This last reveal of 2021 is going to be a good one. Not only is it gorgeous and for one of the best clients ever (this is the THIRD project we’ve done together and I just ❤️ her so very much) but it’s a great example of a different kind of design “need.” Let me explain…
When I walked in on install day. I just had to stop and look around. I’ve been in this house plenty of times. I love this house. But as I stood there and looked around, just me and the dog, all I could think was how it was so very pretty as is. There was no huge offense that needed to be fixed or a “problem spot.” It’s a beautiful home for a beautiful family.
I’m not going to lie. I had to stand there for a minute and give myself a pep talk. Not because I wasn’t motivated or didn’t want to do it… but because for a minute I questioned if they even “needed” my help. And if we’re being honest, did they “need” me to create a beautiful home? No way! They accomplished that already. But what they needed now was that last layer to make it feel like home… to make it feel like their family… to really highlight the beauty they already had.
And that was exactly what I spent the day doing and it was oh so very fun!
Let's look at a few before and afters then dig into the details….
Real Need: They actually “needed” a new table because the old one broke but the rest of the furniture was absolutely perfect. We added these perfect chairs at ends of the table to dress it up (I need them for my dining room and I just may save up for them!) She also found the amazing coffee table that really fits the scale of the room and ties it in to the rest of the house.
Window treatments: Shutters are gorgeous and they can be all you need for a window treatment but my client wanted that extra layer of soft, creamy white drapes. They do so much… they soften the space, draw your attention to the high ceilings, add a layer of warmth and in this case by carefully positioning them, they also distract from a very off centered window wall. I bet you didn’t even notice in the before but my client had to look at it everyday and the drapes were an easy fix for that.
Accent lighting: There is no such thing as too many lamps in my opinion. I added FIVE in here. It sounds like a lot but it’s really 4 spaces and perfect.
- 2 matching short lamps in the built-ins lit those up and bright warmth and symmetry to those corners
- 1 perfect floor lamp not only swivels to accommodate different areas but adds light to the curtain area where we balanced they windows. This way you can’t see there’s not window behind there. Smart, huh?
- 1 amazing lamp in the foyer area to add height, light and that extra something in here. Adding the mirror also doubles the light! (bonus points for the mirror reflecting the office... the first room we tackled together!)
- And 1 teeny kitchen lamp because those make me very, very happy
And while we’re talking about lighting, I’m going to keep stressing this one. If you build a new house, put outlets in the living room floor. Are you hearing me yet? Just do it. Trust me. You’l thank me later!
Neutralize: I’m not opposed to color. Sure, I lean more toward neutrals (and all the black) in my own home, but I like to let the client’s space speak for itself. And in this spot it told me we needed to neutralize those pops of blue. When you have a large connecting space space like this, sometimes less is more in the terms of color. Now we still used a sprinkling of blue but the large pieces (i.e. the rug) were switched out for a more neutral option. It just grounds everything. And even better that my sweet client said she doubted herself on this coffee table until she saw it with the neutral rug!
Art: Open floor plans don’t allow for a lot of wall space so you have to be very strategic. It’s a balance between filling the space and overfilling the space so I opted for a a pair of frames in the dining area with tons of white space so they’re not too visually heavy but really make an impact. I think they’re really classy looking too! Then balanced it with a more abstract landscape, still with tons of white space to transition into the kitchen.
A mirror in the foyer plus relocating those white frames to other area was pretty much all we needed. We’ll address that huge wall next…
Scale: Let’s go back to that picture wall . She had a great idea to fill this spot up with their smiling faces and a great start but the frames were just much too small. Even if there were 20 of them, for the size of the wall it just didn’t add up so we replaced them with much larger frames in a much larger grid. She’ll pick the perfect pictures to fill them up with and the wall will be the best part of the house!
