Designing Domesticity: dining room

Showing posts with label dining room. Show all posts

Dining Room Progress

It's been a long time coming... we finally got our dining room chairs recovered! Probably doesn't seem like a lot, but we've had the chairs for close to a year now and the fabric since, well, it's also been awhile…clearly, we're all about the baby steps around here. But progress is progress and you can't be mad at that.

Citron overload. Just kidding.

To be honest, it was a lot to take in on first glance, but the coordinating throw pillows (found on etsy for a steal) helped to tone it down a bit. Thankfully.

And obviously help to relate the color to the overall scheme of the room.

Initially, I had my heart set on something more teal or turquoise but the citron certainly pops in this dark, moody space and helps tie in some of the other accessories, like the ginger jars on the sideboard.

Speaking of teal, I found this cute octopus clad vessel at HomeGoods yesterday and I think it's the perfect addition to the table. Yeah for happy finds and for taking the serious level down a notch. No time for a fu-fu dining room. Good thing, too, because I'm thinking she's gonna stay like this for awhile.

You've come a long way, girl. See all our progress here:

black rug

newly upholstered chairs

until next time,

Dining Centerpiece Ideas

Finding the perfect centerpiece for the dining table can be tricky. Especially if it's a space seen often, but rarely used. It must look good at a moments notice, while requiring no maintenance on a daily basis, but also having the ability to be "dressed up" for a special occasion.

The Enchanted Home

Two of my go-to favorites are: Ginger Jars and Soup Tureens.

Both look great alone (as shown above)

source

or beautiful stuffed full of plants or fresh cut flowers.

source

Here's a great example of a simple tureen housing a humble fern, but the combination together makes a huge statement. Of course the tablecloth helps a little :)

source

A sweet and feminine, highly patterned tureen chock full of peonies and hydrangea - beautiful.

Hello, new soup tureen. I have big plans for you. Sadly, those plans do not involve my home, but I know you will make a certain someone very happy.

until next time,

A Delicate Lady

If you hadn't already guessed that my next post would feature the new chandelier in the dining room, spoiler alert: here it is.

The sun finally came out after what felt like weeks of clouds and I snapped a couple of pics of our new delicate beauty in the dining room. Quite the change from our last fixture…so much so, it's taken awhile to get used to her (undeniably feminine, don't you think?). The smaller profile really shows off the oversized mirror, which I love. Did you know that mirror used to hang in my Dad's medical office years ago? I love pieces with history and a story to tell.

For a serious brass lover, it's a little surprising that I steered clear of that finish, but with the mirror and the lamps already covering that base, adding another layer of the same finish would have been redundant. The lighter, painted chandelier highlights the birds on the corner cabinet and will work beautifully with our new head chairs (once I get them recovered).

Speaking of recovering the head chairs, the fabric arrived the other week. Here it is draped over the chairs, helping to get a sense of how it will all come together. Loving how the citron picks up the colors of the melon jars on the table, but I'm thinking a throw pillow may be in order to break it up a bit. That's a whole lotta' citron! Trust me when I say it does look a little better in person.

Recently, in the comments section, I was asked for my upholster's details; I use Lake Norman Upholstery. I'm always happy to share sources, so please do ask! Make sure to leave your contact details if you'd like me to get back with you (so many comments come through as non-reply email addresses - then I have no way of finding you!)

until next time,

Citron and Spots

Another weekend come and gone, Monday's here again. Was it a good one for you? Saturday, we hosted our first dinner club and pulled out all the stops in the dining room. It's not often I dress up the dining table with a cloth, an ironed cloth and napkins, nonetheless. After the table was set, I was inspired to take a couple of pictures …

She cleans up pretty good, right. It's funny, actually, because we have quite a few changes planned for this room - it's just a shame we couldn't make them happen before the dinner club festivities. Always seems to be the case, doesn't it?

Change number 1: finally reupholstering the head chairs I received from my parents when they downsized a couple of months ago. Read about the chairs here and the fabrics I had chosen at the time. I really had my heart set on a turquoise velvet for the head chairs, but after several attempts resulting in few good options I decided to change direction.

