Home DecorBright & Eclectic Client’s Living Room August 31, 2016August has been a whirlwind, y’all. The end of summer is always crazy to me between taking the last few trips, gearing up for my favorite and busiest season, and getting back into a routine. But this year has been extra crazy. Some interesting and fun things have come up behind the scenes that are SO exciting and I’ll be able to share more in the coming month or two. So forgive my posting much less. I’ve missed y’all and posting regularly and am so excited to get back into my fall posting groove with lots of fun new content and some exciting announcements that will hopefully be very worth the little unintentional blogging breaks. Today I’m excited to share a recent client project with you guys. It’s something that I considered doing for years and have gotten requests, but the blog was always first, there wasn’t time, and I really wasn’t certain how I would like designing for other people. But over the last year, I’ve really started to see the need to connect with people locally when it comes to being creative and my work. I’ve had a blast so far! I’ve officially completed one of my first “real” design projects and have some more on the books for September. The goal of this design partnership was to tackle Vivian’s living and dining room. Vivian is creative and had an idea of what she wanted, but needed help seeing it through and choosing the right items. We were trying to infuse more of her personal style, get rid of some of the colors and fixtures that were already there when she purchased the house, and make it feel like her home. Today, we’re going to look at the plans we put together for the living room, but first, let’s take a look at the before’s. When you first come in the front door, this is your view. There’s a lovely fireplace against that back wall and some big windows that let in great light. But the sectional placement was really blocking this main room. Our first goal was to open up the layout and then to tackle all of the tan. The house was already painted when she moved in and then after purchasing a neutral couch, realized that this space was all tan and had none of her style. Another goal was to make the living and dining spaces distinct, but also flow together since they’re so open to each other. But more on the dining space in a coming post. The first order of business was choosing a new layout that worked well for the space. Pretty much everything in the living room didn’t stay except for the couch. It’s a new couch in great condition, so our idea was to make it work for now, but also have a plan that would work when she purchases a new couch. To make this space function better, we decided to move the sectional to the other side of the room. This way, you don’t come in the front door to the back of the couch and the view of the living room isn’t blocked. Our plan was to find two club chairs for this side of the space for now. Her ultimate goal down the road is to buy two streamlined sofas that would go on either end of the room and the chairs would then be centered across from the fireplace. But this plan really works great until she decides to do that. Now, let’s get down to the design plan. The room itself is still getting it’s finishing touches and I’ll be sure to show official before’s and after’s once it’s complete. First, we decided to lighten up the room by painting the walls Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace. That’s the white we have in our home and I love how bright it is without being cold. Then, it was time to layer on some goodness. Turn on your JavaScript to view content Smokey Floral Wallpaper | Blue Tufted Club Chairs | Dark Green Painted Mantel | Tan Couch (that she already had) | New Persian Rug from eBay | Mid-century Chandelier from West Elm (discontinued, sadly) | Wood and White Coffee Table Oh I just can’t stand the mix of all of these goodies. The rug with the green fireplace color with the wallpaper…it makes me want to redecorate our house! Our next plan was to make that fireplace wall really pop and be the focal point of the room. Vivian was sold on having floral wallpaper and y’all know I was so on board with that! We chose this Smokey Floral for the wall behind the fireplace. Y’all know I’m loving hunter green and so was Vivian. We painted her fireplace mantel Benjamin Moore’s Lafeyette Green. It’s a bit more of a truer green than what we’ve used at my house and has less blue in it. The pair of them together is gorgeous! The other main want that Vivian had was colorful persian rugs! A girl after my own heart, I tell ya. I found the gorgeous, big Persian from my favorite eBay seller for $320. Not bad at all for such a big rug that really makes a statement. And those blue tufted chairs get all the heart eyes from me! I’ve loved that chair forever and tried to find a place for it in this house. I love the lines of them, but the price is insane. For this project, the color against the rug and the green mantel is such a perfect, unexpected mix to me. We decided