It's Great To Be Home

Design Consult: Updated Traditional Living Room

Remember that Gnarly Giveaway from awhile back? The one where Stephanie B. won a custom design plan for the room of her choosing? Well, I’m super excited to show you the design plan for Stephanie’s fab new living room!!

Stephanie and her new hubby just moved into their home a little over a month ago, and Stephanie is itching to transform their living room into a casual space that is perfect place for this duo to either entertain or just kick back and watch a little TV. Here’s a quick peek at the “before” of Stephanie’s living room:

As you can see, there’s tons of great features to work with in this room. Gorgeous hardwoods, oodles of space (12 x 18!) and a big, beautiful window provide the perfect foundation for a top-to-bottom transformation. Keeping their budget and preference for traditional-yet-streamlined furnishings in mind, I created this cozy and casual oasis for our newlywed pair and their friends:

Since Stephanie and her hubby love calming tones in blues and greens, the jumping off point for this design plan is a pale, blue-grey wall color like Glidden’s Stargazer (available at Home Depot). The light wall color will instantly brighten the room, making up for a lack of overhead lighting. Complemented by clean-lined furnishings in deep chocolate wood tones, this custom plan is sure to provide Stephanie with the living room she’s been longing for. Here’s how it all breaks down:

Furniture. Stephanie was open to a slew of new furniture, but she wanted to make sure that any new pieces would last her and her hubby a good long while. Here’s the 411 on the snazzy (yet sturdy) pieces that make up her new living room.

Sofa. Stephanie has two great options for her comfy leather sectional. Simply removing a few sections to create a 3-seater sofa and adding a neutral beige slipcover like this will instantly (and cheaply) update the sectional and allow it to fit right into Stephanie’s new space. On the other hand, Stephanie could replace the sectional altogether with this gorgeous sofa in an easy-to-care-for microfiber. With rolled arms and sleek wooden legs, this sofa is the perfect combo of hip and traditional – and at under $500, it’s an absolute steal. Whether Stephanie chooses to slipcover her existing sectional or replace it with a new sofa, this piece will look amazing centered in front of the big window about 6 inches out from the wall (and radiator).
Side Tables. Stephanie and her hubby want to embrace modern decor, but their hearts still lie with traditional furnishings. Although they’re torn between two design styles, they don’t have to choose – these side tables have the clean lines of modern design but are constructed out of dark wood, a hallmark of traditional style. Flanking either side of the sofa, these side tables will ensure that a drink, book or remote is never out of arm’s reach. And the shelving underneath provides a great place for baskets like these that can be used to store magazines, Stephanie’s knitting supplies, or anything else the couple might want nearby.
Coffee Table. Stephanie is not a big fan if their current coffee table, a slate-covered piece her husband bought awhile back. This switcheroo is a no-brainer – the coffee table has a sturdy surface that the couple’s guests can feel free to put their feet on, and the slatted shelf underneath the table top gives Stephanie great additional storage.
Media Cabinet. Stephanie and her husband are planning on buying a flat screen TV later this year, which will look dynamite on this chocolate media cabinet. The glass-front cabinets are perfect for storing DVDs, and the center console is just the right size for a DVR or cable box. The long wall across from the sofa and the window is the ideal place for the media cabinet, giving the couple a perfect view of the TV.
Console Table. Stephanie already owns a great console table that she currently uses as a mail center – as it is in a natural location near the stairs, the console table’s going to stay where it is. It’s deep wood-tones complement the furniture that’s being added to the space, so it will fit right in with all of the new goodies.
Slipcovered Chairs. Since this room is used both for lounging and entertaining, extra seating is a must. These chairs, slipcovered in bright white, will be awesome placed on an angle on either side of the media cabinet. The rounded back and arms are cozy and inviting, and the slipcovers couldn’t be easier to clean. The bright white of these chairs will really pop against the pale blue walls and contrast nicely against the dark wood tones of the media cabinet.

Here’s a quick look at the updated layout of Stephanie’s living room:

Rug. Stephanie was dying for a rug, and this 8 x 10 stunner is an ideal complement to the new design of Stephanie’s living room. This whimsical beauty is reminiscent of traditional floral patterns but is updated with a bold, graphic design – perfect for this young couple. The grey-blue tones in the pattern will play off of the new wall color, while the amber and bronze tones will look amazing with the honey-colored floors and chocolate wooden furniture.

