Liz's Living Room

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Hello Christine,

I was so happy to find your blog.  I would love your advice for my house.  We just finished a green remodel of our house.  We are currently looking to furnish the great room.  I was hoping to find 2 chairs to face the sofa with a coffee table for the center.  I really like this coffee table.. but it seems it's only 17 inches tall and 16 inches wide.  I think it pulls in the exposed beam in the ceiling.  I really want something without sharp edges or glass ( I have a 18 month old).   I was thinking that it might be best to get 2 chairs with a bold (yet not overpowering) pattern... maybe a dark teal damask or something.  Have you seen any reasonably priced accent chairs anywhere?  I have used all Benjamin Moore colors for the walls.  The great room is painted "Mellowed Ivory".  The office through the french doors is "Mill Springs Blue", and the family room is "Palladian blue".  All trim, doors, and ceilings are "White Dove".  I have attached pictures.

- Liz

Hi Liz.  First let me address the coffee table.  It is too small.  You could get two of them - but I would not do that if you get two chairs.  The two and two thing is less than ideal.  It also looks pretty "ouchy" for an 18 month old.  :) 

Consider instead a tufted ottoman.  They are tight enough to add a tray for beverages, but soft enough to learn how to walk around.  (overstock.com)

 I do appreciate your idea of repeating te finish on the beams- but you can do that in and end table, and/ or accessories, like this tray from Uttermost:

Now for your two chairs.  Teal damask is pretty specific.  Even just Teal is hard to find in a pre-made chair.  That would be no problem if you had not added the phrase "reasonably priced."  You could always have a fabulous set of chairs made for you in a fabulous fabric like the one below from Lee Jofa:- but you might not consider that "reasonably priced". 

 I tried to find some well priced chairs for you- without a lot of luck.  The one below is definitely more of a turquoise.    

This chair is from CSNSofa.com.  $249.  I found this manufacturer when I had a client interersted in a chair in the Macy's furniture showroom.  The chair had a name on it- the Jasmine Chair.  I thought I'd google it and sure enough I found the same chair from CSN for a much lower price. It iwas a very comfortable chair by the way- and a fun style:  (but doesn't come in teal)

I also like to check out homedecorator.com  I liked this chair quite a bit:

The leaves do have a teal:

I am far from an expert on great sources with low prices.  I am more of an expert on fabulous sources and who cares what the price is. So- here is where I'd like some help from all of you- if someone asked you where to find a great chair at a reasonable price- where would you send them?  What are your favorite sources?  Let's share.  :) 

The Super-Large Ottoman

Hi Christine,
I just found your blog today and have loved reading some of the posts. You are very generous to share your wonderful talents with so many people! I am looking for a big upholstered ottoman for my family room. Do you have any ideas as to where I could find one? I have looked at the usual places but I want one even bigger than the ones in Ballard Design or Pottery Barn. I have a couple in some of the pictures you have posted about ottomans that I really like. (see here) Any ideas?Also, do you ever get out to the east coast (specifically D.C.) ?
Thanks,
Chelsea

Hi Chelsea-

Your question was an easy one. When looking at furniture from companies that pre-make their furniture- or have a limited product line- it might be hard to find. However- in reality- it isn't hard to find at all. Chances are any of your major upholstering lines have one available- or will customize one to the size you need. I checked with Bernhardt first and found the one above at a 71.5 x 41.5. It is the Blaise Ottoman. I am sure that similar large sizes can be found from other upholstery lines.

You will need to shop at a furniture store like "Macy's" rather than "Z-Gallerie" for a larger selection.

Do I ever go to t D.C.? I haven't lately- but for a price- I travel. :)

Thanks,
Christine

photo from country living

Q. and A. Period- Ottomans and Coffee Tables

Ottomans and coffee tables. Can you have both? When do you do an ottoman and when to you do a coffee table?
- Aly sun

Aly sun,

Start by taking this quiz:

1. Do you have other hard tables in the room?

2. Do you have fewer than three patterns in the room?

3. Would you increase your textural variety the most with a coffee table or ottoman?

4. Would your use of the room be most enhanced with a coffee table or ottoman?

So- starting with #1- Do you have other hard tables in the room? If you do not- use a coffee table. You will add variety in your surfaces this way.

#2- Do you have fewer than three patterns in the room? If this is the case- an ottoman can be an opportunity to add pattern.

#3- Would you increase your textural variety the most with a coffee table or ottoman? Remember that coffee tables can be wood, metal, glass, ceramic, wicker... Do you have all leather furniture? Perhaps the textural variety you need is in a fabric ottoman...

#4. Would the use of your room be most enhanced with a coffee table or ottoman? Are you more likely to want to set a glass down, eat lunch and play chess at your coffee table, or do you want a soft place to put your feet up?

Can you use both? Of course. I posted a number of photos where there are ottomans and coffee tables. In larger rooms- this is a great way to fill space. Make sure you leave ample room for walking through the room- sometimes there simply isn't room for both. There are, of course, tables with ottomans below them for situations like that.

So- what kind of person are you? A coffee table person? An ottoman gal? Sometimes the decision is also made by trying for a certain style. Take the room above for example. There is an airy feminine feel to it that is enhanced more by mauve ottomans than a coffee table.

Check out this room above- a sofa, four chairs, two matching- two not, a coffee table, two small and one large ottoman, a sectional, and four non-matching occasional tables. I look at rooms like this and wonder if they were designed this way- or emerged over time. What do you think? Do you like the eclectic nature of it? Is it too much for you?

Betsy in Maine Part II

Today's post is a continuation of yesterday's on Betsy from Maine's beautiful old home. Yesterday I went over furniture arrangement. Today I wanted to go over some specifics.

