To use a tired sports reference, everything has a Michael Jordan — a Tom Brady, a Babe Ruth, a GOAT (Greatest of All Time). No matter the industry, project, or sport, someone must be long-tenured and, ultimately, rise above the field as the absolute best. And when it comes to Dream Home interior design, Susan Semmelmann of Susan Semmelmann Interiors, is the GOAT.
Celebrating its 25th year of showcasing the industry’s top professionals with a one-of-a-kind home build and tour, the Fort Worth Magazine Dream Home has featured its fair share of talented local interior designers. But no one has put their special touch on the annual project more than Semmelmann. This year’s Dream Home, which is currently under construction in the West Fort Worth neighborhood of Montrachet, marks the seventh time the magazine has partnered with Semmelmann on one of these massive projects.
And there’s a reason this partnership has had such legs: The 25-year interior design veteran continues to deliver jaw-dropping design that raises the Dream Home standard again and again. Everything she touches has gone above and beyond what the magazine and its readers define as a success.
Not one to rest on her laurels, Semmelmann says she’s particularly excited about this year’s home, which readers, homebuyers, and curious onlookers can tour beginning this May. Partnering with builders Scott Sangalli and Brad Davidson of The Morrison Group, this house, Semmelmann explains, is unlike any Dream Home that’s come before.
“This home calls for something different,” Semmelmann says. “It’s very simplistic, but it also screams a statement. It’s one of the most simplistic designs we’ve done, but each room is a piece of art that isn’t overdone but well done.”
We recently caught up with Semmelmann to chat about this year’s project, what keeps bringing her back to Dream Home projects, and she even gives us a little design advice to boot.
FW: Past Dream Homes have been quite flashy — a lot of pizzazz, so to speak. I understand this one is going to be a little different.
Susan Semmelmann: It is. It’s very organic and swinging on the masculine side. We brought in the cognacs, the olives, and the creams, so everything is very warm. But its biggest difference is that it’s such a relaxed environment. It’s a kick-up-your-feet, we-want-you-to-stay sort of place. We want you to feel at home.
And I’ve been told, “You’ve got an organic glam to you.” And this one’s going to be more organic. Not organic glam, but an organic slam.
If you were to walk into a very high-end lodge that had a modern feel to it in Colorado or California or in the mountains, I think that’s what you’re going to feel when you walk in here.
FW: Is there anything specific, design-wise, that most excites you about this year’s Dream Home?
Semmelmann: There’s a phenomenal first impression: a massive bar to the right when you walk in. The home’s floor plan is very unique. I’ve never designed a home where one walks into the first great room to a massive bar, which steps down in the foundation and has counter-height barstools. But instead of barstools, we did dining chairs because you’re going to want to sit for a very long time. It’s designed for entertaining, and the great room is this huge space for gathering.
I’m also very excited about the master bedroom. We’re calling [the room’s palette] bourbon and bubbles because it’s done with cognacs and champagnes. We wanted to take the masculinity and warmth of the cognac and blend it with the elegance and the sparkle of the champagne without being sparkly. We’re calling it champagne, but it’s not sparkly because everything is organic. We’re doing a very textured approach.
And the bed is phenomenal; it’s tobacco-stained with hand-dyed leather and wonderful finishes. And the coffee table has an old weathered hide that is applied to the top of the table, but it has the city of Fort Worth on it.
But I’m honestly excited about all of it.
FW: This is now the fourth straight Dream project you’ve worked on with the magazine — and seven total. What keeps you coming back?
Semmelmann: It’s the mission-driven message: The spirit of living is in the giving. We love that we can go out and forge that path in our local community to give back to not only a Wish with Wings but also diving into our community with tremendous passion for what we do. For me, that’s why I would do it time and time again; it’s a platform to showcase what our God-given talents are. I think that we have a team, a very strategic team, that’s next level, and every single person on this team is united in the fact that we want to do the unknown. We want to do something different. We want to be progressive. We want to be innovative.
And we bring the highest level of energy, knowing that the bar gets higher and higher, and we have to outperform ourselves every single year. It’s the challenge we love.
We’re already thinking about 2026. What are we going to do? How are we going to be different from all previous years? And I really want different.
FW: Whether you’re applying them to the Dream Home or not, what are some current design trends that you’re seeing?
Semmelmann: I think we’re getting away from a lot of the straight lines; you’re seeing more curves. You’re seeing more flourishes with flowing lines. It’s lots of curves, lots of rounded and circular lines, and lots of abstract strings. In other words, when you look at art, nothing is very fixed anymore. The trends are moving away from the very straight square looks. And again, that’s a trend. Another trend is leaning into the merlot color. The tobacco colors are also making a comeback. And we’re doing a little bit of that in the Dream Home with the cognacs. People are no longer afraid of dark and moody. More and more people are getting away from white. So, white is something that we’re not really getting the demand for anymore. And I think it’s kind of had its turn.
FW: Well, I’m massively disappointed because everything that you said is out of fashion is what I have at my place.
Semmelmann: That’s just the nature of the beast. Hang in there another three years, and it’s back.
FW: Right. I remember your telling me gray was no longer in vogue a couple years ago, and I was like, “Oh, great. I just bought a gray couch. Cool.”
Semmelmann: Do not listen to that. So many people come in, and they go, “Oh, grays are out. Grays are out.” I do not believe that to be true. It is how you design with them. The market still loves the color. People are sometimes influenced by what other voices say, and I always say, “Stand up and stand for something, and be true to yourself.” Because I’ve got clients that do want it, and they’re scared of it because they’re hearing those voices telling them that it’s out. And let me tell you something, it’s not out. It’s how your designer applies it. And that is the key component to everything. Gray is a fundamental, natural color. Just like white. Just like cream. Just like black. They’re timeless. It just depends on the application that goes with it.