Lighting. This room has no overhead lighting and very little natural light, so lighting plays a big part in this design plan. Stephanie’s existing silver floor lamp with the beige shade will go behind the slipcovered chair by the fireplace, creating a cozy reading nook. These unique, glass bubble lamps will give the room a hint of shine, and will look perfect on top of the new side tables. I’m in love with this hammered silver lamp, which will brighten up the mail center by the stairs – like the glass bubble lamps, this silver lamp will sparkle oh-so-nicely. Finally, this awesome star light is a fun, quirky addition to the room, and will add a touch of interest on top of the media cabinet – its shape also mimics the graphic pattern on the rug, tying things together in a subtle way.

Curtains. While the room already has a set of blue curtains, the existing curtains are rather flimsy-looking and aren’t quite the right shade to work with Stephanie’s new color palette. These luxurious dupioni silk drapes will add a touch of formality to the room without being too stuffy. And since they’re on an awesome sale, Stephanie should be sure to snatch these 50 x 84 panels up fast! And these curtains will look amazing with the woven wooden blinds that are currently dressing the window.

Artwork. Stephanie currently has a colorful print of the Venice canals in the space, which will look fabulous to the left of the front door in the empty space between the front door and the curtains. This print and this print (both by Van Gogh) will be hung in dark frames above each armchair, on the left and right of the media cabinet. Each print adds touches of color to the space, and ties in nicely with Stephanie’s existing artwork.

Fireplace. Stephanie has a gorgeous fireplace – it will tie into the room beautifully just by painting over the red brick with a neutral beige, and spray painting the fireplace surround with a coat of glossy silver paint. (Here’s a quick tutorial on how to spray paint a fireplace surround). Now that the fireplace has been transformed, these three starburst mirrors will be a stunning focal point over the fireplace. Hung in a staggered, vertical pattern, these mirrors subtly mimic the graphic star/floral pattern that is repeated throughout the space.

Accessories. Two of these sky blue mosaic pillows will look amazing in the slipcovered chairs, and provide a quick hit of blue that will connect the chairs with the rest of the room. By adding two of these gorgeous, white pleated pillows to the sofa, these pillows will mirror the white of the slipcovers across the room. Subtle hints of white around the room, like with these bud vases, will keep the eye moving around the room. A shaggy green fern to the right of the fireplace will add a welcome touch of nature. Finally, the area to the right of the front door is begging to become a pulled-together mini-mudroom. By adding two pairs of these twig-inspired key hooks high above the magazine rack from Stephanie’s grandmother, Stephanie will have the perfect place to hang her purse and toss her shoes after a long day at work.

So there you have it – Stephanie’s fabulous new living room!!!! I hope you all love it (especially Stephanie!). And if you have a room in your house that is begging for a little TLC, just click here for a little design advice of your very own.

Paint By Numbers

Hey there all you paint-happy people! After our renovation was featured last weekend on Young House Love I got bunches of emails from you guys asking about the paint colors that we used, so I decided it’s high time for me to finally spill the paint-covered beans. So hold onto your paint stirrers ’cause here we go!

1. What brand of paint did you use? Our original plan was to use Behr from Home Depot, simply because that’s what we’re familiar with (and there’s a Home Depot about an inch from our house). But it turns out that painters in our area recommend Pittsburgh Paints like it’s going out of style, so we went ahead and gave them a whirl. Turned out pretty darn well, if you ask me!! The coverage is awesome (not too runny or thin) and they have tons of awesome shades to pick from. (My personal favorite is Toasted Almond, but more about that later).