to change out the existing living room light for a small-scale chandelier that would make more of a statement since it’s a part of the main view from the door. I fell in love with this mid-century chandelier from West Elm and when I found it, it was 50% off! They’ve since discontinued it and it’s no longer on their website sadly. We got it one week before they took it down so that was a big win for this space! But I loved how it pulls a big of black from the wallpaper and the brass accents are just so pretty. The coffee table is one of my favorite parts. I love bringing in a wood element and even though it’s small here, it’s there. I just love the lines of the base and the price on this piece was a huge budget-saver too. Here’s a little glimpse of the pretty wallpaper and mantel combo that Vivian sent me the day it was completed: Oh this combo is just too good! I’m dying to see this whole room come together! While it seems like there’s a lot of color in here, it really is just a pop here and there with the white walls. We’re doing my favorite IKEA white curtains on the windows because they’re a huge budget-saver and we really wanted something that added a little texture and just blended with the room. That way these focal points we’ve created with the main furnishings really stand out. For the pillows and accessories, I decided to stay mainly neutral. In really determining what Vivian wanted, she wanted mainly neutral. She did want these few pops and most of the inspiration rooms she showed me had a major pop of color or two, but everything else was very neutral. Turn on your JavaScript to view content For the couch, I chose the blue plaid throw for the back of one side just to punch it up a bit. That view of the room will be all white on the walls. Then, I chose all neutral pillows, but with tons of texture to layer on top. For sectionals, I like having a big pillow on each end, a medium size in the very center and then layer some smaller ones around the others. It looks balanced without being too matchy. We stuck with black, white, and brass for the main accessories for the space. Turn on your JavaScript to view content These will go on the mantel and the coffee table. The more modern white end table will go between the two blue club chairs and the brass/marble floor lamp will go at the end of the sectional. These are all pretty and have awesome detail that will add to the room, but none will steal the show from the main statement-makers. The finishing touch is some art work. Remember this view from the before’s? The main focal wall is to our right in this picture and so far, that back wall that you see is painted white with white curtains. I decided it needed a little punch too. So, we’re going with this set of landscapes on each side of the window. Left Landscape | Right Landscape I love the symmetry of that and I also love that these are a bit unexpected. They are subtle, but still tie in to the colors of the space. They pull the green from the fireplace and the blue from the chairs, but what I especially love is that they tie in really well with the dining room. And they’re in the main view from the dining room. More on that space to come! Oh I can’t wait to see this space come together with all of the details and be able to share some after photos with you! I love how this one turned out and thankfully, the client is happy happy and finally feels at home in her space. Turn on your JavaScript to view content
Kristina says August 31, 2016 at 10:14 am I’m so so so excited you’re offering design services now! I always knew you would do a fantastic job! Great vision for this room. Can’t wait to see it come together! Reply
Rachel Winchester says August 31, 2016 at 10:30 am Love this! Have been missing your posts but excited to see these projects you do with clients. Her front door is so cute, and the wallpaper/green mantel combo is to die for! Can’t wait to see the final result! Reply
Austin says August 31, 2016 at 2:57 pm OMG Lindsay, this is STUNNING! I absolutely love what you’ve done here, especially the floral wallpaper with the bold fireplace! Swoon. Decorating question – just curious, does the floral wallpaper’s creamy shade being so close to white but not an exact of the Chantilly Lace bother you at all? I know “matching” isn’t everything, and sometimes it’s just boring, but I didn’t know if the difference in this case was actually annoying. Just wondering your thoughts! Reply
Shannon says September 1, 2016 at 12:07 pm Such a tease! I can’t wait to see the finished space!! Reply
Norma | The House that Will says September 1, 2016 at 2:46 pm That green against the wallpaper is gorgeous! I often wonder how it would be to design for someone else, and I love how this is true to your own design aesthetic while incorporating your client’s taste also. Can’t wait to see more! Reply
Kali Fox says September 13, 2016 at 8:13 pm Thanks for the ebay store tip! I’ve been looking for a killer Persian for my dining room. Absolutely digging all of this, you are seriously my style guru <3 Reply