Courtney Hanig began her design career at Brunschwig & Fils in Boston, MA, before she relocated, with her family, to the suburbs of Chicago, IL. There, she opened her own design firm Courtney Hanig Interiors. As her clientele base grew, she started branching out to projects throughout the country. In 2015, she and her family moved again, this time to New Canaan, CT—and they loved the area. After an extensive search, she found the perfect house, which became their home. “We fell in love with the house,” says Hanig. The colonial architecture was reminiscent of Nantucket, a place Hanig’s family has been vacationing for decades. Hanig’s goal for the house was to take the predominantly white home and create a warm and inviting space for her family by adding color, texture, wallpaper, rugs and draperies. “I am drawn to fresh and bright colors that are impactful, but not overpowering,” she says. “My personal taste falls to blues and greens with pops of color in art, pillows and accessories.”
Hanig hired Wesley Stout Associates to landscape the entire front of the house and work on the back patio.
And Hanig’s design philosophy is all about thoughtful decorating. “Everything has a purpose and a job to do,” she says. “The fabrics, color, art and drapes all have to come together in a cohesive way. The term I use is ‘threading’—I thread things throughout a room and a house to create a unified flow.” Her eye for detail ensures a harmonious meeting of form, function and style to create spaces that are truly memorable.
The 11-foot island in the kitchen has four custom barstools. “I made the barstools with a swivel so we could pivot to easily see the big screen TV over the fireplace in the family room,” says Hanig.
The sitting room attached to the master bedroom is deemed the “serenity suite” and it’s everyone’s favorite.
When she works with clients, she suggests that they start by finding something they absolutely love—a rug, piece of art, an heirloom, or even their favorite color. By starting this way, it leads to a more personal end result.
She followed her own advice at home. For example: “My younger daughter chose this stunning navy and lavender Ikat for her headboards and the room evolved from there,” says Hanig.
The navy bedding and blanket in her older daughter’s room is Matouk. The pink ottoman was selected especially for Cooper (pictured) and Oliver, the family’s two corgis. 
The master bedroom and connected sitting room are all in Jane Churchill ivory linen fabric, while the ivory bedding is from Home Treasures.
For her older daughter’s room, Hanig started with a navy rug that her daughter chose. She then picked a warm, fun peony color to compliment it. “I used it on only one wall and repeated the pink on throw pillows and on the corgi-sized ottoman,” she says—which was made especially for their corgi, Cooper.
The breakfast nook has chunky green grasscloth wallpaper and simple white drapery is banded in aqua and green zebra fabric. 
The dining room has a
chocolate brown linen wrapped console; three Imari pieces from Found & Design in New Canaan; and mother of pearl boxes from England.
Her marriage between comfort and style extends to the dining room. “I believe that a successful dining room is both beautiful and so comfortable that guests want to linger for conversation and wine when dinner is over.”
The outdoor furniture is Kingsley Bate, the collection is Paris. 
One of her favorite spots in the house? The sun-drenched sitting room off the main bedroom. “I turned it into a relaxing retreat using ivory linen everywhere and adding pops of color with pillows,” says Hanig. “We call it the ‘serenity suite’ and it quickly became everyone’s favorite getaway spot.”
Photography by Jane Beiles
