By KATE LESLIE

In the 1980s, a young Atlanta-based interior designer named Carole Weaks received the first of many memorable compliments to come her way.

“I was just starting out, and this woman came up to me and said, ‘You remind me so much of one of those ‘Designing Women,’” Weaks recalled Monday, two days after the passing of the television show’s leading lady, Dixie Carter.

Carter, 70, died Saturday after a battle with endometrial cancer, her publicist Steve Rohr has said. Married to veteran actor Hal Holbrook, she was best known for roles including her turn as strong-minded Atlanta designer Julia Sugarbaker on “Designing Women,” which aired from 1986 to 1993.

The ladies of “Designing Women” may not have pushed the envelope when it came to their aesthetic, which was based in classic Southern style, but the show was as significant for Atlanta’s design industry as it was enjoyable to watch, Weaks said.

“So many people thought of being a decorator or designer as a housewife’s hobby instead of a career,” she said. “They showed that you could earn a living and manage this as a business … and [Dixie Carter] was the glue that held that show together.”

Click here for more of this story from AccessAtlanta.com.

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