Architectural Digest | Laura W. Jenkins
Tour a Lush and Moody Atlanta Home With Japandi Design Influences
To say that Katarina Johnson Vranicar and Paul Vranicar threw themselves into gardening during the pandemic would be an understatement. Drawing from their travels, the iconic work of landscape designer Piet Oudolf, and other influences, the Atlanta-based couple transformed a half-acre yard into a “place that started to feel like us—creative, inspiring, and connected to things we love like nature and art,” Katarina says. “It felt like a place for our kids to find magic in.”
As the Vranicars delighted over their garden project, the home itself was giving them pause. Paul, who calls the house a “Home Depot Craftsman,” bought the speculatively built residence out of foreclosure in 2008. Come the pandemic, the windows had unanimously failed, and the kitchen would flood from rain entering through rotten patio doors. He and Katarina were long aware of the house’s lesser flaws, such as a bottleneck-prone kitchen layout, and the couple had even gone into contract on a house in one of Atlanta’s more historic neighborhoods. But ultimately they stayed put, or as Paul phrased the decision, “I can do a major renovation here; I’m not sure I can do another yard project.”
