After twelve weeks of designing, sourcing and ordering furniture, fabrics and window treatments we are now in the installation process of a unique and beautiful living room project.
One thing that’s unusual about the project is that the client, an active, style savvy grandmother, chose the best of the three design schemes I put together for her and didn’t change a thing. I was…am, completely thrilled.
above via ZSAZSABELLAGIO.blogspot
It’s
a formal living room that will be used for relaxation and to entertain guests. It is a
medium sized room, rather long, and with a low ceiling. It has one bay window at
the far end and another small window on the adjacent wall. Since the home sits
on property with lots of trees, the room tends to be a little dark during certain
times of the day. There were several wonderful, existing furniture pieces to
work around such as a large mahogany hutch and several accent tables. I also
requested that we keep a small loveseat she’d initially planned on getting rid
of, not only to protect the budget but also to keep things from being too
“matchy-matchy”.
above KELLY WEARSTLER
I
spend a lot of time on my fabric schemes and I’m particularly excited about the
ones we’ve chosen for this room. On the new sofa and armchair is a stunning,
high end, blue diamond-motif upholstery fabric. The fabric is hard to
describe. It has a kind of retro vibe with a gray-blue background. It falls
into the velvet family but it has cut outs around the diamond. The diamond
itself is in a slightly darker gray-blue. The fabric for the sofa and armchair
pillows is a pale, flesh-toned linen with a tan, green and blue, branch and
leaf motif. The pillows have tiny, dark teal blue welts that add a nice, crisp
contrast.
above via TOBIFAIRLEY.com
For
the slipcover for the existing loveseat I chose a sturdy yet light weight textured
fabric with the same colors: flesh tones, blues and other colors that pull
everything together without the busyness of a print. It’s considered a
multi-colored fabric and its predominant, background color is “flesh”. The
pillows for the loveseat are teal, the same fabric that’s on the welts of the
sofa/chair pillows but this time, the welt is the flesh toned, branch motif
linen.
above CINDY RINFRET
above CINDY RINFRET
Lastly,
the windows. There was no room in the alcove of the bay window to do any kind
of significant window treatment and since the bay is a focal point, I had to
come up with something striking… a kind of visual “anchor” for the room. We
opted for a box pleated valance which we mounted directly on the soffit above
in a beautiful, muted apricot cotton/linen blend. It has welts in the same
flesh toned, branch motif linen that’s on the sofa pillows and the loveseat
pillow welts. Under the bay valance, flanking the glass, are four simple, warm
white curtain panels mounted on concealed oval rods. They soften and blur the
dark lines of the window frames. There is also a matching valance right above
the smallest window. We mounted the valances high, so maximum light will be
allowed inside. For great energy efficiency and function, we installed high
quality but surprisingly affordable honeycomb shades with an “easy” raising and
lowering feature. No strings, and they virtually disappear when raised.
above via ELLE DECOR
In
a long room, especially one with a low ceiling I focus on space planning and
light first and foremost. In her floor plan option, I allowed for clear foot
traffic patterns with the largest seating (the sofa) along the wall rather than
across the room, while “floating” the new armchair beside the sofa, as a kind
of “mini-room divider”. I focused on
making sure there was plenty of seating (for entertaining those guests) by
keeping and utilizing the existing love seat. To allow maximum light, I kept
the window treatments off the glass as much as possible with the exception of
the warm white curtain panels. Their vertical lines also add needed visual
height which again, helps with that low ceiling.
above ELLE DECOR
Putting
together fabrics and color is less about function than space planning and light
control but it’s just as important. The various shades of blue, flesh tones and
touches of muted apricot are soft and comforting and go well with the wood
tones, paint and carpet already present in the room. I like to use a variety of
prints, solids and textures in my fabric schemes and manipulate them in ways
that are eye catching as well as practical and soothing.
above via DUSTJACKETATTIC.blogspot
After
the last items are delivered, I’ll rearrange all the furniture both new and
old, and place all her accessories. With the combination of striking new
fabrics, new seating, new slipcovers and older wood case goods, the results
will be smashing. The room will be warm and pulled together…
Ready for company.
above via DESIGN SPONGE
above via DOLLYLOVESPINK.flicker
above FLEAINGFRANCE.tumblr
Shiree’s Style File
Custom
design work through an interior designer takes time. Most of my products are built
in North Carolina and I allow eight to twelve weeks from the time of order to
the time it’s delivered to the client’s door. In mountainous areas,
a bit more time is required.
Floor
plans and fabrics can make or break a project. Keep traffic patterns clean and
simple and use the best designed fabrics the budget will allow.
To
gain visual height in a room with low ceilings, try mounting the window
treatments higher than usual. In this project we went almost to the ceiling.
Don’t
“fight” the shape of a room. Go with the flow by following what’s already
there: in long narrow rooms place the sofa on the longest wall and offset it
with a chair “floating” to the left or right as a visual room divider.
Never
buy all new furniture from one place in time. Mix it up with vintage, antiques and
other, complimentary styles for a more evolved look. This also makes it easier
to maintain a stylish look later “down the road”.
In
small to medium spaces, keep color and pattern schemes fairly simple. In this
project there are two main colors: gray-blue and muted apricot, and two main
patterns: diamond and branch/leaf.
Orange
and blue are opposites on the color wheel and are therefore “complimentary”.
Apricot is a version of orange and goes splendidly with various shades of blue.
above via NEST DECORATING
above via JOSS AND MAIN
above via AMY MEIER. com
above via HOMEBUNCH.com
