber is telling me to do something, I should listen!” says Anna. With Jeremy’s encouragement, she enrolled in a course at New York Institute of Art and Design, and her business continued to grow.

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The primary bedroom’s headboard and drapery panels are from designer Kathy Harris. Anna added a French chandelier from A.Tyner Antiques in Atlanta and a wool geometric rug.
Purposeful layouts and materials welcome the high-traffic energy of the Harrises, their two teens, and their French bulldogs, Louis and Lola, proving that old-world elegance and active family living can coexist perfectly.

The Core Motivation

For Jeremy, a longtime Birmingham star who splits his time between The Magic City and New Orleans, how his clients experience a home is his motivation. “I love to create happy spaces,” he says. “And I like to work with energetic people.” With the Harrises’ home, he got to do both.

In the keeping room, a 14-foot-long, custom-built sofa and a custom oval table crafted in antique wood from South Carolina anchor the space. A painting by Atlanta artist Lee Jones Brooks fronts the window behind it.

Loved This Home Tour?

See more exclusive pictures of the Fren-glish cottage designed and built by the team.

HERE

Resources

Interior design: Anna Harris Interiors; Architect: Jeremy Corkern Studio; Builder: Brooks Harris; Landscape design: Falkner Gardens.

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