When creating a fabric scheme, I'm a fan of highlighting a smaller accent color, which is how I ended up with this spotty citron beauty. Obviously, citron is a big pop of color on it's own, but paired with the dark jade walls in our dining room - I think it will make quite the statement. I can't wait to see it all come together.

until next time,

Dining Room: Chair Updates

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, I am turning my attentions back to the dining room, which is looking much fuller with the corner cabinet. But, that's not all that's new in the dining room. We also received two new head chairs from my parents, another casualty of the downsize.

The head chairs were formerly found in my parents' breakfast room and were a standard fixture to our nightly family dinners throughout my childhood. I love having them as part of our family dining traditions now, too.

They are beautiful chairs with great details, but there is one clear problem: the fabric has got to go. I just banned the last of our tapestry fabric from the den, so I definitely don't want it in here either.

Armed with a sample of the fabric from our recently recovered dining chairs (for a refresher, check them out here) and headed to my favorite fabric store in Gastonia, Mary Jo's Cloth Store, to see what I could find.

I had a vague idea in mind that I wanted something velvety in either grey (safe), teal (fun) or chartreuse (bold)...

Option 1: animal inspired grey.

Option 2: animal inspired chartreuse and teal.

Boom. This one is bold.

Option 3: grey basket weave.

The basket weave trumps the animal print, option 1 is out.

Option 4: dark teal basket weave.

The teal works perfectly with my existing fabric and the basket weave is super fun, but might be really dark in an already dark and moody dining room. hmmm….

Option 5: light teal velvet.

This is exactly what I was looking for, but it's 2x the price of the others, special order, and now I am worried about stains. The lack of pattern won't be very forgiving when it comes to stains.

Option 4 is the clear winner from this grouping, but is it a strong enough lead to actually make the purchase?

I'd love your thoughts.

until next time,

Dining Room: old and new

Jumping right into it on this fine Monday morning (Monday + bad weather doesn't = a happy camper), I'm just going to tell you straight out…when my parents recently sold their house and mentioned they were going to be "handing down" some of their furniture, the one item I ~~desperately~~ truly wanted was the corner cabinet from their dining room.

Not because my dining room is fairly barren, or because it went so well with my other furniture, or because the interior was already painted in the perfect tone to coordinate with our dark emerald walls … it was simply because I loved the piece. Always had, always will.

So, when my Mom was in town last weekend, we set about coordinating a little display for the shelves. Ok, well, she started it while John and I were out at a movie - but details, details - we finished it together and that's the important part. I must also give credit where credit is due and tell you that she put the disco ball in there. Can you believe it?!?! I certainly couldn't. I actually thought she was joking, but I love it and so it stays :)

It's the perfect unexpected twist in a pretty traditionally formal room.

It's so nice to see my fine china, usually stored away, on display. Along with several other meaningful items like the silver rimmed goblets that a friend gave us many years ago. Each shelf is a combination of seldom used pieces from my everyday blue and while collection like the tea cups and some serving pieces, with salad and dinner plates from my fine china collection, and cut crystal glasses, candlesticks and bowls.

We even managed to sneak in some of my parents hand-me-down old fashioned champagne coupes and red wine glasses. Just like in room design, I love to mix the old with the new to create a unique look that tells a beautiful story.

Thanks, Mom, for all your help.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

until next time,

Flash Sale Lighting

So…remember when I was on vacation at the beach and I posted a little something, something about making a rash purchase during a flash 50% off sale at Horchow.com?

Well, if you don't remember, I did it. Now you know.

And, if you do remember and have been wondering what I was talking about, this is the post for you.

You probably assumed I purchased the light I've been obsessed with lately, but I didn't. I got this one.

Truth? I had been looking at it for awhile thinking about how great it would be for our foyer, but that's about as far as I had gotten.

Then, it magically appeared in my inbox at a great price and I thought - yes, do it! We were at the beach, the sale lasted just a couple of hours - I didn't let that stop me.

A couple of days later, on my door step it arrived.

Imagine my surprise when I pulled it out of the box and noticed just how big it was. Perhaps I should have measured in advance!

