Podcast - Louisville Custom Home Builder - Southern Living

Custom luxury home builder Jason Black of Artisan Signature Homes is back from the annual Southern Living Design Summit in Birmingham! Southern Living has grown into a brand itself. What started as a design magazine based out of Birmingham, Alabama 50 years ago has now branched out to inspire communities, hotels, and entire design collections.

The participants of the summit -- nearly 100 builders from the Southeastern United States -- were personally selected by Southern Living Magazine to sit down and share ideas for the future of homebuilding. “It’s a very exclusive club,” says Jason Black, adding magazine representatives investigated his references and financial documents, in addition to personally flying to Louisville for an interview, prior to inviting him to attend. Now he sits on the board of directors for the Southern Living custom home builder programs.  

One of the highlights of this year’s summit was a tour of the 2016 Southern Living “Idea House” designed by Bill Ingram that will be formally opening in June. Black reports that it wasn’t a huge house – 3,500 sq. ft. – but it had many of the “quintessential” Southern Living features, like a wrap-around porch on both sides. The house felt spacious with 11-foot ceilings on the first floor and windows so tall you could open them and walk through to the porch.

In celebration of the magazine’s 50-year anniversary, they asked five different interior designers to design a room with a modern take on the 1950s style. People who are interested in seeing the final result can see it from June through December 2016 in a town called Mt. Laurel – a walkable neighborhood much like Norton Commons. You can also get a sneak peek on Jason Black’s Instagram account (www.instagram.com/artisansignaturehomes).  

Jason Black also participated in a panel discussion on social media and how it can benefit builders. He fielded questions from audience members in front of 300-400 people, offering his personal experiences with social media, buyer trends and how to grow a social following. Black says he likes to post behind-the-scenes glimpses, polls on paint colors or stair runners, and offbeat angles. “Really get them engaged and involved,” he advises.

The Design Summit included partners like Marvin Windows and Doors, James Hardie, Lennox and Sherwin-Williams who were there to show off all the latest products. World renowned speakers like architect Bobby McAlpine passed down their generational wisdom to the group. “By talking to my peers and learning new ideas, I’m always anxious to get back home and implement some of the ideas that we’ve learned,” says Black.

Jason Black is also part of an even more exclusive group called the “Builder 10” that represent the most progressive builders who are currently setting the trends in Southern building. This think-tank meets in person once a year and holds monthly phone conferences to share ideas. In July, the group will visit Louisville to see Black’s work in Norton Commons and attend the last week of Homearama.

People who are interested in seeing the latest home building design trends in-person in Louisville can attend Homearama in July, which will include 26 furnished homes and represents “the biggest show that Louisville has ever had,” explains Black. “I’ve not heard of a home show having 26 houses in one location. I think they’ll sell a multi-day pass but, and the cool thing with Norton Commons is you can come, you can spend the day, you can go to the restaurants, you can shop and you can even, there’s a bed and breakfast. You can spend the night if you spend that long.”