It has been a very busy month so far here in the studio, and next month will be even busier with upcoming projects. Unfortunately, the blog has suffered a bit, but I promise to get back on track very soon.
Today you are in for a treat! A room tour of a recent dining room project I completed for a family as part of a whole house project.
This couple actually attends my church, but I had never met them prior to the initial consultation (We will call them Mr. & Mrs. P). They had moved away for a few years and were returning to the Katy area, plus our church is pretty big and have several Sunday services and Bible study groups, so it is difficult to meet every member. They were referred to me by a Realtor that I do a lot of home staging for, who also attends our church. It is amazing how things come together sometimes 🙂
They had recently bought this beautiful new construction house and wanted to make it feel like home. Their kids are grown and have their own families, and they wanted a comfortable home for them when they are alone, for the grand kids when they come to visit, and for when they entertain. They host Bible studies and mentoring sessions for young couples about to get married, and newly weds in their home, so it also needed to be functional and be able to accommodate a large group of people.
I was so excited when I first met them and walked through the home. They were definitely one of the most easy-going couple ever! They valued and trusted my design expertise and opinions, and were very easy to work with.
The biggest challenge was to use as much of the pieces they already owned from their previous home. Some I was excited about, and some just had to go. They happened to have some beautiful antiques and family heirlooms that I was more than happy to incorporate into the finished spaces.
Here is where we started in the dining room
The dining room table and chairs and the two buffets (one not shown here) were passed down to Mr. P from his mother. They had been in his family for over 50 years. They were pretty dinged up and in rough shape. The legs were wobbly on some of the chairs, the leaf in the table didn’t work well and the finish was pretty uneven on all the pieces. They all needed to be repaired and refinished.
They both wanted to keep these pieces and I was happy to oblige. I love mixing old with new to give a room a more collected feel
Mrs. P wanted to keep the wall color, even though I would have preferred to paint, and she also wanted to keep the chandelier that I wanted to upgrade to something a bit more dressed up. I knew I could make them work so I decided to compromise on that.
This is the room now
Here’s what I did:
Refinished the existing furniture. The chair seats were also recovered in a beautiful teal fabric.
I brought in two skirted chairs to break up the look of all the wood in the room and to add some softness. I also brought in pillows to give the feeling of comfort and to add color
I brought in a large area rug that brings all the colors of the room together
The custom drapery was also a great way to soften the look of the room and add color to the beige walls. They also emphasize the high ceilings.
Mrs. P had a great collection of plates and dishes that she inherited and wanted a way to display them, so I brought in this beautiful china cabinet. It was cutting it close with the amount of space we had, but my client was ok with a tight space but being able to display her treasures
I brought in lots of accents and accessories to add personality
The above picture shows the wall across the hall from the dining room. Here I brought the same teal color as an accent to relate back to the dining room. This is the other antique buffet that we got refinished
This wall niche is located at the end of the hall by the dining room, so it had to be addressed as well. I painted it the same teal and added a custom Tableaux faux wrought iron panel to add interest. This niche is the focal point when you enter the home
Here is the dining room from another angle. I love these great lamps and the grouping of wall flowers. The wall flowers help to add the feeling of a less formal space. Mr. & Mrs. P did not want a formal space at all.
A closer look at the buffet here. You can see the marquetry and wood inlay detail. I just love the hardware as well.
Here I used some of the plates and bowls that Mrs. P owns to create an informal tablescape. I also added a faux orchid arrangement to add height to the table
The beautiful china cabinet that I absolutely love. The mirrored back adds some depth and multiplies the pieces inside
Another view of the vignette across the hall. It just might be my favorite
My clients love this space, and from all accounts, they have been using it quite a bit
Thanks for checking out my dining room tour, Hope you enjoyed stopping by!
Wishing You Beauty and Inspiration!
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