Do you have a problem room?

We all have them, those rooms that defy all you know about design, and just continue to go about their merry way creating problems no matter what you do with them. I managed to create a monster a quarter of a century ago right  in the middle of my house because  my mind was focused on other things at the time. I've spent the intervening  years trying to make my dining room "right" by my standards - I haven't achieved that yet. 

No one has ever walked into my house and said "OMG, what a mess this dining room is."  So what's wrong with it  in my eyes?

Location:  When you're standing in my entry  you look directly into the dining room.  The archway frames the table and the window.  It is also a walk through space from the living room  on the right  to the kitchen which is to the left.

 

There is an alternate hallway beside the stairs, but we never go that way. My dining room is the room in the middle with no identity. Because the walkway needs to be maintained  only half the room is really accessible for  the table - problem #1.

I noticed another problem when I looked at this photo but it was easily fixed. Can you spot the fix?

Across from the table looking  toward the front porch. 

Top art work by Angela Antle and bottom by Anita Singh

A second artwork was added to connect with the chair below it. Doesn't that look better?

Furniture: The dining room buffets, table, and chairs were handcrafted, especially for me, by my man who can do anything.  The set has that "casual contemporary with a nod toward mid -century modern look" that I love.    The scale and style fits the room and the buffets are nicely tucked away behind the table.  Have you noticed problem #2 yet?

A rather dark  view  from the living room.  Thankfully the railings aren't that orange!

You're right! The furniture is the same height as the railing causing your eye to run along the lines and never go anywhere else. I've used all my tricks to make it otherwise, with minimal success. Note all the verticals - floor lamp, tall twigs, candle sticks, vertical artwork, accentuated vertical windows in living room.  The strength of the horizontal lines and the preponderance of wood wins out every time.

Flooring and railing
Problem #3
The aged oak is so orange- my least favourite tone in wood. Because I can't rip it all up or throw away the furniture, I've decided to embrace the orange  and pick it up in interesting art works that also have lots of purples and blues to tame down the orange.  

Problem #4 

Because the furniture is in one half of the room, there isn't enough space  for an area rug which would keep the furniture from blending into the floor.  If I wanted to use an area rug I would have to cover most of the floor, but that would mean vacuuming;  I would rather use a dust mop! 

Problem #5

I have a love/ hate relationship with the railing.  It is solid wood, has a good design and fits with the age of the house and our design aesthetic. I have strong feelings about maintaining "period "architectural detailing and the railing is necessary because the living room is sunken.  But it is soooo difficult to ignore that orangey railing..  It didn't look like this in 1986.  Time ages wood to either orange or yellow especially when treated with oil based products.  

 

Lighting 
Problem #6

The light fixture was an impulse buy  because I liked the lines,  but its scale is too small, and it is hung too high in my efforts to make sure you could see the painting at the end of the room.   As an artist, art always takes precedent over every other design  decision in my house.  This often leads me into hot water.

Wall colour 
Problem # 7

You may be thinking at this point why doesn't she have the walls pained a cooler neutral.  Can't happen because the living room, where most of the light comes from, is north facing and the house next door blocks off any light in the dining room.  Both rooms are dull and cold.  The living room is  Elephant Tusk OC 8 Benjamin Moore and the dining room is Light Khaki  BM 2148-40.

Window treatment
Problem #8 
I love these back tab drapes for the subtle design and their softness,  but the necessity to crop them to allow for the buffet further emphasizes all the horizontal lines. I also think I should have a window treatment that covers the window in some way so you can't see the wall of the next house with is very close to the window and certainly not interesting.

Matching set 
Problem # 9
I have an aversion to matched sets of furniture and here I am living with just that. Matching always looks so uninspired in my eyes and gives the appearance of laziness.  Like you couldn't be bothered to put the room together.  Yes I like a curated room and I have a bundled set!

I'm sure if I really tried I could find a Problem 10.  Many of you may feel it is the lack of cove mouldings, but that again is not part of the architectural details of the original house. 

 Well that about explains the problems. Who knew there was so much wrong with my dining room?  Most of my friends would be very surprised by this analysis!  In the next post I'll look at some possible solutions.  If you have anything to suggest that might help with my design dilemmas, I'd love to hear from you.

