I am so excited about today’s room tour! Reader Anne enlisted the help of my lovely and super-talented friend Lauren (who is due with her third baby any second now!) for some eDecorating advice. I LOVE how these two collaborated to make Anne’s home bright and cheery and polished. It’s a nice mix of modern and traditional and I think they did a beautiful job of putting money where it counted. Here’s Anne…
Being a graphic designer is a blessing when it comes to creating a look on paper, but translating our style into home decor proved to be, well, challenging.
So when I stumbled across Lauren Liess from Pure Style Home, I knew I wanted her to help me. With a brief over-the-phone consultation, she was able to give me direction on the larger paralyzing decisions…like “Buy something modern for the second buffet,” or “Fill this wall to the ceiling with art.” She’s a genius!
I then spent the next ten months collecting furniture and art (Lauren also helped us with our master bedroom) and putting the pieces together to create a look that truly reflected our style. My husband is traditional and I like a bit of quirk. Voila!
When we started this transformation, many of the larger items were in place, but the rooms felt unfinished and off balance. Lauren’s advice to create symmetry (around the picture window and couch) and filling the space with ‘pretties’ proved to be the key to making it feel cozy and inviting.
My husband was afraid that filling the walls with art would make the space feel smaller, but in fact your eye is now drawn up and around the rooms, creating the illusion of more space.
And adopting the mindset that ‘it might get broken, but it’s worth having out and not hidden for the next ten years’ helped with creating table tops suitable for a toddler (we have since moved the cactus-ha!). As long as we have a few things out that our two year old son can touch, he is happy to leave the breakables alone.
Another key piece to pulling things together was a color ‘theme’. I wanted the rooms to connect, but I didn’t want to be matchy-matchy. The pillow on the sofa (which I just LOVE) was a gift from missionary friends in Bosnia and it became my ‘go to’ when I was tempted to purchase something. If it didn’t jive with the pillow … I had to pass.
The conversation starter in the room is definitely the large black and white image in the dining room. It’s an image of my dad as a boy and we just love it! I sat for months on the couch wondering what do with that space and now having it filled with a little piece of family history is a treat.
In fact, if you look around, animals play a theme in most of the vignettes. A happy accident I guess, but we love the subtle ‘lodge’ feel.
Well, there you have it. Our living and dining rooms. Thanks for looking!
I will list sources below.
All images by amymajorsphotography.com
P.S. I added a photo of our nursery here too. It was finished when I spoke with Lauren and I told her ‘THIS is our style’. Amazing how nesting will kick you into gear to get a nursery ready while the rest of the house sits undone. :)
Resources:
Sofa – Ethan Allen
Rug – West Elm
Drapery – JCPenny
Club Chairs – Thrifted
Round End Table – Overstock
Campaign Side Table – Urban Outfitters
Three Drawer End Table – Antique
Coffee Table – Overstock
Lamps – Target/JCPenny
Living Room Art – Collected over the years
Sofa Pillow – Bosnian rug turned pillow (gift)
Pink Throws – West Elm
Coffee Table Baskets – Target
Coffee Table Tray – Target
Elephant – Thrifted
Floor Lamp – Antique
Chandelier – Antique
Dining Table – Thrifted
Dining Chairs – Ikea
Wood Buffet – Antique
White Buffet – Ikea
Buffet Lamps – JCPenny base with Target shades
Books – Thrifted
Art – Collected over the years
Large Print – Photo printed at Canvas On Demand
Vases – Thrifted
Dog – Thrifted
Buffet Tray – Target
Bar Glasses – Williams-Sonoma
Silver Cheese Server – Thrifted
Cigar Boxes – Local Cigar Shop
Is the large photo printed on canvas? How is that mounted, hung? It looks really, really super.
OBSESSSSSEEDDDDDDDDD. traditional quirky is definitely my favorite style around.
Fab! I absolutely love it. My partner and I struggle to merge our traditional/eclectic styles too so this is the perfect source of inspiration for me. Thank you for sharing!x
that is such an adorable nursery room! love the chalk board idea!
Beautiful, top to bottom! I'm also wondering how that large photo is printed/framed/mounted.
thanks!
SWOON! I love love love that house (apartment?). It looks amazing – cheerful, polished, spot on! Thanks for sharing. :)
Hi………great job and I love the nursery too! While perusing JCP window coverings, I was wondering which
color and top style you choose?
Love the print of your Dad.
I find it very interesting. I guess many readers will love to read this one. I hope to see more articles from you.
Hello all! Thanks again for your comments. Below are answers to some of your specific questions.
@Holiday
The campaign tables (I think those are what you are referring to) are from Urban Outfitters. I love them so much, I have four…one in the living room, one in the nursery and two more in the guest room (in brass).
@kh
The wall color is Benjamin Moore Decorators White. My go to white!
@Emily
I'm not completely sure on the flowers (just something I picked up at my local market, but maybe it is a pincushion flower?)
@Koren
The nursery sources are as follows:
Crib – Walmart Baby Mod Olivia 3 in 1
Dresser – Craigslist
Tufted Chair – Craigslist
Side table – Urban Outfitters
Globe – Thrifted
Art – Collected (I have a lot of art from over the years)
Stuffed animals/toys – gifts (email me if you want specifics on those)
@Art Wall Katie
@e
The canvas of my dad was printed at Canvas On Demand. They did an EXCELLENT job and were very helpful and assuring. I had the photo professionally scanned at high resolution and they took if from there. This specific job is their 1.5" gallery wrap at 55" square. And they have a GREAT guarantee. Helpful for me to pull the trigger on such a large piece. As for mounting, they included mounting hardware, so it was easy to hang. Hope that helps.
@Anonymous
As for the JCP window treatments, I don't have any specifics anymore (I have had them for about six years). One helpful piece is that they are pole curtains, but I pinched them from the back side near the top (with LOTS of rings) to make them look like french pleats…which were too expensive for us at the time.
Hope this all helps! Anne
For curtains you'd better go for http://www.dekornation.com/curtains-and-cushions-drapery-linen/curtains.html
I am trying to re-create the 'squiggly' piece of art hanging to the right behind the sofa as I pause to type this question….mine doesn't look quite so cool. Can you give a resource for that piece of art?
I love everything about these rooms!
Anne, if you are still reading this, would you mind telling me the diameter of your dining table? I would love to be able to fit five chairs around a round table, but I am not sure if I can do that with the 48" that we currently have. Those smaller sized IKEA chairs might be just what we need. Also, if you don't mind me asking, what are the dimensions of the two rooms? They look so similar to my living room/dining room and I am looking for room arrangement ideas. Thank for sharing your story!
@Debora
Sorry for the delay…we added a new family member (baby boy Lewis) to the mix a month ago and we are just getting back into the swing of things.
As for the dimensions…the table is 54" and the rooms are both 12×12.
Hope that helps in your planning and decorating!
Have fun with it.
Anne
Congratulations on the new baby, and thank you for the response!