As part of her hometown tour of Charlotte, North Carolina, interior designer Lisa Mende shares her favorite local sites and activities.
Wing Haven Garden & Bird Sanctuary
Wing Haven Garden & Bird Sanctuary is an iconic oasis in the heart of Charlotte and captures the history, the gardens, the bird habitat—it’s wonderful.
Mint Museum. Photo by Old South Studios
There is always something interesting going on at the Mint Museum on Randolph Road (another location is downtown, or Uptown, as some Charlotteans call it). André Leon Talley recently curated an Oscar de la Renta exhibit there, which was fantastic.
McGill Rose Garden. Photo by Jim Trice
The McGill Rose Garden is one of those hidden gems on the edge of NoDa, the arts district. It’s a tradition to stroll through the rose bushes (over 500!) on Mother’s Day.
Bechtler Musem of Modern Art. Photo by Daniel Coston Photography
The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art has an amazing and comprehensive collection of mid-20th-century art from the Bechtler family’s collection, which was donated to the city.
Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden
It is certainly worth the drive to visit the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden in nearby Belmont, North Carolina. It’s beautiful year-round, but my family loves going at Christmas when the lights are on display.
The McColl Center for Art + Innovation has an artist-in-residence program and introduces emerging artists in a wonderful neo–Gothic Revival building.
Produced and written by Alice Welsh Doyle | Photography by Anna Naphtali
