It’s been one heck of a week, amiright? With everything coming to a screeching halt and so much worry about illness and incomes, I thought it’d be nice to share a very colorful and happy living room makeover I helped an awesome client accomplish recently. Maybe it’ll give you some inspiration for your own home, where you will likely be spending much more time than usual in the days to come!
My client bought a rambling ranch-style home in West Meade with a whole lotta potential. The previous owner had already opened up the space a bit and renovated the kitchen. The adjacent space was ripe for a living room makeover. My client has a love of color and eclectic antiques, which makes her one of my favorites! She’s easy to design for, as we have similar personal tastes. Let me show you where we started:
before
She had some interesting family pieces we wanted to use, but we had to determine whether to reupholster the existing sofa and chair or to simply replace them altogether. My client decided we should look for some new upholstered pieces, since a pair of chairs (which she didn’t have) would be ideal with a sofa. We chose a brilliant blue sofa with sloping arms, then added a pair of patterned club chairs.
after
There are two focal points in this room: the fireplace and the front window – I wanted to make sure the conversation area centered on both.
before
I wanted to use the bold vintage oriental rug that my client owned, so we chose a more subtle pattern on the new chairs.
after
Rather than remove the outlets for the television,
before
we simply found a lovely piece of art to cover them up! And don’t you just love the gold metallic coffee table?
after
One more before and after from another angle:
before
I love how this living room makeover turned out SO MUCH. So much charm and character, and a great mix or new and old. What ties it together? Symmetry and repeated black and gold finishes.
after
The new things we purchased for this living room makeover include the sofa, pair of chairs, drapery panels and rod, pillows, coffee table, art, mirrors, side table, and lampshades. Oh, and of course, paint! I love it when a client has interesting personal furnishings and decor that we can use as a jumping off point for a “new” design.
I hope you like this colorful living room makeover as much as I do! What’s your favorite thing about this space?
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What a beautiful room. It looks so light and airy now even with some big pieces in there! Their rug is gorgeous and CV olive the whimsy of those vases on the mantle. I’ve never seen anything like them before!
Aren’t those vases the coolest? Definitely oriental in design – they were passed down from a family member!
This room is so gorgeous, Kristie! I love your client’s rug, and the pair of chairs is perfect!! The vases on the mantle are definitely a smile 😃. I also like the dark ceiling I see in one of the adjacent rooms.
Thank you, Joanne! The ceiling you see is in the dining room – I paired an emerald green with the new minty green walls. Those vases make me smile, too 🙂
looking for a high quality upholstery shop in Metro Nashville. I have had a terrible time finding someone that does decent work. Thanks!!
Me too. Would love a couple of upholstery suggestions!
Thanks in advance.
Cool Springs Upholstery
Those yellow tulip 🌷 holders! So fun & colorful. And tell me I can buy that sofa outside of Nashville. Swoon. And thank you for this delightful diversion.
Michelle, the sofa was from a local retailer in Nashville called Bliss Home. I think there are two other locations in the south.
This is beautiful! I love colorful rooms! Putting the lamps in front of the mirrors is an interesting choice. It looks nice, but I’ve never seen that done before.
Thanks, Cheri! Mirrors behind lamps are a great way to reflect more light into the room. I do have to say: they should have been hung lower, about 4 inches from the dressers that sit below, but my client’s father hung them with some huge anchors before I was able to.
Kristie, this is so beautiful! I’m not sure what is my favorite, but I think it’s the front wall window. The drapery is so fresh and light, and the two furniture pieces on either side of the window are truly gorgeous. Love it all!
Thank you, Sheri! We were able to do drapery panels and pillows in that pretty fabric. I have that same fabric in a different colorway for my bathroom shower curtain!
This room makes me SO happy. It is a joy to work with you in making my house a happy home. Everyone that comes over loves your design in all the rooms and always has kind comments. Thank you for sharing!!
Yay! So glad to hear that, Katie! When I was looking for something pretty and happy to post about, of course this room came to mind. 🙂
Very pretty. Curious, where did the tv end up?
Love it! The dressers flanking the window is my favorite part. Well, also the blue sofa. I can’t say no to a blue sofa! 🙂
Fresh and Fabulous! Would you mind sharing that wall color?
Thanks!
Thank you, Wendy! This wall color is from Benjamin Moore’s Historic Collection. I’ll message you.
Oh my goodness! I love everything about this room!! It’s amazing what a change in wall color can do! It is such a happy room. I love the interesting decor on the mantle with the tulips.
Thank you very much, Karina!
Just fabulous.
The rug makes it feel very home. I also really love that tulip stem coffee table so it doesn’t take up too much room or block things off.
Woah! Very simple makeover but it’s stunning. Thanks for sharing this. I’m looking for design ideas in internet and I found this treasure gem here. This will be my guide to my home makeovers. Thank you so much!
One of things I find very interesting about your design work is how you integrate both old and new. I think this creates so much interesting detail in your spaces; every space is different and has an element of freshness. You don’t have a “formula“ approach that can make spaces look a lot alike. This is a welcoming and lovely living room. Also, I like it when you tell us some of your strategies in designing. A little gem in this article: “What ties it together? Symmetry and repeated black and gold finishes.”
Thank you, Susanne! Two things I love are creating a very personalized design for every client and educating others as to how to make their houses more like home. My favorite projects are those where my client has a love for old homes and decor with history!
Hi Kristie,
I’ve missed your emails! Hope everything is back to normal soon. I am helping my daughter decorate a room with a similar wood floor and indigo blue couch. Can you share the paint color and trim color? They look so crisp and fresh together! The room you designed is so lovely. It makes me happy just looking at it!