Sure enough, we couldn't even open the front door with this light hanging in the foyer. Too big.

Hmmmm….

Change of plans. Looks like our dining room is getting a new light.

Another truth? I was not going in this direction at all - I had planned to find a vintage, french inspired, crystal dowsed, brass fixture. But, I'm loving this light in here. It's fun! It doesn't scream formal dining room, but it's still elegant. Plus, the shape plays so nicely with our foyer paper.

Win-win.

Sure, I could have returned it. But, I like this idea much better.

Remember, always think outside the box. If you really love something chances are you can find a home for it. Even if it's not the original plan.

until next time,

Happy Thanksgiving {Centerpiece}

Thanksgiving preparations are in full swing at our house.

First things first, get to cooking…OR get to decorating the dining room. Yeah, I went with option 2.

I intended to put together the centerpiece, you know, just to mark it off my list of To-Do's, but then I got a little carried away. The next thing I knew, the whole table was set.

Then the camera came out. Of course.

Two things I love for a big sit down celebration: place cards and beautiful centerpieces. Some may think place cards are stuffy and old-fashioned, but I disagree. No more awkward "where should I sit?" chatter or spur of the moment decision making by the hosts. Plus, anything can be made into a cute/fun place card holder, like these sparkly pear ornaments I transformed a couple years ago (here).

I follow the belief that a centerpiece should be tall and thin or low and full. Nothing worse than sitting across from someone and not being able to see them, let alone talk to them.

This year, I'm all about low and full.

I hid a glass 9x13 casserole dish, filled with water, inside a woven basket tray and filled it with eucalyptus, magnolia leaves, berries and other fall foliage. Real fruit, pomegranates and pears, coupled with pine cones and oversized acorns fill out the arrangement.

In other news, our upholster came through in the pinch and delivered our newly reupholstered dining room chairs and bench this week. Loving this fabric, even more now that it's a permanent part of our dining room scape.

We have loads to be grateful for this year: new opportunities that have led to our new home, in our new city, all our new friends and our happy and healthy family.

It's been a great year.

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!

until next time,

Call the Upholsterer

I think it's safe to say that our new black and white dining room rug has set a whole new tone for our Charlotte home. Wouldn't you agree? While this may not be everyone's favorite direction, I love it and was surprised to learn that this very graphic statement won my mom over, too.

I have to say, never in a thousand years, would I have thought the dining room would be my first true focus in the house. Of course, I'm working on the hot pink bedroom as well, but let's face it, I'm not really running the ship in that room. If you know what I mean?

Maybe it's because the dining room in our Chicago house was one of the last big projects we completed. Or, maybe it's because I had fully intended to put our harvest table in this room (similar to our Chicago dining room), which would have created a totally different look. By the by, that fell to the wayside as soon as I saw this color on the walls - it's formal and serious in a way that the harvest table isn't. Happily, the cherished harvest table found another home within our home and we had this table in storage, so all ends well for everyone.

The only unfortunate (or fortunate depending how you look at it) turn of events, is the chairs. The coral plaid just doesn't work with the rug, as I am sure you noticed.

After hearing about Mary Jo's from a couple of very reliable sources, my mom and I decided to make the trek and boy am I glad we did. Any amazing selection and even better pricing. Bonus.

These were our top 4 contenders. I loved them all and wish I could share more specifics with you, but unfortunately, rolls weren't really marked individually other than with pricing.

Initially, I had my heart set on an Ikat, like the one shown here in the top left corner. You know I love blues and greens, but the brown just wasn't jiving for me.

I thought the dark grey background with hints of black on the floral in the upper right corner would play really well with our new rug. Plus, the turquoise and teal tones picked up the color of the walls. But, ultimately, I wasn't sure I really wanted to go floral, again.

The animal print inspired fabric in the bottom right corner was really fun. My mom's pick, in fact. But once the sales lady said animal print, I just couldn't let it go. Am I really an animal print girl? Hmmm...

The geometric in the bottom left corner was the exact color of our dining room walls, but I had real concerns over the pattern playing nicely with the foyer wallpaper and the geometric carpet.

So, which one did I choose?