1. Ottoman. Add an ottoman in front of the sofa. This room – because of its shape makes it hard to have a conversational furniture arrangement. Essentially- the sofa is by itself- and the two chairs and desk area a separate element. The sofa with an ottoman is a more pleasing combination than the sofa with a coffee table- because it is by itself. Does that make any sense? The ottoman above is from Wisteria.
2. Drapes. I would say audios to all of your window treatments. Radiators are so annoying. If you just had a shorter one- you could do full length panels in the living room…. But- assuming that you don’t want the expense of changing that- I would put in woven wood roller shades and patterned Roman shades- layered. You could also reverse that and have a sheer roller shade underneath- with woven Roman shades on top… Or- you could have wood shutters- try to keep them consistent with the style of the home- not looking all vinyl. Use the same material to add drapes in the dining room. Have them drawn to the side, the one on the left to the left, and the one on the right to the right. Keep the roller shades in these windows.
3. Empty your display area. Then re-introduce items very deliberately. This is not a library- it is your living room. Notice that I referred to it as a display area- not a bookcase. Fly me to Maine and I will re-do it for you. My ancestors are from Maine- I would love to visit again.
4. If you leave the area in front of your radiator blank- it throws the room a little off balance. There is only about two feet that you can use without cutting off your traffic flow from the dining room. You also want to keep air flow around the radiator pretty open. I added a desk. (again from Wisteria) I would put a little stool under it- you could use it for many different things- from a lap top to letter writing- to game playing.
5. Your rug. I really like your rug- it is beautiful- and the current size looks good- what doesn’t work is having a rug that has a pattern that tells people where the center is. The focal point of the room is the fireplace. The visual center of the room should be the fireplace. Your fireplace, however, is not centered- so the center of the rug lines up with the right side of the fireplace. It makes the room feel off balance. Get a rug without a center pattern. This could be any rug with an overall pattern- or a rug void of a traditional pattern- like a sisal rug- shown in the pictures above.

I hope you can get an idea of the look I have in mind for your place. With such a pretty home to start with- I am sure it will turn out wonderfully. Especially if you do absolutely everything I told you. ;)

Thanks, XOXO

Christine

Room photos crom Country Living

Kathy's Fabulous View

Today's post is a continuation of yesterday's.

Hi Christine,

I built this house and just moved in in June. I think some of my choices have been good so now I'm terrified to ruin it with the decor!! Several concerns but the main one is the great room. The view out the sliders is awesome. It's a protected marsh with tons of wildlife activity and changing vegetation so I didn't want to put furniture in front of the sliders...The problem is I also have the fireplace focal point and the tv wall. Maybe the sectional should have been a sofa? (your sectional is good.) I like the style with nailheads, etc. but what do ya think? I think I still have 30 days to decide...

The rug will go. I was thinking of perhaps a huge round braided rug?? Very very open concept, so do another of the same in the dining??

There is another weird wall between the kitchen and dining room. I'm returning the painting you see there because I think it's too pizazzy and orange for my taste but I could be talked into it. Your thoughts?? Maybe a photo wall template there? The ficus is pathetic I know.. may come back but not sure!!

For the windows I was thinking woven wood for the back dining room, and possibly off white shutters on just the bottom half in the breakfast. Notice the stained glass panels in the top half... Then my question is, should the two angled windows in the kitchen be the same as the breakfast nook or woven wood like the dining? For the sliders do you think just curtain panels? A woman from Budget Blinds came today and left a few samples see attached. Oh yeah, does the foyer window need to match the sliders? Roman shade there?

Hope this isn't way too much to take in. I'd love any tidbit of advice on any of these questions that you choose!!

Thanks,
Kathy

Hi Kathy,

I'd like to start with your rug. First of all, I want to say that I love the idea of the braided rug, and I love Capel. They are a great manufacturer. With that said, I don't like the mostly red with your leather color. I didn't include all of the fabric samples that you included- but I will say that I didn't really like them either... (hopefully I am not telling you this after you already had drapes made...) Your view is amazing!!! (the picture above is her view!!!). I would keep my interior colors pretty neutral- and play up the color of your view. I also thought your fabrics that were shiny were all wrong. I would stay with the feel you have going now- which is very nice- more casual. I also thought that a square or rectangle rug would be better than the oval. (most of their colors come both ways.) The rug I selected for you is below- from Capel- in a square.

Should you have all the same rug throughout? Most of the time I say- absolutely not- but with braided rugs- you could if you want to- but still don't have to. The rug I selected for you below is also from Capel. You could do something like this in your entry or dining area. You want consistency in style- as in casual- not formal----- BUT- you want it different in style- as in don't have multiple braided rugs that are all different colors... So- does that make sense? The same style- but different styles. I am sure that is coming off perfectly clear.

For your drapes- I suggest panels- Check out the plaid below from Lee Jofa. I think it is beautiful. See how subtle I am creating the color pallet?

I am not a fan of the leather ottoman right by the leather sectional. I would re-upholster- just the top of it. I know that leather is very practical- but textural variety is more important. :) This black fabric below from Robert Allen is my suggestion for the top of the ottoman. It would not have a stark contrast with the sides- and brings in the browns. The plaid above brings in some black- so we are all tying together here.

I selected a new floor lamp for you- Uttermost- there is more texture needed in your room. Your room is too smooth.

Good call returning the art- it is a cool piece- but I wouldn't select it for your place. Below I have a few wall decor ideas for you- from Uttermost.

Overall you have a great look going- work with it- not against it. Remember that your focal point is your view. Your other items should add interest and texture- but not try to compete with the view.

Thanks,

Christine