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What a coat of paint can do!

I love eclectic pieces of furniture rather than matched when I decorate my own home. Sometimes I paint these finds and other times  I strip the original finish and create a custom wash . 

  We recently had to replace this green washed oak  dresser in our summer house when we relocated  it  to our newly renovated master bedroom  in town (that will be another post).

We bought this gem  at  Habitat for Humanities Restore for $20 dollars when it passed my husband's structural integrity test being  pronounced solid and square with good sliding drawers. Sometimes being married to a wood worker can become tiresome.  I liked it  because it had great lines. 

 The walls of this bedroom have been  Ben Moore Revere Pewter for ten years.    I wanted the ocean view  to be the focal point so I choose a colour for the dresser  that was just a little darker than the walls.

  I sanded liberally and primed with Ben Moore Advance Primer.  The colour is  Ben Moore CSP upper west side (Aura). I love this gray as much as I love Revere Pewter.  I think Revere Pewter is the perfect gray so that is quite a standard to match. I'm still debating painting the legs. They blend in with the floor and the tips are gold.  My current feeling is leave them because gray would accentuate the gold tips.  

I have to admit that the knobs and handles  purchased at Home Depot cost 4 times the price of the dresser, but they were a must to keep the mid century modern feel of the piece. 

You have read this article Benjamin Moore / furniture / painted furniture / revere pewter / upper west side / washed wood with the title Benjamin Moore. You can bookmark this page URL https://betweenbuildings.blogspot.com/2012/08/what-coat-of-paint-can-do.html. Thanks!

Benjamin Moore colour of the year

My favourite paint brand is Benjamin Moore and I follow their colour forecasting closely.  As a professional  I need to know what's current in the industry so I can discuss colour  intelligently and also have a sense of where the industry is headed.  Colour forecasting  also affects fabric design, accessories and furniture.  

 . This year Benjamin Moore's colour  of the year is ....

 

   Tobi Farley

This is not a new colour,  but a refocusing from the current collection based on the opinions of groups of designers in the industry. I've always been attracted to greeny blues because they remind me of the ocean on a summer's day.  They are restful and inviting.  If you like a serene environment this is the colour for you.

 Chelsea Textiles

  This chest of drawers is an all time favourite of mine.  It is washed with a colour similar to wythe blue.  Hubby may be building a knock off version for night tables for my bedroom reno. Too many ideas....

Home Decorators

I spied this vanity last year and fell in love with its lines and colour.  Don't you agree that colours similar to whyte blue are excellent choices if you want to paint a piece of furniture? This would also be an excellent colour choice for a bathroom.

 

 This is a daring mix but this orange is certainly a winning combination with wythe blue. Complementary colours are always so invigorating.

 Hawthorne Threads

A similar colour combination to the one above but this time in a fabric. This lively print has so many possibilities.  It would be fantastic stretched over a frame and hung on your wall or made into pillows.  

Color Chats

These would also make good combinations with wythe blue. French press and deep ochre show that wythe blue would look good with wood tones.  Of course gray is always an option for every colour as is white.

 This vignette is a calm as the fabric above is energetic.  It  gives you an idea of how lovely wythe blue would look with soft white or cream....

The Sweet Survival

or  with yellow.

Houzz

Painted cabinets are all the rage now and what better colour to use? While this is darker than wythe blue you get the idea.

 3 Meadow Lake Cottage

If you like a  country look or have a country house, there's no better colour to choose .

I'm getting carried away with the bits and pieces rather than whole rooms.  But that's really my message.  If you don't want to paint a whole room wythe blue you have lots of options to use is as an accent.

houzz

 And here are the colours in  the Earth and Sky palette.  Do you have a favourite combination?

Doesn't this lovely quilt I saw on etsy sum it all up?  Stay tuned for several posts on colour for 2012.

You have read this article Benjamin Moore / colour trends / furniture / wythe blue with the title Benjamin Moore. You can bookmark this page URL https://betweenbuildings.blogspot.com/2011/12/benjamin-moore-colour-of-year.html. Thanks!