Issue link: http://maconmagazine.uberflip.com/i/1547005
October/November 2026 | maconmagazine.com 83 ABOVE The primary bedroom exudes warmth with grasscloth walls. and care for. Michelle is a designer, but on a more fundamental level, she is a thinker who pays attention to details, history, and how spaces can create meaning and joy. The primary bedroom gently expresses this philosophy. Grasscloth wraps the walls in a warm, forgiving texture. Its irregularities invite the kind of analysis you might give clouds in the sky. Two Historic Macon Flea Market chairs angle toward the bed, designating a gathering space for the whole family. "If you were able to get a peek into our bedroom when there aren't people coming over, you'd find a whiteboard listing our individual 2026 goals on the fireplace mantel, a pile of half-read books about architecture, philanthropy, and business littering our nightstands, and multiple pairs of running shoes — Ethiel's, not mine — lining the hearth." More meaningful artifacts line the walls, including etchings of her great-grandfather's design of the house on the Storm King Art Center grounds. Although Michelle never met him, the artworks passed down from his collection have given her tangible ways to know him. A house built in 1858 both gives and takes; its longevity requires attention from many hands and inevitably serves more than one person. The Garlingtons understand themselves as part of this continuum. They are caretakers of its history while making highly intentional choices about its present and future. Historically, the Center Hall would've helped circulate air in the high heat of summer. It has since served many more functions. It is a gallery for multigenerational curation and "slow design," a racetrack for balance bikes, a temporary warehouse for a blossoming business, a passageway between bedrooms… Most recently, it served as a gathering place during Insider's Studio. Guests pulled chairs from the dining room into the hall as Erin Hawkins and Cara Heard of 478 Creatives moderated a conversation with Michelle and Emily. When asked to rapid-fire share her "greatest turnoff," Michelle said "ego." She understands that great creations are almost never the result of a single individuals' efforts. It is a gathering of minds, hands, and memories with each generation honoring the past and contributing toward the future. One of Michelle's most prized pieces of artwork now hangs in the dining room: a large-scale drawing by her Athens roommate, Ryan Roth. The piece is a sea of faces… a melting pot of friends, exes, colleagues, fellow artists, and those just passing through. It is the collective. The Center Hall runs straight through the heart of the Garlington home. So does everyone who came before. Architecture lovers should become a member of Historic Macon Foundation. Join today at historicmacon.org