From her impressive collection of chinoiserie vases to rooms designed for gathering, interior designer Charlotte Staton is the queen of Southern living. Here’s a tour of her home.

Quick background: Staton and her husband bought their house in Concord two years ago. When they bought it, Staton knew it had “good bones” but needed some TLC. They knocked down a few small walls in the kitchen area, but didn’t do much in terms of changing the footprint of the house.

“We did everything on quite the budget,” Staton said. “I do not have the same financial freedom as my clients.”

Most of the work has been cosmetic, and is an encouraging example of just how far paint, lighting, and accessories go.

Here’s a peek at before:

At 3,700 square feet, the house has 4 bedrooms and 3 full and 2 half baths.

The 1924 brick Georgian was, er, a little overdressed and painted with dated colors. Staton chose a lighter, fresher color palette to fit her timely, effervescent style.

Staton prefers to keep the base of designs (walls, major furniture pieces, etc.) neutral and then pepper in color with wallpaper, art, and other accents.

“It’s very much like your closet,” she said of her approach, “spend on the neutral foundational pieces, pepper in trends, color, and art as you can.”

Style: Staton’s home is filled with art, from big names like Slim Aarons to local legends like Windy O’Connor. She also loves vintage treasures from thrift stores in places like Charleston.

Staton uses a lot of neutrals and anchors every room with a touch of black. She leans toward “girly pinks”and greens and blues —neutrals in her opinion —for color.

Mix it up: One of the biggest designer tricks Staton suggests is mixing metal. Right now she loves polished nickel and brass. The nickel is classic and brass is more modern and trendy. The combination makes any room look more elevated and designer.

Shops: Slate, OMG Adrienne (rugs), High Cotton Home, Restoration Hardware, and “I definitely tear up a Home Goods when necessary.”

Budget tricks: Shopping high and low is one of the best ways to achieve a high-end look Staton said. For example, some of her ginger jars are from Home Goods and others are antique finds — you’d never know which are the cheap ones.

You can also get creative with paint, lighting, and hardware to achieve the look you want. Her kitchen is the best example of this. She painted the existing cabinets, added new pulls, and had a friend create a range hood cover to mimic the look of a fully custom hood (which are $3,000+).

Built for entertaining: The rooms are surprisingly large for a house that’s nearly 100 years old, which is a good thing given Staton’s dining table alone seats 10 to 12 people.

The smallest room in the house, the whiskey lounge, is usually the most visited though. It has a small sofa, bar, built-in shelving, and some stools. Staton painted it navy for a sophisticated, masculine flair.

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Curious about what other people’s homes look like? Treat yourself to another home tour: You can rent this tiny house in Rock Hill for $199 a night, See inside SouthPark’s most colorful home, Real estate agent turns Madison Park fixer upper into entertainer’s oasis, Couple transforms sentimental Oaklawn Park ranch to bohemian bungalow