AT FIRST GLANCE, YOU MAY THINK ATLANTA-BASED INTERIOR DESIGN firm M.A. Interiors is named after owner and lead designer Meagan Avery Ludwig. But the name is actually an homage to Ludwig’s grandmother, Mary Agnes, who shares more than her initials with Ludwig. “I was named after my grandmother, whom everyone called M.A., but I never got a chance to meet her since she passed away before I was born,” Ludwig says. “She was from New Orleans, had a big personality and put a lot of emphasis on laughter. I’ve been told I’m her reincarnation, and I do like to have a lot of fun with my clients.”
Inspiration for her current career path runs through the generations of her family. She credits her passion for design and business to her father, who had a career in hotels and financing and always had a good design eye, according to Ludwig. She also remembers her early years in Dallas going to the fabric store with her mother when she was remodeling the family home. “I cut fabric samples, took them home, sketched furniture ideas and put it all together,” Ludwig says, laughing.
She completed undergraduate studies in business at the University of Georgia and graduate work at the Savannah College of Art and Design. She worked in design in Dallas, Savannah, and Park City, Utah, before moving to Atlanta. When Ludwig finished her studies and obtained a degree from SCAD, she immediately took a job with the college in her field, but she soon found herself wanting to work full-time as an interior designer. She moved to Park City with her husband in 2020 to make her dream a reality. “The day I started was the same day the world shut down because of COVID,” Ludwig says. Despite the difficulties navigating site visits and supply chain issues during that time, she managed to fall even further in love with interior design as she worked on many residential projects in the Mountain West. “I felt like I got five years of experience in just 18 months because of all of the homes I was designing for people moving to Park City from California,” she explains.
Ludwig opened her own studio, M.A. Interiors, in Atlanta in early 2023. Her time in Park City, where she worked closely with clients on imagining and installing clean-lined contemporary style into their homes, informs her current design projects in the Southeast. “The mountain modern style popular in the Mountain West is about an earthy, organic palette full of layers and textures,” she says. “There was not a traditional bone in my body, but when I came to Atlanta, I fell in love with antiques.”
Young, new homeowners gravitate toward Ludwig’s contemporary design style and lead-with-laughter ethos. It has become one of her differentiating points in the marketplace. Her skill at designing a whole home with a mix of high and low furnishings is appealing to the younger crowd, who also appreciate the mix of modern and vintage looks. “I enjoy introducing design to younger homeowners. I want to keep my designs down-to-earth and am willing to work with any size budget or install designs in phases so that they will work for all types of homeowners,” she says.
Although Ludwig revamps single rooms for some homeowners, her most recent project was the complete design of a 17,000-square-foot home. Another recent project, a home located in the Oakhurst neighborhood in nearby Decatur, began as a planned gut remodeling job that evolved into a new construction project after structural limitations surfaced. It was a chance for Ludwig to lead the young homeowners on a design expedition to discover how they could best implement their vision for the new home. The goal was to create a home that felt rooted in the historic neighborhood while reflecting the bold, vibrant personalities of the owners.
From the custom millwork details to the mix of saturated colors and unexpected material pairings, the home blends classic and contemporary in a way that feels both intentional and fresh. Key local vendors played a vital role in helping Ludwig achieve this vision, including contributions from European Kitchen & BathWorks, Clawhammer Carpentry, and High Country Drapery Designs. “The final result is a deeply personal, functional and joyful home that feels entirely at home in its eclectic, historic neighborhood,” Ludwig says. “The design includes bursts of color to match the vibrant personalities involved, such as the bright green kitchen cabinetry that feels fresh and energetic.”
Ludwig has experience in refreshing and reimagining bathrooms for clients in various parts of the country. One recent project focused on just that one room—a tired and outdated 2000s-era primary bathroom in need of a facelift. “The space was taken down to the studs and reimagined to maximize the existing space and include a larger and more luxurious primary closet,” Ludwig explains. “With high-end finishes and a serene, spa-like vibe, this new bath feels like stepping into one of Buckhead’s most exclusive retreats.” She also renovated two en suite bathrooms and a powder room and modified the layout of the main living areas in a Los Angeles condo nestled between Venice and Santa Monica. The refresh resulted in a laid-back, chic California retreat, with all design work and installation completed in under three months.
In another project, dubbed “The By Way,” Ludwig got a chance to practice her fusion of modern design in a Southeastern location. One of the first modern homes built in Atlanta, this home is special to Ludwig because the client allowed the entire design and construction team creative freedom to create what they envisioned as a warm, traveled and elevated space that reflected their interests and highlighted the home’s architectural features. Ludwig had custom furniture designed for each room and spent much time ensuring the detailed features in each space shone through the overall clean-lined aesthetic.
While Ludwig is skilled in designing newly constructed homes, she also can elevate existing homes with builder-grade finishes by using her design toolbox and knowledge of the appropriate wallcoverings, paint colors, window treatments and furniture styling needed to achieve a more upscale look. The results are interiors that are personalized to homeowners by incorporating family heirlooms and keepsakes while layering texture and color.
No matter the size of the project Ludwig is planning, designing or installing, what is most important to her is the happiness to be found in the project and working with each one of her clients. Above all, she wants to steer clear of the competitiveness and disagreement she has seen and experienced in other firms. “I have no ego in the process,” she says. “I want to have fun designing, and I expect my clients to feel the same. We all should be kind to each other and experience the joy in the project.” *
Dana W. Todd is a professional writer specializing in interior design, real estate, luxury homebuilding, landscape design, architecture and fine art.
