Designing Mind

Palmetto native Anne Nelson has a degree in urban planning with a specialty in historic preservation as well as an interior design certificate from the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design. When she moved home in 2005, she opened an interior decorating business in the circa-1925 Jennings Arcade building on Old Main Street in downtown Bradenton.

Right now I’m: Working on a Gulf-front condominium on the northern tip of Longboat Key; it’s part of an old hotel that’s been converted into condos. My client wanted me to create a design plan that matched the outside landscape, but didn’t want it to look theme-y. I used shades of blue, tan, tangerine and green—and added a few whimsical pieces like fabric in a coral pattern. My home: My husband and I live in a 1925 Florida bungalow in Palmetto that I’d admired ever since I was a kid. We’ve gutted the whole thing, ripped out the kitchen and installed new wood floors downstairs. We still have the upstairs to renovate. Trends I like: Bright colors—raspberry, lemon, orange. Polka-dots are very big in pillows, on chairs, footstools, window treatments. For fall, more rust colors, terra cotta, moss green and copper. But my clients aren’t trendy. They want colors that make them feel comfortable in their homes. I love to shop at: Architectural Salvage in downtown Sarasota. I feel like I’m in a candy shop when I go there.