Karen's Living Room- Finishing off the Space

Hi Christine,
I have a newly painted living room with new couches. I am aware that the current carpet is not a good match and plan to replace it soon. However, I am afraid that it all will all appear too boring! I have arranged the furniture the only way I see possible with such a big piano. And for some reason can't put my finger on what is missing in this room. It just seems to be lacking something, even with the new walls and couches. Any suggestions?

Even though I do not like the current carpet with the new couches, and love this new color with them, I am nervous about creating an uninteresting room.Do you think there is something more I can do? And what do you think of the carpet color with my scheme? Or maybe it is just my wall decor that is lacking??Thank you so much for your expert opinion. I am completely stumped .

Karen

Hi Karen,
You are off to a good start- you are just further from finishing than I think you think you are. ;)

1. 
   Lighting Plan. Where is it? In your living room I see one lamp and one candle- and something on the ceiling- but I can’t tell what it is. You need a plan. A room without light and shadow is unfinished. This is an integral part of a design plan. Check out this post for specifics on how to do that.
2. 
   Texture. You need more textual variety in the room. In my later suggestions- look for items high in texture.
3. 
   Plants. You need some greenery. Real or fake.
4. 
   Fabric at your windows. Because of your built-in you will want to do Roman shades. Anytime you have a very traditional interior – like yours- you are unfinished without a fabric window treatment. To add texture- you could replace your wood blinds with woven roller shades. But the fabric is a must.
5. 
   Coffee table or ottoman. You are not quite done furnishing. It is hard for me to really see- but I would also consider pushing your sofas closer to the piano- leaving room for an end table on one side- and plant on the other. I don’t like them pushed so close to the built-ins.
6. 
   You have too many single items in your wall décor. You need more variety- not only in subject- but also in number. You have four single items and one set of two. The wrought iron piece should be replaced with a larger set of something- like the set of art in this post from Uttermost. Check out this post on variety in wall decor.
7. In your dining room alcove- you need to overlap. The candles and bird cage should come in a little and overlap the picture a bit. This creates one united collection. What you have now are four things with a picture hung above them. See this post on overlapping.

Your carpet selection is very nice- and your paint and sofas look great!

Sonia's Bedroom Part II- the Night Stands

Today's post is a continuation of this one- for Sonia's bedroom- where she asked: "What do I do with the empty wall spaces above the nightstands?"

What would I do? I would add a decorative mirror above each. I feel like different art would compete too much with your horses. Mirrors will not.

Remember to have a little overlap with your lamp shade- don't hang them entirely over the shade.

These mirrors (from Uttermost) range from between 18 and 21 inches square. Anything in there would be a good size.

You could also do four mirrors- with two on either side- like the way the art is hung below. You just want to make sure that you are well below the top of the horse picture- so I would measure it and draw it out before purchasing.

Also- check out this post on decorating the night stand. One thing that would be good to add to yours is a vase of sticks or pussy willows or something like the arrangement below. Add them on the left- away from your plant.

See the pictures above the lamps below? See how they just barely hit the top of the lamp shade? I think they are hung too high. Make sure your mirrors are below your shade by about four inches.

Adding the mirrors will give more balance to your wall, which right now is a little too high centered. You will really like the feel of the addition. Thanks to House Beautiful and Veranda for the photos.

Christine

Allison

Hi Christine.
Before marrying my husband (who has traditional taste), I would say my style was contemporary to almost modern. Now as I age, my taste is changing to traditional contemporary. I love decorating and with a one year old, I really do not have time to do the things I wish I could these days. This wall started with 2 pics....all black of white. I sort of patterned it after Pottery Barn sort of collection of black and white frames. I am torn...I think now it looks like a big mess and need some order....I know how, but honestly, I love my artwork and photographs and need help picking and choosing.
Also, should I stick one style of frame?
- Alison

Dear Alison,
You have four issues with your wall- relationship, scale, repetition and overlap

1. The wall decor above furniture should have a relationship with the furniture below it. You have a good 15 inches between your lowest frame and the sofa. Lower everything.
2. I told Laura this same thing- You need some large scale items. Why? You are not in a hallway. There needs to be some items that can be seen from more of a distance- because of the size and nature of the room.
3. I don't like the single shelf. Repetition is important. If you are going to keep the shelf- get a second one and stagger them. Maybe a smaller one of the same style. (I know that my picture has one clock. I am allowed to break the rules. You are not. :)
4. Overlap. I have said this many times- but you should have some pictures a little behind that lamp. There should be some overlap.