The floral, of course. I hate to be predictable, put it really did offer the most out of all our selections. It also didn't hurt that it was half the price of some of the others.

Call the upholsterer, these chairs are getting a makeover!

until next time,

The Centerpiece that Just Won't Quit

Remember this centerpiece I created late last year before our dining room remodel? You may not believe it, but it's actually still going strong. With a couple of alterations, of course.

During the dining room renovation, I moved the planter to living room coffee table. Once the orchid finished blooming, I removed it and filled in the space with pinecones and such for the holiday season. Some simple changes helped stretch the arrangement for another couple of months.

This past weekend, I purchased three yellow primrose to make a simple Spring centerpiece for our family birthday celebrations. The harvest table is narrow, so small low profile plants or flowers are a great accent when we set a full table. But, now that it's just the four of us again, I have plenty of room for a big arrangement.

Once again, the big arrangement is back in its rightful home on the harvest table. I moved a couple of plants around, removed the pinecones and added in the three primrose.

I love the bright pop of color from the yellow blooms.

So Springy - it just makes me smile!

So, what about you? Made any little Spring changes around your house?

linking in with:

Brambleberry Cottage

Beyond the Picket Fence

until next time,

Bridging the Gap

I'm just back from a very last minute trip and visit with a dear old friend, who just had her 3rd baby. What a whirlwind {and adorable baby}! So forgive me for only sharing a recent purchase for our dining room, today.

That being said, it's still a pretty amazing mirror that I think really bridges the gap between casual and formal in our new dining space. As per usual, it's not exactly what I had pictured here, but when I found it, it just seemed too perfect to pass up.

The intricate carvings make it feel special, while the mid-toned wood keeps it safely on the informal side. Exactly the look I am trying to achieve.

Before you even ask, I am sure you can guess, I found the mirror at HomeGoods. I swear, you must think it's the only place I shop.

Hung above our refinished eBay dresser, I think they make quite the pair.

Funnily enough, it was actually T's idea to include a lamp in this corner. I wasn't too sure about it, especially this lamp, but it seems to be working. Of course, the collection of candlesticks playing off the straightness of the lamp, help.

So, that's that for this corner.

Hope you had a nice weekend, too. I've got a couple fun things planned for this week, so hopefully I'll be seeing you.

linking in with:

Met Monday

until next time,

How To: Styling Shelves

Here it is. Our newly styled hutch.

As I mentioned, styling shelves is one of my favorite things to work on, but this hutch really had me rethinking everything. So much so that I had to gather inspirational images to help me get to this look.

Our hutch has had a couple looks since we first brought it home, but they never seemed quite right. Too cluttered or too plain. Previously, I chalked it up to working with what I had and not purchasing specific pottery to fit. But, as it turns out, I just needed to re-evaluate my method.

1. Start by adding the big ticket items, anything large that would dominate the space. Like the pitcher, large scale bird, and soup tureens.

2. Next, add your background pieces. Like plates, platters, and in my case these vintage silver casserole covers.

(Remember I'm using what I have!)

3. Then, start adding your filler pieces. I tried to add a variety of pieces for a touch of whimsy and color while varying heights and textures.

Some of my favorite combinations are shown here. My Mom gave me the green platters, which I paired with a couple of salad plates from our formal china.

You know how I feel about blue and green.

A collection of blue and white tea cups and a sweet little bird atop a stack of saucers.

4. The final step, is to add natural elements for further texture. I topped simple white bowls with decorative moss spheres, included a silver bowl of limes, and added large pinecones to a white serving dish.

I've kept the pallet to mostly tonal shades of green and white, with a good dose of well loved, tarnished silver and just a hint of blue. Not too neutral, but not overwhelming with pattern and color. Just enough to keep you interested.

Hope this little step by step helps you with your next shelving project.

Speaking of, with this change of dining location, our former breakfast room has been in need of a new purpose. A new purpose, means new tweaks to our storage shelving. More to come on that later...No shelf space is safe in our home at the moment. It's a shelf-a-palooza!

linking in with:

Shabby Creek

Beyond the Picket Fence

Stone Gable

Shabby Nest

until next time,