Wednesday, January 18, 2012

One Room Challenge


When Linda of My Crafty Home Life invited me to join in a blog challenge of redoing a room in my home, I thought, hmm, I have just the room!  My dining room has never really felt right.  Yes, I know I just finished it like three months ago.  I did it wrong. Now I'm redoing it.

It currently looks like this:




There's two problems with this room.  First, this room is always cluttered.  The overall sense in this room is one of "stuff".  The curtains feel crowded.  The picture ledges, although one of my favorite things in the room, also contribute to the sense of "stuff".  I took the curtains down this weekend, and already the room feels more open.

The other major problem in the room is the color scheme.  I tried to make it "coordinate" with the rest of the downstairs.  And it does.  But I think I'd rather it coordinated differently.  Although I love the pale Gossamer blue on the back door, on the china cabinet it just seems....meh. It has no punch, no verve, no get-up-and-go. Bo-ring.  I stepped out of my comfort zone of jewel tones...and I got something I don't particularly like. I don't hate it, but I don't look at it and think ooh! either.

Last problem: we are moving when our lease is up in June, so I am reluctant to do anything in this room that is not free or can't come with us. My budget is miniscule, except for the hardware I splurged on from Anthropologie for the china cabinet.

Here's my moodboard.  If you remember my old moodboard for this space when we first moved in, you might think this is a bit redundant, and I probably should have followed it the first time around.

The Richloom Lucy Eden fabric will be covering up the glass in the china cabinet.  The china cabinet will be painted a deep, cobalt blue.  The mother of pearl and gold knobs from Anthropologie will replace the long skinny hardware, although the drawer pulls will be staying.

For the windows, I took down the curtains, and will be putting up pelmets with a greek key trim.  I have some white fabric left over from another project, and red ribbon, so this project should be inexpensive.

I have a brown chair that will be getting a makeover, probably in yellow.

I plan to make some silhouettes, and an as-yet-undetermined piece of art for over the sideboard, perhaps something like this colorful woodblock piece.

Follow along for the next six weeks as I and fourteen other bloggers complete a one room makeover.  Check out all the other rooms:
Saved by Suzy
Dutch.British.Love
Trapped in North Jersey
Nicole Scott Designs
Kim Macumber Interiors
Rue de Emily
The Pink Pagoda
refresheddesigns
Nana Moon Shop
Taylor Morgan Design
Insideways
My Crafty Home Life
House Four
Living Savvy
(A Lifestyle Thing)






14 comments:

  1. I LOVE that fabric! Where did you find it? I have the exact complaints about my dining room. It makes me feel sad when I look at it. We also have a similar style in chairs. Good luck!

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  2. I do agree the room is a little cluttered... BUT I love it! I think the china hutch is going to look fabulous in blue and I am now adding the fabric to my must have list!!!! I am in the same boat... I will be moving into a house that I own {currently renting too} in September so I don't want to spend any money on something that will just stay here! It is going to look great! {hugs}

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  3. Can't wait to see what you do in here! The pelmets will be awesome, they'll not only be pretty but help draw your eye up making the room look larger!!

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  4. I can't WAIT to see the blue china cabinet! And I love your fabric choice. Great challenge to create something you can take with you...can't wait to see how it turns out.

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  5. Can;t wait to see your china cabinet. I just have to say that I'm pretty jealous of your dining room chairs. They are amazing!

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  6. You've got some great ideas Lisa. I love the fabric and the hardware. Looking forward to seeing it all come together into something that is much more "you."

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  7. It's going to look amazing! Can't wait to see the progression!

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  8. Love your moodboard for this room. Looking forward to seeing your progress!

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  9. Oh how fun! I can't wait to see the end result. I love the direction you're going in.

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  10. I love the bookshelves and that they are in the dining room is a beautiful thing! I am glad you are not doing away with those. Look forward to seeing the progress. Visiting via Saved by Suzy.

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  11. Lisa, LOVE all the shelves in your space. LOVE the chevron blue fabric on the yellow chair in your inspiration photo log and LOVE your current blue hutch in your room. Looking forward to following you on this one...

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  12. I love the cobalt blue you've picked for you china cabinet, can't wait to see the change - deep blue is one of my favorite colors. Love the hardware you've picked out too. Looking forward to following the progress on the room!

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  13. I think you're totally totally right about the curtains. I actually love the picture frame shelves! I had a thought... is there any way you could lighten up the dining room table? It might take away some of the high contrast in the room and make it feel a little less busy. Just a thought ;) Good luck!!

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