Past meets present

Look inside one Tulsan’s carefully curated home.

STORY BY KENDALL BARROW • PHOTOS BY MICHELLE POLLARD

When Brooke Hamilton purchased this 2017 craftsman-style home in Brookside she was set on one thing: making it her own. Having lived with her mother, Claudia Hamilton, in a multi-generational home she describes as contemporary and elegant, the businesswoman was looking for something completely opposite of that.

“My previous home was very modern. ings I’d collected over the years or things my parents or grandmother had given me that I’d saved — there just wasn’t a place — it didn’t look appropriate in that minimal environment,” Hamilton says. “I really wanted something where I could show a lot of family, generational history.”

Hamilton is the third-generation president/ CEO of NPI — Nameplates Inc., a manufacturing and printing business started by her grandmother and eventually taken over by her mother before

Hamilton took the reins in 2016. “My dad was in the FBI and my grandfather was in World War II and I’ve taken all these relics and memorabilia and things I wanted to use to both honor them and also remind me of who I am and where I come from,” she says.

Hamilton knew she had a wide array of design styles within her collection — from country French, to modern, to historical photos and everything in-between. e trick was nding a way to make them all work under one roof. “I thought, ‘What kind of house are you going to be able to hang an old picture like that?’ It better be pretty funky.”

Inspired by her travels and stays in boutique hotels, Hamilton began envisioning her own oasis away from the o ce. “I love Tulsa. Tulsa is my place. So, when I’m not working, I want to feel like I’m on vacation,” she says. If the inside is meant to evoke the feel of a unique hotel experience, the backyard is Hamilton’s gateway to the beach. She added a plunge pool surrounded by tropical plants to complete her vision of paradise.

Since purchasing the home nearly two years ago, Hamilton has made virtually every surface her own. No longer white, the walls are either painted vibrant hues, covered in striking wallpapers or adorned with her vast art collection — sometimes all three.

Hamilton says she and her interior designer, Melissa Higgins, chose wallpapers rst and then pulled paint colors from them. “I found the oral in the entry rst and I loved it, and then I found the (tarot) cards. I needed a third pattern that coordinated so we chose the monkey print,” she says. “Everything had to be cheery and happy, but it also had to be sexy.” e home’s dining room is now repurposed as a lounge — Hamilton’s favorite spot. “Nobody uses their dining room or sits in it, but we use this room all the time,” she says. Whether it’s sipping her morning co ee, sharing a glass of wine with friends or playing cards, the room is a true re ection of Hamilton’s style. e room is appropriately adorned with a mix of sentimental and new items. e antique chandelier is one her mother purchased for her from Cisar-Holt, a former design showroom in Tulsa, and has been in every home Hamilton has lived in since. Atop a hutch sits a vintage sign recently purchased from Scout, a design store in Dallas. e hutch was the rst piece of furniture ever purchased for her rst home in 1994. Today it proudly displays a collection of barware — some bought by Hamilton, some inherited and some gifted from her mother’s wedding collection. While they no longer live under the same roof, Hamilton’s mother is not far away. She recently renovated the home directly behind Hamilton to suit her own needs. A gate connects the two properties, keeping the mother-daughter duo close yet still allowing for privacy. It’s a more manageable size than their previous compound, Hamilton says. “Small but mighty is where I’m headed,” she adds.

An avid proponent of the shop local initiative, Hamilton has purchased most of her art from local galleries M.A. Doran and Orth Contemporary, and frequently shops at Shoppe Sasha for pillows and accessories. Her massive art collection includes works by local artists Otto Duecker, Wendeline Matson, Jeanie Gooden, Matt Mo ett and the late Dana Gilpin to name a few. “I love to go to art auctions and buy things from Tulsa Girls Art School, and some things I’ve just picked up while traveling,” she says.

When Hamilton’s son ventures o to college this fall, she says she will spend the majority of her time living on the main oor, which includes the open-concept living and kitchen area, a primary and guest suite — which Hamilton has made her boudoir and utility areas. “Other than to go watch a movie, I’ll probably never go upstairs.”

While Hamilton designed the home to suit her needs and aesthetic, she says she hopes guests feel happy when they walk in the door. “You may not be sure what you’re looking at and you may not like it, but at least you’ve had an experience,” she says. “I like the unexpected.” TP