TRIED & TRUE
By Maria Masters; Photography by Chris Edwards
This article appeared in the May/June 2026 issue of Home Design & Decor’s Charlotte edition.
Designer Mary Margaret Underwood adds function and form to a classic country home.
The first time Winslow Galloway saw her current home in Concord, North Carolina, she knew it was the one. Set on forty acres of land, the house came with a horse barn, walking trails, and a pond—an idyllic place for a couple with three young, active children and their friends. “I had a vision of groups of kids coming over to swim,” says Galloway. “I knew we would use the property for more than just us.” The house itself, though, was less than picturesque. “There was a Western theme going on inside, with lots of wood accents and rock walls,” recalls Galloway. “It looked a little like Great Wolf Lodge.”
At first, the Galloways tried sprucing up the home on their own, with a few fresh coats of paint on the walls and trim, but in 2023, they turned to designer Mary Margaret Underwood for help. “She’s my cousin,” says Galloway, “and she’s also the best there is.” Galloway knew this from experience—she’d seen how Underwood had updated her great-grandfather’s historic Concord house without sacrificing its charm and character, and she knew Underwood would bring the same thoughtful approach to her own unique home.
With the help of architect Duffy-Magas + Associates, Underwood first set about reconfiguring the floor plan to add more definition to the space. “The [first floor] was almost too open,” says Underwood. “There was no place for your eye to land.” She started in the front of the home, where she added a wall to create a defined dining room, and took the kitchen down to the studs before adding a butler’s pantry to the space; a leather-studded swinging door leads from the pantry to the back entry hall. “We wanted to create spaces that added more warmth to the home,” says Underwood.
Hardwood floors run the length of the kitchen, which Underwood connected to the hearth room. “Everyone hangs out there,” says Galloway, “so it was important to create enough seating.” To that end, Underwood commissioned a custom-built sectional that could seat at least five people. To accommodate a natural drop in the ceiling, she also installed wooden beams in the Shou Sugi Ban–style—a Japanese technique of charring wood—along the length of the room. Underwood originally wanted to use a company to char the wood, but due to timeline constraints, she pivoted to her contractor, Josh Airheart of Reliable Woodworks, who did the work by hand. “It’s phenomenal,” Galloway says. “It made the biggest difference in the world.”
The renovations took a little under a year to complete, but the result was a traditional yet modern home with a timeless appeal. “I want the home I’m designing to be beautiful now and also beautiful in twenty years,” says Underwood. “I think it’s important to choose materials that will stand the test of time.”
“We really transformed the house into a much more useful space,” Underwood continues. The project was also close to her heart given that the Galloways are family. “They’re a gracious family who entertain often, and now, I think they can be really proud of sharing their home with others.”