2. Did you use all latex, or did you use some oil-based? We actually used a little bit of both. All of our drywall was painted with a flat latex paint – flat because I typically think shiny walls are a big no-no and latex because the cleanup is so easy, the paint dries in a snap, fumes aren’t as bad and drywall typically doesn’t need the tough finish that oil-based paints provide. However, all of the wood surfaces in our house were painted with an oil-based semi-gloss paint that is super-tough and dries super-smooth. When you’re dealing with wood surfaces like trim or cabinets that are really smooth, you want a paint like an oil-based that will dry without any streaks or brush marks or else all of your hard work will wind up looking kinda funky. Oil-based paint also adheres really well to wood so it helps prevent all of your nice woodwork from getting scratched and nicked over time. And we used a semi-gloss because I love it when wood has a subtle sheen – it makes your woodwork stand out and get the appreciation it deserves.

We wound up going through tons of that oil-based semi-gloss on all of our molding, doors and cabinetry throughout the house, as well as the wood paneling in our den:

3. How did you decide what paint colors to use? Ahh, picking paint colors. I was tempted to fib a little and tell you that it was easy breezy picking colors for this house, but let me tell you – it wasn’t. At first I was all gung-ho about the thought of picking out colors for each room – I got out our trusty paint deck each night after work, picked out colors and discussed the pros and cons of each color with my husband. We had the entire house picked out in no time. And then it came time to actually commit to the colors. And I freaked out.

How was I supposed to pick out paint colors for an entire house when I couldn’t even look at our furniture or bedding to figure out which paint colors would look best with our stuff?? That’s right, all of our stuff was still in storage when it came time to paint – talk about scary! So after I freaked out a little, my mom and I went to the paint store and picked up a whole bunch of those little pint samples of the paint colors that we liked and went to town – I swear, our house must have looked like a disgruntled painters’ union ran through it. But in the end, that’s the best thing we could have done – spending just a little money on those samples saved us a ton of money in the long run because as great as those paint decks are they can never really tell you exactly what the paint is going to look like on your wall. So here’s my earth-shattering tip that we all know but try to ignore – try it out before you buy it! And as an added bonus, you’ll have all of those little paint samples left over for touch-ups or DIY projects down the road.

4. What colors did you use? After all the drama of picking the paint colors was over, we wound up with paint colors that we absolutely love. Some of them I know I’ll use in my house forever. Here’s the list:

LOCATION PAINT COLOR/TYPE

Trim, cabinets, den walls Atrium White, 523-1 (oil; semi-gloss)

Office Balsam, 510-4 (flat latex)

Entry Toasted Almond, 414-3 (flat latex)

Dining Toasted Almond, 414-3 (flat latex)

Kitchen Toasted Almond, 414-3 (flat latex)

Craft Room Graceful, 452-3 (flat latex)

Laundry Bathroom Subtle Blue, 452-1 (flat latex)

Laundry Subtle Blue, 452-1 (flat latex)

Hallway Antique White, 516-2 (flat latex)

Second Bedroom Tradewinds, 453-2 (flat latex)

Third Bedroom Antique White, 516-2 (flat latex)

Jack & Jill Bathroom White Sage, 410-2 (flat latex)

Master Bedroom Toasted Almond, 414-3 (flat latex)

Master Bathroom Toasted Almond, 414-3 (flat latex)

All closets Ceiling White

All ceilings (except den) Ceiling White

Den ceiling Atrium White, 523-1 (flat latex)

Hall Bathroom Felicity, 453-3 (flat latex)

You can see most of the colors in action right here (and the rest are coming soon). But for those of you that need instant gratification, here’s a quick visual breakdown of our colors:

[Keep in mind that these colors are only as accurate as your computer monitor. On my screen, the Jack 'n Jill bath looks blue when it's actually green. Weird.]

Here’s a little floorplan of our house so you can visualize where the colors go:

5. Do you like all of the colors that you picked? Yes. Toasted Almond and Atrium White are my total faves – they are glorious. However, if I were to do it all over again I would not pick so many shades of the same colors. At the time I thought that it was important for each room to be slightly different so that the house wouldn’t feel monotonous, but in the end I basically wound up picking the same colors over and over again. It turns out that I like blues, greens and tans and they all work in the house so there was no point in me trying to reinvent the wheel for each room – next time I will just pick a shade of each color and stick with it.

So that’s it! The paint colors for my whole house in a nutshell. What do you think? Has picking paint colors driven you batty? Any tips for picking the perfect shade??

Check out Apartment Therapy for a few tips on choosing paint colors for your home from Farrow & Ball.