Fabric designer and industrial artist Mary Catherine Folmar hasn’t lived in her hometown of Athens, Alabama for years, but with family—and friends that are like family—still in the small town, she finds herself making the drive up I-65 often.
“This isn’t the house I grew up in, but it is still very much home,” says Mary Catherine Folmar of her mama’s house, a 1929 redbrick Georgian just off the Athens, Alabama downtown square where her grandparents used to live.
Longtime dairy farmers, Mary Catherine’s grandparents relocated to Athens after they retired from farm life, but they brought their quietly elegant way of life with them—something that Mary Catherine and her mom, Mary Nelle Clem, continue to hone and enjoy.
“My grandparents didn’t move into this house until I was in college, but it’s where I would find myself on weekends and holidays when I returned home,” Mary Catherine says. “It’s also where my husband, Tyler, and I had our wedding reception.”
It’s certainly an easy house to come home to—and it’s a festive venue for hosting both local get-togethers, book signings, and parties through Mary Catherine’s partnership with Lydia Menzies Supper Club. The house lends itself to outdoor entertaining on the front porch, lawn, and backyard—a recently landscaped addition by garden designer Troy Rhone.
Inside, Mary Nelle welcomes her daughter’s eye for keeping her style in the present through fresh takes on historical patterns, color, and a mix of furniture eras and styles both inherited, new, and sourced or thrifted, along with items from her mom’s former business, one of the first Colonial Williamsburg gift boutiques.
“Growing up, my mom introduced me to beautiful table settings, the allure of historical design—and especially a love of Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia,” says Mary Catherine of the place her family would visit often on vacation. Her mom’s talents, combined with her early introduction to the decorative arts, heavily influence Mary Catherine’s fabric and design business, Cotton & Quill, with many of her creations on display in Mary Nelle’s house.
Mary Catherine’s designs dress upholstery, window drapery, and walls through both custom designs and items she carries in her product lines. For instance, in the dining room, Mary Nelle asked her daughter for help with a mural. Taking cues from damaged wall panels she culled from the attic of an estate down the street, Mary Catherine nodded to the original paper’s historical scenes while customizing it with personal landmarks such as the church in Athens where she grew up.
In the kitchen, Mary Catherine replicated a wallpaper that hung in her grandparents’ home. Working from a tiny scrap (now framed) and a wedding photograph, she used her talents to bring the vintage paper back to life in a fresh way
Elsewhere in the house, cross-stitched samplers and needlepoints—some found, others half-completed until they fell into Mary Nelle’s hands—Staffordshire figurines, and an enviable china collection bring interest to cupboards, shelves, and walls. “Everything here has a story,” says Mary Catherine. “Some may be older than others, but everything has a narrative behind it.”
Mary Catherine Folmar | Cotton & Quill
In addition to fabric and wallpaper designs, Mary Catherine’s creative reach extends to tabletop items, topiary forms, caftans, still life cloches with found objects, and a collection of fabulous finds.
For more about her workshops, events, or products, visit cottonquill.com.
This story appears in the July/August 2026 issue of Birmingham Home & Garden. Subscribe here.
Resources
Interior Design: Mary Catherine Folmar Garden Design: Troy Rhone Florals: Matthew Jimmerson with Athen’s Florist