Don't worry about hanging every single picture that you want to hang. Hang the number and size of pictures that will look the best. Should you have just one frame style? No. Not from what I can see of your home. That is the more "modern" look- but your home is more "traditional modern", as you said, and for that- the mismatch collection is better. Draw it all out on graph paper- OR- lay it all out on the floor with some painter's tape showing where your walls and furniture are. This keeps you from too many mess-ups with the nails. You don't want your wall to look like a "drive by shooting".

The wall decor and clock is from Uttermost.

Laura's Wall

Dear Christine,

I recently found your blog and love what you are doing! As a former teacher, I really appreciate the "Decorating 101" lessons you include in each of your posts. I'm learning lots!

I'm hoping to get some advice for my living room, which I've been fussing with for years. I've rearranged the furniture in a pleasing (at least to me!) arrangement, that helps highlight one of my favorite features - the windows. I'm still looking for some blinds for the windows... something with a texture. My biggest sticking point right now is the big, blank, back wall. The wall itself is 11' 4" wide by 8' tall. I know I should bring in some height, but how? I'd love to do a picture gallery with photos I've taken from some of our favorite places. I'm not sure how to balance that out without it looking like a giant wall of pictures. I'd like it to have some variety - art and photos, etc. I welcome your suggestions!

Thank you for your time,

Laura Boquist

Hi Laura,

There are many good ways to decorate a wall like this- I will show you one. This is how I would attack such a wall.

1. Select a few key pieces. I like using a couple of larger pieces that keep the wall from being too busy. They also give the eye something to look at from a distance, as small photos are all a "close up" activity. Add a clock- add some art- add some alternative wall decor.
2. Go asymmetrical. Your furniture is asymmetrical- so your wall decor should be also. That is not always true in reverse. :)
3. Add pattern. You have a traditional interior- and yet, I see very little pattern. I think you are perhaps a scaredy cat. Use all future decorating projects as a way to introduce pattern. Starting with this one. (next I want you to replace your coffee table with a patterned upholstered ottoman...)
4. Fill in your larger pieces with your frames. When you do this all on paper- graph paper- to scale- you will know what size of frames you should get. Don't go too thin on your frames. Too thin will not blend nicely with your larger pieces- you don't want the thicknesses to be too different. Make sure you have overlap with your furniture and lamp. Don't hang everything above these items- remember overlap. It is much easier to design first- then purchase- not purchase first- then design.
   

There you go- the wall is done. What do you think? Any other ideas for Laura?

wall decor from Uttermost

frames from The Import Collection

My Weekend in Tahoe

I went to Lake Tahoe at the beginning of the month and stayed at the Marriott Timberlake Lodge. I wanted to share what I thought about the interior design of the impressive hotel. First of all, I loved the ceiling in the lobby. The design, the beams, the paneling- all very cool. The ceiling fixture, on the other hand, I thought was just "all right." Very "predictable"- and smaller than I would have done.

The fireplace mantle decor- Let me explain what is wrong here. The mantle is only deep enough for one candlestick. This means that the only option is to have them in a "row" rather than a more desirable "layering look." Should the designer have used a thinner candlestick? No- it would have been too small a scale. Do you also notice that there is no "overlap" with the art... This leaves you with four separate items "lined up." It doesn't look good- it certainly doesn't look professional. The solution?

1. They could change the mantle with a deeper one.
2. They could remove the candlesticks altogether.
3. They could replace the candlesticks with two symmetrical items- and display them with a slight overlap with the art.

Think about this before you purchase items- are they too large for "layering?"

I liked the rug and the colors in it. The blue is repeated in the ceiling- and looks great with the wood. The coffee table and the chairs didn't "do anything" for me- but I wouldn't say that they were "wrong." What do you think?
Now this coffee table I definitely did NOT like- and I did not like the row of blue chairs.- I thought the table looked cheap- and the chairs looked sloppy.

This picture was taken from my room. The camera I used was not good enough, as it is not showing how bad the wall color is. It is yellow- which is a tough color- but- come on- this was not a good tone- too "pastelly." I would not specify a color for a HOTEL without seeing it in a pretty large area. I think they should have used "Blond" by Sherwin Williams. Don't necessarily look in the "yellow section" for yellow. Go to the neutral section- and look for yellow tones. So- there you go- the architecture was fantastic. It was a beautiful place- I really should find out how to get the job when they "re-do." I assume they will use a large firm rather than an individual designer though. But- that's probably what they did last time :)- maybe Mr. Marriott will read my blog and hire me- ya think?