Joanna Goddard, Cup of Jo

Painter Rachel Stuart-Haas is not afraid of color. Her large-scale paintings are splashed with rainbow hues, and her home reflects the colors of the ocean. Even her son Liam has red hair. "I have no idea where that came from, but I love it," she laughs. Let's peek inside...

Tell us about your neighborhood.
We live in Shreveport, Louisiana. A ton of movies have been made here. We mostly get Jessica Simpson and Jack Black. You'll go to Target and run into shoots. It's surreal.

Are you originally from Shreveport?
My husband and I grew up here. We were high-school sweethearts.

What inspired the colors in your home?
We vacation a lot in the Caribbean, and I'm so relaxed there, so I wanted to evoke those colors. I did green in the nursery, coral in the living room and turquoise in our bedroom. It's a theme without being too cheesy. No floating fish!
The rug is from Lowe's. The apple pillow is from Ruth's Crafts.

Were you nervous to try such bold colors?
At first, I wondered if I'd have panic attacks every time we walked in the house, but I ended up loving it. My dad says you can't be depressed in here! Hell, it's just paint; if it looked horrible, we'd paint over.

Where do you spend time as a family?
Mostly in the living room. Two big French doors lead onto the porch, and we open them up. It gets miserably hot in Lousiana, but it's nice at night.

Since Liam's nursery is right off the living room, do you have to be really quiet at night?
We put a fan next to his crib to block out the noise. We love to have a glass of wine and watch TV.

Which shows do you like?
I got really addicted to Lost when I was pregnant. I rented the first three seasons and watched them around the clock for two days. But Season 4 hadn't been released yet on DVD, so I got on the computer and found a Japanese website. I didn't understand the language and it was so blurry, but I could figure out what was going on. I felt like a crack addict.

Is that your painting?
Yes, I sell my paintings in galleries in Kansas City, Dallas, Houston, Shreveport, and Oxford, Mississippi. I've painted much less since Liam was born. He goes down at 7, so I try to do it at night but it's hard.

How did you decide on this specific green for the nursery?
The green goes well with his red hair. I've deemed green his favorite color whether he likes it or not. I'm sure when he gets older he'll be like, "Screw you, Mom, I like black," but for now he's putty in my hands!

Where did you get that awesome rug?
Target, of all places. I looked forever for a rug and finally did a double take in Target.
The woven basket is from World Market.

What about the glider and ottoman?
They were originally from Walmart. My sister gave them to me. People just give you things when you have a baby. It's this cosmic free-for-all.

What's Liam into?
Saying no. Everything you ask him is, nooooo!

That's hilarious.
Yeah, he has lots of toys but has no interest in them. He likes pots and pans, remote controls, old-school headphones, my cell phone...

The turquoise seems energizing. Is it hard to sleep in here?
I'm not the best person to ask, since I've always been a huge insomniac. In feng shui, you're supposed to paint your bedroom the color of your favorite dessert, like chocolate, to make it sensual. Regardless, it could be lavender and I'd still be like, I can't sleep.

The lanterns add a nice pop to the room.
My friend gave them to me as a birthday present. They're silk and really nice.

What advice do you have for new decorators?
Paint your furniture. It's an inexpensive, quick way to transform something. And don't worry if your home isn't perfect. I like homes that look natural, and I can't stand houses that look like hotels. In the same way, I like people with chipped nail polish; it's as if their life is so cool, they don't have time to think about it.

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