Ding! Dinner’s done! Please, come have a seat at the table! It looks kind of like it did before, but better! This room sat in an unfinished state for about two years. Imagine how good it feels to sit and enjoy a glass of wine and a delicious meal here now – without the tools and paint stacked in the corner.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
It’s weird because this room was truly the first one that I started on and I swear it was the last one to be finished. Crazy how that wor…SQUIRREL! Same rich, blue walls, fringed curtains and colorful bird art. I loved the aesthetic. This time around, we have wood floors, a new window and big opening to that lovely kitchen we just came from.
Light, light and more light! Thank you new window and wonderful, large, cased opening to the kitchen. I love my blue walls, so I stuck with the Restorative by HGTV Home by Sherwin Williams. I did remove the chair rail and added some crown molding. Found some really interesting wall paper remnants along the way, felt like Indian Jones, minus the hat. Oh and look up, see those architectural details on the ceiling? You can thank the White House and Executive Office building for the inspiration. After I went on an exclusive after hours tour (just had to mention the exclusive part) I knew I had to follow suit. Every ceiling had some sort of intricate decor element and left my neck sore. After all of the hard work I put in smoothing out this ceiling, I simply couldn’t let it stay bare.
This cased open is like entertaining-essential design. The flow from kitchen to dining room is unimpeded creating a relaxed atmosphere, but it also gives that I-spent-some-serious-hours-over-that-hot-stove-making-this-meal-so-bring-your-manners-with-you feel, right? Being able to take the culinary delights that were freshly prepared on our tropical-island-sized island straight over to the dining table for our beautiful guests to toast over is so awesome! So long as I didn’t over cook the chicken.
The cased opening also makes my dining room feel like a framed piece of art. Maybe not a Renior, but ya know…close. All of the beautiful morning light from the east facing dining room windows flows into the kitchen. Then all of the golden light from the kitchen flows into the dining room in the afternoon. It’s magical.
We received such beautiful china for our wedding and I love being able to showcase it in this room. I should have set my table with it for these photos! At some point, I really want to find a better light fixture, but this one works for now. Maybe a disco ball to make use of all of that light!
Did you notice all of the texture and detail that the tassels on the curtains and heavy fringe on the rug bring to the room? It plays well with the turned legs of the furniture too, doesn’t it? Such a sucker for details…and a man in uniform, thanks Hubs.
Oh, and professional-collector-of-pretty-things tip: Shop museum gift shops for calendars and then use those calendars for art. I purchased the Audubon prints in one of the Smithsonian’s gift shops as a calendar way back in 2002 when I was in Washington D.C. as National Young Leader delegate! My flock of prints is a wonderful collection to have. Get it, flock? Bah! I should probably hang the remaining eight up in here; really make it known that I LOVE those prints.
Usually when we finish dinner, we move to dessert and board games. I’ve got the perfect space to destroy you in Sorry, follow me! I’ll grab the banana splits as we pass through this large opening into the kitchen.
Cheers!
-AA
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