Another room is complete in our art house makeover — the dining room. Here’s the before and after:

Wow! What a difference! We took everything lovely in the “before” picture and intensified it with all the right elements: an extraordinary dining table made of antique reclaimed wood, custom upholstered dining chairs, and simple, but custom-made fringed curtain panels. This room is every bit as scrumptuous as the many happy dinners that will be served here!

We have our first completed room in the art house!

Our clients closed on this property less than two months ago. Since then, it’s been a whirlwind of activity. We painted, replaced carpet with hardwood floors, re-tiled the master bath and remodeled everything in the kitchen/breakfast area except the cabinets. And that’s just the downstairs!

The family moved in just before Thanksgiving. That began the full court press to find furniture before Christmas. We won’t be 100% successful since we had to order a few pieces, but we’ve made a good start. This is a family that loves to read together, so getting a comfortable, relaxed environment for these book lovers was a priority. Here’s the study before:

And after:

The only new furniture in the room is the fabulous ladder bookcase against the back wall. Everything else came with the family in the move. The lower bookcase holds the children’s books, and the center of the room is kept open so they can sprawl comfortably on the rug while Mom and Dad occupy the chairs. We wish them many happy hours together in their new study!

Phase One of our Art House remodel is complete. Wow! It was hectic, but we managed to get things done in time for the family to move in the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Here’s how the house looked on Move-in Day:

We used Laura Ashley Sage in all three rooms (also upstairs in the TV room) to unify and soften things. Carpet downstairs was replaced with Brazilian Cherry hardwoods, which are already darkening up nicely to blend in with the older Brazilian Cherry in the Living Room. And we used a wonderful Saltillo-style tile  in the entry, kitchen, and backsplash with random hand-painted accent tiles throughout. You can just make out the new granite countertops as well. The best of the original “artsy” touches have been retained and look even better with their new complimentary surroundings.

Next, we’ll add furniture, artwork, and everything else this fantastic family needs to settle in! We’ll keep you posted…

Work is underway to calm down an extraordinarily artistic home where the previous owner, the artist herself, had let her talents roam throughout.

There are so many beautiful details in this home: it has a wonderful country feel even though it sits smack-dab in the middle of Suburbia. The yard backs onto a woodsy green belt full of hiking trails, and there’s a wonderful screened-in back porch complete with squeaky screen door. Inside is detailing throughout:  stained-glass panelled doors, beamed ceilings in one room, beadboard ceiling in another, mosaic floors hand-installed, wrought iron screening along the staircase, hand-weathered and painted baseboards. These are the details we love and want to keep. But each room is faux-painted in its own style and color palette. Great, except that the patterns and colors in one room have little to do with what’s happening in the next.

We’re about to change all that.

Our goal is simple: unify and bring flow to a great floor plan by allowing the best of these custom features to shine while toning down the rest. We want to bring the tranquility that you naturally associate with a country home and do away with all the busy.

Here’s what we’re starting with:

Dining Room Before

In the Dining Room, we certainly want to keep this fabulous mosaic floor and unique crystal chandelier. But we’ll tone down the candy-green wall by softening it to a sage green. And we’ll swap the floral window treatment with green velvet curtain panels we found elsewhere in the home. Not sure about using the distressed white wood rod yet…

Study Before

Here’s the study, opposite the dining room. We’ll be replacing the carpet with Brazilian Cherry hardwood similar to what we have elsewhere in the house and continuing the sage green from the dining room. And we’ll marry the two floors with a wonderful Saltillo-style tile that wears much better than the real thing. Whoosh!  I feel calmer already.

Kitchen Before

Here’s the kitchen. We like the oak cabinets, but we’re bringing our sage green here as well, along with the Saltillo-style tile with a complimentary back-splash including random hand-painted accent tiles. And we’ll replace the Formica countertop with a fantastic granite that has the most incredible blue “teardrops” scattered throughout. Can’t wait to show you the after pics!

The Dining Room Metamorefix we did recently reminded me of some of the other cross collections we’ve done in the past. I love crosses: you can use any style, size, or color combination to create a great design for any wall. Here are a few examples — enjoy!

Here’s a wonderful example of what to do, and what not to do, when you’re decorating the interior of your home.

DR Before

This dining room has all the right ingredients: a nice, big dining table with six chairs, a beautiful, rustic china cabinet to display family collectibles, and a soft, buttery wall color that is very soothing.

Yet the before picture shows a room that is not as inviting as it could be. In fact, it has an overall busy look that can make diners want to eat and run.

For starters, the items in the display cabinet have no rhythm to them. There is no unifying theme that makes this a dining room display. The story is there — it just hasn’t been revealed yet.

And the wonderful collection of crosses is on the wrong wall. It fights whatever  could be happening in the cabinet, and is half-hidden behind the double doors, which are usually opened.

DR After

We “Metamorefixed” this room by giving it a strong focal wall, highlighting the best pieces in the cabinet, adding air to enjoy them, and topping it with the cross collection. The crosses are laid out in a pattern that is both strategic and asymmetrical. The family can continue collecting, adding crosses one at a time either end of the display, eventually extending the collection down the sides of the cabinet.

And that brass light fixture? Not to worry — it will be replaced as soon as the budget allows. But I think I need to warn you that brass is starting to make a comeback…